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Angry
Mob Attack Church in Aceh
William Wiguna
Breaking News - Friday
September 08, 2006
INDONESIA: ANGRY MOB ATTACKS CHURCH IN ACEH,
September 8 (Compass Direct News) - A pastor and his wife
living in Aceh
province, Indonesia, have gone into hiding after a Muslim
mob set fire
to a church building following a revival service on September
1.
Several weeks ago, Pastor Luther Saragih of a congregation
called
Siompin, an Indonesia Evangelical Mission Church, distributed
letters to
several villages in Aceh Singkil inviting Christians to
a revival
service.
A Muslim resident somehow received a copy of the letter
and edited it,
making it appear that Muslims were invited to the service.
He then
distributed his own version of the letter to 3,000 Muslims.
According to
one local source, the police knew this was happening but
made no attempt
to restrain this man.
Large Christian gatherings are extremely rare in Aceh, but
at this
service over 500 Christians arrived to take part - along
with a large
Crowd of irate Muslims.
The police were also present. Local Muslim leaders argued
for several
minutes with police, and eventually Saragih was taken to
the police
station. There the police scolded the 40-year-old pastor
for organizing
the event and ordered him to cancel it and send people home.
A pastor from Jakarta asked for 10 minutes to explain the
situation to
the Christians who had gathered. When the police relented,
he returned
to the church and spent 10 minutes preaching a brief message
on "walking
in the shadow of death" to those who had gathered before
sending them
away.
At about 7 p.m., when everyone else had left, Saragih and
his wife
Netty, pregnant with their first child, returned to their
own home just
a few minutes down the road from the church.
At 10 p.m. that night, a convoy of two trucks and 50 motorcycles
arrived
outside the church, carrying over 100 liters of gasoline.
Witnesses said
there were over 100 men present, many of them carrying swords.
The mob
poured gasoline over the building and set fire to it; they
also
attempted to burn a second building that was used as a church
kindergarten.
Some of the attackers came looking for Saragih and Netty
at their home,
which is nearby. The couple escaped into the nearby jungle
and stayed
hidden in the undergrowth. Many thought the couple had been
consumed in
the flames of the church buildings, but a friend found them
at around 4
a.m.
Christians in a neighboring province have provided shelter
for Saragih
and his wife, following reports that local police and Muslim
leaders are
still searching for the couple. It is uncertain when - or
if - they will
be free to return home.
Friends estimate that the fire caused at least US$20,000
worth of
damage. The fire destroyed two motorcycles (one belonging
to Saragih and
another borrowed for the revival); two electronic piano
keyboards (one
borrowed for the revival) and a computer and printer.
The province of Aceh is unique in two ways: the government
has granted
limited autonomy to the province following years of civil
war, and
sharia (Islamic law) replaced state law earlier this year,
leaving the
Christian minority at a distinct disadvantage.
"After this, we're afraid they might set fire to other
churches," a
local source said. "We plead with Christians around
the world to keep us
in their prayers."
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