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21 April 2019. It was almost 9am and the Easter Sunday service at Zion Church in Sri Lanka was about to begin. Michelle, a Sunday School leader, sat with the kids on the front steps of the church as they ate their breakfast and waited for the service to begin. A man with a large backpack arrived.
“[He] had a big backpack and a small pouch clipped to his waist,” Michelle said.
“I asked him if he wanted to come inside, but he was hesitating, said he was receiving a call. I told him to answer the call and then sit in the back of the church. He was a Muslim, but we have many Buddhist, Hindu, and Muslim visitors in our churches.
“Many people of different religions come to church and even when I was speaking to the man, it didn’t even strike me that he may have had an ulterior motive… Then I left.”
Minutes later, the man that Michelle had met detonated the bomb inside his backpack, in an attack that killed 31 and injured countless more.
When the attacker detonated his bomb, Michelle was in her home next door to the church with her daughter and a friend.
The explosion was so violent that her roof collapsed. Nails and debris flew through the air. The entrance of Michelle’s house was on fire.
“I grabbed [my daughter], her friend, my phone and my bag and we ran back… My first thought was that we needed to call the fire brigade! I got someone to call them and I started to help as many people as I could.
“One of the hardest things was seeing the bodies on the stretchers. A couple who live close by gave some of their clothes and sarees to help cover some of the bodies that were being carried out.”
Zion Church was one of three churches bombed across Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday 2019. 31 lives were lost at Michelle\'s church alone.
It was one of the worst Easter attacks in history. But in the midst of it, Open Doors supporters reached out to help those affected.
From pastoral care to emergency relief packages and livelihood support, it was the generosity of the global Church that strengthened believers, like Michelle, to continue following Jesus even after such loss.
Michelle said, “There is beauty in this darkness. Out of the 83 families who were affected by the blast, not one has stopped coming to church.”
This Palm Sunday in Indonesia, suicide bombers attack a Catholic Church in Makassar, South Sulawesi.
“The best way [you can help] is to pray for our brothers and sisters in Indonesia,” says sister Novi*, Open Doors partner in Indonesia.“Sadly, it\'s not a surprising thing anymore. Just pray for our brothers and sisters—there is always some sense that this thing may happen on Christmas or Easter. Easter is happening next week, so pray for peace in heart and mind—that there will be no fear or spirit of intimidation, as we are going to celebrate Easter.”
This Easter, we\'re asking you to stand one with them by praying and giving to empower Christians like Michelle who are recovering from tragedy, and church in Indonesia to stand boldly in the face of intimidation.
We believe no one should go through persecution alone. Easter is a beautiful time to show our persecuted brothers and sisters and the world—the power of the church as we come as one church, one family.
*Name changed for security reasons
Open Doors aims to “strengthen what remains and is about to die” (Rev 3:2).
Your Monthly Donation can help us to provide continuous support to the persecuted church worldwide and enable us to respond immediately to emergencies.
