We are often asked here at The Voice of the Martyrs to provide statistics regarding the extent of persecution faced by Christians around the world.  How many are killed every year?  How many in each country?  How many are imprisoned in China/Vietnam/Egypt/etcetera?  Of what denomination do they belong? One of the strangest requests we have ever received was when we were actually asked to supply the names of all of the Christians who had died in the previous twelve months! Yes, we in the Western world do love our statistics, confident that everything can and needs to be demonstrated empirically.

The most common question has to do with how many Christians have been killed for their faith in a given year. After reading this article, perhaps you will understand why it is impossible to know with absolute certainty the exact number.

According to the World Evangelical Alliance, over 200 million Christians in at least 60 countries are denied fundamental human rights solely because of their faith. David B. Barrett, Todd M. Johnson, and Peter F. Crossing in their 2009 report in the International Bulletin of Missionary Research (Vol. 33, No. 1: 32) estimate that approximately 176,000 Christians will have been martyred from mid-2008 to mid-2009. This, according to the authors, compares to 160,000 martyrs in mid-2000 and 34,400 at the beginning of the 20th century. If current trends continue, Barrett, Johnson and Crossing estimate that by 2025, an average of 210,000 Christians will be martyred annually.

It is worth noting, however, that many have asked whether the figures cited by the annual Barrett/Johnson/Crossing reports are reliable.  Indeed, many persecution experts have concluded that they are untenable. Queries to the researchers have shown that these figures are, in fact, projected averages or statistical guesses rather than based on hard figures or actual documentation. Hence, it should be understood that The Voice of the Martyrs does not stand behind this report's findings as being indisputable facts.

The fact is, much of today's persecution still takes place in remote areas of countries often cut off from or with restricted access to modern communications.  Most martyrs suffer and die anonymously, unknown, forgotten, their deaths unrecorded except in heaven. Even email, which most of us consider a basic everyday tool is a struggle to use in places like Ethiopia, Burma, and much of central Africa.  Even where it is more readily available, it is not secure. Much goes unreported or is reported months, even years later.  For many, persecution is such a part of life that it hardly dawns on the afflicted to tell the world.  They don't know who to tell anyway and there are only so many organizations like VOMC with limited staff to seek them out.  Even then, many are nervous about sharing what they know for fear of retribution.

In short, persecution, by its very nature, defies being statistically analyzed with any degree of certitude.

Our speakers and writers used to refer to the statistics above in their messages as a means of capturing the attention of the hearer/reader.  But we found that while it got people's attention, it often ended there too, as the large numbers tend to overwhelm, leaving one with a sense of hopelessness in actually being able to make a difference.  We realized that we didn't need to use statistics in order to make a strong claim that persecution is an urgent issue that needs greater attention by the worldwide Body of Christ.  We just needed to tell the stories and remind the church what the Bible said about the matter of standing together with those who were suffering for their faith.

That's why we at The Voice of the Martyrs would rather focus on the people involved as we try to put faces on the figures and stories on the statistics.  That's why we would rather spend money putting together our newsletter with its testimonies of faithfulness in the face of tribulation, our email news service with its up-to-date reports, and our videos with actual interviews with persecuted believers than investing in putting together reports that few read and compiling statistics that are ultimately disputable.  As we often reminds ourselves, we need to say what we know and leave the rest unsaid.