SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – Muslim leaders have filed complaints of blasphemy against a leading Christian pastor in Indonesia. After Pastor Gilbert Lumoindong of the Indonesia Bethel Church (Gereja Bethel Indonesia, GBI) mentioned Islamic prayer and alms-giving in comparison with biblical tithing in a video of his comments from a Sunday sermon, attorney Farhat Abbas […]
Pastor in Indonesia Accused of Blasphemy
Muslims in two regions file complaints.
April 25, 2024 By - Leave a Comment
Muslims in Indonesia End Church’s Meetings in Home
Local residents object to use of house for worship.
March 22, 2024 By - Leave a Comment
SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – Muslim residents objecting to house-church worship in western Indonesia on Sunday (March 17) compelled the pastor to discontinue using her home for services, sources said. On the western tip of Java Island, dozens of Muslim residents gathered outside the house after worship ended in Saga Bunar, Balaraja Sub-District, Tangerang […]
Islamic Extremists in Indonesia Targeting Youth, Women
‘Active intolerant’ teenagers increasing, official says.
February 29, 2024 By - Leave a Comment
SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – The head of Indonesia’s counter-terrorism agency said officials are focussing on protecting teenaged children and women from Islamic radicalization as they have become the most targeted groups. Citing a report by the Setara Institute for Democracy and Peace, Rycko Amelza Dahniel of the National Counter-terrorism Agency (Badan Nasional Penanggulangan Terorisme, […]
Blasphemy Law in Indonesia Faces Criticism as Cases Grow
Charges based on fatwas and mob pressure, rights advocates say.
December 21, 2023 By - Leave a Comment
SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – With an increase in blasphemy cases in Indonesia and arrests based on Islamic fatwas and mob pressure, rights advocates are calling for laws to be amended or ended. The number of charges registered under Indonesia’s blasphemy law increased from 10 in 2021 to 19 last year, according to rights group […]
Officials Vow to Withdraw Permit for Christian School in Indonesia
Foundation says it has authorization to build.
October 12, 2023 By - Leave a Comment
SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – Bowing to pressure from Islamic protestors, local officials in South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia have vowed to withdraw permission that had been granted to build a Christian school, sources said. In the town of Parepare, the district representative council had granted permission for the construction of the school as the […]
Muslim Mob Forces Christians Out of Building in Indonesia
Protest results in agreement to temporarily leave worship site.
September 20, 2023 By - 1 Comment
SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – A Muslim mob protesting a church site outside Jakarta, Indonesia on Saturday (Sept. 16) has forced the congregation to temporarily move worship services online, sources said. The Indonesia Bethel Church (Gereja Bethel Indonesia, or GBI) reached a police-brokered agreement to forego worship services at their building in Depok, just south […]
Muslims with Machete, Club Halt Worship in Indonesia
Police dismiss case, saying assailant was insane.
September 5, 2023 By - Leave a Comment
SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – A machete-wielding Muslim threatened to kill members of a house church in Indonesia as he and family members on Aug. 29 broke up a worship service, sources said. In West Sumatra Province, the Sola Gratia congregation of Bethel Indonesia Church (Gereja Bethel Indonesia, or GBI) was meeting the evening […]
3-Month Jail Term Given for Halting Christian Worship in Indonesia
A Christian would have received harsh punishment for same crime, rights advocate says.
August 21, 2023 By - Leave a Comment
SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – A court in Indonesia last week sentenced a Muslim to three months in jail for halting a Christian worship service. Sources said reducing the charge from blasphemy to disrupting a worship service, combined with an agreement the Muslim reached with the church, resulted in a lighter sentence than would have […]
Mobs Impede Christian Worship at Two Churches in Indonesia
Building under construction damaged.
August 15, 2023 By - Leave a Comment
SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – Mobs in northern Indonesia this month blocked a church from its Sunday service venue in one town and damaged a worship building under construction in another, sources said. In Riau Islands Province, about 30 people on Wednesday (Aug. 9) used hammers and clubs to break huge holes in the walls […]
Muslims Again Break Up Worship of Church in Indonesia
Presence of Christian service in Muslim-majority area questioned.
July 17, 2023 By - Leave a Comment
SURABAYA, Indonesia (Morning Star News) – As police looked on, a group of Muslims in North Sumatra Province, Indonesia, on July 2 asked why a church should be present in a Muslim-majority area as they broke up its worship service, a video shows. The disruption was the second in two months suffered by the Mawar Sharon Church […]