According to Rachel Godwin from World Help, Christians in North Korea are so desperate to get their hands on copies of the Bible that they are willing to risk 15 years in a labor camp or death.
Christians in North Korea avoid getting caught reading the Bible. Otherwise, they could end up in a labor camp, or even face death.
World Help is a Christian humanitarian group that aims to smuggle 100,000 copies of the Bible into the country. “There are still countless believers across this dark nation who are desperate for Bibles,” Godwin said. “Some people have never even seen a copy of the Scriptures in their life … but they know they would do anything to get their hands on one.”
Christians in North Korea avoid getting caught reading the Bible. Otherwise, they could end up in a labor camp, or even face death. In a true story recounted by Godwin, a small group of Christians in the country got on a fishing boat one early morning and traveled to the middle of the river just so they could read the Bible. They hid their copy underneath the fishing gear so the government would not see it.
After years of being carefully studied and then hidden over and over again, the bindings have come loose and pages are beginning to slip out.
According to Christian Headlines, “This is the only place where they feel safe enough to worship together and study God’s Word,” Godwin wrote. “And even then, they are constantly on alert. If they are caught reading the Bible, they could immediately be sentenced to 15 years in a labor camp – or worse. They’ve heard the stories of what happens to people who are heard speaking the name of Jesus.” Godwin also added that many of the Christians in North Korea have loved ones who are either currently living in the camps or have died there.
Godwin also said there are not enough Bibles for every Christian. The copy used in the fishing boat was old and tattered. “After years of being carefully studied and then hidden over and over again, the bindings have come loose and pages are beginning to slip out.” She also said, “Many of the Bibles have water damage from these early morning meetings on the boat. But they are still these Christians’ prized possessions … they risk their lives for these Bibles.”
According to Godwin, a representative from World Help gave new copies of the Bible to the Christians, then hid the old copies to the hotel. However, they disappeared. Apparently, a janitor found them and took them to his small tiny house church consisting of four people. The janitor was a Christian and had been praying to have copies of the Bible.
