Thousands of Churches Closed

At first glance, the new criteria for running a church in Rwanda seem quite reasonable. Compliance with all national standards for safety, hygiene, and infrastructure is required. The administrative hurdles and guidelines are also quite high. For example, all churches must register with the local districts. And to run a church, you need a degree in theology.

But when it comes to “soundproofing to prevent noise pollution in the neighborhood” and “paved parking lots” in remote village regions, it becomes clear that these requirements can also be seen as a subtle form of persecution of Christians. Only a few churches are able to comply with the new laws. Thousands of small churches and house groups have been closed as a result. Small meetings in private homes or discipleship with members who are not from the same family are not allowed. If caught, each person who participated in the meeting is fined 1 million Rwandan francs (approx. CHF 500). The leader must pay 5 million RWF and is sentenced to five years in prison.

“In fact, the church in Rwanda is being persecuted,” we hear from a voice in Rwanda. -- We are no longer allowed to live out our faith as we did before. The aim of the new laws is to decimate the number of congregations and create megachurches that are easier to control. This means that we are no longer allowed to freely engage in evangelistic activities, because according to the new laws, we will be punished for doing so. We do it anyway, even though we know it is forbidden. But there is no guarantee that we will be able to continue doing so for much longer. --