Tags

Council of Churches Baptist

• Church Buildings Demolished Without Warning

  

  As the members of a Baptist church in the city of Urgench began to increase in numbers, they soon found themselves exceeding the capacity of their worship facility. To accommodate the growth, the congregation purchased a plot of land and began to construct a new church building. They had received all the necessary building permits to do so, and other developments were being built around them in various parts of the same vicinity.

• Multiple Raids of Unregistered Gatherings

  

  Police in the Shu district of southern Kazakhstan raided four worship gatherings during the months of March and April, resulting in a total of seven fines being laid. During the raids, officers filmed those who were present and demanded that they provide written statements explaining the reasons for their gatherings. These raids affected the worship activities of three unregistered Protestant churches.

• Books Banned in Luhansk

  

  Authorities in the unrecognized Luhansk People's Republic in eastern Ukraine have banned 12 books, including a popular translation of the Gospel of John, calling them "extremist" materials. The November 26th ban came a week after the Luhansk Supreme Court overturned a ruling ordering the destruction of books belonging to a Baptist pastor. Along with the Gospel of John, the banned books include the main hymnbook used by the Council of Churches Baptists, a regular magazine published by the church group, as well as children's books.

• Raided Churches Ordered to Stop

  

  Three Baptist churches in the city of Taraz have been subjected to raids from anti-terrorism officers in recent weeks. Despite claiming "our laws don't ban praying," officials defend their punishment of those who meet for worship without state permission.