The Voice of the Martyrs / VOM
The information on this page was last updated 3/11/2026. If you see errors or omissions, please email: [email protected]
Summary
The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) is a missionary organization that serves persecuted Christians in the world's most difficult and dangerous places to be a Christian. Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand founded VOM after being imprisoned for their Christian witness in Communist Romania. For more than 50 years, VOM has been dedicated to inspiring all believers to a biblical faith by encouraging their commitment to Christ and the fulfillment of his Great Commission no matter the cost.
Contact information
Mailing address:
The Voice of the Martyrs
1815 SE Bison Road
Bartlesville, OK 74006
Website: www.persecution.com
Phone: 800-747-0085
Email: [email protected]
Organization details
EIN: 731395057
CEO/President: Cole Richards
Chairman: Harvey Little
Board size: 12
Founder: Rev. Richard and Sabina Wurmbrand
Ruling year: 2015
Tax deductible: Yes
Fiscal year end: 12/31
Member of ECFA: Yes
Member of ECFA since: 1993
Purpose
The Voice of the Martyrs continues this mission around the world today through the following purposes:
To encourage and empower Christians to fulfill the Great Commission in areas of the world where they are persecuted for sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
To provide practical relief and spiritual support to the families of Christian martyrs.
To equip persecuted Christians to love and win to Christ those who are opposed to the gospel in their part of the world.
To undertake projects of encouragement, helping believers rebuild their lives and Christian witness in countries where they have formerly suffered oppression.
To promote the fellowship of all believers by informing the world of the faith and courage of persecuted Christians, thereby inspiring believers to a deeper level of commitment to Christ and involvement in His Great Commission.
Mission statement
The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) is a missionary organization that serves persecuted Christians in the world's most difficult and dangerous places to be a Christian.
Statement of faith
We believe the Bible to be the inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God.
We believe that there is one God, eternally existent in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
We believe in the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father where He intercedes for us, in His present rule as Head of the Church, and in His personal return in power and glory.
We believe that all men and women are lost and face the judgment of God, that Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation, and that repentance of sin and faith in Jesus Christ is necessary for regeneration by the Holy Spirit.
We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, whose indwelling enables the Christian to live a godly life.
We believe in the resurrection of both the saved and the lost; the saved unto the resurrection of eternal life in the presence of our Lord, and the lost unto the resurrection of damnation and eternal punishment.
We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in our Lord Jesus Christ and that all true believers are members of His body, the church.
We believe that we must dedicate ourselves to prayer, to the service of our Lord, to His authority over our lives, and to the ministry of evangelism.
Articles
Donor confidence score
This organization does not file a Form 990.
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Transparency grade
C
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Financial efficiency ratings
Sector: Advocacy
This ministry has not been rated.
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Financial ratios
| Funding ratios | Sector median | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
Return on fundraising efforts Return on fundraising efforts = Fundraising expense / Total contributions | 9% | 7% | 6% | 7% | 7% |
Fundraising cost ratio Fundraising cost ratio = Fundraising expense / Total revenue | 6% | 7% | 6% | 7% | 7% |
Contributions reliance Contributions reliance = Total contributions / Total revenue | 94% | 101% | 99% | 99% | 97% |
Fundraising expense ratio Fundraising expense ratio = Fundraising expense / Total expenses | 8% | 8% | 7% | 8% | 8% |
Other revenue reliance Other revenue reliance = Total other revenue / Total revenue | 6% | -1% | 1% | 1% | 3% |
| Operating ratios | Sector median | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
Program expense ratio Program expense ratio = Program services / Total expenses | 78% | 80% | 85% | 84% | 84% |
Spending ratio Spending ratio = Total expenses / Total revenue | 94% | 90% | 87% | 89% | 85% |
Program output ratio Program output ratio = Program services / Total revenue | 74% | 73% | 74% | 74% | 71% |
Savings ratio Savings ratio = Surplus (deficit) / Total revenue | 6% | 10% | 13% | 11% | 15% |
Reserve accumulation rate Reserve accumulation rate = Surplus (deficit) / Net assets | 12% | 8% | 16% | 15% | 24% |
General and admin ratio General and admin ratio = Management and general expense / Total expenses | 11% | 12% | 9% | 9% | 8% |
| Investing ratios | Sector median | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
Total asset turnover Total asset turnover = Total expenses / Total assets | 1.04 | 0.70 | 0.86 | 0.88 | 1.21 |
Degree of long-term investment Degree of long-term investment = Total assets / Total current assets | 1.24 | 2.55 | 4.23 | 3.45 | 2.26 |
Current asset turnover Current asset turnover = Total expenses / Total current assets | 2.35 | 1.79 | 3.65 | 3.05 | 2.75 |
| Liquidity ratios | Sector median | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
Current ratio Current ratio = Total current assets / Total current liabilities | 9.75 | 20.22 | 4.65 | 5.36 | 16.08 |
Current liabilities ratio Current liabilities ratio = Total current liabilities / Total current assets | 0.07 | 0.05 | 0.22 | 0.19 | 0.06 |
Liquid reserve level Liquid reserve level = (Total current assets - Total current liabilities) / (Total expenses / 12) | 4.85 | 6.38 | 2.58 | 3.20 | 4.09 |
| Solvency ratios | Sector median | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
Liabilities ratio Liabilities ratio = Total liabilities / Total assets | 19% | 4% | 20% | 22% | 6% |
Debt ratio Debt ratio = Debt / Total assets | 0% | 0% | 13% | 16% | 3% |
Reserve coverage ratio Reserve coverage ratio = Net assets / Total expenses | 64% | 136% | 93% | 88% | 78% |
Financials
| Balance sheet | ||||
| Assets | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
| Cash | $13,323,996 | $5,858,154 | $7,097,361 | $6,116,973 |
| Receivables, inventories, prepaids | $1,630,314 | $1,259,208 | $1,215,121 | $1,791,002 |
| Short-term investments | $5,992,785 | $4,330,180 | $3,797,703 | $5,216,740 |
| Other current assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total current assets | $20,947,095 | $11,447,542 | $12,110,185 | $13,124,715 |
| Long-term investments | $0 | $0 | $34,100 | $32,300 |
| Fixed assets | $32,159,559 | $35,654,689 | $29,543,737 | $16,290,402 |
| Other long-term assets | $303,108 | $1,294,644 | $123,249 | $275,516 |
| Total long-term assets | $32,462,667 | $36,949,333 | $29,701,086 | $16,598,218 |
| Total assets | $53,409,762 | $48,396,875 | $41,811,271 | $29,722,933 |
| Liabilities | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
| Payables and accrued expenses | $1,036,105 | $2,463,496 | $2,259,335 | $816,247 |
| Other current liabilities | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total current liabilities | $1,036,105 | $2,463,496 | $2,259,335 | $816,247 |
| Debt | $0 | $6,216,000 | $6,506,000 | $949,517 |
| Due to (from) affiliates | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other long-term liabilities | $1,267,082 | $914,314 | $597,175 | $0 |
| Total long-term liabilities | $1,267,082 | $7,130,314 | $7,103,175 | $949,517 |
| Total liabilities | $2,303,187 | $9,593,810 | $9,362,510 | $1,765,764 |
| Net assets | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
| Without donor restrictions | $43,790,821 | $31,595,023 | $26,486,464 | $23,653,689 |
| With donor restrictions | $7,315,754 | $7,208,042 | $5,962,297 | $4,303,480 |
| Net assets | $51,106,575 | $38,803,065 | $32,448,761 | $27,957,169 |
| Revenues and expenses | ||||
| Revenue | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
| Total contributions | $41,722,224 | $47,525,834 | $41,340,945 | $41,512,337 |
| Program service revenue | $0 | $52,782 | $201,707 | $171,238 |
| Membership dues | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Investment income | ($304,428) | $129,801 | $291,634 | $76,123 |
| Other revenue | $8,411 | $245,896 | ($127,719) | $920,148 |
| Total other revenue | ($296,017) | $428,479 | $365,622 | $1,167,509 |
| Total revenue | $41,426,207 | $47,954,313 | $41,706,567 | $42,679,846 |
| Expenses | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
| Program services | $30,153,943 | $35,430,946 | $30,877,574 | $30,177,519 |
| Management and general | $4,387,350 | $3,573,300 | $3,281,340 | $2,964,525 |
| Fundraising | $2,931,846 | $2,749,081 | $2,776,951 | $2,929,321 |
| Total expenses | $37,473,139 | $41,753,327 | $36,935,865 | $36,071,365 |
| Change in net assets | 2013 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 |
| Surplus (deficit) | $3,953,068 | $6,200,986 | $4,770,702 | $6,608,481 |
| Other changes in net assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total change in net assets | $3,953,068 | $6,200,986 | $4,770,702 | $6,608,481 |
Compensation
| Name | Title | Compensation |
| James E Dau | Pres/Brd Member | $158,416 |
| Woodie Rains | Assistant Treas | $99,517 |
Compensation data as of: 12/31/2013
Response from ministry
No response has been provided by this ministry.
The information below was provided to MinistryWatch by the ministry itself. It was last updated 3/11/2026. To update the information below, please email: [email protected]
History
Pastor Richard Wurmbrand (1909-2001) was an evangelical minister who endured 14 years of Communist imprisonment and torture in his homeland of Romania. He is widely recognized there as one of the country's greatest Christian leaders, authors and educators.
In 1945, when the Communists seized Romania and attempted to take control of the churches, Pastor Wurmbrand began an effective, vigorous "underground" ministry to oppressed believers as well as to the Russian soldiers occupying his country. He was arrested in 1948, along with his wife, Sabina, who was imprisoned for three years. Pastor Wurmbrand spent three years in solitary confinement, seeing no one but his Communist torturers. He was then transferred to a group cell, where the torture continued for five more years.
As a Christian leader of international stature, Richard's imprisonment did not go unnoticed. However, when foreign diplomats asked the Communist Romanian government about him, they were told that he had fled the country. Adding to the confusion, Romanian secret police posing as former prisoners told Sabina they had attended his burial in the prison cemetery. His family and friends were told that he was dead.
After more than eight years in prison, Richard Wurmbrand was released, immediately resuming his work with the underground church. A couple of years later, in 1959, he was re-arrested and sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Pastor Wurmbrand was released through a general amnesty in 1964, again resuming his underground ministry. A group of Christians in Norway, realizing the probability and danger of a third imprisonment, negotiated his family's emigration from Romania with the Communist authorities, who had begun "selling" political prisoners. While the average price for a prisoner was about $1,900, the government demanded $10,000 for Pastor Wurmbrand.
In May 1966, he testified before the U.S. Senate Internal Security Subcommittee, where he stripped to the waist to show 18 scars from torture wounds covering his torso. His story was carried in newspapers throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia. Pastor Wurmbrand was warned in September 1966 that Romania's Communist regime planned to assassinate him, but he would not be silenced.
As co-founders of The Voice of the Martyrs, Pastor Wurmbrand and Sabina traveled throughout the world establishing a network of more than 30 offices that provide relief to families of imprisoned Christians in Islamic nations, Communist nations and other countries where Christians are persecuted because of their faith. Their message has been, "Hate the evil systems, but love your persecutors. Love their souls, and try to win them for Christ."
Pastor Wurmbrand wrote numerous books, which have been translated into more than 70 languages. He has been labeled at various times by Christian leaders as "The Voice of the Underground Church" and "The Iron Curtain Paul."