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CV NEWS FEED // World Relief and Open Doors US have called on the Trump and Harris campaigns to prioritize increasing the resettlement of persecuted Christians as refugees in light of their newly released State of the Golden Door Report.
The report reveals that 365 million Christians worldwide — or one in seven — endure “high levels of persecution or discrimination on account of their faith.” According to the report, 4,998 Christians were killed for their faith in the last year.
Despite this alarming figure, the U.S. has seen a significant increase in resettling Christian refugees from the 50 countries where such persecution is most intense, according to a news release from World Relief. The number of resettled Christians has surged from 5,390 in fiscal year 2020 to 29,493 in fiscal 2024, marking a 447% rise and the highest figure since 2016.
“World Relief and Open Doors US commend the Biden administration for this improvement, while also noting serious concerns with new asylum regulations that restrict access to asylum for persecuted Christians and others who arrive at the U.S.-Mexico border,” the news release stated.
In the news release, World Relief and Open Doors US urged both the Harris and Trump campaigns to “commit to sustaining this relatively high level of refugee resettlement, with a particular concern for those fleeing persecution on account of their faith, alongside those fleeing persecution for other reasons.”
According to Sean Nelson of the Alliance Defending Freedom International, “More Christians are being killed in Nigeria for their faith than in all other countries combined.” However, the Biden administration in January rejected a call to add Nigeria to the Religious Persecution Watchlist, CatholicVote reported.
Myal Greene, President and CEO of World Relief, emphasized that although the refugee resettlement progress is encouraging, much more needs to be done.
“[O]ur commitment to protecting those with well-founded fears of persecution must remain non-negotiable,” he said.
“As a nation, we cannot turn our backs on those seeking refuge from religious oppression,” Greene said. “The price of inaction is far too high.”
The Golden Door Report calls on Christians in the U.S. to support persecuted believers through both prayer and advocacy. The document also shares personal stories of refugees from countries such as Afghanistan, Algeria, Burma, Iran, Mexico, and Pakistan.
CatholicVote reported multiple instances of severe religious persecution in recent months in Pakistan alone, most resulting in the death of Christians accused of violating the country’s controversial blasphemy laws.
“Christians around the world face persecution and many have been forced to flee their homes,” said Ryan Brown, president and CEO of Open Doors US, in the news release. “We stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Christ, who desperately need our advocacy and prayers.”
In Iran, a Christian convert was recently sentenced to 15 years in prison, charged with “membership in groups aiming to disrupt national security” and “propaganda against the Islamic Republic through the promotion of Zionist Christianity.”
At an October 14 press conference, the Diocese of El Paso’s Bishop Mark Seitz, who chairs the USCCB’s Committee on Migration, commented on the report.
“Beyond simply acknowledging such persecution for the injustice that it is, I deeply appreciate the report’s unapologetic recognition that a failure to respond adequately to the needs of those fleeing such abuse is an affront to God himself, who forms each of us in his own image,” Bishop Seitz said.
Former U.S. State Department official Knox Thames commented on the report, underscoring that providing refuge aligns with America’s long-standing tradition of defending religious freedom “from the first settlers fleeing persecution in Europe to Soviet Jews in the 20th century to Iranian Christians in the 21st century.”
“As the report makes clear,” Thames said, “a robust U.S. refugee resettlement program saves lives.”
