Religious intolerance and religious extremism are on the rise, according to the 2001 Religious Freedom World Report to be released later this month by the public affairs and religious liberty department of the Seventh-day Adventist world church. 

The third annual report, based on data gathered from Adventists in 191 countries, provides a unique perspective on the state of religious freedom around the world, says Dr. John Graz, public affairs and religious liberty director.  He says the report is intended as a resource for human rights organizations, other international agencies, and governments. Over the past three years, the World Report has been cited in a number of international reports, including those produced by the United Nations Human Rights Commission and the U.S. State Department.

“Our goal is to promote values of religious freedom and to give a voice to all those around the world who are suffering for their faith,” says Graz. “These victims should know they are not alone; that their fellow believers are actively trying to raise international awareness of their plight.”

The report concludes that of the 191 countries studied, 121 provide “a great deal of religious freedom;” in 37 countries, Adventists experience some threats or limitations; in 23 countries, Adventists experience real restrictions and difficulties; and in 10 countries, religious freedom is denied completely.

According to Graz, difficulties faced by Adventists are usually the same as those encountered by other religious minorities—Adventists are not often singled out or targeted. Along with other faith groups, Adventists may face discrimination or persecution by majority religions, which sometimes wield significant social or political power. Areas where this occurs include Bangladesh, Moldova, Russia, Yugoslavia, and Chiapas, Mexico.

Adventists’ Saturday, or Sabbath, observance, however, sometimes raises unique problems, according to the report.  It cites examples in Uganda, Zambia, France, and Jamaica where Adventist school and university students have ongoing difficulties with classes or exams scheduled on Saturdays.

The report also tracks a significant upswing in religious intolerance in Western Europe, where growing anti-sect feeling has led to closer scrutiny of religious minorities and, in France, the recent passage of anti-sect legislation.

Proselytism and evangelism continue to generate controversy in regions where strong religious majorities hold sway. The report notes problems arising from religious fundamentalism or extremism in areas such as Indonesia, India, Saudi Arabia, and a number of Eastern Europe countries.

Graz says that Protestant Christianity is often perceived as a foreign or “American” religion, even in countries such as India, which has a heritage of Christianity many centuries old. 

Graz hopes the report will help Adventists become more sensitive to both the extent and complexity of the problem of religious intolerance. He cautions that Christians should not be quick to stereotype other religions or to see Christians as the only persecuted group.

“Where a Muslim majority is persecuting Christians, for instance, it is often persecuting other Muslim sects also,” explains Graz. “The problem may not be so much an anti-Christian feeling, but rather entrenched intolerance of all religious minorities, or fear that religious freedom could upset the social or political status quo.”

Among the organizations that will receive a copy of the 2001 World Report are the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, the U.S. State Department, the Commission on Society and Cooperation in Europe, and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.

After its release, the full text of the World Report will be available on-line.  For more information, contact the public affairs and religious liberty department of the Adventist world church.