Catholic News Agency | Christine Rousselle | February 6, 2020
The world must raise their voices and stand up for persecuted Christians, Hungarian State Secretary for the Aid of Persecuted Christians Tristan Azbej said Thursday.
Azbej was one of eight speakers at a Feb. 6 side-event of the National Prayer Breakfast that was sponsored by the organization Save the Persecuted Christians.
“All of humanity should stand up and come to the aid of persecuted Christians,” said Azbej.
Christian lives have the same dignity as those who follow other religions, he said. He questioned why stories of Christian persecution, such as the recent murder of a Nigerian seminarian, do not make the news, but when people of other religions are discriminated against, the stories are broadcast worldwide.
“Why is (Christian persecution) not on the agenda of the United Nations, of the European Union, and so on,” he asked.
“And I know there is no such thing as competition of martyrdom, but we have to talk about the proportions,” he said, noting that nearly 300 million Christians in the world are persecuted for their faith. This, he said, represents 80% of the total number of people who face persecution for their religion, meaning Christians are “the most persecuted religious group in the world.”
“It doesn’t get even a passing mention at the major human rights forum,” he said.