Aid to the Church in Need, February 15, 2023 (excerpts)

There is little – if any – evidence of international aid getting through to Syria, according to a Catholic charity’s projects coordinator reporting from the scene of the devastating earthquakes.

Xavier Bisits, who travelled to Aleppo within hours of the catastrophe, decried an apparent lack of international support in response to a catastrophe whose death toll has risen to at least 41,000.

Reflecting widespread dismay in Syria about the lack of aid from abroad, Mr Bisits said: “There are almost no signs of an international response – the only international volunteers I have seen personally in Syria are from Lebanon.”

The UN has criticised the regime for being slow to open border crossings to allow aid conveys into the worst-affected north-west of Syria, which is under rebel control.

Mr Bisits, who co-ordinates ACN aid in Syria, said: “Many people are in despair.”  Visiting Lattakia at the same time, Cardinal Zenari, Apostolic Nuncio to Syria stated: “After visiting Aleppo, Lattakia and Jableh, my impression can be summed up like this – I saw a sea of pain.”

Morning Star News, February 8, 2023 (excerpts)

A Christian apologist whose comparisons of Christianity with Islam were widely disseminated on his YouTube channel has disappeared since his arrest in December.

The apologist, a Coptic Orthodox Christian known for debates with Muslim converts from Christianity, was subsequently transferred to Surabaya for interrogation. He is known for his widely followed YouTube channel and his books on Islamic and Christian doctrines.  His knowledge of Arabic has enabled him to make significant use of Islamic resources.

Prior to his arrest, 4 police officers visited his house on Dec. 6 to question him about episode 248 of his YouTube channel, which officers said offended Muslims and Islam.

The video, which first appeared on Feb. 23, 2022, described how Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, visited his adopted son Zayd ibn Harithah and his wife Zaynab, who later became one of Muhammad’s wives.

Finding no mistakes and no other elements that violated Islam doctrines, a team of 29 police officers then stormed his house later that same day on Dec. 6.

Gratia Pello and his wife happened to have left the house but he was arrested upon his return at 11 p.m.  He is still presumably waiting for trial.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide, 10 Feb 2023 (excerpts)

Roman Catholic priests and lay leaders, and a Protestant pastor were included in a group of political prisoners sent from Nicaragua to the United States this week. 

The Nicaraguan government announced that 222 prisoners had been removed from prison and put on flights to the United States on the morning of 9 February.  Family members were reportedly not informed in advance of the move.  President Daniel Ortega subsequently declared that all 222 of those released are no longer Nicaraguans and have been stripped of their citizenship.

Bishop Álvarez Lagos was not among those listed and had refused to leave Nicaragua, despite government pressure.  President Ortega later announced that the he has been transferred from house arrest to prison. 

Protestant Pastor Wilber Alberto Pérez was also among the group sent to the US.  He was arbitrarily detained on 15 December 2020 for promoting the ‘Christmas without Political Prisoners’ campaign.  In March 2021, he was sentenced to 12 years in prison and was held in solitary confinement in a ‘punishment cell’ with no natural light.

The choice reportedly offered to these individuals of remaining in prison in inhumane conditions or going into forced exile is one no one should ever be forced to make.

Joshua Project, 10 January 2023 (excerpts)

The Lao Phuan people once had their own kingdom in Laos.  In the 19^th century the Siamese military drove them to central Thailand where they became slaves.   The Lao Phuan people live mainly in Laos and Thailand today, though there are also those who live in Cambodia.

Like most peoples in Cambodia and Laos, the Lao Phuan are rice farmers.  They also raise silk worms which produce thread for the fine garments which they either wear or sell.  On a social level, the Lao Phuan people try hard to maintain their traditions.

The Lao Phuan people consider themselves to be devout Buddhists, but they are actually more devoted to their animistic practices.  Their form of Buddhism is corrupted by their ancient religious practices.  The Lao Phuan people need to be released from fear of wicked spirits.

Pray for spiritual openness among the Lao Phuan people of Cambodia and Laos, for them to have the chance to hear the gospel in a culturally appropriate way, and for a disciple making movement among this people group to transform their communities in Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia.