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They had come to pay tribute to one of their church members who had recently passed away. At 9 pm on Monday, September 8, Christians in Ntoyo village gathered at the funeral service in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.
But what was supposed to be a peaceful gathering of believers mourning together ended in bloodshed as militants attacked with guns, mostly with machetes. By the time the militants left, 70 Christians were dead, 100 kidnapped and 16 houses were burned to the ground.
"It is a night of sadness and desolation for Christians."
Pastor Paluku
"They arrived and started killing," said Rev. Mbula Samaki of the 55e CEBCE church in Mangurejipa. "Those who tried to flee were shot dead, and others were killed with machetes."
Abbé Paluku Nzalamingi, a parish priest, described the scenes he saw when he went to the site: "It's horrible what I saw. [Bodies of] women on mattresses in the living room ... others in the corridor, still, others outside in the plot. Some bodies are on the road, in plots close to the centre of Ntoyo. They killed almost all the people gathered at the place of mourning."
The leader of the church in the area narrowly escaped the attack, having just left the village. "I had just passed through Ntoyo," he told an Open Doors local field partner. "After less than 30 minutes, we heard about the attack. God still has a mission for me."
But this would be only the beginning of the killing spree by the ADF (Allied Democratic Forces) who has aligned itself with the Islamic State group.
The next morning the terrorists struck again, this time targeting Christian farmers in Potodu, a community near the town of Oicha. They slaughtered believers who were camped in their farms, a means of survival for many who live off the land and sell their crops to earn a daily living.
"It is a night of sadness and desolation for Christians," said Pastor Paluku of the CECA20 Oicha.
Right now, the death toll in Potodu stands at 30, but it's expected to rise. At the time of the massacre, several people remained unaccounted for.
"May God come to our rescue because we are fed up with these killings in the Beni territory," Pastor Paluku lamented.
As usual, the attacks have sent many fleeing the affected areas. Following the attack in Potodu, those who mustered the courage to remain spent their nights with host families in Oicha. Those who fled the Ntoyo attack fled to nearby localities. Due to the continued violence, the DRC has one of the largest displaced populations in sub-Saharan Africa.
In two days, a total of at least 100+ Christians lost their lives in the DRC because they choose to follow Jesus in a region that Islamic extremists want to turn into a caliphate.
Christians in sub-Saharan Africa are some of the world's most resilient believers, but the incessant killings are taking their toll.
"The massacres are weakening the faith of Christians," says Rev. Alili of the 3e CBCA church Njiapanda, whose church has received Christians fleeing Ntoyo. "Last month it was massacre after massacre, and in September, Lord, please come to our aid."
He adds that Christians who were in the fields are disoriented. "It was the time when they went to harvest their padi [crop], but look what's happening to them," he says. "We, the church, are [don't know what to say to or do for them.] They are not willing to sleep in the church for fear of being attacked like those who were killed in a wake."
Government authorities have visited the affected communities to sympathize with the residents.
Rev. Alili called for worldwide prayer: "Please, brothers and sisters, let us unite in prayer to counter the enemy. God says if He does not watch over the house, those who watch, watch in vain. Let us pray together for the Christians of the east of the DRC."
Jo Newhouse*, a spokesperson for Open Doors' work in sub-Saharan Africa, echoed the church leader: "We ask the Body of Christ to keep the church in eastern DRC in prayer. Pray for God's comfort, His provision to the displaced, and for His Spirit to give them strength to stand firm amidst these targeted attacked."
Once again, our sisters and brothers in the DRC are grieving over yet another attack on their lives and livelihoods. Even still, the world hardly acknowledges what's happening. We must break the silence. We must stop the violence and start the healing for the church in Sub-Saharan Africa. Our African family has challenged us to break the silence and raise 1 million prayers and petitions with them as we raise our voices with them.
Please take a minute (if you haven't already) to pray and add a prayer to our petition.
