Disappearing Freedoms for Russian Christians

Alexander Ivanov, a 48-year-old worried parent in Russia said, "15 years ago I wouldn't have thought my children would be growing up in a country that reminds me so much of the Soviet Union." Following are just a sample of the anti-Christian threats made against evangelicals and new restrictive government policies being reported with increased frequency from Russia:

Evangelist David Hathaway says his crusades are subject to "bomb threats" and many "attacks" which close their meeting halls. "Gangs of boys with iron bars and baseball bats have beaten converts..." from his crusades.
Textbooks across the former Soviet Union label Christian groups as "cults."
One mission reports that many people are afraid to attend house churches for fear of being caught-up in a cult.
This same mission notes that there are government restrictions on providing humanitarian aid - for example to nursing homes, orphanages, and prisons.
Many stories have been printed in magazine and web site news stories of building permits for new church buildings being indefinitely delayed or, in many cases, denied.
A missionary told GNS staff that the FSB (the "new" KGB) sent agents to take notes on sermons he preached in Siberia.