Christian Solidarity Worldwide, November 20, 2024

63 religious leaders have signed a declaration decrying the Cuban government’s systematic violation of freedom of religion or belief, refusing unregistered places of worship to be legalised and applying onerous fines on religious leaders.

The declaration states that, ‘We observe with dismay that the Cuban state refuses to open spaces for the exercise of fundamental rights.  This limits churches’ ability to provide support and social aid to those most in need.’  The statement then notes the negative impact on those most in need.

Since 1 January 2024 CSW has documented 69 cases across 11 provinces of religious leaders targeted by government officials with fines. In June, the leader of a Christian group in Matanzas was fined 20,000 CUP for not vacating the location where the group holds religious services. In October, leaders of two registered Christian religious groups were fined 15,000 CUP and 50,000 CUP for authorised renovations to their properties.   Ladies in White are also regularly fined to prevent them from attending Sunday church services.

The heavy fines on religious leaders come when Cuba is facing one of its worst economic crises in decades, been hit by a series of hurricanes and tropical storms, experienced an earthquake, and seen its national power grid fail multiple times. An estimated 10% of the population is believed to have fled the country over the past five years.

Morning Star News, November 20, 2024

Javed Masih saw his 18-year-old daughter for the first time in 5 months since she was forcibly married to a Muslim.

Sana went to a shop in Lahore on June 9 and did not return.

“Our search ended in mid-October. I got a phone call from a Christian in Balochistan who told me where she was.”

A Muslim woman named Hafsa had befriended Sana on WhatsApp a few days before she disappeared.

“She blackmailed her to meet in person without us knowing,” Masih said. “She sent her money and directed her to board two buses to cross into a remote village in Balochistan.”

“A cleric was called, Sana forced to recite the proclamation of conversion to Islam and marry an elderly Muslim man, a maternal uncle of Hafsa, under threats of violence.”

Sana’s family filed a report, but police did not try to find her.

The family asked others to pray with them and visited pastors and churches for prayer support.  The answer came when Waseem, a Christian schoolteacher in Balochistan, phoned Masih to tell him Sana was in his village.  A local Muslim politician had received information from a female family member about her and contacted him to help find her family.

“I do not know his name, but God used him to free our daughter from captivity,” Masih said of the politician.”

A legal team from Christians’ True Spirit (CTS) accompanied police and family to Balochistan to recover Sana on Nov. 14.

barnabasaid, November 19, 2024

A shocking video released by Boko Haram in October shows the beheading of four civilians in Borno State, Nigeria.

At least one of the victims was a Christian, a young woman who was the niece of one of the fighters who abducted her.

The fighter justified taking part in the killing by explaining, “We do not share the same faith as her.”

The terrorists also declared that they would intensify their attacks in the region.

Boko Haram has been operating in Nigeria for more than 10 years.  In April 2014 they infamously abducted 276 girls, mostly Christians, from a secondary school in Chibok, Borno State.

Boko Haram are just one of the Islamist groups active in northern and Middle Belt Nigeria.

On 10 November fighters from Islamic State West Africa Province attacked a Christian village in Chibok, burning down several homes.

Voice of the Martyrs, November 21, 2024

Samal suffered a head wound and impaired movement in one arm after her drunken relative, Arman, attacked her with a shovel. Kazakh police arrested Arman and said he could face seven years in prison for the assault.

While meeting with police, Samal, a new Christian, said she experienced an angelic vision during which she was encouraged to forgive Arman. 

Though she initially resisted, Samal eventually forgave her relative. When she did, her pain vanished, and her arm was healed. She then dropped all charges against Arman and told the police she had been speaking with an angel. Arman is now visiting her church, and its members are praying that he will also come to know Christ.

Formerly under Communist rule as a republic of the Soviet Union, Kazakhstan is one of Central Asia’s wealthiest nations because of its vast mineral resources. Islam has experienced a resurgence since the fall of the Soviet Union, and many have returned to what they consider their Muslim heritage, which was restricted for decades by atheistic communism.

Today, Kazakhstan emulates its European neighbors, undertaking massive construction projects, enjoying a growing economy and adopting the Latin alphabet used by Western nations.

Christian converts are often disowned by their families, publicly shamed and even beaten. All religious activities must be registered with the government, and believers are commonly fined for distributing unauthorized religious texts, discussing faith or holding worship meetings.

Joshua Project, November 22^nd, 2024

The Bhoksa have 15 clans but are not clannish. They are Hindu, but they still like Christmas! They live in Himalayan forests although they did not originate there. They live in Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir of India, and they are a Scheduled Caste, so they have low status.

After marriage, wives cannot see some in-laws. They fear spirits and ghosts, worship Hindu gods, and celebrate Hindu festivals. They resist the modernization of society.

Lack of outreach in this highly unreached part of India, rugged terrain, and minimal infrastructure are main obstacles to getting the gospel to the Bhoksa people. There is no Bible in their language although some read Hindi, which has a Bible.  

Christmas can be used as a bridge to open them to the gospel. Their need for medical care, education, improved agriculture, sanitation, and safe water can open the door for Christ followers with the right skills to serve and witness to them in the love of Christ.

Pray for the believers in this people group to become not merely hearers but doers of God’s word.

Pray that the very few believers would grow in grace and knowledge of the Lord and in boldness of witness, especially at Christmas time. Pray that God would direct believing physicians, agriculturalists, educators, sanitation engineers and Bible translators to work among them.

Morning Star News, October 25th, 2024 (excerpts)

Islamist villagers in eastern Uganda burned a pastor and his family to death after he led three Muslims to faith in Christ, the pastor’s brother said.

Pastor Mukisa, his 25-year-old wife Annet Namugaya and their two daughters, 7-year-old Judith Banirye and 4-year-old Sylvia Bamukisa, died when the assailants set fire to their home shortly before 3 a.m. on Oct. 13, said the church leader’s brother, James Tusubira. Pastor Mukisa was 30.

The attack took place in Kibale village, Namutumba District. Pastor Mukisa had led the Muslims to Christ in September.

“When the 3 young Muslims converted to Christ, my brother started receiving threatening messages that he should stop any contact with the three young converts, and that the act committed is against teaching of Islam to not join the religion of infidels,” Tusubira told Morning Star News.

Tusubira saw flame and smoke coming from the family’s home at 2:48 a.m.

“We rushed to the scene of the incident and found the house torched and the 5 bodies burned beyond recognition. Many people started arriving till the break of the day. Plastic bottles of petrol were found outside the house.”

The assailants were from a neighbouring village and were known to the pastor, Tusubira said.

The killings have been reported to police in Kibale. Officers were hunting for the suspects, who have absconded.

International Christian Concern, October 28th, 2024

Pastor Ravi lives in a quiet village in Madhya Pradesh, India. He was raised in a devout Hindu family and immersed in the practice of idol worship. His life revolved around materialistic pursuits and although he seemed content, he was plagued by a sense of emptiness and a yearning for something more.

Ravi’s family’s encounter with God took place during a period of immense distress when his mother fell gravely ill. Desperate for a solution, Ravi’s father and other family members turned to various forms of witchcraft to restore her health. They visited countless temples, hoping for a miraculous recovery. Unfortunately, his mother’s condition only worsened.

Amid their struggle, a pastor visited the family and prayed for Ravi’s mother’s healing. By the grace of God, his mother experienced a complete recovery. This experience compelled Ravi’s whole family, including Ravi, to embrace Jesus Christ as their saviour.

During the last nine years, Ravi, now a pastor, has served as a devoted servant of the Lord. He has worked primarily in tribal areas, spreading the message of God’s love and salvation. Alongside his ministry, he actively participates in his home church, passionately sharing the word of God with others. As an independent minister, Pastor Ravi is now facing financial challenges because of persecution he’s endured.

ICC has come alongside Pastor Ravi to help him launch a new clothing store. By working during the day and continuing his ministry in the evenings, he hopes to generate income for his family and ministry.

Aid to the Church in Need, October 21^st, 2024 (excerpts)

A Mozambican bishop has given a harrowing account of the killings, mass displacement and hunger that have afflicted the country over the last seven years, since the outbreak of the ongoing Islamist insurgency.

The local community has faced “seven years of displacement; seven years of death; seven years during which people have lived with great suffering; of hunger, because they cannot farm their land due to insecurity; of disease, because there is no access to medication, or because the closest clinic has been destroyed.”

About 5,000 people have been killed and one million displaced as a result of the violent clashes between insurgents seeking to establish a hard-line Islamic state and the Mozambique Defence Armed Forces.

The fighting has been concentrated around Muslim-majority Cabo Delgado Province in northern Mozambique.

Extremist groups have tended to target civilian and state-owned institutions, but attacks focused on Christian communities have also been reported.

The bishop said: “The Church continues to do what is in its nature, to be with the people, to help those we can help, and to offer what aid we receive.”

ACN’s support in Mozambique has included emergency aid, pastoral assistance and counselling for displaced people, as well as vehicles for missionaries and the construction of homes and community centres.

Voice of the Martyrs, October 24th, 2024

Goma Kunwar in Nepal has suffered repeated beatings and mistreatment at the hands of her Hindu husband since putting her faith in Christ in 2022. More than once, his attacks have been life-threatening.

On Jan. 2, 2024, Goma’s husband beat her badly and attacked her with a sickle, cutting her head so that she required medical treatment. Despite the abuse, Goma does not want to leave the Lord.

Pray that she will receive the physical and emotional care she needs; that her husband, Tek Bahadur, will come to faith in Jesus Christ; and that her faithfulness to the Lord will be a testimony to the friends and neighbours who are urging her to give up her faith.

The government of Nepal is taking an increasingly strong stand against religious conversion. Despite the 2015 constitution that guaranteed religious freedom, Parliament criminalized converting someone to another religion. Christian communities are small, but they boldly witness for Christ despite harassment and risk.

Nepal is a collectivist culture in which significant decisions are made by the head of the family or the community leader; decisions by other individuals are unacceptable and opposed.

Families, communities, Marxist groups and Hindu groups pressure Christians, who also experience some government interference. Muslims and Buddhists also persecute Christians, especially in response to evangelism and conversions in rural areas.

Joshua Project, October 27^th, 2024

The Shihuh are fishermen and herdsmen and are probably descended from the original inhabitants of northern Oman, pushed into the mountains by successive Muslim and Portuguese invasions. The land in which they live is rocky and arid, with very little vegetation. Their stone houses are called bayt al qufl, which means “cave house”, since they are partly underground.

Until about the early 1970s, the tribe was isolated from the outside world. They did not trust outsiders, and it was common for visitors at that time to have stones thrown at them by tribesmen. Nowadays, the Shihu are no longer hostile to outsiders, but neither are they particularly friendly.

Much of the region is not hospitable to Christian outreach.

Much sustained prayer is needed to prepare hearts and to create desire to search for the peace found in Christ.  

Pray for righteous character for those who find the Lord among this people group.

1. There are no known Christian believers among this people at this time. Pray for hearts to begin to hunger for the forgiveness of sin found only in trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ. Pray for sufficient rainfall to provide for livestock and to grow grain needed for food.