Foxe: Voices of the MartyrsMinta

Clarito dela Cruz (July 26, 2011) 

Though not a pastor or missionary, Clarito dela Cruz was a faithful worker in Christ. The Filipino man was involved in his church’s evangelism program, which his parents oversaw. It was dangerous work in the Muslim-dominated area of Mindanao where Christians face persecution for sharing the Gospel with Muslims. Filipino Christians have suffered abduction, beatings, and torture as well as the loss of their homes, livestock, and in many cases, their lives.

When not at church, dela Cruz lived out his faith in his daily working life. He helped support his pregnant young wife, three-year-old child, and father-in-law by hiring himself out as a driver. One ordinary day on July 26, 2011, a man and woman claiming to be a married couple hired dela Cruz to take them to a remote village near the town of Linamon. As usual, he took his father-in-law’s motorbike to drive them. When they arrived at their destination, the couple, most likely with the help of an accomplice, revealed themselves to be Muslim extremists. Somehow having knowledge that dela Cruz was a Christian, they used an electrical wire to strangle and torture him. They may have tried to force him to convert to Islam, since members of his church had been confronted by Muslims in the past for the same reason. When the torture produced no result, his assailants shot him twice and left him dead, stealing his motorbike to make their getaway.

Though the Philippines can be considered a Christian nation, the Muslim minority resides mainly on the island of Mindanao in the southernmost part of the country. Muslim extremist groups linked to al-Qaeda populate and control the island in their attempt to establish an entirely Islamic state there. Filipino Christians and missionaries in Mindanao face continual threats to their lives. Despite the odds against them, they continue to practice their faith and share the Gospel, trusting that their work will plant and water the seeds of faith that God will cause to grow among those lost in the dark.