It gets worse. Even in the ostensibly

"democratic" Russia it appears that the

persecution of non-Orthodox Christians may

soon begin to parallel the persecution of

Christians under the Soviet regime.

On Sept. 26, 1997, President Yeltsin signed a

new anti-religious law, which, in effect, outlaws

every religious organization that has appeared

in Russia during the last 15 years and subjects

them to surveillance by the secret police. Within

weeks after Yeltsin signed the anti-religion law,

police began breaking up Catholic and

Protestant gatherings.

"Inquiries, interrogations, police raids and

groundless church closures will likely once

again become commonplace in Russia," warned

Rev. Steven L. Snyder, president of International

Christian Concern.

Last August, police and security agents raided

the Word of Life Church in Magadan, a city in

far Eastern Russia, near Siberia. Church

members were taken away for interrogation in

the middle of the night. They were stripped of

their jewelry, their fingernails and pockets were

slit, and they were threatened with the loss of

their homes and possessions.

"This persecution is no different from those

which were done under the Communist

regime," stated Nickolay Voskoboynikov, the

church's pastor.

Michael Horowitz, an activist on behalf of

persecuted Christians around the world, has

warned that unless a serious effort is made to

confront the horrors of the persecution of

Christians and put a stop to them, Christians are

likely to become "the Jews of the twenty-first

century, the scapegoats of choice of the world's

thug regimes."

The preceding story is a brief synopsis of WorldNet

Magazine's upcoming, in-depth, February cover story

documenting the current persecution of Christians

worldwide. Readers may subscribe to WorldNet by

visiting WorldNetDaily's online store.

A contributing editor to WorldNet Magazine,

researcher Greg Nyquist is an expert in economics

and philosophy.

The lions are back

The torture and murder

of Christians worldwide

Editor's note: What follows is a much-abbreviated

version of the upcoming February cover story in

WorldNet magazine. Readers can subscribe to

WorldNet at WND's online store.