ORISSA STATE, INDIA (ANS) -- Leaders of a ministry outreach in Orissa State in India say they knew the region was the most resistant to the Gospel, but have never seen the kind of anti-Christian violence they have recently witnessed.

In an e-mail letter, dated Sept.29, addressed to sponsors and friends of Good News India, a ministry arm of YWAM, the leaders say: "We have never seen anything like this. We knew that Orissa was the most resistant and hostile State in India as far as the Gospel is concerned. And we brushed off the continuous threats and harassment we faced as we went about His work. But none of our staff imagined that they would see this kind of carnage...And it seems to be totally under the radar of the Western Media."

The ministry leaders says that a militant Hindu priest and 4 of his attendants, who were zealously going around the villages of Orissa and 'reconverting' people back to Hinduism, were gunned down by unknown assailants in Central Orissa last weekend.

"Immediately the Christians were blamed. The cry rose up...'Kill the Christians!' And the horror began...In the past 4 days, we have been firsthand witnesses to hundreds of churches being blown up or burned and many, many dozens of Christian tribals have been slaughtered, for no other reason than that they bear the name of Christ." 

Night and day the ministry leader says he has been in touch with the Good News India Directors spread across 14 Dream Centers in Orissa.

"They are right in the middle of all this chaos. In Tihidi, just after the police came to offer protection, a group of 70 bloodthirsty militants came to kill our staff and destroy the home. They were not allowed to get in, but they did a lot of damage to our Dream Center by throwing rocks and bricks and smashing our gate, etc. They have promised to come back and 'finish the job.' Our kids and staff are locked inside and have stayed that way with doors and windows shut for the past 3 days. It has been a time of desperately calling on the Lord in prayer." 

The ministry leader goes on to say that more police have come to offer protection.

"In Kalahandi, the police and some local sympathizers got to our dream center and gave our staff and kids about 3 minutes' notice to vacate. No one had time to even grab a change of clothes or any personal belonging. As they fled, the bloodthirsty mob came to kill everyone in the building. We would have had a mass funeral there, but for His grace. In Phulbani, the mob came looking for Christian homes and missions. The local Hindu people, our neighbors, turned them away by saying that there were no Christians in this area. So they left. We had favor. The same thing happened in Balasore."