On March 11, 2019, 52 people were killed in a mass murder spree because of their religion.
No, not because they were Muslim like the widely reported New Zealand attack that occurred over a week later.
No, these 52 people were murdered because they were Christians.
But you probably never heard anything about it.
Why does the mainstream media ignore the repeated mass murder of Christians, but report breathlessly when the victims of an isolated attack are Muslim?
Between February and March 2019, before and after the infamous New Zealand attack, seven times as many Christians were slaughtered in Nigeria than Muslims killed in New Zealand.
But there has been no breaking news, no mass media coverage, no candlelight interfaith prayer vigils for the Christians murdered.
Is it specifically because the victims are Christians?
Don’t our Christian brothers and sisters deserve their stories to be told too?
Per the advocacy group Save the Persecuted Christians, there are more than 300 million Christians in the world today facing persecution.
According to the Religious Freedom Report, released by Aid to the Church in Need, Christianity is “the most persecuted religion in the world.”
Yet the mainstream media continues to ignore them.
Nigerian Christians specifically are facing some of the worst persecution in the world and the media is silent.
While the southern part of Nigeria is predominantly Christian and religious freedom is respected, other areas, where Christians are the minority, have been a hotbed for Muslim Boko Haram terrorist activity and Fulani Muslim militia attacks.
Mainstream media have turned a blind eye to the reality of these horrific crimes and many Christians — even while they attend candlelight vigils in support of the New Zealand victims — are completely ignorant to the plight our brothers and sisters in Christ are facing daily in the name of Jesus!
In just the past week alone, Christians were massacred as Boko Haram captured a town in the Nigerian state of Adamawa.
In the beginning of the attack, Father Peter John Wumbadi of St. Anne’s Catholic Church, heard bombs and gunfire so he took six students to flee outside the town to safety.
Once the attack had ceased, he found more than 150 Christians had been massacred, according to the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN).
CBN is reporting more than 300 Christians have been slain in Nigeria in February and March alone as attacks focused against Christians intensified throughout the country.
But why is it only Christian news outlets reporting on this? Where is CNN? Where is MSNBC? Where’s the New York Times and the Washington Post?
Where is the around the clock coverage condemning radical Islam for its hatred and intolerance like it condemns President Trump and his supporters who had nothing to do with the New Zealand shooter?
On the morning of February 14th, 300 armed Boko Haram militants entered a town and murdered at least 40, including many children and women.
In 2018, Nigeria saw a dramatic increase in the number of terror attacks as cited by the Global Terrorism Index and unfortunately, 2019 is continuing the trend towards violence with Nigeria at its highest threat level possible.
Christian leaders throughout Nigeria have called on Nigeria’s President to step in, but as a Fulani Muslim himself, he has refused to take decisive action.
While the Prime Ministry of New Zealand attends vigils wearing hijab, the President of Nigeria is silent as Christians continue to be massacred.
And the silence of the media regarding attacks against innocent Christians is in stark contrast to the mega-media focus on the New Zealand attacks which has received immediate, prominent, and repeated coverage worldwide.
While attacks of any sort based on a person’s religion are unjust and horrific, why does the media remain silent on the attacks on Christians?
Open Doors USA reports that at least 4,305 Christians were killed by Muslim extremists because of their beliefs in 2018 alone, but how many of these murders were covered?
What can be done?
Let’s raise our voices. Let’s make sure that our Christian brothers and sisters are not fighting battles alone!
Let’s share these stories far and wide on social media, on Facebook and Twitter.
Share this article right now to highlight just how absurd the media bias is against Christianity.
Let’s send letters and make calls to news organizations demanding their attention.
Let’s petition our government, and insist that our tax dollars are not subsidizing countries where this kind of persecution is happening!
Let’s give generously to organizations that can provide boots on the ground to help support our church where it’s needed most!
Let’s not allow what Satan clearly wants: the world to turn a blind eye to the assault being perpetrated on Jesus believers worldwide!
Most importantly, let’s add our persecuted brothers and sisters to our prayer lists. Let’s get on our knees and beg God for intervention and for them to feel the strength He can provide.
We know that as Christ followers we will be tested.
As Peter revealed in 1 Peter 4:12 “Do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you.”
We must keep the faith and keep speaking truth.
