Tortured for Christ

This amazing book tells the story of what it can mean to a Christian who shares their faith in a country where even owning a Bible can land you in prison. It was a very detailed account of those who end up in prison & are treated worse than an animal. This true story also showed me what a person can endure when they love Jesus & would give their life for Him as they share His love to those who do not know Him.

Back in my preteen years, I first read Pastor Richard Wurmbrand's book Tortured For Christ. It had a big influence on how I viewed religious freedom in Soviet bloc countries. Wurmbrand wrote this book after his release from Romanian prisons in 1964, and he did so to share the story of how the underground churches in Communist countries have to operate in order to spread the Word and their faith. Rather than continue to minister to his countrymen, he was urged to leave and spread the news about the persecution. Wurmbrand probably did more to bring this situation to light than any other single person. With the demise of the Soviet Union, the situation has improved somewhat. But by no means has religious freedom bloomed. There are more freedoms in the former Communist countries, but the surge in Islamic countries means that Christian persecution has just migrated to new locations. Much of what you read here is still valid around the world. The situation's the same, just the names have changed. If you're wondering about the cost of being a Christian in many locations around the world, this book will help you to understand what that cost is.

Tortured for Christ is a story that is powerful and filled with the real-life, daily experiences of a prisoner of the Communist Regime. This man endured starvation, extreme cold, and physical torture by his captors, simply because he refused to deny Jesus Christ. The amazing thing in his books is his uncanny Yiddish humor that offsets the unbearable suffering he endured. In all the survivor stories I have devoured over the years, this one is filled with something unique-HOPE. Hope in God, hope that his wife and son survived, hope that he would somehow survive to tell his story. Many men and women have survived incredible odds, but when God is in the narrative, as in Wurmbrand's, it becomes a miracle. This book changed my life...for the better!

When I read this book it did not take long for me to be overwhelmed by the stories. Richard Wurmbrand is not only an incredible writer, but is an incredible man of God. He talks about how hard it was to endure the Communist desire to see him deny his faith, but because of the strength given him by Christ, He was able to stand firm in his faith and never budge. He truly is a hero of the faith,and this book is what first sparked my desire to find out what is going on in the world as far as persecution is concerned. Richard Wurmbrand is now my personal hero, and is an incredible encouragement to me. Christ, through him, has taught me that I don't truly understand what it means to count everything else as worthless compared to Christ. This is a must read book, along with the sequal to "Tortured for Christ", the book "From Suffering to Triumph".