Barnabas Prayer July-August 2012

THE AID AGENCY FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH www.barnabasfund.org

prayer

to help you pray for the persecuted church

s 6:10 Galatian

JULY/AUGUST 2012

JULY 1 - 3 Thank you for your prayers for our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ, which make such a difference to them. We sometimes have to change or omit their names for security reasons, and we have only limited space to share their stories.

But the Lord knows the people and places we are praying about. Thank you for your understanding. Please do not feel limited by the specific prayer requests, but pray as you feel led.

July Sunday 1 “Many people come to us … often women asking the church to help them and their families. It is terrible as they are so many and we have very little material things that we can give them.” These were the words of a Barnabas church partner in Malakal, South Sudan, where the Church has been overwhelmed by the influx of Southern Christians returning from the North. They were stripped of their citizenship of Sudan after the South voted to secede. At the time of writing, an estimated 350,000 Southerners were still stranded in Sudan, while those who have managed to travel south, leaving their homes and jobs, are in great need.

Barnabas Fund is helping with the provision of emergency supplies. Pray that Southern Christians will soon be able to find homes and establish new lives in South Sudan.

Monday 2 The minority Christian community in Sudan finds itself painfully caught up in the growing tension between the mainly Muslim country and neighbouring South Sudan. On 21 April a church compound in the Al-Jiraif district of Khartoum was attacked and torched by an 2

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Islamist mob. Many South Sudanese refugees are part of the church, and the Muslims shouted insults at the Southerners as they destroyed the worship area and attached Bible school. A contact told Barnabas Fund that all the buildings had been destroyed, with books and office equipment; the students who were present were “terribly shaken”. Barnabas supports a prison ministry run by one of the church leaders. Pray that the congregation will be able to continue its worship and mission despite this cruel assault.

Tuesday 3 Two young children from a mainly Christian ethnic group in Burma (Myanmar) were mercilessly gunned down by the Burmese military on 5 May as they were playing in a river. The fiveand seven-year-olds, from the Kachin people, were startled by a loud bomb blast, and as they tried to run to safety, the soldiers opened fire on them. This was only the latest cruel atrocity in the army’s campaign against the Kachin, which has displaced around 75,000 people. Soldiers have attacked villages, razed houses and destroyed churches; they have also raped women and tortured prisoners. Pray that the Lord will comfort the bereaved families of the children and bring relief to His oppressed people (Isaiah 61:1-3).

Many Southern Christians are stranded and homeless in Sudan

JULY 4 - 8 Wednesday 4 Praise God for signs of positive political change in Burma. The National League for Democracy of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi won a landslide victory in a series of parliamentary by-elections in April, which have been hailed as evidence of a genuine move towards democracy. But although 2011 also saw an end to decades of outright military rule, there is still a long way to go: the parliament continues to be dominated by the army and its allies. Most Christians in Burma belong to non-Burman ethnic minorities, and the military are extremely hostile to these groups. Pray that the political changes will bring genuine freedom and justice for all Burma’s peoples, and that Christians will no longer be endangered.

Thursday 5 Praise God for better news of GKI Yasmin church in Bogor, Indonesia, which has faced a long campaign of opposition by the mayor and hostility from local Muslims. The church’s building permit was revoked in 2008, and the building was subsequently sealed off by the authorities; the congregation has been forced to hold worship in the street or in private homes.

But now the mayor has agreed that the building can re-open, provided that a mosque is built next door, and the church has accepted this proposal.

Pray that this may bring an end to the harassment suffered by this brave and persevering Christian community, and that its patient witness to its opponents may bear fruit (1 Peter 2:12).

Friday 6 “This is a dark time in the history of religious freedom and tolerance in Aceh,” said the spokesman of an Indonesian human rights group after the sealing of 17 Christian places of worship in the semi-autonomous province. The undungs, which are small buildings not classified as churches, were closed in early May after protests from hard-line Islamist groups. The authorities insist that only one church and four undungs may

be built in Singkil, despite its having a Christian population of some 20,000. Elements of sharia are in force in Aceh, and although non-Muslims are exempt from it, the churches are coming under increasing attack. Pray for their protection, and that the Muslim majority will allow them to meet and worship without hindrance.

Saturday 7 When the Filadelfia Batak Christian Protestant Church in Jakarta, Indonesia, gathered on 17 May to celebrate the ascension of the Lord Jesus, it was attacked by hundreds of Islamists.

They shouted threats and insults at the Christians, threw stones at them and showered them with urine and dirty water. The following Sunday another mob tried to block them from reaching their worship site, threatened them and then threw sewage, water, oil, mud, rotten eggs, sticks and blunt objects at them. The police presence was woefully inadequate to restrain the attackers. The church has been meeting outside or in homes since its building was sealed off by the authorities in 2010. Pray that the ascended Lord, who is exalted to the right hand of God, will watch over them (Acts 2:33-36).

Sunday 8 Thank God that Tunisia’s governing Islamist party, Ennahda, has said that it will not support changing the country’s constitution to make sharia the main source of legislation, as had previously been proposed. The party said at the end of March that it would uphold the separation of religion and state enshrined in the first article of the constitution. Ennahda’s leader, Rachid Ghannouchi, who in the 1970s called for the strict application of sharia in Tunisia, said that they were “not going to use the law to impose religion”. Pray that they will be true to their word and that Tunisia’s small Christian community will be allowed to practise their faith freely.

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JULY 9 - 12 Monday 9 The optimism that accompanied the independence of South Sudan a year ago today has been shattered by renewed tensions between the new nation and Sudan. Fierce border clashes in disputed oil-rich territory in April sparked international fears of a return to all-out war. On 3 May, both countries signed up to an African Union-brokered roadmap, but attacks continued, with each side accusing the other of being the aggressor. Pray that the two nations will resolve their outstanding disputes and that there will be lasting peace between them. Another conflict would be catastrophic for the mainly Christian South, which was devastated by the 21-year civil war and is struggling to establish itself as an independent state.

Tuesday 10 Beleaguered Iraqi Christians gathered for “a moment of real celebration” in March as a church building in Kirkuk that was bombed six years earlier was officially reopened.

The car bomb attack that wrecked it also killed a 13-year-old Christian boy, who had stopped there to pray and thank God for good school grades. At the opening ceremony a church leader said that such bloodshed was an invitation to persevere despite the challenges faced by the Christian community. These continuing challenges were starkly underlined in the same week when the body of a kidnapped Christian man was found riddled with bullets and a church building in Baghdad was bombed. Give thanks for the persistent faith of Iraqi Christians, and pray for their protection against further attacks.

Wednesday 11 “No doubt that the funds provided by Barnabas Fund have been a big source of help and a glimpse of hope for many many who feel left alone to face the worst.”

This is how a Barnabas Fund partner in Syria described the effects of the practical support we have provided to Christians caught up in the 4

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conflict between President Assad’s troops and anti-government forces. Tens of thousands of Christians have been forced to leave their homes and are in great hardship. Barnabas Fund has been helping many thousands of needy Christians with essentials such as food and medicine.

Pray that Christians in Syria will continue to be uplifted by this support from brothers and sisters overseas, and pray that the Lord will supply all their needs.

Thursday 12 An incident on 10 May in which ten Christian families were expelled from their village in Syria highlighted the alarming power that armed militants have gained in the country.

A group seized control of Qastal al-Burg village near Hama, took over the Christians’ homes and turned the village church into their command control centre. A number of suicide bombings

This church building in Syria was badly damaged during the current unrest

are a disturbing sign that jihadists with links to al-Qaeda have been entering the country. And as Islamists gain political influence, Christians are concerned about what the future holds for them in a country where they once enjoyed safety, freedom and equality with the Muslim majority.

Pray that the Lord will protect them and give them peace at this tumultuous time.

JULY 13 - 17 Friday 13 The Jordanian parliament voted in April to ban the establishment of any political party on a “religious basis”. This decision will prevent the political party of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood from taking part in parliamentary elections. Although the move seems designed to ensure the continuing dominance of groups loyal to King Abdullah’s regime, it is generally good news for the country’s Christians, who enjoy relatively greater freedom, and opportunities in public life, than their brothers and sisters in many other Arab lands. Almost certainly these benefits would be drastically curtailed or destroyed if Islamists were to take power in the country. Pray that the destructive forces of Islamism will be restrained in Jordan and not be unleashed against the churches.

Saturday 14 The sizeable Christian community in Kuwait, who are mostly expatriates, have been facing the prospect of increased repression since a coalition of Islamists gained power in February’s parliamentary elections.

The al-Adala (Justice) Bloc has already made several moves to strengthen the place of Islam in society. Under a bill passed by Parliament in May, Muslims who insult the god of Islam, key Islamic figures or the Qur’an would be punishable by death, and non-Muslims, including Christians, by at least ten years in prison. At the time of writing the law was awaiting the consent of the Emir of Kuwait. A law to prevent the construction of new churches has also been proposed. However, the Emir has blocked a proposal to make all legislation comply with sharia. Give thanks for this decision, and pray that other attempts to Islamise Kuwait and tighten restrictions on its Christians will also be frustrated.

Sunday 15 “When we checked the voter list many Christians who already got enrolled in the list were shocked to find

their names missing from it.” The president of a Christian forum in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh has reported that the names of 20,000 Christians have been deleted from the electoral roll in the state.

The forum’s general secretary suggested that the Christian community was being deliberately disenfranchised by the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, which is notoriously anti-Christian; his claim was supported by the state’s main opposition party. Pray that the freedom of Indian Christians to participate in the political process will not be restricted.

Monday 16 Around 100 radical Muslims forced their way into a Christian prayer meeting in Nutangram village, West Bengal State, India, on 30 March. They threatened the Christians with death and chased them, with their children, at knife-point. As the believers ran for their lives, the children were crying in fear, and their attempts to escape were blocked by the Muslims, who physically and verbally assaulted them. A crowd of about 500 Muslims watched in amusement as the Christians were tormented for around an hour and a half. Pray for our brothers and sisters, and especially for the children, as they recover from their ordeal, and for protection for Christians in this part of India.

Tuesday 17 On 2 April a group of Hindu extremists in Akkarapettai, Tamil Nadu State, India, went to a government school and announced that a reward would be given to any children who had Christian literature in their homes. But when some of the children innocently said that they did, they were harassed by the Hindus, who then summoned their parents and threatened to expel them from the village if they continued going to church. The next day they searched houses for Bibles and Christian books, which they tore up.

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JULY 18 - 21 Twelve families were locked out of their homes for three days. Pray that the Lord will enable His people in India to stand firm in the face of intimidation by Hindu radicals.

Wednesday 18 One conviction and 156 acquittals: these were the verdicts of Indian courts in March on defendants charged with involvement in the ferocious anti-Christian violence that racked Orissa State in 2007-8. All those charged with house-burning were cleared, in some cases owing to an alleged lack of proper evidence; the only conviction was for murder. At least 50 Christians were brutally killed during the violence; around 18,000 people were injured; and numerous Christian women were raped; thousands of homes and hundreds of church buildings were destroyed. Very few people have been convicted for any these crimes. Pray for justice for the Christians of Orissa, and that further anti-Christian violence will be prevented there. Barnabas is helping to rebuild homes for Christians.

Thursday 19 Praise God for remarkable church growth in Nepal, from 29 known believers in 1950 to more than half a million now. Most have converted from Hinduism. Barnabas Fund

These tutors provide Bible correspondence training for Christians in Nepal

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is helping young Christians grow in their faith through Bible correspondence training courses that are used for regular Bible study by most of the churches in the country. Many have reported on how much the courses have helped them in practical matters such as learning to trust in God and to live in accordance with the Bible. Pray that Nepalese Christians will mature in their faith and that they will be salt and light in their country, drawing many more to Christ.

Friday 20 At least 38 people were killed in a suicide bombing outside two church buildings in the city of Kaduna in Northern Nigeria on Easter Day, 8 April, as the congregations were celebrating the Lord’s resurrection. Most of the victims were motorcycle taxi drivers who were caught in the blast; the bomber had tried to drive into the church compound but was stopped at a checkpoint. Three weeks later further church services were targeted in Northern Nigeria in attacks that left 27 people dead. In both incidents, gunmen fired on worshippers, while in one place bombs were also thrown into the building. Pray for those injured and bereaved, that the Lord will comfort them and bind up their wounds (Psalm 147:3).

Saturday 21 The anti-Christian attacks in Northern Nigeria bear the grim marks of Boko Haram. This militant Islamist group has been carrying out attacks against Christians, the police and the security forces in its malevolent campaign to create an Islamic state in the region.

At New Year 2012 it issued a three-day deadline for Christians to leave the North, and in March it declared “war� on them, saying that it was planning coordinated attacks to eliminate them from some parts of the country. Its attacks on churches and individual Christians have been unrelenting. Pray for the Nigerian authorities as they struggle to contain the violence of this group,

JULY 22 - 26 that they will succeed in restoring order to the region.

Sunday 22 “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.” Amako Laraba, a mother of two from Kaduna in Northern Nigeria, expressed the resolve of many Christians in the region to continue gathering despite the danger of further violent attacks. At this time of intimidating threats and painful tensions, church services are characterised by joyful singing, rousing preaching and focused prayer. Courageous volunteer security guards check vehicles for weapons and explosives and patrol church grounds during services.

Give thanks for the boldness and faithfulness of these Christians, and ask that God may be a wall of fire around them and their glory within (Zechariah 2:5).

Monday 23 Anti-Christian violence is also raging in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, where Christians and Muslims live in roughly equal numbers. A senior Christian leader in the Jalingo area of Taraba State told Barnabas Fund in April that around 300 Christians had been killed there in the space of just three weeks. Two churches in the city of Jos, in Plateau State, were also targeted in quick succession; a pregnant woman and an 18-month-old child were among those killed.

Pray for relief for Christians in the region from this brutal and senseless killing.

Tuesday 24 “Excessive” and “discriminatory” was how new legislation restricting religious freedom in Hungary was described by a leading European body in March. Barnabas Fund, along with others, had raised concerns about the decertifying of more than 300 religious organisations, including a number of major

Christian denominations and smaller church groups. In its report, the Venice Commission identified various areas of the act that fail to comply with recognised minimum standards of human rights, including those relating to religious freedom. It says, “The Act sets a range of requirements that are excessive and based on arbitrary criteria with regard to the recognition of a church.” The Hungarian government has said that it intends to introduce amendments in response to the report. Pray that it will follow through on this undertaking, and that everyone in Hungary will be able to practise their faith freely.

Wednesday 25 “We will set the rules, the rules that suit us, whether you want it or not.

Any attempts to change it will end in blood. We will flood the city with blood.” With these words, spoken in a television interview broadcast on 24 April, a Muslim lawyer in Russia called for the introduction of sharia courts. Dagir Khasavov, the founder of an organisation that defends the rights of Muslims, said that the ordinary courts were “alien” to them. His statement provoked a backlash in Russia, and the head of the country’s Presidential Human Rights Council rejected Khasavov’s call outright, denying any role for sharia courts except possibly in arbitration hearings. Pray that the Russian government will stand firm in resisting attempts to Islamise the legal system.

Thursday 26 Lift to the Lord in prayer Turkish Pastor Semih Sertek (58), who was kicked and beaten by a group of Muslims on the evening of 7 April. The group forced their way into his church in Istanbul’s Bahçelievler district immediately after a service and threatened to kill him unless he recited the Islamic confession of faith, thus converting to Islam. The attackers, all aged around 18, said to the pastor, “This is a Muslim neighbourhood, there’s no place for a church.” As BARNABAS PRAYER JULY/AUGUST 2012

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JULY 27 - 31 such incidents become more frequent in Turkey, pray that the Lord will protect the leaders of His church there and give them courage in their witness to Him. Friday 27 It is now more than five years since the brutal murder of three Christians at the Zirve Christian publishing house in Malatya, eastern Turkey. But those responsible for the deaths of Necati Aydin, Ugur Yuksel and Tilman Geske have yet to be brought to justice. Five young men were arrested at the scene, and their trial opened in November 2007, but despite 38 hearings since then, there has been no verdict. Then in February 2012 the judges said that an indictment was being prepared against those suspected of masterminding the killings, but this too has been delayed in preparation. Pray that justice may be done for the three Christians, and pray for strength for their families in the meantime.

Saturday 28 Turkey’s poor treatment of its Christian minority has helped to put it on an important list of the world’s worst violators of religious freedom. In its annual report the US Commission on International Religious Freedom now places it in the same category – “country of particular concern” – as such notorious persecutors as North Korea, Saudi Arabia and Iran. The report said that restrictions on nonMuslim communities, such as limiting their right to train clergy and own places of worship, “have led to their decline, and in some cases, their virtual disappearance”. It also referred to the increasing number of attacks on Christians, which have ranged from harassment and vandalism to death threats. Pray that this report will prompt Turkey to grant greater freedom and protection to its Christians.

Sunday 29 The Communist government in China is intensifying its campaign 8

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to oppress and wipe out the numerous unregistered churches (“house churches”) in the country. According to ChinaAid, it has been conducting intensive and secret investigations of these congregations and creating files on them. Its intention is then to draw them into the governmentapproved Three-Self Patriotic Movement and eradicate those who refuse to comply.

It is also preparing lists of approved church leaders with a view to branding thousands of house church ministers as illegal. In 2012 the number of cases of persecution and suppression of house churches has already risen by 20% over 2011. Pray that our brothers and sisters will stand firm in the face of government attempts to stop their activities, and that the Word of the Lord will spread rapidly and be honoured in China (2 Thessalonians 3:1).

Monday 30 Pray for a congregation in Hefei in the Anhui Province of China whose building was illegally demolished on 27 April by developers supported by the government. Over 100 people descended on the church compound; some broke down the main gate, while others forced their way into one of the rooms and dragged several of the church staff outside; one Christian woman, aged over 60, was injured. Church members were blocked from entering the compound while a large bulldozer started to tear down the building, which was destroyed in minutes. ChinaAid reports that “the site looked like a bombing scene in a movie”.

Pray that the church will soon find alternative premises and be able to resume its regular services and meetings.

Tuesday 31 Christians in North Korea share in the desperate poverty that afflicts their stricken and oppressed country. In addition to suffering for their faith under a regime that is widely agreed

AUGUST 1 - 4 to be one of the world’s worst persecutors of Christians, they must also endure severe food shortages and inadequate medical supplies. A third of all under-fives in the country are believed to be chronically malnourished. Although the international community has been providing aid for many years, North Korea’s rocket launch in April prompted widespread condemnation and a threat of tighter sanctions against the Communist government. Pray that the basic needs of North Korea’s suffering people will be met, and especially for protection for our brothers and sisters.

August Wednesday 1 “Horrible crimes have been made against the population: massacres, rape of women, obligation to wear the veil, chasing Christians… All the believers had to flee towards the south, leaving their homes and giving up all their goods.” A Barnabas Fund contact in Mali vividly described the rampage of Islamists through the north of the country in March and April and its destructive effects on the region’s Christians.

The heavily armed rebels ransacked and looted homes, vandalised church buildings and occupied

Many Christians fled when Islamists rampaged through northern Mali

a Bible school. All the church buildings in Gao and Timbuktu were destroyed. More than 215,000 people were displaced, and many Christians fled

to the capital, Bamako. Pray for an end to the violence in Mali and that the Lord will guard His people there from further attack.

Thursday 2 Barnabas Fund is helping Christian families who fled the violence in northern Mali. The displaced believers received corn and rice that covered their food needs for three months. We also supplied medicines for children and women, and covered housing costs for some of the families. Pray that these provisions will sustain them and that the Lord will give them wisdom to know what to do next. Pray too for the generous Christians in the south of Mali who are also supporting them.

Friday 3 Last year “Sofian,” a church leader in North Africa, took some theological courses funded by Barnabas. He then started applying the knowledge he had acquired in his preaching and teaching seminars in various churches in his region. To many of the Christians who heard him the material was new and refreshing. He also recorded a series of 15-minute teaching sessions on “Christ in the Old Testament”, which were broadcast nightly last year during primetime on a Christian satellite TV channel and were even watched by Muslims in his country. Pray that all the pastors and church leaders who take these courses will be similarly strengthened by them to lead the growing churches in this North African country. Pray for boldness and discernment for them as they teach.

Saturday 4 Pray for vulnerable Christians in Pakistan who are ground down under the feet of the wealthy and powerful. In a recent incident, believers in Bhondary Wala village have been threatened and abused while trying to save their community’s graveyard from being turned into farmland. A retired army colonel has claimed ownership of the plot, which has been used by BARNABAS PRAYER JULY/AUGUST 2012

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AUGUST 5 - 8 Christians for decades, and has built a boundary wall that reduces it to less than a third of its original size, turning the rest over to agricultural use. Only when a government minister intervened were the police persuaded even to investigate the matter. Pray that the Lord will defend these Christians and shatter the rod of their oppressor (Isaiah 9:4).

Sunday 5 “My attitude has changed. Before I was often very irritated. Now I can come here.” In January, Hina, a 19-year-old Christian girl in Pakistan, started following a one-year, church-run course in sewing and literacy, which is funded by Barnabas. The course is opening up new worlds for her. Before she was always at home helping her mother with household chores, unable to read or write. Her mother never left her alone at home out of fear that her daughter might be attacked or raped by their Muslim neighbours. Now she can read from the Bible, her favourite book. Pray that all 17 women following the course this year will be transformed by what they are learning.

Ask the Lord that their new sewing skills will enable them to earn an income and provide for their families.

Monday 6 Pray for three victims of violence in Pakistan, who received support from Barnabas Fund to set up small businesses. A Christian couple, Javed and Farzana, were falsely accused of desecrating the Quran, a charge that carries a mandatory life sentence under the Pakistan Penal Code. Their angry Muslim neighbours burned down the houses of Christians in their village, and they had to flee with Farzana’s father and live in hiding in desperate circumstances. Through Barnabas, Javed, a welder, received tools for his trade, and Farzana’s father was provided with a push cart from which he sells vegetables. Pray

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that their new businesses will be successful and will give them sufficient income to survive. Ask the Lord to sustain them during these difficult times.

Tuesday 7 Give praise to the Lord that a Christian couple in Pakistan who were sentenced

Munir Masih and Ruqqiya Bibi, who were cleared of blasphemy in Pakistan

to life imprisonment for blasphemy have been cleared on appeal. Munir Masih and his wife Ruqqiya were acquitted on 17 May. A false blasphemy charge was laid against them in December 2008 after a quarrel between their children and some local Muslim children, and in March 2010 they were convicted of desecrating the Quran. Munir was freed on bail in November 2010, but Ruqqiya remained in jail. A tearful Munir thanked God for their acquittal and quoted Psalm 94:22, saying “The LORD has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge.” The couple were helped throughout their ordeal by CLAAS, a Christian legal organisation supported by Barnabas Fund. Pray for Munir and Ruqqiya as they rebuild their lives.

Wednesday 8 Christians in Nepal face a very uncertain future as the country’s Constituent Assembly struggles to put together a new constitution. The proposals on religious freedom include restrictions on conversion, recalling last

AUGUST 9 - 13 year’s draft Civil Code, which threatened to make illegal any activity that might lead others to change their religion. Hindu extremists are pressing for Hinduism to be privileged and protected, while Nepal’s Muslims are also becoming increasingly assertive, demanding to be recognised as a distinct community within the constitution and for positive discrimination in their favour. Pray that the interim constitution’s commitment to freedom of religion and expression for all will be confirmed and enhanced, and that Christians in Nepal will be allowed both to practise and to share their faith.

Thursday 9 Continue to pray for Barnabas Fund’s Proclaim Freedom campaign. This initiative calls for Western governments to use their influence with other governments to promote global human rights, religious freedom and justice for all minorities, especially Christians.

Praise the Lord that at present there is greater concern among politicians and in the media about anti-Christian persecution, and pray that this will translate into positive action on behalf of our oppressed Christian family. Give thanks too for the encouraging response to the Proclaim Freedom petition, and pray for more signatures.

Friday 10 The recent US Commission on International Religious Freedom report on religious freedom (see 28 July) named Burma (Myanmar), China, Egypt, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam as the other “countries of particular concern” in 2012. This list comprises countries whose governments have engaged in or tolerated systematic or flagrant violations of religious freedom. In every one of these countries Christians have suffered serious discrimination and persecution for their faith in recent years.

Pray that pressure from the international community will bring them some relief.

Saturday 11 Pray for Greater Grace Protestant Church in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, which has become the first church to be liquidated by a court under the country’s harsh new religion law.

The decision was taken at a 15-minute hearing at which no representative of the church was present, and makes all its activities illegal and subject to hefty fines. The law requires all religious organisations to re-register, and the government body responsible for this process claims that the church has failed to do so. However, it has denied permits to many groups, while hundreds more are awaiting its response, and in court it failed to produce any evidence that the church had broken the law. Church members intend to appeal against the ruling, if necessary to the European Court. Pray that their freedom to worship and serve the Lord will be upheld.

Sunday 12 Secret police raided a Christian gathering at the home of Natalya Kim in Yukori-Chirchik, Uzbekistan on 27 February, claiming to be searching for a bomb. During their search, they confiscated Christian books, a laptop and Natalya’s notebooks on living as a Christian. On 9 April, Natalya was fined 60 times the minimum monthly salary for arranging “an unauthorised gathering in her home and leading a religious meeting”; 14 other Christians were fined ten times the minimum monthly salary. Pray that these Christians will not be deterred by this raid from meeting to worship the Lord Jesus.

Pray for our brothers and sisters as they endure persecution, and pray for an end to the harassment of Christians in Uzbekistan.

Monday 13 Praise the Lord for better news from “Esther” (17), a Christian pastor’s daughter from Uzbekistan, who suffered severe brain injury when she was savagely attacked by the police in May 2011. Before having surgery that Barnabas BARNABAS PRAYER JULY/AUGUST 2012

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AUGUST 14 - 17 helped to fund, she could not walk, often lost consciousness and suffered several epileptic seizures every day; she also lost her eyesight.

After surgery she no longer has seizures; she can walk and has begun to study and attend college.

Her eyesight and coordination are improved but not yet fully restored. Give thanks for her progress and also that the pressure on her family has been relieved in recent months, and pray for her complete recovery.

Tuesday 14 Converts from Islam in northern Cameroon have great needs. Many of them are very poor, and some are isolated with few opportunities for fellowship. They also suffer contempt from the Muslim majority in the area, and they are coming under increased pressure from militant Islamists. Earlier this year a group that identified itself as Boko Haram (the Islamist movement responsible for numerous antiChristian attacks in neighbouring Nigeria) told Christian converts to return to Islam or “face Allah’s wrath”. They then raided the houses of two Christian leaders. Pray that the Lord will provide opportunities for these believers to encourage one another and grow in their faith, and that He will raise up leaders from among them. Pray too that He will protect and empower the Christians who are training, encouraging and mentoring them (1 Samuel 23:16).

Wednesday 15 God’s House of Miracle Church in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, had gathered for its Sunday service on 29 April when a man who had infiltrated the congregation threw a grenade. One person was killed and 15 injured, some critically; the assailant fled, and when some of the Christians pursued him, he pointed a gun at them. The incident followed a similar attack on an open-air Christian gathering near Mombasa on 31 March, when two people died and around 50 were wounded. The Kenyan authorities believe that 12 12

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recent attacks may be the work of al-Shabaab militants from Somalia, where the militant Muslim group has murdered numerous Christian converts. Pray for protection for Christians in Kenya and that the security forces will be able to counter the violent activities of al-Shabaab.

Thursday 16 New Christian converts from Islam often need equipping with practical skills so that they can stand strong if their Muslim

Christian converts in Uganda graduate from their vocational training course and receive equipment to start their businesses

families and friends disown them and Muslim employers refuse to give them jobs. In an area of Uganda where Muslims are particularly aggressive towards converts, Barnabas has enabled a church in train 120 new Christians in vocational skills such as sewing, cloth weaving and hairdressing. On their graduation Barnabas Fund provided the graduates with the tools to embark on their professions, such as a sewing machine, a cloth weaving machine or hairdressing equipment. Pray that these converts will now be able to provide for their families and that they will continue to grow in their faith.

Friday 17 Please pray for a church leader (46) from Vietnam, who was beaten unconscious on 23 February on his way home after taking a

AUGUST 18 - 22 funeral service. He said, “On the way back to my parish, three strangers on motorbikes came after me and beat me around the head, back, stomach and arms with two iron bars.” The pastor suffered multiple injuries and cuts. The thugs had reportedly just been released from prison and apparently have connections with the local authorities. Such groups are hired to attack church leaders and Christians in an area of in the Central Highlands that the government has declared a “no religion zone”. Pray for the Lord’s protection over those who face persecution for His Name in Vietnam.

Saturday 18 A Christian orphanage in Vietnam was destroyed in a late night raid on 14 April.

Shortly after midnight, a group of thugs cut the electricity to the orphanage before throwing stones and other objects to frighten the children.

They then stormed the building and beat the children. Around 200 policemen arrived, but rather than protect the children and round up the offenders, they helped the mob to destroy the centre. Pray for all those who were injured in the attack, including a local church leader, who was beaten. He received such severe blows to the head that he lost consciousness. Pray that the children will know the Lord’s comfort in their distress and that He will provide alternative accommodation for them.

Sunday 19 In the Central Highlands of Vietnam, the 43-year-old church leader of an unregistered house church, who is highly esteemed within the Christian community, was arrested in April and convicted of handing out anti-government leaflets “enticing ethnic minorities to commit wrongdoing” and “disrupting national unity”; he has been jailed for eleven years. Pray for this church leader, and ask the Lord to touch the hearts of the authorities and overturn the conviction. Pray

that the government of Vietnam will cease seeing Christians as a threat and will put into practice the freedom of religion guaranteed in its constitution.

Monday 20 Pray for around 200 Christians from the Hmong ethnic minority in Vietnam who have taken refuge in Bangkok, capital of Thailand, to escape persecution at home. In April Barnabas learned that the UNHCR was withdrawing their right to remain in Thailand, thus exposing them to the risk of deportation back to Vietnam. Some of the Christians had been involved in a peaceful protest against the confiscation of their land in May 2011 in which more than 60 protestors were killed by the security forces; even so, they were told that it would probably be safe for them to return. All the Christians have appealed against the decision. Pray that the danger in which they stand will be recognised and that they will be granted refugee status.

Tuesday 21 The Iranian government’s hostility to Christianity is so intense and relentless that it seems to be trying even to wipe out the country’s Christian heritage. Churches and Christian cemeteries are particularly vulnerable. In April a cemetery in the Ghal’e Dokhtar area of Kerman province, which was over 200 years old, was completely demolished without the permission of its owners. In 2011 a church building in the same area was pulled down by bulldozers overnight despite being registered as a national monument.

Other historic sites have been neglected or repeatedly attacked. Pray that the faithfulness and courage of Iranian Christians in the face of persecution will proclaim powerfully that the gates of hell shall not overcome Christ’s Church (Matthew 16:18).

Wednesday 22 When members of a Tehran congregation met for worship on 6 May they BARNABAS PRAYER JULY/AUGUST 2012

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AUGUST 23 - 26 were asked to provide their names and national ID numbers to the Iranian authorities, following pressure from government officials. These details will enable the security services to monitor the church’s activities, and especially the converts among them, and could be used to pressure believers into staying away. The church has been under close surveillance for many years, and some of its members have been killed. Pray that this campaign of harassment and violence will not discourage the Christians in their worship and witness.

Thursday 23 Pray for Farshid Fathi, a Christian convert from Islam in Iran, who has been sentenced to six years in prison. The married father of two had been arrested by security forces in the capital, Tehran, in December 2010 in a major crackdown on the country’s house church movement. He has been held in the notorious Evin prison ever since, spending several months in solitary confinement. At his trial he was accused of “action against the regime’s security, being in contact with foreign organisations and religious propaganda”, but all this amounted to nothing more than practising his Christian faith. He is expected to appeal; please pray for his protection while in custody and for his swift release.

Friday 24 In better news from Iran, Fariborz Azarm, a Christian from Rabat Karim, was unexpectedly released from prison on 11 April, having spent six months behind bars. His wife and two children had been denied access to him for most of his incarceration. Give thanks for our brother’s release, and pray for him as he recovers from his hardships. Pray too for the safe release of Eshan Behrooz, another detained Christian who is being held in the Vakil Abad prison in Mashhad. Many secret executions have taken place there, but the authorities have reportedly promised to set Eshan free.

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Saturday 25 “The case is being handled by the killer and of course it would be impossible for the killer to condemn himself.” With these words a Christian woman whose sister was shot dead during a protest in Egypt denounced the closing of the investigation into the killing. Christians were demonstrating in Cairo against the torching of a church and other injustices on 9 October 2011 when they were brutally attacked by security forces; 27 Christians were killed and 329 people injured. But on 24 April the judges appointed to investigate the incident claimed that the culprits could not be identified. Another Christian woman, whose fiancé was crushed under a military vehicle, said that the dropping of the case was a “farce”. Pray that such gross injustices against Christians in Egypt will be put right, and that the courts will defend them against arbitrary violence.

Sunday 26 The future of Egypt’s Christian community hangs in the balance as Islamists seek to extend their political ascendancy. In a rare encouraging development, in April a court suspended a panel appointed by the Egyptian parliament (which is dominated

by Islamists) to draft the country’s new

Eshan Behrooz, a Christian convert imprisoned in Iran (Source: FCNN)

AUGUST 27 - 30 constitution. But the influence of Islamism shaped the recent elections, and it will continue to determine the political agenda for the foreseeable future. Christians are concerned that Islamist supremacy will turn the country into a strict Islamic state where they will not be welcome. There were Christians in Egypt many centuries before the birth of Islam. Pray that the new constitution will guarantee their freedom, and that the new president will defend them.

Monday 27 A recent survey reveals a menacing level of support for the agenda of Egypt’s Islamists. A poll conducted by the Pew Research Centre showed that six out of ten Egyptians want the country’s laws to follow the Quran strictly. The main Islamist group, the Muslim Brotherhood, was rated positively by 70% of the interviewees, and 61% think that Saudi Arabia, which enforces an extreme and puritanical version of Islam, is a better model for the role of religion in government than the more secular Turkey. If these preferences are ever translated into government policies, discrimination and persecution against Christians will inevitably intensify. Pray that the progress of Islamism in Egypt will be halted and reversed.

Tuesday 28 Pray for a Christian teenager, Gamal Abdou Massoud, who has been jailed for three years in Egypt for posting a cartoon allegedly insulting to Islam on his Facebook page. The sentence was the maximum penalty allowed by Egyptian law for such an offence.

The cartoon was regarded by Muslims as a depiction of Muhammad, though Gamal denied this. It prompted violent protests: Muslims torched Gamal’s home and four others belonging to his friends and relatives. His family were evicted from their village, and local church leaders had to issue an apology. Pray for Gamal, that he may

be kept safe while in prison, and for freedom of expression to be upheld in Egypt.

Wednesday 29 The power of Islamism in post-revolution Libya was vividly revealed when a ban on religious-based political parties was lifted just a week after it was introduced.

The ruling National Transitional Council issued a new law on 25 April that banned political parties based on religion, tribe or ethnicity, as a means of preserving national unity. But after vociferous protests by Islamist parties, a new version of the law was published on 2 May that made no mention of the ban. Islamists were tightly restrained by Libya’s former ruler, Colonel Gaddafi, and their victory in national elections would stamp a much more Islamic character on the new regime. Pray for the expatriate Christian community in Libya and the very few converts from Islam, as they seek to respond wisely to political developments.

Thursday 30 Pray for Christian schoolchildren and teachers in Brunei as they face increased pressure from the Islamic authorities. The Ministry of Education announced in March that Islamic Religious Knowledge was to be made a core subject of the school curriculum. This means that all the Christian schools in the country will have to teach it to all their students (not just to the Muslim children, as before) at both primary and secondary levels. It was already illegal for them to teach Christianity even to the Christian children. The government of Brunei is an absolute Muslim monarchy; it actively promotes Islam and imposes restrictions on the practice of Christianity and other non-Muslim religions. There are around 40,000 Christians in Brunei, about 10% of the population. Pray for wisdom for the schools as they respond to this new directive, and that the Lord will protect the faith of Christian children in Brunei.

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AUGUST 31 Friday 31 Praise God for the bravery of a group of Christians in Laos who are standing up for religious freedom in the country by resisting the closure of their church building.

On 5 April, officials ordered the confiscation and closure of the building in Khamnonsung village, Savannakhet province, claiming that the Christians did not have permission for it, despite its dating from 1968 before the Communist

government came to power. But the Christians continued to meet for worship in the building; they said that they were willing to risk their safety and that of their families to defend religious freedom. The confiscation follows the closure of three other church buildings in the district, and others are vulnerable to takeover. Pray that the determination of these Christians will prompt a change of heart by the authorities.

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