The Persecuted Church Across the World

Persecuted Church Sudan Dec 22nd 2017

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Sudan Takes Over Church Properties

An Islamist judge in Omdurman upheld the eviction of two pastors from their church-owned homes, ruling that Hisham Hamad Al-Neel, a Muslim businessman behind most cases filed to obtain church property, should take over the houses. 60 other Christians have been summoned over their refusal to relinquish property.

The two pastors and their families remain homeless since police raided their houses on Aug. 15 and evicted them. Pastor Abdalla has two children, ages 8 and 10, and Pastor Nalu has a 1-year-old boy.

Harassment, arrests and persecution of Christians have intensified since South Sudan seceded in July 2011.

The government announced in 2013 that no new licenses would be granted for building new churches in Sudan.

Sudan since 2012 has bulldozed church buildings on the pretext that they belonged to South Sudanese.

Blythswood, Missions

Blythswood Update Dec 22nd 2017

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Blythswood – December Update 2

Talita Kum

The Mission Team discussed the possibility of transferring our support to other areas of Blythswood.  We felt, however, that the Castle Street church family had slowly come to learn more about the Talita Kum and Daniel Centre projects over the past year and that it would be good to extend that growing acquaintance with these two projects for at least another year.

Remember the school children as they spend the Christmas holidays away from the daily influence of the Christians who run the Talita Kum project.

 

Daniel Centre

As mentioned above in relation to Talita Kum, our congregation will continue to give monthly support to the Daniel Centre for the coming year.

Some of the young people in the Daniel Centre will be having their first experience of Christmas in a genuine Christian environment. 

Pray that the wonder of the first Christmas 2000 years ago will also be the wonder of these young men as they spend Christmas together with their fellow residents and committed Christian leaders.

Jacksons, Missions

Jackson’s Update Dec 22nd 2017

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Jacksons – December Update 2

 

Thank God for prayer being answered.  We got rain last week which should help regenerate the grazing destroyed in the fires.  We got the official traffic certificate necessary for the car.

 

Fraser’s business case for NetACT is now with the Stellenbosch IT department for them to add technical details. Pray that it would be ready to present to the university early in the new year.

 

Pray that NetACT staff will return to work in January with new inspiration as to how to embody following Jesus in their lives and courses. 

 

Remember the town in Nigeria where InReach is changing lives in the 95% Muslim community.  The woman who invited her Muslim friends to the group and these friends are now receiving threats.

 

The women were asked if they wanted to move to a safer area but one of them replied, “If I go, who will share this amazing Christ with my people?”  Give thanks for the change that Jesus brings.

Barnabas, Missions

Barnabas Update Dec 22nd 2017

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Syria – December Update 2

With 7 Syrian families now confirmed to be arriving in Dingwall around the middle of January, and with the situation in Syria still very volatile, the Mission Team agreed last week to transfer our giving to the Barnabas Fund from Myanmar to Syria.  The article below highlights the need of Syrian Christians for our ongoing prayerful support.

More than 120 churches destroyed by Islamists

Barnabas Fund 14 Dec 2017

“Terrorists destroyed more than 120 churches,” a notable Syrian Christian leader told his counterpart in Russia and the Russian foreign minister during a visit to Moscow.

However, the leader expressed hope that with the expulsion of Islamic State (IS) from most of Syria and Iraq, “the issue of providing assistance to people who need to return to their homes, creating jobs and bringing their lives back to normal comes to the fore.” He was hopeful that destroyed churches and other Christian buildings will be rebuilt.

The Persecuted Church Across the World

Persecuted Church Dec 2017

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Tackling Muslimophobia AND Christianophobia

Barnabas Fund, 30 November 2017

The media is awash with stories about the extremist organisation Britain First, whose videos were retweeted by President Trump.

The UK was the first country in the world to begin to establish human rights such as freedom of religion, freedom of speech and freedom of the press.

Britain First undermine this heritage of freedom, stating for example, that “Anyone found to be promoting the ideology of Islam will be subject to deportation or imprisonment”.

Yet it is NOT just Britain First who are undermining the UK’s heritage of freedom of religion. Increasing Christianophobia in the UK, comes from a variety of sources. 

In the last few years, a Crown Prosecution Service lawyer has claimed in court that quoting from the King James Bible in public “must be considered to be abusive and is a criminal matter;” and in the last election the BBC, Buzz Feed, The Daily Mirror, The Independent and The Spectator suggested that, because they held beliefs such as believing in miracles or Christian marriage, Christian candidates were “unfit” to hold public office.

Jacksons, Missions

Jackson’s Update Dec 5th 2017

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Jacksons – December Update 1

Thank God that we were able to pick up our car last week.

Fraser would love to see discussions on the best way forward turned into a concrete action plan. The staff at Hugenote College are apprehensive about the move to computer-based teaching.  Please pray they would be able to embrace the challenge and be open to the possibilities.

Fraser is currently writing a business case to ask Stellenbosch University to physically host the NetACT portal. Again, please pray as it’s not a procedure Fraser is comfortable with.

Dawn has met two Nigerian students. Studying at Stellenbosch is hard for them because Nigerians are not encouraged to think originally, just to take in what their teachers tell them. They find the more independent study methods expected at Stellenbosch difficult to achieve.

When Dawn told them about the intention to include study skills guides on the NetACT library portal, they were very enthusiastic and just wished it was already up and running.

The Persecuted Church Across the World

Persecuted Church India Dec 5th 2017

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India archbishop served notice

World Watch Monitor December 1, 2017 

Christian groups have rallied behind Archbishop Thomas Macwan, Gujarat state in western India, after the federal Election Commission served a notice on him for his pastoral letter ahead of state elections this month. Gujarat is the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“The secular and democratic fabric of our country is at stake. Human rights are being violated. Not a single day goes without an attack on our churches, faithful or institutions,” Archbishop Macwan said in his pastoral letter on 21 November.

The Election Commission served a notice on Macwan, asking him why his appeal should not be viewed as a violation of the Model Code of Conduct for the election.

Samson Christian, an outspoken Christian activist based in Gujarat, told World Watch Monitor “this is the first time the Hindu nationalists are targeting the church leader to polarise the Hindu voters” ahead of the election.

“Archbishop Macwan has all the right to protect the people and ask them to pray,” added Samson. “The complaint against the archbishop is politically motivated.”

The Persecuted Church Across the World

Persecuted Church Eritrea Dec 5th 2017

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ERITREA: CHRISTIAN STUDENTS ARRESTED

30 November 2017

Sixteen Christian students were arrested earlier this month, the latest in a series of arrests since May 2017.

The students, who were arrested after being discovered praying together, were held for more than two weeks before being released.

Nearly 200 Christians have reportedly been arrested since May 2017. “What makes this persecution different is that whole families are now being arrested,” a VOM contact said.

 “Whereas in the past most were picked up at Bible studies or Christian services, now believers are being arrested at their homes.

Because of the arrests, more than 30 children have been left without parents or guardians and the security police are monitoring them to make sure they do not get support from the Christian community.”

Blythswood, Missions

Blythswood Update Dec 5th 2017

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Blythswood – December Update 1

Talita Kum

Talita Kum has the full support of the school and town mayor. Local teachers volunteer their time to help. Talita Kum has made basic improvements to the housing of some of the poorest families, benefiting the children and their parents.

We now have a charity shop in Jimbolia which is very successful. The profits from the shop go towards the costs of running the after-school club with the aim of making it self-sufficient in time.

Daniel Centre

Since 2000, the Daniel Centre, near Cluj-Napoca in Romania, has offered a home to almost 100 abandoned young men.

Young people leaving state care often end up living on the streets.  Growing up, they receive very little education or training in life skills and struggle to find work and somewhere to live. 

Up to 18 young men can be accommodated in a Christian environment, learning to cook, wash and iron their clothes, to keep their rooms clean and tidy and to help with jobs around the Centre. They then progress to semi- independent living in on-site apartments. 

Those who have achieved independence still regard the Daniel Centre as home, knowing that there is always an open door.

Barnabas, Missions

Barnabas Update Dec 5th 2017

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Myanmar – December Update 1

Christians hope Pope will speak for them

 

November 27, 2017 By World Watch Monitor 

 

The Pope landed in Myanmar today to start his six-day visit to Southeast Asia.

 

Among those welcoming him were more than 7,000 ethnic Kachin from northern Myanmar.

 

The predominantly Christian Kachin, together with the Karen ethnic minority, live along the country’s borders and have faced years of government oppression.

 

Myanmar’s Catholic Cardinal Bo said that the “Rohingya situation is a great tragedy but at least 66 churches in Kachin state have been destroyed since the conflict reignited in 2011.”

 

AP journalist Julhas Alam writes that “Christianity is viewed by many as a colonial belief after the country was ruled by the British for a century until its independence in 1948”.

 

A human rights activist adds that Myanmar has seen a “rise of religious intolerance, which has come from within society, although there’s evidence that elements of the military-backed political parties are also involved in this.”