Letter from Lisa: Identity

"It’s suffocating to be a Christian in Pakistan. With very little education and forced to take what work you can find, you become vulnerable to all kinds of discrimination and abuse. Anyone can accuse you of blasphemy, so you have no voice. Your identity is stolen.

Blog by Lisa Pearce, CEO of Open Doors UK & Ireland

Identity theft is an increasingly common experience in our digitalised society.

It’s an issue for millions of persecuted Christians around the world, too – but for different reasons. As the Open Doors World Watch List 2018 shows, in over 50 countries around the world, allegiance to Jesus makes life daily more dangerous. Pakistan, at number five on the list, convincingly demonstrates this.

At the parliamentary launch of the World Watch List and on a subsequent radio interview, Hannah*, a persecuted Christian from Pakistan, powerfully described the day-to-day fear of millions of believers. The high profile case of Asia Bibi, sentenced to death under Pakistan’s blasphemy laws in 2010, has aggravated this. ”In her, we see the situation of the whole Christian community,” journalist Kaleem Dean observed when Asia was nominated for the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. And he’s right – Asia’s experience speaks for the millions who are marginalised, threatened and forced into silence and denied freedom.

It’s suffocating to be a Christian in Pakistan. With very little education and forced to take what work you can find, you become vulnerable to all kinds of discrimination and abuse. Anyone can accuse you of blasphemy, so you have no voice. Your identity is stolen. And there is the very real possibility of losing your life, too. Going to church, especially around Easter and Christmas, can be perilous.

All this shows how desperately our Christian brothers and sisters need us. That’s why I’m so thankful to God for every gift, prayer and voice that shares because, as their family, our support can make a significant difference and bring hope. Through Open Doors’ local secret networks, Christians are able to access education, gain livelihood skills, and know their true identity in Christ. That’s a treasure worth guarding.