Terrifying Christian Persecution Exposed Worldwide
Persecution continues to rise across the globe, with a staggering 380 million Christians experiencing persecution and discrimination as a result of their faith, according to a new report from Open Doors US.
This number is up substantially from the 365 million found to be under the same duress in last year’s “World Watch List” report, an annual ranking of the worst places in the world for Christians.
The current numbers in the “2025 World Watch List,” released Jan. 15, indicate a staggering 1-in-7 believers across the globe experience such horrors—and there’s no end in sight to the chaos.
“We continue to see that these issues are rising and that the trends are alarming,” Ryan Brown, CEO of Open Doors US, told CBN News in the lead-up to the report’s release.
Breaking News. Spirit-Filled Stories. Subscribe to Charisma on YouTube now!
The persecution watchdog said North Korea remains the most difficult place in the world for Christians, with the reclusive nation claiming the top spot on the “World Watch List.”
“We did even see some movement in some of their violence indicators this year, which continues to … drive those things forward,” Brown said. “After 32 years that we’ve been reporting this data, it’s been the majority of those years that North Korea has been on top of the list.”
The 2025 “World Watch List” paints a terrifying picture of what persecution looks like inside North Korea under Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un, with restrictions increasing throughout 2024.
“If your Christian faith is discovered in North Korea, you will either be immediately executed or deported to a horrendous labor camp that few survive,” the report reads. “The Kim regime relies on tightly controlling people’s behavior and beliefs.”
One news report alleged that 30 teenagers were killed simply because they watched a South Korean drama—an event that shows the lengths to which an extremist regime will go to punish and subjugate.
“Allegiance to anything other than the state [is seen] as a threat to the state,” Brown said. “And, so, any expression of Christianity … typically is looked to be stamped out and with great severity.”
He continued, “If they’re found in possession of a Bible, if they’re engaged in any type of Christian worship, it’s generally expected if that’s not a death sentence, it is a life sentence for imprisonment and in work camps that are deplorable conditions.”
To read the full story, visit our content partners at Faithwire.
Reprinted with permission from faithwire.com. Copyright © 2025 The Christian Broadcasting Network Inc. All rights reserved.
Join Charisma Magazine Online to follow everything the Holy Spirit is doing around the world!
