Christian Persecution in Nepal

Christian Persecution in

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NEPAL

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NEPAL

About Christian persecution in Nepal

The Constitution of Nepal (2015) states under Article 26 that the secular government allows Freedom of Religion or Belief. However, evangelism is forbidden because the constitution does not allow converting someone from one religion to another. Tensions arise towards those who convert from Buddhism or Hinduism to Christianity. Even those of no religion cannot officially convert to Christianity.

Across the country, local governments interpret this in various ways. Sometimes they turn a blind eye to Christian practice, but in other places, there is a heavy crackdown on any Christian work. There are also laws against distributing religious literature to children. In 2016, Christian orphanages and boarding schools in Kathmandu were warned that they would be shut down if Christian literature was found on-site. Leaders were also warned not to host Bible clubs or pray with children.

Christians are persecuted on three levels: by Hindu extremists who classify Christianity as a foreign and negative influence, by families or communities who harass and harm Christian family members or neighbors because they are different and by the state, which often targets persecuted Christians out of fear that they are not fully Nepali in any way.

But the main reason persecution is on the rise is that the size of the church has expanded so rapidly. “We are facing a takeover of our culture by India’s Hindu extremists, who characterise Christians as corrupt and subversive, but we know it is really out of jealousy because of the good we do,” said a pastor in Kathmandu,

Leadership:
Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli
Government:
Federal parliamentary republic
Population
31 M
Christian pop.
1 M+

“My church had its windows broken, the inside ransacked, and after I was beaten up my face was smeared with black tar as a sign of disrespect. … I could not stop smiling that I was considered worthy by God to suffer for the name of Christ.”

PASTOR IN NEPAL

History of Christianity

Though Nepal has traditionally been a staunch Hindu kingdom, Christianity arrived in the 16th century. Missionaries were expelled in 1769 when the Hindu King decreed they were polluting the sacredness of the land.

It was only when Nepal became a democracy in 1951 that Christians returned. The faith grew especially after 1990 when multi-party democracy was established. In 2008, the country declared itself a secular republic after centuries of being a Hindu state. Christians have been in the forefront of aid to this deprived and poor land, and low-caste peoples who are looked down upon by Hindu elites turned to Christianity for the dignity it afforded them.

The growth of the church in recent years has been spectacular, with independent Protestant Christians forming the largest group of just over a million, and some estimates put the church much higher than 1.5 million such is the growth.
History of Christianity

About Christian persecution in Nepal

The Constitution of Nepal (2015) states under Article 26 that the secular government allows Freedom of Religion or Belief. However, evangelism is forbidden because the constitution does not allow converting someone from one religion to another. Tensions arise towards those who convert from Buddhism or Hinduism to Christianity. Even those of no religion cannot officially convert to Christianity.

Across the country, local governments interpret this in various ways. Sometimes they turn a blind eye to Christian practice, but in other places, there is a heavy crackdown on any Christian work. There are also laws against distributing religious literature to children. In 2016, Christian orphanages and boarding schools in Kathmandu were warned that they would be shut down if Christian literature was found on-site. Leaders were also warned not to host Bible clubs or pray with children.

Christians are persecuted on three levels: by Hindu extremists who classify Christianity as a foreign and negative influence, by families or communities who harass and harm Christian family members or neighbors because they are different and by the state, which often targets persecuted Christians out of fear that they are not fully Nepali in any way.

But the main reason persecution is on the rise is that the size of the church has expanded so rapidly. “We are facing a takeover of our culture by India’s Hindu extremists, who characterise Christians as corrupt and subversive, but we know it is really out of jealousy because of the good we do,” said a pastor in Kathmandu,