Emma Waters
When it comes to the kind of religious persecution men and women face, a lot depends on one’s biological sex.
Just look at Open Door’s World Watch List, which monitors the countries with the highest levels of persecution toward Christians. Its 2024 Gender Report found that, while any faithful Christian may experience persecution throughout his or her life, men and women tend to experience persecution based on the distinct vulnerabilities and nature of their sex.
The worst offenders include nations like North Korea, Somalia, Libya, Yemen, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran. For Christian men in these countries, persecution usually happens in public and often through physically violent means. In some of these nations, it is common for these men to suffer torture, public beatings, beheadings, or other forms of public killing. Smaller-scale indignities for men include the loss of their jobs, workplace harassment, or forced recruitment into militia groups. These torments target a man’s ability to protect and provide for his household.
For women, religious persecution tends to be more multifaceted, subtle, and private. Perpetrators are often close family members. The most common examples outlined in the report include forced marriages, sexual violence, abduction, and psychological or physical violence. Forced marriages, in particular, can be a powerful cudgel that fathers wield against daughters who convert to Christianity.
The report tells the story of one such young woman. After she converted to Christianity, her father locked her in her room for 10 days. “Get ready,” he told her when she was released, “tomorrow you will marry your stepmother’s nephew. I did not raise you right, maybe he will.”
Such an act directly targets a woman’s faith, especially since she is expected to identify with the religious worship of her husband. I saw this firsthand on a mission trip to Thailand, where we were ministering to families in the northern mountains. » Read More
https://www.heritage.org/religious-liberty/commentary/persecuted-behind-closed-doors
