Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World

Village authorities tear down Laos house church – February 28th

Barnabas Aid, 21st February 2024

Christians in Laos urgently need our prayers. Whilst citizens of Laos have the right and freedom “to believe or not to believe in religions” according to the country’s constitution, followers of Jesus are still subject to repeated harassment in rural areas.

Village leaders and residents tore down the private home where Christians were gathered and interrupted a worship service in Savannakhet province on Sunday 4 February.

“The village authorities came here and tore down our home at around 10.30 a.m. Sunday morning,” reported a worshipper at the church in Kaleum Vangke village in Xonboury district. The eyewitness added that the mob burned Bibles and other documents in the assault.

A “Law on the Evangelical Church”, in force since December 2019, gives Christians the right to conduct services, preach throughout Laos and maintain contacts with believers in other countries. The law is not well enforced in rural areas; the Kaleum Vangke church did not escape attack despite being affiliated with the Lao Evangelical Church, the only Christian denomination recognised by the government.

The tearing down of Christian homes and eviction of Christians from villages has happened repeatedly in country districts in Laos.

Pray that the law will be upheld throughout Laos and that Christians will be able to worship in peace. Ask the Lord to sustain and strengthen believers in Kaleum Vangke in this unsettling situation.

Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World

Islamic State kills 10 Christians in Mozambique – February 28th

Open Doors, 21st February 2024

Your urgent prayers are again needed for believers in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) following another attack on a church in the northeast of the country.

In yet another devastating attack in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), at least 15 Christians were killed, including a pastor, when a church service was stormed by militants earlier this month.   

Believers from a church called 8e CEPAC in the village of Manzia were gathered for a morning devotion on Monday 5 February when members of the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) attacked, shooting at least eight people.

Others were shot as they fled. The total number of deaths has not been confirmed, but it could be higher than 15.

Alphonse Mumbere (37), the pastor, leaves behind three children and a wife who is four months pregnant. Two evangelists, Saasita Baraka (34) and Seli Schak (40), were also amongst those killed.

The increasing violence in the region has pushed many Christians to turn to traditional religious beliefs.  “We ask everyone who has a good will to continue to pray for us,” shares Pastor Kambale, from a nearby church. “Many Christians are currently turning back to traditional religion and they say it’s better to have the protection [of these traditional gods] because the situation is bad.”

 “The progress of God’s Word is suffering because people think God is not going to act,” he continues. “That’s why your prayer is of very paramount importance. Your beloved prayer is very important to strengthen Christians and comfort them. Thank you and we thank you we have faith that you will pray for us.”

Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World

Martyr’s Widow Perseveres in Leading Church – February 28th

Voice of the Martyrs, February 22nd, 2024

Feliciana’s husband pastored a church in a town in Oaxaca, Mexico, until he was killed in 2014 for his bold witness for Christ.

After her husband’s murder, Feliciana struggled to provide for her family, and her two children became seriously ill. With help from foreign believrs, she has been able to continue the work of leading the church in her town, and her children are healthy and thriving. She hopes to start a small business this year to further support her family.

Specific areas within Mexico have a high concentration of indigenous minority groups. These minority communities, which maintain a separate identity and language, are systematically oppressed by local authorities. Christians among them are persecuted by Marxist and animist groups as well as village leaders.  Despite persecution, the number of Christians has continued to grow in these areas.

Many people in rural Mexico practice Christo-paganism, a syncretistic blend of ancient pagan practices and Roman Catholicism. There is a strong Marxist (atheistic communist) movement in some southern areas, especially in the state of Chiapas.

Christian converts are rejected by their community and are often forced from their homes and villages in some rural areas. Large groups of Christians have at times been driven from their homes in the south. Converts and faithful witnesses for Christ lose their jobs, inheritances and land. Those who remain in their communities are marginalized, partly because they will not participate in pagan celebrations that feature drunkenness and debauchery.

Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World

The Cocos Islands Malay in Australia – Febuary 28th

Joshua Project, February 23rd, 2024

The Cocos Malays are the majority population of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, a territory of Australia. The Malay were the first permanent inhabitants of the island, along with Alexander Hare. They were brought as slaves and members of his harem. When a previous claimant, John Clunies-Ross, arrived a year later in 1827, he took the island back, employing the existing population in the harvest of coconuts.   

Because of the unbroken European rule of the islands, the culture has been mostly Western. The Cocos Malay have their own dress code. Those in the Australian mainland, however, conform to Australian dress habits. They have their own language, but to function in Australia, they must be fluent in English.

Since they don’t have any Christ followers among them, the Cocos Islands Malay Muslims will be hard-pressed to give the gospel a chance.  There are plenty of vibrant Christian believers in the Cocos Islands who can reach out to them. 

Pray that many from today’s people group will allow their spiritual lives to be transformed by the Lord, and that they will begin to publicly praise Him.

Pray for a movement to Jesus to multiply among families and communities. Pray for the Lord to anoint and thrust out workers to the Cocos Malay people. Pray for them to understand that the Lord wants to bless them with spiritual abundance.

Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World

Armenian Christian on Trial in Iran – January 31st

International Christian Concern, 27th January 2024

Armenian Christian Hakop Gochumyan is still being detained in Iran. Last summer Hakop, an Armenian citizen, travelled to Iran to visit his wife Elisa’s family, an Iranian-Armenian.

On August 16th, they were arrested while visiting their friend’s home. Their arrests coincided with arrests of dozens of other Christian converts in Iran. Elisa was held for several months but was released and returned to Armenia with their children. Hakop’s trial was scheduled for January 7th. His current location and well-being are still unknown.   

While Hakop and Elisa live in Armenia and only were visiting family in Iran, Elisa’s father, Rafi Shahverdian, was a well-known pastor in Yerevan after fleeing Iran in the 1990s. It is reported that Christian literature was found with them when they were arrested in Iran.

The minority Armenian Christians are given certain protections under the Islamic Republic’s legal system. They are, however, forbidden from any proselytizing to Iranian Muslims, and Farsi language Christian literature is banned. Iran is estimated to be holding more than 100 Christians in prison detention by the end of 2023.

Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World

Islamic State kills 10 Christians in Mozambique – January 31st

Barnabas Aid, January 24th, 2024 (excerpts)

Islamists have boasted of killing ten Christians in a series of attacks waged over two weeks against Christian villages in northern Mozambique.

The onslaught claimed by Islamic State coincided with the launch on 4 January 2024 of the group’s new global terror campaign, “Kill Them Wherever You Find Them”, announced in an audio message by its spokesman, Abu Hadhayfah Al-Ansari.

The wave of renewed violence in northern Mozambique centred on three districts in Cabo Delgado province, already known as “the land of fear” because of repeated Islamist terror attacks.

It began on 3 January in Mocimboa da Praia district when IS fighters struck the village of Ntotoe, two days later they hit Chimbanga village, and on 7 January gunmen opened fire with machine guns on a village in the same district.

Two Christians were murdered, and 16 houses burned down in attacks on Chai and Litamanda villages in Macomia district on 4 and 9 January, respectively.

The village of Chinda in Muidumbe district was struck on 5 January, and two believers were killed.

Around 1,800 Christians have been murdered in northern Mozambique since October 2017 in sustained anti-Christian violence.

They are among more than 50,000 Christians slaughtered in a genocidal campaign waged by Islamists across parts of sub-Saharan Africa.

Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World

Bold Witness Beaten 40 Times – January 31st

Voice of the Martyrs, January 25th, 2024

Gabriela lives in a rural village in Oaxaca, Mexico, where members of her Mixteca community adhere to Christo-paganism, a syncretistic blend of pagan practices and Roman Catholicism that is opposed to the gospel.

Because of her boldness in sharing her faith, she has been attacked by her neighbours as well as her husband, who is embarrassed by her commitment to Christ. She has been beaten an estimated 40 times and hospitalized on several occasions.

Despite this opposition, she continues to make outreach trips into the Mixteca regions of the mountains of Oaxaca to spread the gospel where few others can go.

Specific areas within Mexico have a high concentration of indigenous minority groups. Minority communities like these, keeping a separate identity and language, are systematically oppressed by local authorities. Christians among them are persecuted by Marxist and animist groups as well as village leaders.

Tribal leaders persecute Christians in defence of their indigenous culture in several rural areas, and the federal government allows this. These communities are remotely located and difficult to reach. Despite persecution, the number of Christians has continued to grow in these areas. 

Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World

The Rahmani (Muslim traditions) in India – January 31st

Joshua Project, January 31st, 2024

The Rahmani work mainly as farmers. Many do not read, so the gospel will need to be given in oral forms. However, there are also prominent people among them, and the Rahmani surname is well known across a number of countries.  

They are Sunni Muslims, and there is much social stigma about becoming a Christian in their families and communities. They need to find a way to embrace Jesus Christ without alienating the people they hold dear.

Culturally appropriate music and skits about the miracles of Jesus might help to turn their hearts and minds to the only Saviour.  Pray for an eagerness to hear and heed God’s word among this people group.

Pray for a spiritual breakthrough as there may be no followers of Christ among this Muslim people group. Pray for a spiritual hunger that will draw the Rahmani people to the only One who can save them from sin and death.

Pray for workers to go to them and find those who will welcome them and listen to the message. Pray for Rahmani community leaders who will give Jesus a chance to provide their community with the abundant life He offers in John 10:10.

Pray for a Disciple Making Movement to Christ among the Rahmani people group in this decade.

Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World

Russia and its Conscientious Objectors – January 3rd

Forum 18, 19th December 2023

Military officials have denied four young Baptist men in Siberia and the Far East the opportunity to carry out alternative civilian service, rather than military service, despite their efforts to demonstrate their pacifist religious convictions to the military authorities. All had applied for alternative civilian service.

As of mid-December, only one – Timofey Reznichenko from Primorye Region – has successfully challenged this refusal in court, thus gaining the right to have his application re-examined (see below).

Brothers Daniil and German Strelkov, from Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Region, failed in their attempts to have their refusals ruled unlawful in court and are now preparing to appeal. “Faith forbids him to take up arms, kill, or take oaths,” a witness in Daniil’s case told the court. In German’s case, his father testified that he “is a deeply religious person and will not take up arms or take an oath, as this is prohibited by his religion”.

Krasnoyarsk Region courts twice declined to uphold Zakhar Asmalovsky’s lawsuit against the military authorities, meaning he will now be subject to conscription in the future.

A higher-level Conscription Commission in Kemerovo Region granted a fifth Baptist, Sergey Myalik, the right to undertake alternative service after his initial application was rejected at the district level.

According to the Council of Churches Baptists, all five young men are members of the church, which has a strong pacifist tradition.

Missions, The Persecuted Church Across the World, Whats On

Arrested after Baptism Video – January 3rd

Christian Daily International, December 29, 2023 (excerpts)

Officials in Mauritania have released all Christians arrested after a video of a baptism ceremony in November prompted Muslims to call for their punishment, Christian leaders in the region said.

The Christians do not appear to have been charged with any crime, the Christian leaders indicated.

“They have been asked to go home and believe what they want, but in private and discreetly,” a Christian leader in the region told Christian Daily International. “It seems that our brothers have more to fear from the Islamists than from their government. Thank God for this happy ending.”

At least 15 and possibly as many as 18 Christians were arrested along with their families. There is no law against evangelism in the northwest African country, though officials ban any public expression of faith except Islam.

At least three of the Christians were initially arrested on or shortly before Nov. 30 in Selibaby, more than 373 miles south of the capital city of Nouakchott, according to Spanish news service EFE. The arrests stemmed from protests calling for Christians to be killed after a video of a baptism ceremony appeared in social media, according to Christian leaders in the region.