CV NEWS FEED // The Voice of Martyrs (VOM), a Christian non-profit organization aimed at protecting persecuted Christians around the world, is calling on the faithful to remember Christians in Northern Iraq and Syria as the Day of the Christian Martyr approaches.
As Christians around the world prepare to observe the day of memorial, which falls on June 29, the Catholic feast of St Peter and Paul, VOM announced that it would be highlighting Syrian and Iraqi Christian martyrs who lost their lives at the hands of Islamic State (ISIS) radicals 10 years ago this month.
In 2014, the organization explained in a June 18 press release, ISIS terrorists went door-to-door, marking the homes of Christian families with the Arabic letter nuun, “ن” short for “Nasara,” meaning “follower of Jesus of Nazareth.”
“Christian families were given an ultimatum: convert to Islam, pay an exorbitant protection tax, flee for their lives or die,” the organization continued. “Refusing to deny Christ, some Christians stayed and were killed for their faith. More than 100,000 fled and left everything behind.”
VOM also released a new video, telling the stories of Syrian and Northern Iraqi Christians who paid the ultimate price for their faith.
VOM vice president and spokesperson Todd Nettleton stated in the release:
The goal of Day of the Christian Martyr is to help Christians remember and honor the sacrifice of those who gave their very lives for the cause of Christ, and to be inspired by their example to sacrifice whatever we need to in order to see Christ’s Kingdom advance in our neighborhoods, our cities and ultimately around the world.
VOM has also designed a digital resource kit to share as a witness to persecuted Christians, which is available on its website.
