Subscribe

Belarus

Map reflects the 30 most recent Persecution Reports. Click HERE for the Map Legend.

 

 

Belarus Keeps Religious Communities in “Invisible Ghetto of Regulation”

Wednesday, January 30th, 2013

People of faith in Belarus, especially Protestants, struggle for the right to exercise religious freedom.  With so many regulations and rules for the government, it can become impossible to practice your faith. This is exemplified in the struggle of New Life church in Minsk and is a result, in part, of the oppressive Religion Law. One young Pentecostal said, "If we have to get permission to hold a service in our own church, this cannot be evidence of religious freedom."

Victory and Concern for Christians in Belarus, Kazakhstan and Bangladesh

Monday, December 10th, 2012

This article summarizes cases of both victory and worry for Christians in Belarus, Kazakhstan and Bangladesh. While some are celebrating success this week, such as pastor Makset Djabbarbergenov who was released from prison, others, such as a Christian family in Bangladesh “falsely” accused of human trafficking, are still concerned for their future.

Protestants Face Brunt of Autocracy in Belarus

Friday, December 7th, 2012

12/06/2012 Washington D.C. (International Christian Concern) - Protestant Christians in the former Soviet nation of Belarus have faced persecution in various forms since President Alexander Lukashenko heightened restrictions following a wave of revolutions that swept across Central Asia about a decade ago.

Church in Belarus Avoids Eviction

Thursday, December 6th, 2012

For the last ten years New Life church in Minsk, Belarus has been fighting with the government to keep control of their church property.  The church bought and renovated a cow barn and the authorities have refused to rezone the property legally allowing it be a church.  The most recent attempts by the government to shut down this church of 1,000 was an eviction notice that was withdrawn at the last moment.

Belarus: Will the Government Force the Church to Close its Doors?

Thursday, November 29th, 2012

In Belarus, “If a building is not a designated house of worship, advance state permission is needed for religious activity, and anti-Protestant officials refuse to grant it.” This means if you rent, or buy a building zoned as something else you will have a hard time getting the paperwork necessary to change the zoning and will find yourself evicted from your own property. Just ask New Life Church of Minsk. They bought a cowshed in 2002 and State authorities refuse to allow this 1,000 member church change the designation. Instead they have fined them repeatedly and have given them until December 5th to voluntarily vacate their property before being forcibly removed.

Challenging Restrictions, Christian Church Dedicated In Belarus

Monday, May 21st, 2012

While the Soviet Union is no more, Rakhuba says Belarus is not an easy place to be a Christian. He says this celebration was marred by interference. "When we finished our dedication service, police called the pastor and were asking all kinds of questions -- 'Who was there? Why did you do this? We did not [permit] you to do this' -- although we didn't do anything wrong." 

Belarus Prohibits Christian Burials For Executed Prisoners

Tuesday, May 15th, 2012

For more than two years, Svetlana Zhuk has been struggling to find out the burial place of her son Andrei Zhuk, who was executed in March 2010. She has appealed to international human rights organisations, complaining that she had been "denied the possibility to bury my son in accordance with the demands of Orthodox Christianity."

Decades Of Repression Fail To Stifle Church In Belarus

Sunday, March 25th, 2012

Born into an ethnic Polish family in a village in eastern Belarus in 1946, the archbishop (Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz) grew up in a war-torn country with a long history of religious persecution: Clergy were slaughtered, worshippers were forced to convert, and many churches were destroyed.

Belarus Punishes Pastor For Worship Service At His House

Thursday, October 20th, 2011

The government of Belarus fines pastor Aleksei Abramovich for conduction worship service at his home. The pastor said, "We don't interfere with state policy. Our worship meetings are purely religious. It's not a crime if believers worship in my house."

Christian Persecution a ‘Worldwide Emergency’

Thursday, June 23rd, 2011

"The number of Christians who are killed within 100 years, in the 20th century, [it] is more than the number of Christians who were killed in the centuries preceding the 20th century."

ADF Requests Immediate Release of Imprisoned Belarus Christian Leaders

Saturday, May 28th, 2011

Pavel Sieviarynets and Vital Rymasheuski have been imprisoned in a Belarusian Prison for expressing their "views of Christianity". Rymasheuski was sentenced to two years in prison, Sieviarynets was issued three years of hard labor.

Belarus:Christian Threatened Two Years Imprisonment For Not Registering to Worship

Tuesday, May 24th, 2011

Priests denied visit to inmates. Man sentenced two years for failing to register to worship God

Authorities in Belarus Defend Raids on Churches

Saturday, April 2nd, 2011

Authorities in Belarus raided Baptist congregations while members were holding worship services. A government official said that if worship services are held in unregistered churches, then "the authorities have the right to interrupt services."

Belarus: Why can’t derelict church be relocated for worship?

Wednesday, February 16th, 2011

“Officials in the Belarusian capital have refused to allow a derelict historic Pomore Old Believer church to be transferred from a remote northern village where no local Old Believers remain to serve the community in Minsk,” Forum 18 News Service reports.

Belarus: Pastor Fined, Church Bank Frozen

Thursday, November 11th, 2010

A pastor in Belarus has been fined for alleged unsanitary conditions for food served to children at a summer Bible school. The pastor denies the government allegation.

Pastor fined 3 times in Belarus

Friday, August 13th, 2010

"Appropriate permission is needed" cites government as reason

Belarus: Administrative Code changes, but fines continue

Friday, April 9th, 2010

"Despite the removal in February of punishments from the Administrative Violations Code for unregistered religious activity, Pastor Yuri Petrevich, who leads a Protestant church in Grodno [Hrodna] in western Belarus, was fined on 10 March for this abolished "offence", Forum 18 News Service has learnt."

EU Ambassadors Discuss Belarus Threats To Close Megachurch

Saturday, August 29th, 2009

The threat to close the Church is another clear indication of violation of freedom of religion by officials in Belarus.

Church Fined for Holding Prayer Service in Their Registered Building

Friday, July 17th, 2009

A registered Protestant congregation in western Belarus has been fined for activity which officials claim was "not according to its statute."

Foreign Pastor Banned from Preaching, Church Threatened with Closure

Thursday, July 16th, 2009

Belarus has warned a church in the capital Minsk that it could be closed after a foreign pastor preached at a worship service.

Religious Freedom Survey, June 2009

Friday, June 12th, 2009

Survey of Belarusian policies on religious freedom finds nothing has changed.

Largest Fine Yet for Unregistered Religious Activity

Thursday, June 11th, 2009

A court in the eastern town of Osipovichi fined local Baptist Nikolai Poleshchuk the equivalent of almost three months' average salary in the town and another Baptist received a warning for running a Christian street library.

Belarus church told to vacate by Monday

Friday, May 29th, 2009

This church has been the object of continued harassment, please pray for their latest struggle.

Ideology official targets rehabilitation programme

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

A Belarusian Christian rehabilitation programme for alcoholics and drug addicts run by a registered social organisation, Cliff House, has been targeted by an ideology official.

Supreme Court Upholds Registration Requirements for Churches

Thursday, March 26th, 2009

Belarus' Supreme Court has dismissed a challenge to the state's requirement that worship must be registered to be legal.

Danes deported for praying in church

Thursday, February 12th, 2009

Two Danish visitors to Belarus were detained by police and are being deported as they expressed "ideas of a religious nature", in the words of the deportation order.

Charismatic church’s fight pushed back to square one

Tuesday, January 27th, 2009

Members of Minsk's charismatic New Life Church have vowed to fight on to retain their building after the Higher Economic Court threw out their appeal against moves to seize it.

Official Refuses to Give Reason for Expulsion of Church Leaders

Thursday, January 8th, 2009

"The views of the parishioners are nothing to us – he was invited by the Archdiocese, not by the parishioners."

Four Catholic priests and three nuns banned

Thursday, December 25th, 2008

Three Catholic priests in the western Grodno Diocese, and one priest and three nuns in the Minsk-Mohilov Archdiocese face a ban on religious work in Belarus from 1 January 2009.

Why was Protestant bishop deported?

Wednesday, October 22nd, 2008

The Ukrainian founder of one of the largest charismatic churches in the Belarusian capital Minsk was deported on 16 October due to his religious activity.

  • Kids

    Care for orphans and hurting children

    read more
  • Families

    Support wives and children of imprisoned or martyed pastors

    read more
  • Pastors

    Spread the gospel by supporting underground pastors

    read more
  • Women

    Save women from abduction and sexual exploitation

    read more
  • Communities

    Help rebuild communities devastated by persecution

    read more

Other Projects

other projects

ICC is constantly monitoring the state of Christian persecution in countries around the world and looking for ways that we can act as bridge between our supporters and the persecuted church. Beyond the projects you see above, we are working in many other areas to provide practical assistance to our brothers and sisters in Christ. View our other projects page to understand more of our work and keep up to date on our current projects.