Bhutan

Christian students have reportedly been forced to participate in morning and evening Buddhist rituals and in one instance, even in cleaning Buddhist shrines. One house church was forced to close down in 2018 and cease meeting after receiving warnings and threats from the authorities. For security reasons, information on time and places are withheld.

NB! Den engelske teksten vil bli oppdatert til norsk versjon så raskt som mulig.

One of the traditions of farmers in Bhutan is community planting and harvesting, where several farmers share the workload and help each other. Christian farmers are usually excluded from this practice.

Hvorfor er kristne forfulgt i Bhutan?

All Bhutanese citizens are expected to follow Buddhism. Converts to Christianity will be watched with suspicion and efforts are usually made to bring them back to their former religion. Religious leaders, the local community and family often cooperate in this. Apart from converts, many Christians come from the Nepali minority. No churches have official recognition by the state, which means that Christians are technically worshipping illegally. Local authorities often refuse to issue Christians with a “non-objection certificate” – needed for loan applications, registering property, applying for jobs and the renewal of ID cards.

Dominerende drivkrefter

• Religiøs nasjonalisme

Hvorfor har Bhutan endret plassering på listen?

Bhutan drops 12 ranks because scores dropped in every category, including a drop to zero in the violence category, owing to an absence of any reports of violence. This should not be equated to no violence at all, however. 

Hva gjør Åpne Dører for å hjelpe kristne i Bhutan?

Through its local partners, Open Doors provides immediate aid to Bhutanese believers when their faith in Christ leads to imprisonment, excludes them from families and communities, and deprives them of livelihood and employment.

We also strengthen the persecuted church in Bhutan primarily through:

• Prayer support
• Advocacy and awareness
• Persecution preparedness programs
• Literature distribution
• Discipleship
• Literacy

• Pray for believers who violate the anti-conversion law by leaving the Buddhist faith. Pray that efforts to persecute Christians in Bhutan will actually strengthen and unite them.
• Buddhism is Bhutan’s spiritual heritage and has been for centuries, as enshrined in its constitution. Through bureaucratic means, Christians continue to be rejected and persecuted. Pray that the Holy Spirit would loosen the hold of Buddhism on the country.
• Pray for Christian converts who face strong pressure from family, friends, and neighbours to recant their faith. Pray they might be strengthened when facing persecution. Pray that the Lord would soften the hearts of their communities and make them receptive to the gospel.

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NB! Dokumentet er på engelsk