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Today marks the anniversary of St. Paul Miki one of the twenty six Japanese martyrs who were crucified for their faith in 1597. Some of you might have already seen Martin Scorsese’s latest movie ‘Silence’ which is an adaptation of Endo’s 1960s novel of the same name. The movie, like the book depicts the story and horrific persecution of the early Christian missionaries and communities in Japan in the 16th Century. It is a reminder to us that religious persecution is as old as humanity itself and not confined to a particular location or culture. Today if one thinks of religious persecution, then at least in the West, our minds would likely shift to the Middle East and what is happening to minority communities. The brutal activities of so called Islamic State over the last two and a half years have shown entire communities targeted, persecuted, routed, enslaved and killed. Places of worship, including Churches and Mosques and sites of ancient cultures have been desecrated and destroyed. The persecution has not been confined to particular groups. It has rather been directed at ‘difference’ and the ‘right to be different’. Often the most severe forms of religious persecution are directed within faith communities. In the case of so called Islamic State, many of their victims have been Muslims from different traditions. All of this hatred and persecution is now readily available on our screens, radios or through personal testimony and it poses us the challenge of how do we stop it? And sometimes it is in those efforts to stop it that we can exacerbate the problem. Tackling persecution is complex for individuals, communities and governments. But ignoring it is not an option nor is favouring particular groups over others because of some personal affinity or human attribute. Going down that path could see the poison of the persecutor gain ground in our minds and societies too. Human sensibilities must transcend attributes and focus solely on the humanity of the victim just as Christ did. In most faith traditions each human life is of equal value in the eyes of God and is not reduced in value by age, gender, nationality, faith, disability, orientation, etc. The Japanese Martyrs gave their lives for an eternal truth. That same truth today demands solidarity with the victims of persecution regardless of characteristic, and to do so not just when it is easy or popular with a prevailing mood, but also when it is hard and unpopular. Faith demands nothing less than full and unconditional solidarity and compassion.