Pastor dies while praying after truck slams into him in terrible 'accident'

A pastor, a church elder and a new believer died while the pastor's wife sustained serious injuries when a pickup truck went off the road and headed right to the place where they were standing. The incident happened on May 5.

Pastor Dang Ba Nham, together with his wife and another church leader, Hoang Ngoc Hung, were praying in front of a property owned by Phan Thi Thanh Huyen when the truck smashed into the group, Morning Star News reported.

Huyen was a new believer who had recently joined the church. She and the others gathered that evening to pray in front of the property where she was planning to build a new house. However, the truck suddenly veered off course from across the road, hitting all four of them and dragging Pastor Nham 15 meters.

The 56-year-old pastor died on the spot.

His wife was found to have serious injuries to her upper body including her neck. Doctors have performed surgery on her but are not yet sure of her chances for recovery.

Hung was brought to a Hanoi hospital where after going through surgery, she was given a 20 percent chance of survival. Huyen died the day after the incident.

Many people believe what happened to Pastor Nham and the others was not an accident, but people refer to it as such out of fear that they will get into trouble, the report said. Such "accidents" are apparently one way for Vietnamese authorities to silence persons they consider to be a threat.

According to Voice of the Martyrs, religious freedom is still controlled in Vietnam. Authorities, particularly in rural areas, reportedly harass religious groups, where practices of intimidation, beating, destruction of property and forcing Christians to renouce their faith are common.

Pastor Nham, who led the Vietnam Good News Mission Church, actively evangelized people from four provinces that many believe are most hostile to Christianity: Quang Binh, Nghe An, Ha Tinh and Thanh Hoa. He did this in spite of the warnings he had received to stop his activities.

At his funeral, the question "Who will take his place?" was raised, and about 30 young people boldly stood up to answer the call.