Stanley Cung finds it hard to believe his brother was shot to death. But Cung finds some comfort knowing he died doing what he loved to do—assisting a neighbor.
“He was happiest when he was helping other people,” Cung said of his brother, a Baptist pastor who was killed Sept. 18 in the Chin state of Myanmar. “He was a helping person.”
Burmese soldiers gunned down Pastor Cung Biak Hum while he was trying to help a member of his church extinguish his home, set ablaze during an attack by the military. It was one of 19 destroyed in Thantlang township.
Cung Biak Hum is survived by four older siblings, who all live in the United States; their mother; his pregnant wife Suittha Par; and their sons, ages 7 and 11. Cung’s mother, wife and children all are in India now, where Suittha Par is due to deliver their baby by C-section next month.
“They had to flee as soon as my brother was buried,” Stanley Cung said.
He learned of the tragedy in Thantlang when his phone rang at 6 a.m. on a Saturday. He recalled his cousin saying: “Someone named Cung Biak Hum has been shot dead. We don’t know yet if it was your brother.”
Once his death was confirmed, details surrounding the military attack made it even more disturbing. Soldiers cut off Cung Biak Hum’s finger to steal his wedding ring, in addition to taking his watch and cell phone.
‘It’s hard for me to accept’
“It’s still very difficult for me. Some days, I just don’t want to think about him—the fact that he is dead and how he died,” said Stanley Cung, a doctoral student at Asbury Theological Seminary and pastor of Emmanuel Chin Baptist Church in Milwaukee, Wisc.
“It’s hard for me to accept. Sometimes, it seems like a dream—like he’s not really dead.”
Sign up for our weekly edition and get all our headlines in your inbox on Thursdays
As a Christian, Cung finds solace and strength in prayer.
“I don’t want to question God,” he said, suggesting the difficulty in not doing so. “I’m trying to accept it. … I want to believe his death will not be in vain. God must have a plan we don’t know about.”
In part, he believes that plan may be seen in the way his brother’s brutal murder captured international attention.
Tom Andrews, United Nations special rapporteur, tweeted: “The murder of a Baptist minister and bombing of homes in Thantlang, Chin State, are the latest examples of the living hell being delivered by junta forces against the people of Myanmar. The world needs to pay closer attention. More importantly, the world needs to act.”
‘My people have been facing many difficulties’
Buan Thawng Lian, pastor of San Antonio Chin Baptist Church, agrees. He counted Cung Biak Hum as “a friend,” as well as a relative by marriage. The terror inflicted on his extended family is shared by many in his homeland, he noted.
“My people have been facing many difficulties these days,” he wrote in an email. He described the killing of innocent people and the destruction of homes and three church buildings in his hometown—once home to more than 10,000 people but now completely abandoned.
Stanley Cung expressed appreciation to the Baptist World Alliance and other Christian organizations that have called for prayer and advocacy for Myanmar.
“Pray that the people of Myanmar will get the real democracy we have been longing for. Pray for those who are fighting against injustice,” Cung said. “We are grateful for all who have been praying for us.”
Still, he finds it hard to accept. The nature of Cung Biak Hum’s bullet wounds and the mutilation of his body after he was shot made it clear his killing was “an intentional act,” not simply random gunfire, his brother said.
When asked if his brother could be considered a Christian martyr, Stanley Cung honestly replied: “I don’t know. I just know I’m proud of him.”
We seek to connect God’s story and God’s people around the world. To learn more about God’s story, click here.
Send comments and feedback to Eric Black, our editor. For comments to be published, please specify “letter to the editor.” Maximum length for publication is 300 words.