THE AID AGENCY FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH
www.barnabasfund.org
JULY/AUGUST 2014
IN THIS ISSUE
Syria
Students
CAR
Horror and hope in a brutal conflict
A future for persecuted Christian communities
Helping Christians survive the chaos
£6.00
Breaking through the Barriers
£5.00
Leading Muslims to Christ
Why Christian Women Convert to Islam
Rosemary Sookhdeo
Rosemary Sookhdeo
How can we understand our Muslim friends and neighbours so that we can share the Gospel effectively with them? This book discusses their religion, culture and practices to find points of contact that will help Muslims respond to the Christian Gospel and provides crucial information on the differences between Islam and Christianity.
Women are being attracted to Islam in increasing numbers. The author explores the reasons why they convert and highlights the problems that they face. She examines the issues confronting women who marry Muslims and addresses the long-term implications of conversion. This is an essential guide to a vital topic for parents and church leaders.
ISBN: 9780982521816 | Cover: Paperback | No. of pages: 160 | RRP: £8.99 | P & P: £2.99
ISBN: 9780978714116 | Cover: Paperback | No. of pages: 125 | RRP: £7.99 | P & P: £2.99
To order these books, visit: barnabasfund.org/shop. Alternatively, please contact your nearest Barnabas Fund office (addresses on back cover). Cheques for the UK should be made payable to “Barnabas Books”.
The paper used in this publication comes from sustainable forests and can be 100% recycled.
Front cover: An aid distribution funded by Barnabas for displaced and vulnerable Christians in the Central African Republic To guard the safety of Christians in hostile environments, names may have been changed or omitted. Thank you for your understanding. Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations are taken from the New International Version®. Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders and obtain permission for stories and images used in this publication. Barnabas Fund apologises for any errors or omissions and will be grateful for any further information regarding copyright. © Barnabas Fund 2014
WELCOME FROM THE DIRECTOR
“Struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Corinthians 4:9)
T
he Apostle Paul, writing his second letter to the Corinthians, uses four emotive phrases in chapter 4 verses 8-9 to describe the conditions that he and his colleagues had faced in their perilous mission. He uses phrases drawn from either a military conflict or wrestling in the sports arena. First, he speaks of how they were hard pressed, literally attacked by an adversary who had pummelled them into a corner, and they are now shattered. He uses, secondly, the phrase “we are perplexed”, which can also mean “lacking in resources”. He was confused not only as to what was happening but also as to why God had allowed it to happen. He now lacked the physical, psychological and spiritual resources to fight on. Thirdly, he speaks of being persecuted. The meaning of the word here is to be hunted. Not only was he now shattered, confused and devoid of resources, but also his adversary is now stalking him, hunting him, waiting to pounce, to destroy him. Finally, he speaks of being knocked down; a terrifying blow had struck him, and he lies in an abject heap in the corner, unable to pick himself up. To those looking on, he was now finished. He was defeated. There was no way out. But Paul not only uses these terms to describe his condition but also uses parallel terms to describe his response to these four attacks. So whilst he was hard-pressed, he was not crushed. Whilst he was perplexed, he was not in despair. Whilst he was persecuted, he was not forsaken. Whilst he was knocked down, he was not knocked out or destroyed. In speaking of persecution he was thinking of his Master, who in John’s Gospel (15:20) says that if people persecuted Him they would also persecute His followers. Following in the footsteps of his Master, persecution was a reality.
Paul’s experience is replicated in the lives of many Christians undergoing difficulties of various kinds, who can testify to the fact that, in the midst of extreme suffering, God kept them from being crushed and destroyed. We may reflect in light of these verses on current events in places where the Church is under great pressure today. In Nigeria, the Church faces acute challenges, particularly in the aftermath of the kidnapping of more than 200 Christian girls. So many Christians in northern Nigeria have died in recent years; so many of their homes have been destroyed; so many have fled. They are hard pressed. In Syria today, the Christian community are perplexed. They have seen their beloved country systematically destroyed. The stability and peace they used to have are gone. Homs is devastated, Aleppo a battle-field. Syrian Christians see no way out – why has God allowed this? And worse, they are lacking resources, whether physical, mental or spiritual. Where is God, they ask? They are close to despair. In Zanzibar, the meeting place of a Christian church made up mainly of converts was destroyed on 9 May. Christian leaders are targeted for assassination; Christians are forced into hiding as their pursuers seek to kill them. They are persecuted. The Church in Iraq is knocked down, overwhelmed. Will she survive? And yet, Paul’s words suggest that despite all of these trials the Church will never be crushed. She will never be in despair. She will never be forsaken. She will never be knocked out. She is caught in a conflict. She has an adversary, and that adversary is Satan. Jesus said, “I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail” (Matthew 16:18, ESV). The promise of the Christian Gospel is that the Church will overcome; she will be triumphant in the face of the most appalling suffering. The experience of Paul was the experience of his Master and is the experience of the Lord’s people even today.
Dr Patrick Sookhdeo International Director
Dr Sookhdeo wrote this editorial while on sabbatical from his duties as International Director.
Contents
4 Compassion in Action Emergency relief for displaced believers in CAR
4
Syria Update Suffering Christians tell their stories
8
Living in Babylon Christian suffering and final judgment
Pullout
8 Suffering Church Action Week Staying faithful to Christ in a hostile world Project Update Supporting persecuted Christians in higher education
11 12
Newsdesk Christian girl gang-raped in Pakistan; mass kidnap of schoolgirls in Nigeria In Touch Art, sale and fasting raise funds for Barnabas
18 14 18
COMPASSION IN ACTION
how barnabas £185,000 for basic needs (US$311,706; €228,857) £62,901 for emergency relief (US$100,000; €77,225)
Helping the least of these
Surviving displacement and loss
£1,562 for motorbike (US$2,638; €1,918)
Ministry on a motorbike
Christians found refuge in churches during the violence
Mary was extremely happy with the emergency relief she and over 900 other Christian families received from a church in Juba, South Sudan, thanks to Barnabas Fund.
Thirty Christian university students, who were on the verge of quitting their studies because of lack of funds, also received support so they can complete their education.
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BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014
She told one of the church members that the food, sleeping mat and blanket were greatly helping her family after all their belongings were looted during the violence that broke out between supporters of two rival politicians on 13 December 2013. In the anarchy that followed, over 860,000 people, many of them Christians, were displaced as they fled from the violence. The relief items are helping the families survive as they live in harsh conditions and without a home. John, another recipient, was also very glad to receive the food, as it will give him time to find work to provide more food for the family. He and his family praised God for the practical help.
George can now minister more easily
A new motorbike given by Barnabas Fund is helping George, an active Christian student coordinator, stay in touch with a rapidly growing number of study groups scattered across the southwest region of Bangladesh.
Project reference 48-1171
We are supporting Christian families with housing costs, medicines, food and schooling for their children, especially those most affected by the recent political turmoil as churches are burnt down and families forced to flee from some villages.
Project reference 11-220
Barnabas Fund is helping those “who are really in desperate need” in Egypt, a church leader told us. He compared our help to that of the righteous in the Matthew 25 parable who helped their fellow believers, giving food to the hungry, homes to the homeless and care to the sick.
He can now reach these pockets of Christians living in the overwhelmingly Muslim country much more easily to encourage them in their faith. Thanks to his hard work, the number of study groups had already grown from one to 14 in just four years. Now, with the motorbike, he is planning on starting new groups in a city 60 miles from his home church.
Project reference 04-640
Christians in Upper Egypt are receiving support
is helping
COMPASSION IN ACTION Our brothers and sisters in Christ tell us time and again how encouraged they are by the help they have received from Barnabas Fund. Thank you for supporting them in their time of need. On these and the following page are just a selection of the many ways you are helping persecuted Christians. Please pray as you read. £4,272 for Christian training (US$7,215; €5,245)
Teaching from personal experience
£35,000 for survivors of bombing (US$58,971; €43,297) £2,994 for water pumps in Pakistan (US$5,057; €3,676)
Time to grieve
Water pumps quench thirst The teachers patiently explained matters over and over again
One of the widows with her children
Much excitement about having their own water source
The hand pumps, installed with funds from Barnabas Fund, have intentionally been placed on church grounds so that entire congregations can benefit from them. Especially during the summer months, when electricity regularly breaks down for hours on end, the pumps are the only water sources within several miles for many of the church members. Another eleven pumps should be installed in three districts of Punjab province this year. The cost per pump is £158.
Project reference 41-1160
Members of nine congregations in Pakistan are overjoyed to have clean drinking water on their church premises.
This means that even though the families’ breadwinners were killed in this deadliest-ever attack on Christians in Pakistan, the families now have enough to eat and the children can go to school. It also gives them time to process the trauma they experienced and to grieve the loss of their loved ones, comforted by the knowledge that Christians around the world are supporting them and praying for them. Another 18 families who were affected by the bombing have received help from Barnabas Fund towards paying for their children’s school and college fees or starting up small businesses.
Project reference 00-345 (Victims of Violence Fund)
Seventeen widows, who lost their husbands in the bombing of All Saints Church in Peshawar, are receiving monthly financial support for one year from Barnabas Fund.
As her teachers were also all Muslim-background believers and local pastors, they could tailor the course to the needs of the students, homing in on basic Christian doctrines and issues that confront the students in their ministry. “I liked very much that there was free style communication when we could discuss all topics and come to correct understanding of important foundations of our faith,” confirmed Zarif, another student. “This study has opened my eyes on many questions,” added Zarina, who ministers to children and young people. “Now I know how to explain to people many spiritual things from the Bible. I have got great experience in understanding the Bible.”
This project is now complete, but similar projects can be supported with a gift to our Leadership Training Fund (00-430).
“They not only taught us but also took care of all students,” Dalina said, referring to her teachers. She had just completed a twoyear Barnabas Fund-sponsored leadership training course for 60 Christians in Tajikistan, all of whom are converts from Islam.
BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014 5
COMPASSION IN ACTION
bringing hope,
Bibles bring hope for the desolate “I was so happy and treasure this Word of God. It brings me so much peace and hope,” Uu Dee KoMang, an elderly Christian woman in Burma (Myanmar), said about a Kachin Bible she had received through Barnabas Fund. She explained why the Bible is so important to her. She and her husband had eight children, but six of them died, three of them before the age of one from fever and diarrhoea. These diseases are normally easily curable, but the family were unable to access a clinic for treatment. At that time the predominantly Christian Kachin minority were being oppressed by the Burmese army, and they were afraid to travel. Around two years ago this nightmare started again after 17 years of relative peace. The Burmese army entered Uu Dee’s village and ordered everyone to leave within the next hour and
never to come back. “All the people in my village panicked. We were so afraid, especially the older ones who knew too well how brutal the Burmese army can be.” “I took some clothes and food and ran. I had a very old, heavy Bible but did not bring it with me; it was too heavy. Later, I deeply regretted not taking it, because the Bible always gives me hope.” Several weeks ago Uu Dee received a new Bible in the relocation camp. Barnabas Fund had paid for the transporting into Burma of 45,000 Kachin Bibles and 10,000 Lisu study Bibles. “My most favourite Bible passage is on the resurrection of Jesus. I know that when I get to heaven, all my children will be there and we will be reunited forever. No more pain and sicknesses.”
Uu Dee’s new Bible gives her much solace
£17,063 for transporting Bibles into Burma (US$28,824; €20,934) This project is now complete, but similar projects can be supported with a gift to our Christian Literature Fund (00-360).
Son leads Muslim mother to Christ “Zemphira” from Tajikistan was a Muslim until her 13-year-old son came back from a Christian summer camp. He had been profoundly affected there by the teachings of “Aigul”, a full-time Christian worker whom Barnabas Fund is supporting for two years.
much and Aigul suggested to me that she can lead the same lessons with adults, too. I invited her in my home.” They started having regular meetings, reading the Bible and praying. “In September I asked God to forgive my sins and He gave me peace in my heart.”
“I saw that he had changed very much,” Zemphira relates. “He started to help me at home, stopped fighting with other children in the yard. He sang many songs about Jesus in home.” She asked him what he had learnt. “He told me that all people are sinful and me too. He told me what I need to do so that God can forgive my sins.”
Zemphira’s brother-in-law, a mullah, has tried to stop them from meeting, but Zemphira prays that he and all her relatives will soon find the truth.
Zemphira decided to come along to one of Aigul’s children’s Bible studies with her son. “I liked it very
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BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014
Besides leading the children’s Bible studies and camps, Aigul also teaches Christian handicraft lessons twice a week in a school. Through her children’s work, she has established contacts with several more Muslim families, who are opening up to Christ.
“Aigul” (left), a Barnabas-funded Christian worker, with “Zemphira” and her son
£2,310 for Christian worker in Tajikistan (US$3,902; €2,834)
Project reference 00-477 (Pastor Support Fund)
COMPASSION IN ACTION
transforming lives
Survival “in times of disaster”
“This [kit] will bring us a little happiness as our kitchen utensils were burned together with the house”
Aid was given to the most vulnerable families
“M
y wife will be the happiest person for the kitchen utensils, and my children will be happy for the cartons of milk and other foods.” said Pastor Abel. His family was one of 589 displaced Christian families in the Central African Republic (CAR) who received emergency relief paid for by Barnabas Fund. Another 99 Christians, mainly elderly and disabled, and an orphanage also received bags of food. The aid is helping make the Christians’ lives more bearable in the makeshift displaced people’s camps where they are living. Many fled from their homes carrying nothing as they tried to escape the violence that erupted in December 2013 between the Seleka, an Islamist militia, and the “anti-balaka” groups that oppose them.
“This [kit] will bring us a little happiness as our kitchen utensils were burned together with the house,” our Barnabas Fund partner was told by Michel, whose family received a kit containing food and basic household items such as a water bucket, cooking pot, jerry can, cup, detergent and antiseptic soap, and also a Bible. Michel added, “My little brother and my own son were murdered by Seleka of my neighbourhood. Muslims fired a shell onto the roof of the church which is right behind my house. My house was burnt down with all its contents. I was left with the clothes I have on me.” All the families receiving aid have lost one or more of their members, many at the hands of the Seleka. After seizing control of Christian-
majority CAR in March 2013, they went on a rampage, looting, raping and killing thousands of Christians. Our partner says that the families “are very excited and grateful” to Barnabas Fund because they “did not hesitate for a moment to come to their aid in times of disaster”.
£30,754 for survival kits (US$51,951; €35,985)
Project reference 105-1172
BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014 7
SYRIA UPDATE
CRIES FROM THE CONFLICT ZONE Syrian Christians speak out Syria’s brutal civil conflict, now in its fourth year, remains in stalemate. Deadly violence continues to ravage many parts of the country, with no end clearly in sight. Christians continue to be at particular risk from Islamists, who often deliberately target them. The dire humanitarian crisis in the country is likely only to worsen in the coming months. It is feared that an expected drought in the region could result in a record low wheat harvest, and the UN’s World Food Programme announced in April that because donor countries have failed to fulfil their aid pledges, it has been forced to cut the size of food parcels given to Syria by a fifth. This article discusses the condition of Christians in five locations – Aleppo, Kessab, Kharaba, Maaloula and Homs – and includes testimonies from some of them. The words of our persecuted brothers and sisters in these places speak both of horror and of hope. They tell of dire events and destroyed lives, but they also reveal profound trust in the Lord and deep thankfulness for the prayers and support of their Christian family around the world.
Aleppo
Christians and other residents of Syria’s largest city have continued to suffer terribly. Aleppo, a key battleground, has seen intense fighting and bombardment. Barrel bombs have caused widespread devastation, and civilians are being killed and injured by mortar fire, rockets and snipers. The battle for Aleppo has led to desperate shortages of essentials, as supply routes into the city have often been blocked off. One of our project partners, Dr Jany Haddad, wrote on 22 April, “People here are in a miserable and
unbearable situation. For seven days there has been no electricity, total darkness. Very little water. No fuel. Just a tiny road has been opened to move in some food. Most people are hopeless, helpless.” At
the time of writing, Aleppo’s taps have been dry for
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BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014
They were horrible, terrible hours in my memory. I lost everything. But praise the Lord I still have my family members with me and we can start new steps.
Aleppo Kessab Wadi al-Nasara
Victim of the Kessab invasion
Displaced Christians from Kessab
The unexpected nature of this attack caused many of Kharaba’s residents to enter a state of shock. Memory of the recent events continues to cause many to fear immediate return to their homes. Aid for families displaced from Kharaba
Maaloula
Kharaba
Barnabas partner
more than a week; rebel fighters have shut down the generators that pump the city’s water supply from its only source, the Euphrates River. Last year, Barnabas helped to build 14 wells in Aleppo to help ensure that believers have a constant supply of clean water at times such as this. This year the city authorities requested that water from these wells also be distributed to other parts of the city, so many other war-affected civilians will also benefit. Many Christians have been forced to flee Aleppo. It is estimated that of a pre-war Christian population of around 450,000, only around 180,000 believers are left. Just three or four senior church leaders have been able to remain, where once around 15 lived in the city.
Kessab
Homs
Kessab, a Christian town in north-west Syria that had remained relatively safe, once provided
a place of refuge for the displaced. But when Islamist militants seized the town, this safe haven became a front line. Rebel fighters from Sham al-Islam, Ansar alSham and al-Nusra Front, a group linked to alQaeda, attacked Kessab on 21 March. Around 3,000 Armenian Christian residents fled for their lives. One displaced believer said, “We left
our places semi-naked, with no money in our pockets, we forgot even to take our ID cards or our personal documents and official papers for our houses and lands.” The Christians took refuge in
neighbouring Latakia and Bassit.
The trauma of the Armenians’ ordeal has been compounded by the involvement of Turkey; the country allowed hundreds of Islamist militants to cross its border to attack Kessab. The Armenian
SYRIA UPDATE Many thanks for standing by me and all of us here in Aleppo and Syria through your sincere supportive prayers. I don’t have enough words to extend my gratefulness for His protection and for your prayers. Dr Jany Haddad, a Barnabas partner in Aleppo
Christians in Aleppo collect food parcels
What the church did through you was to root the Christian presence in this region. Barnabas church partner
Qamishly
We appreciate a lot the role that you are playing in spreading peace and safety all over Syria, defending the rights of Christians here … to make our voices heard (the voice of the orphans, the homeless mothers, the injured, the martyrs’ families, the voice of right to the tough hearts that wanted Syria to be destroyed). We believe that God is with us and He will spread peace and good in our country soon.
Syria
Senior church leader from Homs
Displaced Christians receive blankets and heaters from Barnabas
At first we thought we could survive it and all we had to do was hang in there a while longer and all would be over. But what happened a few days later proved us wrong. Our family was ripped to pieces when we lost our youngest son… A Christian father from Maaloula
Committee of America said that the attack was “a horrifying and bitter reminder” of the Armenian genocide. Between 1894 and 1923, more than 1.5 million Armenian and Assyrian Christians died as a result of the murderous policies of the Turkish Ottoman government. An elderly victim of the Kessab attack said,
“We used to hear from our parents about the Genocide and how it was chaos and a terrible event, and we could not understand them. Now just ask me and I'll paint one of the most awful, horrible pictures ever painted.”
Kharaba
Up to 350 families were driven from their homes in a shock attack on Kharaba, a Christian village in Sweida province. The attack on 23 April followed the disappearance of a young Christian
Some believers from Maaloula fled to Wadi alNasara, where Barnabas is feeding hundreds of Christian families
man; eight houses were torched, including the home of the missing man’s father, who had stood up to the attackers. The fighters kidnapped 49 Christian men. The local bishop helped to negotiate the release of all but around half a dozen of those kidnapped, but it is not known what has happened to the others. On 27 April, the Syrian army drove the rebels out of Kharaba. A few families have started to return, but as our partner’s words show (see map), the attack has caused great distress among the community.
Maaloula
At least seven Christians were killed when this historic Christian village was invaded by alQaeda-linked rebels last September. The village was quickly recaptured by regime forces but was
seized by Islamist fighters for a second time in December 2013. On 10 March, 13 nuns and three other women who were kidnapped by rebels in the second attack were released as part of a prisoner swap deal. Government troops then recaptured Maaloula on 14 April. The initial invasion forced most of Maaloula’s 3,000 residents to flee to Damascus and the surrounding areas. Although many of the displaced are keen to go home, some have very little left to which to return. Homes were looted and burned, and Christian sites were badly damaged, defaced, looted or altogether destroyed. Several historic churches were among the targets.
BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014 9
SYRIA UPDATE
A Christian father from Maaloula who took refuge in Wadi al-Nasara (Valley of the Christians), described the horror of the first invasion: “The fire was coming from everywhere. And we could barely leave the house to get our basic needs. At first we thought we could survive it… But what happened a few days later proved us wrong. Our family was ripped to pieces when we lost our youngest son to a stray bullet that killed him immediately. “Through the unbearable pain and guilt we (my wife and two boys) left everything behind and moved out to the valley area to rent a shared house with other two families. “I lost everything. My wife suffered a severe breakdown after our son’s death and we lost our decent life. Now we are one of three families living in one house that is divided up… each family lives in a room.”
Homs
By early 2014 only a few dozen members of Homs’ once 60,000-strong Christian population remained, held as a human shield in the rebel-held Old City and dying, one by one, of deprivation and disease. When many of the group were released in evacuations earlier this year, stories emerged of the intense suffering the believers had endured, both as a result of severe shortages and at the hands of the rebels. On 7 May, the remaining rebels were cleared out from Homs. Some displaced Christians now plan to go home, but many will return to find their homes destroyed, their possessions looted and great hostility to Christians. For example, one Christian couple’s home is now an empty shell with no windows, doors or furniture; only two laundry baskets and some photos were left by the looters. Yet they are determined to return, “with His blessing and the help of those who helped us when we were displaced and miserable”.
How can I help? Pray – Please pray for all those whose words appear in this article, their families and the wider Syrian Christian community. Ask the Lord to keep them safe, meet all their material needs and be their comfort and strength throughout all they endure. Pray also for all Syrians suffering in the conflict. Give – Barnabas has been able to help around 10% of Syria’s remaining Christian population, but the needs extend far further. We are helping Christians from or in all the locations mentioned in this article. Please consider giving a gift to project number 00-1032 to support our work. Sponsor a child – When Christians suffer violence and hardship as described in this article, it is often their children who suffer the most. Barnabas’ child sponsorship scheme provides for the basic needs of vulnerable children from Christian families. We are so grateful to the supporters who are already sponsoring 690 Syrian Christian children; your support is making a world of difference to young lives. We still need sponsors for 1,310 children. Just £18 on average covers the basic needs of one Syrian child; could you be a lifeline for them?*
* Sponsors receive a prayer card with a photo and details of one child they can pray for, as well as a twice-yearly newsletter. Because of security concerns, direct contact between sponsors and children is not possible. To begin sponsoring a child, please use the form on p. 19, giving the project reference 00-1147 and using the “I would like to give regularly…” box. You can also set up a regular gift at www.barnabasfund.org or by contacting your nearest Barnabas office (addresses on back cover). This article was written in May 2014 and reflects conditions in Syria at that time.
10 BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014
“How generous Thou art O Lord!” A volunteer who distributed aid from Barnabas described the reaction of one beneficiary: “Immediately the tears went down from her eyes and she started crying aloud. She led me to a very humble kitchen with shelves and refrigerator empty of food apart from a packet of bread. “I heard the woman saying, with tears falling down, ‘Thank you Lord, because from nowhere and from empty kitchen I can now buy some food.’ She then shouted loud, ‘How generous Thou art O Lord!’ She then started thanking God for all those who made this possible for her family and so many others. I heard her saying in a faint voice, ‘I can buy food, my eye drops and a bottle of cooking gas!’”
Last year, Barnabas Fund sent almost £2.2 million in aid for Syrian Christians. It was used forasthe following: It was used follows:
£1,793,800
for regular monthly food, medicines and other basic needs
£209,370 for winter relief £93,710
to help provide a shelter for displaced families
£48,040
for emergency assistance for victims of attacks on Christian areas
£20,190
for water wells
£15,780
to train Christians in how to counsel traumatised children
£8,880
to support Christian children who have lost one or both parents in the conflict
£6,370
for baby milk for under-twos
LIVING IN BABYLON
Living in Babylon Faithful to Christ in a hostile world
T
he first letter of Peter in the New Testament is written to sustain and direct the faith and discipleship of Christians facing persecution. Its message applies not only to the more severe forms of anti-Christian hostility experienced by some 10% of believers around the world today, but also to the more subtle kinds of antagonism suffered by Christians in the West. In fact, the context it addresses is more similar in some respects to the Western one. Whether persecution is limited to social pressure or involves deliberate discrimination, harassment or violence, its purpose is essentially the same: to shame and bully us into forsaking our Christian beliefs and lifestyle
and resuming our old ways. The derision and rejection that we face from wider society result from our being citizens of heaven and therefore exiles on earth, foreigners in a land that is not our own, whose values and customs are different from those of our neighbours. Our condition is summarised in the name “Babylon” (5:13), which in 1 Peter is probably a symbolic reference to Rome and identifies its empire as the place of exile for God’s people. In these challenging circumstances, 1 Peter provides its readers with encouragement to persevere in our Christian faith and discipleship and offers us guidance in how to do so. In this issue we continue our series of pull-out supplements reflecting on its teaching.
BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014
i
u Pain t c rfli f on cf LIVING IN BABYLON
1 Peter 4
In earlier chapters, the letter explains the status of Christians as God’s new people and our resulting hope of salvation in Christ, and it calls us to a lifestyle that reflects that standing and expectation. In the central section (from 2:11), it applies this general appeal to specific areas of life, calling us to conduct ourselves well among unbelievers and to handle unjust suffering in the right way. The first eleven verses of chapter 4 conclude this section with instructions on how to live within a hostile culture (verses 1-6) and among ourselves (verses 7-11). The last main section begins at verse 12, as the letter picks up the theme of Christian suffering and sets it in the context of God’s final judgment. These verses show us how to face anti-Christian hostility and the sufferings that follow from it in light of this wider perspective and encourage us to entrust ourselves to God.
n o i t a n i m i r c Dis Persec The previous passage has referred to the unjust sufferings of Christ and described His victory over the cosmic forces of evil. The letter now applies this teaching to the lives of the readers. It encourages them to do the will of God, in contrast to the customs of their society, and despite the abuse that follows, in light of God’s final judgment. Christ’s death has removed the readers’ sin once and for all, and for this reason they are to make a decisive break with their past sinful lives. In other words, they are to renounce the evil human desires that once controlled them and to live instead in obedience to God’s will. They have spent enough time doing what pagans like to do, in a lifestyle of “debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry” (verse 3). This clean break with the past is still required of Christian converts today, whatever our religious and moral background may be. Not everyone’s pre-Christian past was marked by such public and grievous sins as those listed here, and not all of us bowed down to carved or cast images in shrines. But all of us failed rightly to honour the true God, and gave our devotion instead to other objects of worship, and as a result God gave us all over to the sinful desires of our hearts. But because Christ’s death has finally dealt with our sin, we are now to live differently, doing the will of God. The problem is that this change of lifestyle brings insults down upon us. When we conform to society’s standards, it does not oppose us, but by becoming Christians and refusing to conform any longer, we are in effect devaluing and condemning those standards. Society’s disapproval is therefore inevitable; people who still accept the immorality that marks unbelieving society will be first surprised at our refusal to join in with it, and then abusive. This hostility inevitably puts pressure on us to revert to our former way of life. But the letter immediately makes clear that this is the wrong course of action. People who live in that sinful way and who reject and afflict Christians for living in God’s way will be accountable to God, who stands ready to judge both the living and the dead. The text implies (though it does not explicitly say) that such people will in turn be rejected and condemned by God. If we associate ourselves with them by reverting to our old lifestyle, we will bring this sentence upon ourselves at the judgment. On the other hand, to persevere in our Christian conduct is to guarantee a better verdict. Yes, we suffer the divine judgment of physical death like everyone else, and by the human standards of our contemporaries our lifestyle may thus appear to be futile. But because the Gospel was preached even to those Christians who have since died, we know that this judgment and death are not the last word; we will be vindicated before God when He raises us to new life in the Spirit. Christian values and behaviour are always in tension, and often in open conflict, with those of non-Christian societies. So those who live in obedience to God’s will, whether in the West or elsewhere, are bound to attract the bewilderment and rejection of others, especially in contexts where social unity and conformity are highly valued. But although our Christian lifestyle is censured by other people, it is approved by God. They may inflict suffering upon us and write us off, but God will condemn them and vindicate us at the judgment. Despite the persecution we experience now, we have the best of reasons to maintain our distinctiveness.
Thr eate nin g
u Lies tion Abused for following Christ Ali Touahir, a former Muslim from Tizi Ouzou in Algeria, gave his life to Christ in 2012. But his wife was strongly opposed to his new faith, and in June 2013 she left him, taking their seven-year-old daughter; she said that she did not want Ali to “poison [the girl] with his Christian ideas”. Her brothers persuaded her to seek a divorce, and one of them openly threatened to kill him. Her lawyer wrote to the court, “It is not possible that my client remain under the same roof with a man who has renounced his religion.” At a hearing in January 2014, the judge suggested that Ali renounce his Christian faith, but he boldly refused.
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Adamu’s mother raised him as a Muslim in Central Africa, but after he was orphaned he became a Christian. When his uncle invited Adamu to live with him, he asked the boy to perform the Islamic ablutions and come to the mosque. Adamu said that he did not want to be a Muslim, and when his uncle persisted, he collected all his belongings and left the house. Adamu escaped to another relative and told her he was running away from Islam, and he started doing petty business by the roadside to make a living. His uncle rebuked him for bringing shame on the family, but Adamu stood firm.
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Living in a hostile culture (4:1-6)
Making the break
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LIVING IN BABYLON
Hospitality for the rejected
“Debbie” comes from a strict Muslim family, but after she moved to the UK, she began to attend church and became a Christian. She was staying with her aunt, but when she told her father about her conversion, she found herself thrown out on the streets; he even sent his friends to abduct her and take her back home. Hungry and homeless, Debbie cried out to God to give her a new family, and a few minutes later her phone rang. A couple from her church invited her for lunch, and when they found she had nowhere to live, they gave her a room in their house. They got her a Bible in her own language, answered her questions and helped her to grow in her new faith. Later, when she was kidnapped, wounded and threatened with death if she did not return to Islam, she had the courage and strength to refuse. She is now an evangelist among Muslims in another country.
Living with each other (4:7-11)
The central section of the letter draws to a close with instructions that deal mainly with the internal life of the churches; that is, on the conduct of Christians towards one another. In a context of rejection and hostility from wider society, this section is directed to the building up of the Christian community as a source of strength and protection for its members. Christians can stand firm in the face of persecution much more easily when they belong to healthy and supportive congregations. The passage begins with an announcement that the end of the age is near. It is at this time that God will judge the living and the dead, vindicating His people and condemning their enemies, as described in the previous paragraph. It is therefore vital that Christians be ready for it, and therefore we are to be clear-minded and alert, seeing our life in the light of the impending end and acting accordingly. This kind of discipline will enable us to pray effectively for power and guidance to endure our sufferings without wavering. It will also equip us to relate properly to one another as that great day approaches. The letter goes on to list some of the characteristics of these right relationships. First and foremost among them is earnest, fervent love for one another, because this will generate forgiveness of the many acts and kinds of sin that believers can commit against each other, not least when they are under pressure because of their faith. Also required is ungrudging hospitality towards one another, by which we provide support for brothers and sisters who have experienced rejection from a hostile society, or perhaps for Christian leaders who travel around building up the churches in the face of persecution. God also gives gifts to His people for them to serve one another, as stewards of His varied grace. Two examples are given of this mutual ministry: someone who utters inspired speech, who is to make sure that s/he is speaking God’s words, and someone who serves, who must do so in the strength that God supplies. Gifts are to be used in this way so that it is God who is glorified by them, through Jesus Christ, who makes it possible for us to praise God. And in light of this, the section closes appropriately with an acknowledgment of God’s eternal glory and power. Self-controlled and sober living, love and forgiveness, hospitality, serving others with the gifts God has given us: all these promote the cohesion and strength of our churches and provide Christians with the unity and stability that we need to face the disapproval and abuse of our societies. As we give glory to the exalted and sovereign God through Jesus Christ, we are enabled by Him to stand firm to the end.
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The last main section of the letter begins here, with teaching specifically focused on the sufferings of Christians in the perspective of God’s final judgment. The paragraph contains two sets of commands; each of these is supported by its own reasons; and they are followed by a concluding word of exhortation. In the first set of commands, the readers are urged not to be surprised at the fiery ordeal of persecution that is taking place among them as a test for them, as though a strange thing were happening to them. In fact, this is only to be expected. The burning fire of God’s judgment has now been kindled on the earth; we Christians experience this in the form of persecution, and its purpose is to test us, as metal is tested in a furnace. This testing has to happen to us, because it is only those who have been tested and found genuine whom God will finally number among His people. But remarkably, persecution is not only to be expected; it is also reason for rejoicing. It was the vocation of Christ to be afflicted by others, so when the same happens to us as His people, we share in His sufferings. But just as through those sufferings He enters into glory, so also will we; when the greatness and perfection of God are openly disclosed to the world in Christ, they will also be revealed in us. The abuse that we receive as Christians is a sign of God’s blessing in the present too, because it shows that God’s Spirit abides with us, and the Spirit gives us a share even now in the glory we shall later experience to the full. The promise and presence of God’s glory within and among us are good reasons for us to rejoice in our persecutions. The second set of commands begins with the instruction that none of the readers should suffer as a murderer, a thief or a criminal, or as a busybody. The kind of suffering that will come upon us if we behave in any of these ways reveals nothing good about us,
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The Message of 1 Peter
LIVING IN BABYLON and we should not seek to attract it. But if it is as a Christian that one of us suffers, we are not to be ashamed of our Christian identity by compromising or denying it. On the contrary, we are to maintain that identity by glorifying God, acknowledging His mighty and holy presence among us in what we say and how we live. The reason given for these instructions is that the time has come to begin (God’s) judgment from the household of God. The persecution that we suffer is intended to test whether we are really God’s people; if we come through the fire with our faith intact, then He will find in our favour. But what then will be the end of those who disobey the Gospel? If even a righteous person can be saved only with difficulty, by enduring persecution, what can be expected for those who reject God and His will? The implication is that they will be consumed in the fire. It is very unpleasant for Christians to be despised and maligned, whether mildly as in the West, or severely as in other parts of the world, and such suffering inevitably puts us under pressure to renounce our Christian identity. But this passage tells us that even at such a cost it is worthwhile for us to persist. Yes, we have to suffer the fiery ordeal of God’s judgment in the form of persecution, but if we are faithful and obedient we will come through it, whereas the unbelieving and rebellious will not. The conclusion of the argument is that those who suffer according to God’s will should entrust their lives to a faithful Creator in doing good. God made us, and He is loyal to us as His people. So as we endure His judgment – in the form of persecutions – as He has decreed that we must, we can trust Him with our very selves, knowing that He will bring us through. We do this by persisting in what He has told us to do: confessing our faith and living it out; to do that when we have to suffer for it is really to trust Him. This is God’s calling to His people in their experience of persecution, however mild or severe it may be.
Persisting through persecution
In Northern Nigeria, the militant Islamist group Boko Haram has launched a major terror campaign to establish an Islamic state. They have mounted numerous attacks on churches at worship, and thousands of Christians are estimated to have died at their hands. Yet still Christians insist that they will continue to meet, and in some places their services are full of joyful singing, rousing preaching and focused prayer. A Christian mother of two said simply, “The Bible teaches me that we should have faith in God. This is our town. This is our home. This is where we should worship, so we feel very free.”
Conclusion
Living in “Babylon” – the place of exile for God’s people – is a tough challenge for Christians, especially those who are severely persecuted for their faith. But the fourth chapter of 1 Peter provides guidance and perspectives to enable us to deal with the hostility and pressure that we face at its hands. First, the chapter continues to apply the earlier appeal for the kind of lifestyle that reflects our status and hope as God’s people to specific areas of life. In relation to our hostile culture, we are to make a clean break with our past sinful lives and resist the resulting social pressure to revert to them, in light of God’s coming judgment. And in relation to each other, we are to prepare ourselves for the impending end of the age by building up our churches and binding them together, so that we can stand firm in the face of society’s disapproval and abuse. Secondly, the chapter expounds the nature of Christian suffering and the proper response to it in the context of final judgment. Persecution is to be expected, but it is also ground for rejoicing, as it testifies to our sharing God’s glory now and in the future. It represents the beginning of God’s fiery judgment, but if we maintain our Christian identity in the face of it we will finally be vindicated, while the fire will consume His enemies. So we are to trust ourselves to God by continuing to do His will.
Barnabas fund hope and aid for the persecuted church UK 9 Priory Row, Coventry CV1 5EX Telephone 024 7623 1923 Fax 024 7683 4718 From outside the UK Telephone +44 24 7623 1923 Fax +44 24 7683 4718 Email info@barnabasfund.org Registered Charity Number 1092935 Company Registered in England Number 4029536
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New Zealand PO Box 27 6018, Manukau City, Auckland, 2241 Telephone (09) 280 4385 or 0800 008 805 Email office@barnabasfund.org.nz Australia PO Box 3527 Loganholme QLD 4129 Telephone (07) 3806 1076 or 1300 365799 Fax (07) 3806 4076 Email bfaustralia@barnabasfund.org
Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland PO Box 354, Bangor, BT20 9EQ Telephone 028 91 455 246 or 07867 854604 Email krisb@barnabasfund.org USA 6731 Curran St, McLean, VA 22101 Telephone (703) 288-1681 or toll-free 1-866-936-2525 Fax (703) 288-1682 Email usa@barnabasaid.org
www.barnabasfund.org
International Headquarters The Old Rectory, River Street, Pewsey, Wiltshire SN9 5DB, UK Telephone 01672 564938 Fax 01672 565030 From outside UK Telephone +44 1672 564938 Fax +44 1672 565030 Email info@barnabasfund.org Scotland Barnabas Fund Scotland, PO Box 2084, Livingston, EH54 0EZ Telephone 07772 846389 Email scotland@barnabasfund.org
SUFFERING CHURCH ACTION WEEK
Living in Babylon Faithful to Christ in a hostile world
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Action Week, Barnabas Fund is calling on all Christians to join us in offering practical and spiritual support to our brothers and sisters in Christ who suffer most severely because of their faith in Him, to help them withstand the persecutions that they face. The week also provides an opportunity to build ourselves up in our own faith, so we too can resist the pressure to fall away.
The New Testament uses the name “Babylon” to refer to the Roman Empire as a place of exile and suffering for God’s people. And today, Christians everywhere live in our own “Babylons”, experiencing various levels of contempt, rejection and hostility for Christ’s sake.
The words above represent some of the many ways in which you could get involved in Suffering Church Action Week. Barnabas Fund will provide the resources you need for your event, whether it is a Suffering Church Sunday church service, a children’s event, a prayer meeting or a fundraiser.
Insult
But we are called to stay faithful to Christ in our hostile world. In this year’s Suffering Church
Available resources will include: • An A3 poster to advertise your event • Prayer materials • A DVD with resources relating to our work • Children’s resources • A sermon outline and Bible study • A money box for collecting donations
ion Opposit
Christians, we are exiles here on earth, living in a land that is not our heavenly home. As a result, we are often despised and rejected because our values and practices are different from those of wider society. In many parts of the world Christians suffer discrimination, harassment and violence, and even in the West we face social pressure to water down or abandon our faith.
Look out for further details of these free resources in the September/October issue of Barnabas Aid magazine. In the meantime, visit www.livinginbabylon.org to find out more.
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*or any other week that suits your church’s calendar
Our persecuted brothers and sisters need our prayers and support, and Suffering Church Action Week is the perfect time to raise awareness and reach out to them. Don’t miss out on your chance to make a difference.
BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014 11
PROJECT UPDATE
g n i t a u d a Gr – w it h a –
Mission to study Enabling Christians at tertiary level
proclaim “I have committed to rsity. His name in the unive ristian There are very few Ch ent, so students in my departm I started my Master of
Science
glorify with a goal that I will is name. His name and only H for He has really used me
best time of “This training was the ining I was my life. Before this tra t nobody loved frustrated and though ly me. But God very clear
His name.” Erica
spoke to
and totally me through His Word Adwin .” changed my direction
“I
have a love in my heart for my community, especially for students,” Asif told a visiting Barnabas Fund staff member in Pakistan. “I want to help them financially and teach them free of cost. I trust God will help me. I [also] want to get a good knowledge of Islam to help students know what is wrong about Islam.”
his newly acquired professional expertise, he can now help his Christian community as he wanted to.
When Asif spoke those words he was a student himself. Now, as a graduate in accountancy, he is one of scores of Christians in Africa, Asia and the Middle East who have completed a tertiary degree thanks to a scholarship from Barnabas Fund. With
Barnabas Fund knows how much Christian communities can be strengthened if a few of their members attend university. The graduates can give the communities a voice. They can also use their expertise to resource,
12 BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014
Champions of their community
“I would like to be a spokesperson for Christians in the future,” Andrew, a medical student in Lahore said. “Muslims are afraid of welleducated Christians.”
empower, strengthen and protect their Christian communities, giving trustworthy services at minimal cost. Law graduates, for example, can defend them when they are wrongfully accused; accountants can recognise when they are being cheated on financially; and business administration graduates can assist in self-sufficiency and income generation projects. Engineers can help to build homes and churches, and medical staff can give free or reasonably priced treatment to Christians who are sick or injured. The support provided by a few scholarships can transform a beleaguered Christian community.
PROJECT UPDATE
e “Your support has mad my a significant impact in hope life now that I have a for which had eluded me could over two years when I Rose not go to school.”
“At medical school I was the only Christian together with one other Christian student out of a group of 100 students. In Luke Jesus says that Christians should be the salt of the world. In Pakistan we are very small in number, so we can truly be called salt. This gave me enthusiasm to Andrew
be clear about my faith.”
Transcending humiliation
Another way in which Barnabas Fund is helping Christian students in Bangladesh and Pakistan is through support for student ministries. The weekly Bible studies and annual camps that these ministries offer help the students to get a thorough grounding in their faith. This helps them stand strong in a vast sea of Islam.
to “They have the right should preach to us. But we k about have the right to spea difficult our faith as well. It’s ey are to live with them if th .” Asif always preaching at us
(clockwise from top centre): Rose from Uganda, Andrew, Erica and Asif from Pakistan, and Adwin from Bangladesh have all had part of their university fees paid by Barnabas Fund
Vision for the future
Our support is also enabling young, talented Christians to serve God in any context where God has called them to work. “My vision is to serve the Lord with all my heart. Christ died for me, I will live the rest of my life glorifying Him,” wrote Rose, who is close to
“I would like to be a spokesperson for Christians in the future” Andrew, a medical student in Pakistan “It’s difficult to be a Christian here,” Asif continued. Like most Christian students in Pakistan, he was the only Christian in many of his classes, or was with only one other Christian. “We have to face a lot of questions and endure humiliating words. The teachers preach at us.”
obtaining a diploma in secretarial studies at Kampala University, thanks to a grant from Barnabas Fund. “With my professional skills and spiritual gifts I would like to support [a pastor] … to establish a church in Iganga Town, where I come from.”
The camps are vital to many of the students who attend. Their communities are likely to rely on them to take spiritual leadership roles later in life alongside their professional jobs, and the camps equip and inspire them, and help them to prepare.
Rose, who comes from a Muslim-majority town, converted from Islam to Christianity several years ago. Her family became very hostile and disowned her, refusing to support her financially. Without a grant from Barnabas Fund, she would not have been able to pay for her studies. “I am very much delighted to be a student with your support. It has made a significant impact in my life,” she adds.
“If I had missed this training I would not have been able to understand my purpose in life,” Adwin from Bangladesh said after following a training session for student leaders. “Now I am fully committed to serving my local church and Bible study group and to help other students develop their spiritual life journey.”
Through Rose’s patient witnessing and exemplary lifestyle, her mother has already given her life to Christ. Her vision is for the future is clear: she prays that her entire family will come to know Christ and that a strong church will be established in her home town. 00-1031 (Students' Fund)
BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014 13
NEWSDESK
MASS KIDNAPPING OF SCHOOLGIRLS BY ISLAMISTS NIGERIA – More than 250 girls were kidnapped by Islamist group Boko Haram in a night-time raid on a boarding school in a predominantly Christian town in Northern Nigeria. Militants stormed the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Borno state, on the night of 14 April. They herded the girls on to trucks and took them away. They also set the school ablaze and looted and torched houses and shops. A Christian leader said that most of the kidnapped girls were members of the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria. More than 40 of them managed to escape, but at the time of writing it is believed that 230 are still missing. At least some are thought to have been sold as wives to members of the Islamist group and moved to neighbouring Chad and Cameroon. The group appears to be putting into practice Quranic verses that grant Muslims the right to take, as spoils of war, female non-Muslims as slaves. According to the Quran and sharia, they have sexual rights over these captives and can take them as wives or concubines. Although they may not enslave their fellow-Muslims, a non-Muslim who converts to Islam remains a slave. Girls and women kidnapped by Boko Haram are
The girls were abducted from the Government Girls Secondary School in Borno state (shown here)
often forced to convert and to marry militants; they are also subjected to
year, specifically threatened to target schoolgirls.
Boko Haram-related violence claimed 1,500 lives in the first three months of 2014 alone physical and sexual violence. After issuing a general threat to Christian women in March 2012, the group, in a video released in March this
As well as kidnappings, the Islamists are continuing to launch deadly attacks against Christians and other targets. Boko Haram-related
violence claimed 1,500 lives in the first three months of 2014 alone and hundreds in just a few days in May. The group is fighting to establish an Islamic state in the North of Nigeria. Christians are also being attacked by ethnic Fulani Muslim herdsmen. At least 119 people were killed in attacks on three Christian villages in Kaduna state, Northern Nigeria, on the night of 14-15 March. Scores of herdsmen armed with guns and machetes descended on the villages of Ugwar Sankwai, Ungwar Gata and Chenshyi, torching homes and churches. Only a handful of properties were left standing. The violence displaced hundreds of people, and their food supplies were looted. On the same day, around 600 Fulani gunmen divided into four groups and descended on Bondong, Rafin Gora, Hayin Birom and Ung Kura in the Manchok area of Kaduna state, where Christians have been repeatedly targeted over the past two years. They attacked the Christian residents, killing over 121 of them, around half of whom were children. Earlier in March, Fulani Muslim herdsmen also attacked a number of Christian villages in Plateau state in the Middle Belt. At least 16 people were killed, and around 200 houses as well as churches were burnt down.
CHURCH BUILDING CONFISCATED KYRGYZSTAN – A church is appealing against the confiscation of its building by the authorities, who claim that the sales contract signed more than 14 years ago was invalid. The Church of Jesus Christ bought from the State Property Fund in 1999 a cultural centre in the capital, Bishkek, to use as its worship building. In January a court annulled the contract, claiming that it violated the law.
The seizure of the building may be motivated by the authorities’ hostility to the congregation’s Christian
bought for just US$46,000 (£27,400; €33,500). The State Property Fund has said it will return to the church
The seizure of the building may be motivated by the authorities’ hostility to the congregation’s Christian activities activities. But the incentive could also be financial. The building now has a market value of around US$1 million (£596,000; €729,000), having been
14 BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014
only what it paid 14 years ago. The judge said that the church had not fulfilled its obligations to maintain social activity as its main
profile. The church insists that it has done this, having arranged dancing and singing lessons, and classes for children; it also rents space to organisations that support young people. Bishkek’s Hope Baptist Church has also been visited by the authorities on several occasions. The pastor said that they were ordered to vacate the land, which they are renting.
NEWSDESK
CHRISTIAN GIRL GANG-RAPED; MORE BLASPHEMY CONVICTIONS
Saira Iqbal was gang-raped by four Muslim men
PAKISTAN – Saira Iqbal, a sevenyear-old Christian girl, was gangraped by four Muslim men in Sialkot district, Punjab province, Pakistan, on 23 April. She was taken into intensive care, where her condition was stabilised. The gang also kidnapped her father, Iqbal Masih, to try to force him to reach an agreement with his daughter’s rapists. He was freed by police after two days in captivity.
The police seemed reluctant to take action against the perpetrators, but following repeated appeals and pressure from the Christian community and human rights organisations, an investigation was launched and at least one suspect arrested. Christians have held torchlight processions and prayers and have called for justice for Saira. Christian girls and young women
are extremely vulnerable to sexual violence in Pakistan. A recent report found that around 700 are kidnapped and forced to convert to Islam and marry Muslim men every year. They may be subjected to sexual assault, rape, domestic abuse, forced prostitution and human trafficking. Meanwhile, three more Christians in Pakistan have been sentenced to death for blasphemy. Sawan
Masih (26), a father of three, was convicted on 27 March of defiling the name of Muhammad. Following the accusation against him in March 2013, a 3,000-strong mob of Muslims attacked his Christian neighbourhood, leaving hundreds of Christians homeless and destitute. Sawan has denied committing blasphemy and argued that the allegation was motivated by a property dispute between him and his friend. His appeal is set to be heard by the Lahore High Court on 25 July. Shafqat Emmanuel and Shagufta Kausar, who have four children, were sentenced on 4 April. They were accused of sending blasphemous text messages insulting Muhammad to two local Muslims; the texts came from a mobile phone registered in Shagufta’s name but that she had lost. They deny the allegation and will also appeal. The couple’s lawyer said that the police had tortured Shafqat, who is confined to a wheelchair, to force him to confess, and that the couple could not have written the text messages as they cannot read or write Urdu properly. He said that the judge was “clearly intimidated” by Islamist prosecution lawyers. The blasphemy laws are frequently used to settle personal scores, with Christians and other minorities being particularly vulnerable to malicious, false accusation. Nobody has been judicially executed for blasphemy, but 52 people implicated in blasphemy cases have been killed by vigilantes. Those convicted often spend years in jail waiting for their appeal. The plight of Christian mother Aasia Bibi has become a focal point for campaigners against what is referred to as the “black law”. Her long-awaited appeal was scheduled for February but has been repeatedly deferred.
BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014 15
NEWSDESK
CONVERTS ATTACKED BY FAMILY MEMBERS UGANDA – A young Ugandan woman has been beaten to death by her Muslim father after he found out that she and her sister had converted to Christianity. Nawudo Hasifa (19) and Nanvunani Shamimu (17) became Christians after they had the same dream on the night of 4 April in which a man dressed in white appeared to them, telling them to go and be prayed for in a church. On 6 April, they went to a church in Kawaga. Nawudo told Morning Star News, “[We] straight away went to see the pastor and explained to him about the dream and that we were ready to be Christians. The pastor prayed for us to accept Jesus as Lord and Saviour of our lives.” Local Muslims who had seen them enter the building told their father. When they returned home that evening, he was furious. Nawudo said, “Our father took a blunt object and started beating us indiscriminately. My sister fainted and became unconscious. My father tried to wake up my sister, but there was
no response. I knew she was gone.” Nawudo escaped to the home of a church elder, who took her to another town where she is now being cared for by local Christians. In another recent attack in Uganda, a former sheikh who converted to Christianity was apparently poisoned with insecticide by his Muslim relatives. Hassan Muwanguzi had been asked to attend a family meeting at the home of an aunt, but he started to feel unwell immediately after taking the tea and food he had been served. He was taken to hospital in Mbale, and his condition improved after treatment, but he cannot afford the more specialist care that was recommended. Since Hassan became a Christian in 2003, he has lost his wife and job as a school teacher, been beaten by his family, been falsely accused of a criminal offence, been ordered to shut the Christian school he had opened, had his home burned down and been threatened with death.
Hassan Muwanguzi, a convert from Islam, was apparently poisoned by his Muslim relatives
MULTIPLE ATTACKS ON EGYPTIAN CHRISTIANS LIBYA – Ten Egyptian Christians were killed in Libya in just over a month in what appears to be a concerted campaign to wipe them out of the country. The first seven victims were rounded up by suspected Islamist militants, taken away at gunpoint and shot dead. Their bodies were found on a beach in Benghazi on 24 February. A group of masked men had gone door-to-door in their apartment building asking if the residents were Christian or Muslim before abducting the seven, who were aged 17-25. The militants spray-painted a message on the building and others in the area offering a reward for anyone who would turn a Christian over to them. Then on 2 March, Salama Fawzy
Tobia (23) was ambushed by at least one gunman while he was loading fruit and vegetables onto his produce stand in Benghazi. He suffered extensive brain damage. His family took him back to Egypt, where he
Finally, on 29 March, the body of Jad Abdulmasahi Abdulmalik was found in the Gwarsha district of Benghazi. He had been shot several times, including in the head. Jad, who was in his late 30s, was targeted by
A group of masked men had gone door-todoor in their apartment building asking if the residents were Christian or Muslim died in the early hours of 15 March. He had lived in Libya for two years. His uncle Tawfik described him as a “peaceful person” who “came into the world and left the world without hurting anyone”. The following day, another Egyptian Christian was found shot dead in Jarutha on the outskirts of Benghazi.
16 BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014
an armed group while unloading vegetables at a shop. The killings happened in a part of the country where Islamist militants are particularly active. The Libyan authorities are struggling to assert control over them three years after the revolution that ousted Colonel Gaddafi.
Tens of thousands of Egyptians live in Libya, doing mostly manual labour, but many Christians are now trying to flee the persecution and possible death. An Egyptian church leader said attacks and threats against Christians in the region are an attempt at “genocide”. He said that as well as being targeted because of their faith, they are continuing to be scapegoated as political enemies of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood. As well as killing individual Christians, militants are forcing the closure of Egyptian churches. The one in Benghazi was closed following arson attacks last year. And the one in Tripoli shut in March this year after the minister and his family were threatened with death if they did not immediately leave the country.
NEWSDESK
New constitution could threaten Zanzibar’s Christians Tanzania – A proposed new three-tier political system that would give greater power to Zanzibar’s government has raised concerns about the future of Christians in the Muslim-majority archipelago. The system put forward in the country’s draft constitution would see a third government, separate from the two that currently represent Tanzania as a whole and Zanzibar respectively,
been reserved for Christians, but this precedent is now being ignored. Zanzibar’s tiny Christian minority has increasingly come under violent attack in recent years – three churches were targeted in early 2014 – and Christians now have only minimal political representation to help protect them. Some nonMuslim Zanzibaris have converted to Islam in order to enter politics.
More than 60% of CRC members are Muslim, although Muslims are not thought to form a majority in Tanzania. In fact, Christians are estimated to make up between 50 and 60% of the population. As the draft constitution is debated, some Islamists have called for the outright segregation of Muslims and Christians in Tanzania. In video messages, Sheikh Ilunga, the leader
Zanzibar’s tiny Christian minority has increasingly come under violent attack in recent years set up to represent Tanganyika (mainland Tanzania). Some areas of policy that are currently decided by the central government, including police matters, would be devolved to the governments of Tanganyika and Zanzibar. Some Christians fear that giving Zanzibar’s government increased powers could allow the archipelago, which is around 98% Muslim, to become an Islamic state under sharia law. These concerns are compounded by the fact that now, for the first time, all but one of the members of Zanzibar’s House of Representatives are Muslims. Three places in the House have traditionally
Tanzania’s draft constitution will be voted on by a 640-member Constituent Assembly, two-thirds of which must approve the document before it can become law. Some Christian observers have called the impartiality of this body into question, saying that the Assembly is likely to promote policies favourable to Muslims, because although 105 of the 200 ordinary citizens chosen to take part are Christians on paper, 30 of these are allegedly Muslims in reality. Concerns have also been raised about the impartiality of the Constitutional Review Commission (CRC) that drafted the document.
of radical movement Daw’al Islamiya, said that the country should be divided into two parts, one Christian-majority and the other Muslim-majority, and that the Islamic area should be ruled by sharia. He also called for Muslims living in Christian-majority areas to move into Muslim-majority ones. In Zanzibar, separatist group Uamsho (“the awakening”) advocates for the islands’ complete autonomy from mainland Tanzania. An interfaith group, UNDUGU (Tanzania's Muslims and Christians Brotherhood Society), called recently for Uamsho to be banned, saying the Islamic group is “not different from al-Shabaab, Boko Haram and al-Qaeda”.
FOUR KILLED IN CHURCH ATTACK
Mary Sameh George was murdered by Islamist militants
EGYPT – Four people were killed in an Islamist attack on a church in Egypt on 28 March. Supporters of the Muslim Brotherhood shot at the church building in Ain Shams, a suburb of Cairo, and set cars parked by it on fire. A young Christian woman, Mary Sameh George, was among those killed. She was in a car outside the church and was targeted by the Islamists when they spotted a cross hanging from the rear-view mirror. An eyewitness said that Mary was savagely attacked by the Muslim mob. Christians remain vulnerable to Islamist hostility amid ongoing political tensions in Egypt.
CONVERT KILLED IN FRONT OF DAUGHTERS SOMALIA – A mother of two and her cousin have been publicly killed in Somalia after al-Shabaab militants found out they were Christians. Sadia Ali Omar (41) and Osman Mohamoud Moge (35) were beheaded in Barawa in the Lower Shebelle Region on 4 March. Residents were called to witness the executions, and Sadia’s two
daughters, aged 8 and 15, were among those subjected to the
left orphans, as their father died after falling ill in 2011. A family friend
The girls have been left orphans, as their father died after falling ill in 2011 gruesome spectacle; the youngest cried out for someone to save her mother. The girls have been
has helped them to relocate to a different area. The Islamist group al-Shabaab,
which is said to have spies throughout Somalia, became mistrustful of Sadia and Osman because of their irregular attendance at the mosque for Friday prayers. The fact that both had been living in Christian-majority Kenya until last year may also have aroused suspicion.
BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014 17
IN TOUCH
Fasting to feed hungry believers
rt Chloe’s art with a hea aged 8, I have been “I am Chloe and I am y d selling them to m drawing pictures an e er wh ey for countries family to raise mon s. I am sending you it is hard to love Jesu dI things they need an money to buy them ture I have drawn so am also sending a pic ing for them.” they know I am pray
An inspired Barnabas suppor ter remembered our persecute d, hungry brothers and sisters in Syria in a very appropriate way last year, by undertaking a 65-hour sponsored fast.
wonderful letter from Chloe Barnabas Fund received this loe has learned about Cooper from Oxford, UK. Ch ding through Barnabas Aid Eight-year-old Chlo persecuted Christians by rea e reached Christian out to s in coun and selling her drawings tries “wh to love Je magazine with her parents, ere it is h sus” ard a. was her own ide Chloe’s artistic efforts raised £42, which will make such a difference to the persecuted Christians Barnabas helps. We are very thankful to Chloe for using her artistic talent to help our suffering brothers and sisters; the heart that God has given her for them is an inspiration to us all.
One of Ch loe’s fund raising cre ations
Reach the persecuted Church in just a few clicks
If you are looking for a direct and efficient way to give to Barnabas Fund’s work, look no further than our website. To donate online, simply visit www.barnabasfund.org, click the “Donate now” button and fill in the required information. This secure method of donating is available to supporters around the world, including in the UK, the US, Australia and New Zealand.
David James, from Northamp ton, UK, raised an amazing £1,492 .50 in sponsorship for his fast, and was very well supported by his church fam ily at St Giles Parish Church. He chose to fast over the Christmas period, a time wh en abstaining is often particularly challengin g. We are so grateful to David for going without for the benefit of our persecute d Syrian brothers and sisters. The fun ds raised by his fast will be used to provid e food parcels for those in desperate need of essentials.
Sale for Syria scores strong support
A fundraising sale with a sporting twist has raised more than £2,000 for persecuted Christians in Syria. A signed football shirt, kindly donated by Liverpool Football Club, proved a very popular prize at the sale, organised by Barnabas supp orter Kate Moss. Kate and her mother were inspired to raise funds to help suffering Syrians by news coverage of the plight of Syrian refugees. The table-top sale was publicised on Facebook and in the local area, and Kate’s idea began to bring the local com munity together. Anything and everything was for sale at the event on 22 February, from clothes to plants to hot dogs. Face-pain ting and children’s games were also on offer. The sale at Aigburth Community Church in Liverpool, UK, was well attended both by church members and by nonchurchgoers, and it proved such a success that several people asked when the next one would be held. Our thanks go out to all who attended the sale, and especially to Kate and the other organiser s for their hard work.
If you would like your donation to be split between two or more of our projects, please email finance@barnabasfund.org with the relevant project numbers. If you would like, you may also email this address to check if your donation has arrived safely. All the gifts that we receive, whether through our website or by any other means, are so appreciated by the persecuted Christians whom we serve.
18 BARNABAS AID JULY/AUGUST 2014
This signed LFC shirt proved a very popular prize
Visitors w ith a swe et tooth h plenty of ad choice at the sale
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The Barnabas Fund Distinctive We work by:
●● directing our aid only to Christians, although its benefits may not be exclusive to them (“As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” Galatians 6:10, emphasis added) ●● aiming the majority of our aid at Christians living in Muslim environments ●● channelling money from Christians through Christians to Christians ●● channelling money through existing structures in the countries where funds are sent (e.g. local churches or Christian organisations) ●● using the money to fund projects that have been developed by local Christians in their own communities, countries or regions ●● considering any request, however small ●● acting as equal partners with the persecuted Church, whose leaders often help shape our overall direction
How to find us UK 9 Priory Row, Coventry CV1 5EX Telephone 024 7623 1923 Fax 024 7683 4718 From outside the UK Telephone +44 24 7623 1923 Fax +44 24 7683 4718 Email info@barnabasfund.org Registered charity number 1092935 Company registered in England number 4029536 For a list of all trustees, please contact Barnabas Fund UK at the Coventry address above. Australia PO BOX 3527, LOGANHOLME, QLD 4129 Telephone (07) 3806 1076 or 1300 365 799 Fax (07) 3806 4076 Email bfaustralia@barnabasfund.org Germany German supporters may send gifts for Barnabas Fund via Hilfe für Brüder who will provide you with a tax-deductible receipt. Please mention that the donation is for “SPC 20 Barnabas Fund”. If you would like your donation to go to a specific project of Barnabas Fund, please inform the Barnabas Fund office in Pewsey, UK. Account holder: Hilfe für Brüder e.V. Account number: 415 600 Bank: Evang Kreditgenossenschaft Stuttgart Bankcode (BLZ): 520 604 10
What helps make Barnabas Fund distinctive from other Christian organisations that deal with persecution?
●● acting on behalf of the persecuted Church, to be their voice – making their needs known to Christians around the world and the injustice of their persecution known to governments and international bodies
We seek to:
●● meet both practical and spiritual needs ●● encourage, strengthen and enable the existing local Church and Christian communities – so they can maintain their presence and witness rather than setting up our own structures or sending out missionaries ●● tackle persecution at its root by making known the aspects of the Islamic faith and other ideologies that result in injustice and oppression of non-believers ●● inform and enable Christians in the West to respond to the growing challenge of Islam to Church, society and mission in their own countries
●● facilitate global intercession for the persecuted Church by providing comprehensive prayer materials
We believe:
●● we are called to address both religious and secular ideologies that deny full religious liberty to Christian minorities – while continuing to show God’s love to all people ●● in the clear Biblical teaching that Christians should treat all people of all faiths with love and compassion, even those who seek to persecute them ●● in the power of prayer to change people’s lives and situations, either through grace to endure or through deliverance from suffering
“Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40)
You may contact Barnabas Fund at the following addresses: New Zealand PO Box 27 6018, Manukau City, Auckland, 2241 Telephone (09) 280 4385 or 0800 008 805 Email office@barnabasfund.org.nz Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland PO Box 354, Bangor, BT20 9EQ Telephone 028 91 455 246 or 07867 854604 Email krisb@barnabasfund.org Scotland Barnabas Fund Scotland, PO Box 2084, Livingston, EH54 0EZ Telephone 07772 846389 Email scotland@barnabasfund.org Singapore Cheques in Singapore dollars payable to “Barnabas Fund” may be sent to: Kay Poh Road Baptist Church, 7 Kay Poh Road, Singapore 248963 USA 6731 Curran St, McLean, VA 22101 Telephone (703) 288-1681 or toll-free 1-866-936-2525 Fax (703) 288-1682 Email usa@barnabasaid.org
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International Headquarters The Old Rectory, River Street, Pewsey, Wiltshire SN9 5DB, UK Telephone 01672 564938 Fax 01672 565030 From outside UK: Telephone +44 1672 564938 Fax +44 1672 565030 Email info@barnabasfund.org
barnabasaid the magazine of Barnabas Fund Published by Barnabas Fund
The Old Rectory, River Street, Pewsey, Wiltshire SN9 5DB, UK Telephone 01672 564938 Fax 01672 565030 From outside UK: Telephone +44 1672 564938 Fax +44 1672 565030 Email info@barnabasfund.org
© Barnabas Fund 2014. For permission to reproduce articles from this magazine, please contact the International Headquarters address above. The paper used is produced using wood fibre at a mill that has been awarded the ISO14001 certificate for environmental management.
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