Christian Convert Running for His Life in Afghanistan
Josef is one of a small number of Afghan Christians. He witnessed so much violence in the name of his native Islam that he renounced the religion and began a spiritual quest. He studied Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity. "I think I was impressed by the personality of Jesus himself," he says. "The fact that he came here to take all our sins, that moved me. I admired his character and personality long before I was baptized."
Seeking asylum in Germany, he was held in a refugee camp where he was visited by missionaries. Under their influence, he made Christ his Lord. He traveled to Pakistan to be with his wife. When his family learned of his new faith, his in-laws beat him and locked him in a room. He escaped, eventually returned to Afghanistan, and has been on the run ever since. Now his brother-in-law Ibrahim is hunting him to kill him. He recently offered a reporter $20,000 to tell him where...
