So sad!!! Mexican pastor shot and killed while at the pulpit during Sunday service

A pastor in southwest Mexico was shot
and killed during a church service on
Sunday amid ongoing targeting of faith
leaders by criminal gangs.


According to international watchdog charity
group Christian Solidarity Worldwide ,
Pastor Alfrery Líctor Cruz Canseco was
preaching from the pulpit of the
Fraternidad Cristiana church in the town of
Tlalixtac de Cabrera in the Oaxaca state
when he was shot at point-blank range.


Canseco died while he was being
transported to a local hospital. His attacker
was arrested after congregants prevented
his escape.


“We extend our deepest condolences to the
family and congregation of Pastor Cruz
Canseco,” CSW Chief Executive Merwyn
Thomas said in a statement. “The fact that
he was targeted while in the pulpit is
particularly shocking.”

A translated statement posted on the
Fraternidad Christiana Facebook page
reads: “We regret the departure of Alfrery
Lictor Cruz Canseco, friend and brother in
Christ very loved by our congregation.”

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Although the motive remains uncertain,
CSW, which advocates for Christians in
over 20 countries worldwide, notes that the
killing comes on the heels of a recent
series of attacks that have targeted
religious leaders in the region.


Among the recent attacks against faith
leaders was the kidnapping of Pastor
Aarón Méndez Ruiz , who ran a shelter for
Cuban immigrants in Nuevo Laredo and
was abducted on Aug. 3.


“We also remain concerned for the
wellbeing of Pastor Méndez Ruiz and urge
the Mexican government to spare no effort
in ensuring his safe return, investigating all
of these crimes and prosecuting those
responsible,” Thomas stated.

CSW warns that the expansion of criminal
groups in Mexico as well as a “climate of
impunity” when it comes to crimes they
commit has led to an increase in violence
against Protestant and Catholic leaders
because they are viewed as a threat to
criminal groups.

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According to CSW, 10 religious leaders
were killed in Mexico in 2018.
As questions have been raised as to why
church leaders in a predominantly-Catholic
country are increasingly being abducted,
harmed or killed, USA Today reported last
April that at least 23 religious leaders had
been killed in Mexico since 2012.


Earlier this week, the Catholic Multimedia
Center reported that at least 26 Catholic
priests have been killed since 2012.

“We urge the international community to
engage with the Mexican government on
these matters and to recognize the role
that many religious leaders play, not only
as leaders of their churches, but also as
voices for peace, justice and integrity, and
as human rights defenders,” Thomas
concluded in his statement.


Mexico ranks as the 39th-worst country in
the world when it comes to Christian
persecution as organized crime in the
country continues to go unconfronted,
according to Open Doors USA’s 2019 World
Watch List.

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According to Open Doors, Christians, their
leaders and church buildings in Mexico are
increasingly becoming victims of attacks,
threats, extortion and other forms of
coercion throughout the entire country.


“Due to the government’s inability to
confront violence, some Christians feel
forced to implement their own security
strategies against acts of Christian
persecution, including engaging leaders of
criminal groups themselves,” an Open
Doors USA factsheet reads .

“Organized crime primarily targets priests
and pastors, while indigenous power
holders pressure Christians through fines,
denying basic community service and
imprisonment. The state attorney general in
Guerrero has falsely implied that priests
were engaged in criminal activity, further
inflaming religious tensions.”

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