Arisenow issue.8

arisenow ISSUE #8 / September 2014

INTERVIEW WITH REV. SAMUEL RODRIGUEZ PRESIDENT OF NHCLC

LOOKING INSIDE PANDORA’S BOX The History of ISIS and its effects on the Region www.arisegeneration.org

THE EXODUS

OF CHRISTIANS IN IRAQ with Andrew White the Vicar of Baghdad

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OUR vision is to courageously and creatively teach, live and share God’s passion for the young generation and stand firm by His plans for Israel and the world.

Blessings from Jerusalem,

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Jani Salokangas WORKING IN: USA, Canada, Germany, Finland, Norway, England, Philippines, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Australia, South Africa, Fiji, Namibia, Switzerland...

CREDITS

Rooted in the powerful scripture of Ephesians 5:14, Arise stands to unlimitedly glorify God: to inspire and promote Biblical truths into young people’s everyday lives. Arise devotes itself to cause a generation to arise for spiritual awakening, works of love and support for Israel.

International Director JANI SALOKANGAS Media Strategist EMANUEL MFOUKOU International Administrator SARAH AJILEYE AriseNow editors EMANUEL MFOUKOU AND JANI SALOKANGAS Proof reading CHRIS CHAMBERS,

From its beginning in 2002 the ARISE movement has had one mission – to gather students and young people from across the globe to live a life centered in God. We believe that God has a special plan for each person and it is our responsibility to live that calling to its fullest potential. Above all we want this generation to see and discover the unique and crucial plan that God has for Israel in His epic world redemptive plan.

The Arise movement is spreading worldwide. Join the movement today!

Graphics / Illustration JANI SALOKANGAS Writers EMANUEL MFOUKOU, JANI SALOKANGAS, Photography JANI SALOKANGAS, POND5, EMANUEL MFOUKOU, NHCLC, PER KVAMSO ARISENOW is published by Arise ICEJ. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited.

International Christian Embassy Jerusalem www.icej.org

For more information contact us www.arisegeneration.org arisegeneration@icej.org Telephone: +972-2-539-9700 PO Box 1192 Jerusalem 91010 Israel

AriseNow editors JANI SALOKANGAS AND EMANUEL MFOUKOU

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From the leader’s pen

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he situation in the Middle East is alarming. Christians are being expelled from the region with an unimaginable violence. In Iraq alone, the Christian population has shrunk considerably since 2003, and today the media seems to focus more on ISIS than on the suffering of the Middle Eastern Christians, whose coverage is reduced to smaller side stories. It is time for Christians worldwide to face the fact that we need to wake-up, and both pray and act in order to save our brothers and sisters in the Middle-East. or you were called to freedom, brothers.

Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. Gal 5:13

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he bible clearly states that to those whom much has been given, much will be expected. This passage alone should draw fear and willingness to serve the body of Christ with all our hearts. Moreover we should use the freedom that we enjoy in the West to advance and comfort the suffering body in Iraq and Syria. In the midst of these struggles and challenges, God weighs the character of our faith. In times like these, God gives us an opportunity to become a vessel of courage.

Let’s seize the moment, and let us become living instead of talking testimonies.

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or how much longer will the most vulnerable part of the body of Christ, the persecuted Christians, continue to suffer?

One day, God will look on us and He will remind us about the words spoken in Matthew 25:40 .

Jani Salokangas is the Arise International Director and he is based in Jerusalem with his family.

I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.

Matthew 25:40

Hot articles in this issue No more Fast food

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For Such a Time as this

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the movement today Like us in Facebook. facebook.com/arisegeneration

God’s Agenda - Rev. Samuel Rodriguez page 15 The ill-Treatment of Christians

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The Shia and Sunni divide

page 26

Looking Inside Pandora’s Box

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The Exodus of Christians in Iraq

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Kurdistan

page 40

The Syrian Pandemonium

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Jordan - The other Biblical land

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NO MORE FAST FOOD Jani Salokangas | Photography Pond5 We are all born with intrinsic needs and instincts activated at birth, instincts completely non-dependent on our decisions and will power. God installed these needs for our physical and spiritual survival, I am talking about the necessity to eat, a need which starts from our birth until the day we see our creator.

When a baby is hungry it shows signs of discomfort making the surroundings aware of his or her needs. It is the same thing with our walk with God, when we become spiritually hungry we express similar signs. The need for a balanced and nutritious meal reaches beyond the physical towards the spiritual realm, and in the book of Psalm, chapter 42, David speaks about how his soul, his inner world thirsts for God. We all have an inner desperate need to be intimately connected to God, our inner being and our spirit hungers for Him. Some people look for spiritual food in the wrong places, finding themselves even hungrier, while others deny this inner hunger and becomes spiritually anaemic. The response to Spiritual hunger is to engage with our creator. In John 6:35, Jesus beautifully describes where we ought to look in order to seize the hunger and thirst.

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�Some people look for spiritual food in the wrong places, finding themselves even hungrier, while others deny this inner hunger and becomes spiritually anaemic. .�

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“Fast food is always an easier and more appealing choice, but as usual, looks are deceiving”

The House of Bread The city of Bethlehem has an important story to tell us about hunger and the need for nourishment. The etymology behind Bethlehem is derived from the words bayith and lechem, house and bread respectively, which translates the meaning of the birth place of Jesus to the house of bread. This meaning originates in the agricultural impact Bethlehem had on the region in the past, as a producer of grain products. God used a physical house of bread to bring forth an eternal house of bread (John 6:35). In Jesus we can nourish our deepest feelings of hunger and thirst in order to produce fruit for His Kingdom. The hunger in us is calling us to rest our needs on the throne of Jesus Christ.

Throughout the Bible, God has chosen the little, the inferior and the underdog to exalt His greatness. His inexplicable glory does not rely on human merits, craftsmanship nor grandeur (Matthew 2:6). He has a plan and He executes it outside of human understanding. When God chooses to move, He does it in unprecedented ways. When God chooses to feed the needy, He does it in an eternal form. In Jesus Christ, and out of Bethlehem, was brought forth the eternal food for our lives and souls.

Spiritual Fast food In March 2006, the BBC reported that the 100-Minute Bible, a condensed bible containing less than 60 pages, had sold 100,000 copies. In these days of spiritual fast food bookstands you can’t help but think, how many spiritual nutrients does these fast food meals actually contain? Surely they contain some substance, but not even close to the full range.

This is the life-style the upcoming generation are faced with. We want to feast on “perfect” looking biblical truths, without hard

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work or pain as fast as possible. Fast food is always an easier and more appealing choice, but as usual, looks are deceiving. The hunger for Godly steaks has been diluted by good tasting quick milkshakes. We have gotten so used to the consumption of spiritual milkshakes, that we can’t remember how it is to feast on a genuine Gospel steak. The main problem with these milkshakes is that they feed you for a very short period of time, and if consumed for a prolonged time, they can make you obese. In the book of Corinthians, Apostle Paul warns the church of Corinth about their inability to receive biblical solid food, “I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it…”

As young believers in Christ, we have to upgrade our diet and eat this solid food that Paul speaks about. It might be that this food is harder to eat, but it contains all necessary nutrients needed to run the race. As good athletes train hard to reach their goals, they also eat the correct amounts of healthy food.

Let’s increase our hunger, let’s eat correctly so that we will become as strong athletes enduring the race ahead of us. One fact stands true; Jesus will always fill your appetite, no matter how hungry you are. •

REPORT

ARISE During the month of September, Arise visited the cities of Kristiansand, Norway and Stuttgart, Germany.

In Norway Arise connected with youth and young adult leaders and ministered to local churches. Many people responded to the challenging messages and re-connected with God. ICEJ Norway is growing its influence, and Arise wants to be in the fore front of this growth.

In Germany Arise International Director Jani Salokangas preached at the Code Red Conference sharing the Gospel of God in front of 10 000 young adults.

Arise also held a special seminar where the message went deeper into God’s plan for individuals, the world and Israel. Over 300 young people committed themselves to pray for Israel.

ON THE ROAD Arise Director Jani Salokangas preaching a powerful message at the Code Red Conference in Germany.

Below: Thousands of young people attended the Code Red Conference.

God’s mighty hand was upon the conference were hundreds of young people gave their life to Christ. God is on the move in Europe and conferences like these are a living proof that young people are hungry for Jesus.

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Arise Director Jani Salokangas travelled the beautiful sceneries of South Norway ministering to a set of churches in the region.

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For Such a Time as This - ARISE SUMMER TOUR 2014 Emanuel Mfoukou | Photography Jani Salokangas

IN JULY, A GROUP OF 40 YOUNG CHRISTIANS SHOWED GREAT COURAGE AND CHARACTER IN VISITING ISRAEL DURING A TIME OF CONFLICT AS PART OF THE ICEJ ARISE SUMMER TOUR. DESPITE SEEING ROCKETS FLYING INTO ISRAEL FROM GAZA ON THE TELEVISION NEWS BACK HOME, THE PARTICIPANTS TRUSTED IN GOD FOR THEIR SAFETY, AND IT PROVED TO BE AN AMAZING TESTIMONY TO ALL THEY ENCOUNTERED.

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For over ten years, the ICEJ’s ARISE young adults program has brought hundreds of young Christians on tours to Israel to help them discover their biblical roots and walk in the footsteps of Jesus. This year was no exception, as the 40 participants from eleven countries made their way to Israel to participate in the 2014 Arise Summer Tour.

The group consisted of an interesting mix of young adults from various cultural, ethnic, social and professional backgrounds, ranging from students to teachers, relief work volunteers, youth pastors and doctoral candidates in robotic research. But they had one thing in common in that all were thirsty for more of Jesus.

The ten-day tour offered a life-changing experience, as they journeyed throughout the Holy Land. The itinerary featured such cherished biblical sites as the Mount of Beatitudes, Mt. Tabor, a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee, and a trek up Mt. Arbel with its commanding view of the Migdal valley where Jesus often ministered. This was followed by several days of touring in the City of the Great King, Jerusalem, including visits to the Mount of Olives, the Garden of Gethsemane, and the Garden Tomb, as well as prayers at the Western Wall and solemn reflections at Yad Vashem.

One of the Jerusalem highlights was the half-hour hike through Hezekiah’s tunnel, an underground passageway and stream built by the ancient Israelite king some 2700 years ago as a way to provide water for the city during the Assyrian siege. It starts at the historic City of David and ends near the Pool of Siloam, where Jesus healed a blind man.

Other memorable stops included floating on the Dead Sea, an overnight stay at a Bedouin tent in the Negev desert, camel riding, and a sunrise hike up to the famous mountain fortress Masada.

All the while, the group also took part in daily devotions, and praise and worship sessions, which made the trip truly unforgettable.

The final days were spent in Tel Aviv to see the old port of Jaffa, linked to the prophet Jonah and the Apostle Peter’s vision, and to enjoy the shopping and some beach time.

Apart from visiting biblical sites, the tour also included several hands-on service projects, since the Bible teaches us that faith without works is dead. One project was a visit to an IDF base where we spent time with soldiers, encouraging them during a time of war. The group was given a short history of the IDF, played a game of foot10 AriseNow

ball with soldiers, and planted olive trees with them as a symbol of peace.

Speaking to his disciples on the Mount of Olives, Jesus told them not to be troubled by wars and rumours of war, and this was surely a message the participants took to heart. Despite pressure from family and friends to postpone their visit to Israel due to the hostilities in Gaza, they still decided to come. The fact that they fully trusted God to look after them produced a real sense of His presence throughout the tour.

Prior to the trip the Arise team prayed that God would shelter the group from harm, and He surely heard our prayers. We were protected throughout by both rocket alarms and the Iron Dome missile shield. We only saw some indirect effects of the conflict, such as seeing some popular spots less crowded than usual.

While visiting the Old City of Jerusalem, several souvenir shop owners commented on the smaller number of visitors, which has been hurting their businesses. In Tel Aviv, a local named Tamar noted that she had never seen the beaches so empty in mid-summer.

Despite the rocket threat from Gaza, the Arise group was never hindered from taking in the whole land.

Paul and Jessica Parkhouse, Arise directors for the UK, said the rocket threat was in the back of their minds, but they were never afraid. Instead, all they saw were Frisbees and paddle balls in the air on the beaches of Tel Aviv.

Michael Horn from Germany, a first time visitor to Israel, came because it was the dream of his wife Rebecca. ”We had a lot of fun here”, he insisted.

Kevin, 26 and from Canada, agreed that the Arise summer tour was a great experience. ”There were a lot of ’best moments’ during the tour”, he noted. ”Mt Arbel was one of the highlights for me, while the most spiritual part was the night we spent in the Bedouin tent.”

Kevin added that the Arise team did more than just organise the tour, but their leadership style really spoke into people’s lives.

Several other Canadians were on the tour, thanks to scholarships provided by ICEJ-Canada. One was 21 year-old Verone Rodrigues, from Toronto. He recounted how he fell to his knees and thanked God the moment he found out that he could go.

”It’s not every day that a person from my community gets this sort of chance to travel, and not just to any place but to Israel”, he explained. ”I couldn’t be more grateful... I am excited to go back and spread the good news about this amazing land.” ”Interestingly enough, there was no fear within me to come, because I know that wherever God’s will for me is, that’s where I need to be, and wherever that is, there is safety”, Verone added. ”So don’t not to let anything stop you from coming to Israel.” ”If you have an opportunity to visit Israel, you have to go”, concurred Natalie, 23 and from South Africa. ”God speaks to people when they are here... Israel is the most special place in the world. It’s God’s place! He chose Jerusalem.”

On the last evening of the tour, the group met with Porit Avigdori of Tailor Made Tours, the travel company which arranged the tour package for Arise. She said all the hotel managers where they stayed were contacting her to only rave about the group. ”This group has been absolutely amazing”, assured Porit. ”You came to Israel during the worst time possible, and it was very encouraging to everyone you encountered.”

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EXPLORE

ISRAEL

21ST - 31ST JULY 2015

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BOOK REVIEW

Emanuel Mfoukou | Photography Courtesy of NHCLC Rev. Samuel Rodriguez book, the Lambs Agenda, is a must read for all believers, whether you are young, old, on biblical milk or meat nourishment. It’s a book for those desiring to see a change in the society and for those craving to see God’s limitless power in action. It’s a book that through various examples displays the divine forces released when marrying faith with action. It’s a book grounded in the union between the vertical (spiritual) and the horizontal (natural), and how this relationship manifests God’s power as they intersect in the very center of the cross.

By moving along the lines in the geographical coordinate system of the horizontal and vertical, Rodriguez touches both political and social spheres and helps the reader grasp and understand the God given role of the believer as he navigates through the complex society of the 21th century.

At a first glance, the Lamb’s Agenda, seems to be a book written for Americans in order to strengthen the faith of Americans. Yet, while the book is emphasizing faith matters directly related to American believers, covering important historical road blocks in the nation’s religious makeup, the issues treated are of similar nature and relevant to all believers across the globe. The Lamb’s Agenda is therefore a useful source for believers of all backgrounds, nationalities and cultures.

THE LAMB’S AGENDA. WHY JESUS IS CALLING YOU TO A LIFE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS AND JUSTICE.

“Rodriguez touches both political and social spheres and helps the reader grasp and understand the God given role of the believer as he navigates through the complex society of the 21th century.”

The book touches upon the two main political camps in the US, the Democrats and the Republicans, and urges Christians not to be absorbed by neither the donkey nor the elephant, but instead focus on the agenda of the lamb. Whatever background or nationality, it should not be about the conservative, the liberals or the socialists. Wherever you might live in the www.arisegeneration.org

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world it should not be about political colors or symbols, but ultimately all about the agenda of the lamb. Or as Martin Luther King once put it, both capitalism and communism consists of partial truths, but the real truth can only be found in the Kingdom of God. The book further offers you the full, “I have been to the mountain top and I have seen the Promised Land,” experience. I.e. it gives a bird’s eye view of how the church of Jesus Christ should look; a harmonized kaleidoscope of all nuances. In the true veins of the Book of the Acts of the Apostles, Rodriguez is calling for a multi ethnic church, rather than a multi-cultural one, emphasizing the fact that for believers there is only one culture, the culture of the Kingdom of God. He writes with passion about Billy Graham and Martin Luther King, the individuals embodying the two directions in the analogy of the geographical coordinate system. The first one representing the vertical latitudinal direction, and the latter demonstrating the longitudinal horizontal course.

In this way Rodriguez is able to create a woven pattern of faith represented by Graham, and social justice perspective personified in Rev. King, and thereby paint a picture of how the church will look like when righteousness and justice meet.

Justice, he writes, “Is not a political term to be exploited, but a prophetic term to be lived out…and does not belong to the left or the right but flows from on high for the purpose of lifting up the low.” He states that people in today’s society are trying to do justice without including righteousness, and emphasizes the fact that without righteousness it is impossible to imagine justice. Justice is righteousness applied, and if the heart of God is called righteousness, then His hand is called justice.

When it comes to the church he writes, there is no such thing as a righteousness or a justice only church, there is only one true church, the church of Jesus Christ, standing committed to both righteousness and justice.

If the church is able to unite righteousness and justice, the vertical and the horizontal, the church will become what it was meant to be. A tool for change, and a place where the captives are set free, good news proclaimed to the poor, and where the sight of the blind is recovered while the oppressed are set free. The church will be an embodiment of the Good Samaritan where the lowly are lifted up and the refugees from foreign lands taken care of.

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The Lambs Agenda is tailor made for the upcoming generation. For Christians looking for change, looking to make an impact in the world, and make the most out of their relationship with God. It’s a book for the believers who want to live the Christian life to the fullest, and who have understood the importance and the vital connection between faith and social justice. It is a book loaded with seeds of wisdom, touching all from politics, equality, righteousness, social justice, to the John the Baptist’s leadership model and Kingdom culture. It’s a must read for the 21th century church leader and everyone who wants to see God’s kingdom grow. If you are a Christian tired of the lukewarmness, and who wants to know how to turn to turn up the heat, Samuel Rodriguez book, the Lambs Agenda is for you. •

”...there is no such thing as a righteousness or a justice only church, there is only one true church, the church of Jesus Christ, standing committed to both righteousness and justice.”

INTRODUCING

REV. SAMUEL RODRIGUEZ

GOD’S AGENDA Emanuel Mfoukou | Photography Courtesy of NHCLC

One of the main speakers at this year’s Feast of the Tabernacle, is Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, the founder and President of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, NHCLC. His organization was established in 2001 and according to Rodriguez, its objective is to “unify, serve and represent the Hispanic Evangelical Community with the divine (vertical) and human (horizontal) elements of the Christian message.”

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In a 2013 article published by the Time Magazine, Rev. Rodriguez was nominated as one of the world’s 100 most influential People, while the renowned Wall Street Journal gave him the title of being “one of America’s most influential Hispanic leaders.” The Black Christian News Network in its turn, counted him as one among the “10 White & Brown MLK’s of Our Time.”

In the weeks ahead of this year’s Feast of Tabernacles, AriseNow had the privilege to speak to an excited Rev. Rodriguez, as he prepared himself to come up to Jerusalem and participate in the 2014 edition of the Feast of Tabernacles, this year to be held at the brand new Pais arena in Jerusalem.

Why is Israel important?

Israel is the very component that the almighty God engaged in demonstrating to us so many of the biblical truths. Israel is the womb of monotheism, the womb of the Judeo Christian belief system which is the underpinning system governing the western world and most of the global cultural society. Geographically speaking, Israel is an example for humanity as it pertains to historical demonstrations of His Grace, His sovereignty and His divine majesty. Israel is not just another nation, it is arguably the most special nation on the planet, because God has a relationship with Israel and with the people of Israel.

How many times have you been to Israel, and do you have a favorite place that you always visit while in the country?

I have been to Israel about ten times, and I am making sure that I am able to visit as much of the nation as possible. I love the region of the Sea of Galilee, and of course Jerusalem. I also attended Tel Aviv, with its modern components. I enjoy all of Israel.

How is the relationship between the US Hispanic church and Israel?

By the Grace of God, our organization consists of over 40 000 churches in America, and some 500 000 churches worldwide. We are the world’s largest Hispanic Christian organization, and I can say that our commitment to Israel has never been stronger. Through the launching of NHCLC’s, “Que Viva Israel Campaign,” we seek to marry the Hispanic born again community with Israel. That means that we want to build a Latino fire wall against anti-Semitism, and we want the Latino community around the world to be the number one most pro-Israel and pro Jewish community on the planet.

What are your expectations of the Feast Of tabernacles 2014?

I have great spiritual and vertical expectations that the sovereignty, the majesty, the grace and the glory of the Messiah Jesus Christ will be made manifest, that there will be a fresh outpouring of God’s Holy Spirit. But I also have horizontal expectations that God will continue to marry our hearts and minds to Israel, to the people of Israel and the Jewish people. These are difficult times for Israel. The nation is surrounded by terrorist groups and those committed to religious totalitarianism, Islamic fundamentalism and extremism. More than ever, Israel need people that believe that God has a great purpose for the nation and for the Jewish people at large.

So I am going to the Feast in October to participate, prayerfully and with humility.

I am expecting God to use me, but I likewise go in order to affirm Israel and to affirm my Jewish brothers and sisters.

”Israel is an example for humanity as it pertains to historical demonstrations of His Grace”

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Why should people come and celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles?

It is a Feast invented in scripture. It is a feast that enables

”...we want to build a Latino fire wall against antiSemitism, and we want the Latino community around the world to be the number one most pro-Israel and pro Jewish community on the planet.”

Hamas and Hezbollah, against these extremist groups as all they want to do is to establish a calipath. What we need is a firewall of reasonable people, of people that believe that every single human being on this planet carries the image of God. So we need those of us that believe in the amiable day, to raise our voices and to act accordingly.

Rev. Samuel Rodrigez in action.

us to come together as one community for those who believe that the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph, is still on the throne, and that He is still alive and well. So it is a Feast indeed, a convocation of the masses across the world, to come together and celebrate that God is still on the throne.

The whole region of the Middle East and the greater Middle East is in turmoil. What could be done in order to find a solution to the crisis?

We need voices to emerge. Number one, we need there to be an unbridled commitment to the State of Israel and to the Jewish people. We need Europe and the United States, and the nations of the world to come together and to say, we will protect the sovereignty of the nation of Israel, we will protect the Jewish people as they are living in a very difficult neighborhood.

Number two, we need to repudiate explicitly all messages of secular totalitarianism and religious fundamentalism as they pertain to Islamic extremism, which means that we need prophetic leadership to rise up around the world. We need the church to rise up, we need politicians to rise up and we need the governments that surrounds Israel, particularly Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, to rise up and to build a firewall against ISIS, www.arisegeneration.org

Estimates has it that since the death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus, some 70 million Christians have been killed as a result of persecution. Some scholars even claim that around 100 000 Christians have died yearly from persecution since 2000. What should we as Christians do in order to help and support our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world?

First of all we need to pray. After praying we need to engage our respective political leaders in our respective nations. We cannot look the other way, while there is a genocide taking place. It is morally reprehensible to permit so many Christians to suffer. Religious persecution and the protection of religious liberty is the civil rights issue of the 21th century.

Christian persecution has increased exponentially around the world, and we haven’t seen this much Christian persecution since the first 300 years of the Church; Christians are the new persecuted religious demographic. It requires every single geopolitical organization, the United Nations, the European Union, the United States of America, and the Arab League, to rise up and make a commitment to protect Christians around the world.

We need to lift our voices, we need to do whatever it takes to protect our brothers and sister in Christ around the world. •

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THE POWER OF DISCERNMENT

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In the Olivet discourse, Jesus told his disciples not to be afraid when hearing about wars and rumours of wars, and that such things had to happen as they were part of the process leading up to the end times. Since Jesus Sermon on the Mount of Olives, the Middle East has been conquered and reconquered by a multitude of rulers who have divided the region according to their liking.

Since then, atrocities have been carried out against various people groups, such as American Indians and the European Jewry. Millions of African slaves were brought to the new world in the name of Christianity, sometimes on slave ships carrying the name of Jesus. Since Jesus Olivet discourse, the foot soldiers of the Belgian King Leopold have tortured, mutilated and beheaded hundreds of thousands of people in the Congo. Since then, genocides have been carried out against the Herero’s in Namibia, the Armenian and Assyrians in present day Turkey, against the Jewish population in Europe, the Kurds in Iraq, and Tutsis in Rwanda along with a range of other people groups.

tury after century.

In today’s media circus it can sometimes sound like evil belongs to a specific people group or religious classification. Comparing the 21th century contemporary events with history changes the picture. It is important to remember that all human beings are created in the image of God, regardless of ethnicity, nationality or religion, and we all carry the same sinful nature inherited from Adam and Eve.

How would Jesus have reacted to today’s news of war and rumours of war? What sources would he have deemed reliable?

Since then numerous wars have been fought along ethnical, religious and ideological lines, and during the 20th century alone, scholars believe that over 100 million people perished as a result of wars, in what has been deemed the bloodiest century in human history.

Looking in the rear mirror, setting the turmoil of today in perspective and studying the pattern, one can clearly see that there is nothing new under the sun.

However despicable and morally reprehensible the strategies of ISIS might be, beheadings, mutilation and decapitation of civilians is nothing new. The atrocities and beheadings carried out by King Leopold in the Congo, and which are depicted in Joseph Conrad’s, Heart of the Darkness, is just one of many examples. The evil committed by human beings continues its journey around the same malicious circle, repeating itself cen-

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Jesus told us not to be alarmed when we hear about wars.

One way to ease this anxiety is to keep ourselves informed, seeing things from different perspectives, and make use of a Berean mindset of source criticism. Today, we as believers need to be as the men of Issachar who understood the signs of the time. They were men carrying the gift of discernment. They had a deep spiritual and biblical knowledge, but much of their discernment also stemmed from hours of studies and discussions with individuals of different political and social backgrounds.

How would Jesus have reacted to today’s news of war and rumours of war? What sources would he have deemed reliable? Would he have consulted sources stemming from ideologies on the right, or from the left?

Would he have trusted the liberal view, or maybe read them all for a balanced analysis? Jesus clearly showed proof of great empathy, i.e. the capability to understand the suffering of others and seeing things with different goggles and conceptual lenses. The Bible is clear that Jesus had a full understanding of the complex political, economic and social web of Judea, Galilee and Samaria of his day. Such a knowledge could only have been achieved by understanding, respecting and listening to the various narratives of his time and region. Let us as believers follow His example. •

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THE ILL-TREATMENT OF CHRISTIANS FROM PERPETUA AND FELICITY TO OUR DAYS Emanuel Mfoukou | Photography Pond5

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The Bible promises that God will reward martyrs, individuals dying for the sake of the name of Jesus Christ, with a crown of life. It is therefore interesting to note that the name of the first Christian martyr, Stephen, stoned in Jerusalem, carries a similar meaning, “crown, honor and reward.”

”...thousands upon thousands of Christians have been forced to leave Syria and Iraq as a result of various radical Islamic groups threatening their lives.”

Since Jesus was crucified it is estimated that some 70 million people have been martyred. From Stephen on to Perpetua and Felicity in the Maghreb, to the Huguenots in the 16th century and the millions of martyrs that died in the gulags during the era of the Soviet Union.

Hearing about Christian persecution in 2014, the treatment of Christians in countries such as Iraq, Syria and Northern Nigeria quickly comes to mind. Thousands upon thousands of Christians have been forced to leave Syria and Iraq as a result of various radical Islamic groups threatening their lives. With today’s vast flow of information it is easy to think that the persecution of Christians is solely connected to radical Islam. But looking back, we discover that radical Islam is far from the only source of persecution.

Throughout the centuries, the spirit of persecution has appeared in many different forms and shapes. Ideologies and religions such as communism, socialism, atheism, nationalism, Hinduism, Buddhism and even Christianity itself have together, with various forms of organized criminality, such as the Italian Mafia or different drug cartels in Colombia or Mexico, contributed to the death of believers.

Being Christian in the 21th century makes us part of the world’s most persecuted group, and studies from the International Society for Human Rights estimates that some 80 percent of the total persecution worldwide is aimed towards Christians. According to research made

by Todd Johnson from the Gordin Conwell Theological Seminary, the number of Christians killed on a yearly basis from 2000 to 2010, is close to 100 000 per year.

Looking back to the 20th century, scholars seems to agree that this period was the worst for Christians ever.

Estimates from some of the world’s foremost religious demographist claims that around 45 million believers were killed during the 20th century as a result of ideologies such as communism and National Socialism.

Today 66 percent of the world’s Christian population live outside the Western world, a number which by 2050 is

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estimated to have reached 75 percent. Depending on different historical setups each country is battling with its own forms of persecution. In South America and countries such as Colombia and Mexico, drug cartels and tensions between Catholics and Protestants are some of the struggles. In Africa; Nigeria, Mali and Kenya are battling with radical Islam, while in Eritrea tens of thousands of Christians are believed to be living in forced labor camps as a result of authoritarian government policies.

Persecution in Asia in its turn comes in various packages, such as Hinduism in India, Buddhism in Laos and Sri Lanka and communism in North Korea. Famous cases such as the Indian Orissa massacre led to the death of 500 Christians, many of whom were hacked to death by machetes. We further have several cases of persecution coming out of communist nations such as China and North Korea, with the latter being rated as the worst country in the world to live as a Christian. Thousands of Christians are currently living in forced labour camps throughout North Korea, and in 2005 a group of five Christians were arrested for refusing to participate in a cult connected to the worship of the now late supreme leader Kim Jong-il. As a result they were rounded up and crushed by a bulldozer.

In the Middle East, persecution has for several years haunted the area. In the beginning of the 20th century Christians made up 20 percent of the total population in the region. Christians were running schools and hospitals, and played an important role in the creation of the Pan Arab nationalistic movement. Some of the most known Christians from the time was George Habash, founder of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Egypt’s Michel Aflaq, one of the founders of the Arab Ba’ath Party, along with Syria’s Constantine Zureiq, a pioneer behind the concept of Arab Nationalism.

Today, only five percent of the Middle East is made up of Christians. In what was the British Mandate of Palestine, Christians used to represent 30 percent of the population, a number which today is down to 1,25 percent. The Aramaic speaking Christians on the border of Syria and Turkey used to make up some 500 000 in the start of the 20th century, a number today reduced to 2500.

During the era of the former Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, 1800 Christians were killed, and the 2011 Maspero massacre which led to the death of 28 people, a majority being Coptic Christians, is only one example of persecution in Egypt.

Today, Iraq has grown into something of a poster child for Christian persecution. According to the US State De-

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TOP 5 MOST DANGEROUS COUNTRIES TO BE A CHRISTIAN (source: Open Doors) 1. NORTH KOREA 2. AFGHANISTAN 3. SAUDI ARABIA 4. SOMALIA 5. IRAN

The number of Christians killed on a yearly basis from 2000 to 2010, is close to 100 000 per year.

MOST DANGEROUS COUNTRY TO BE A CHURCH WORKER

COLOMBIA IN 2011-2012 60% of the murders of human rights workers took place in Colombia. (source: Catholic Church)

partment there were some 1,4 million Christian in the country in 1991, a number which 20 years later has been drastically reduced.

During a conference in Eastern Asia, an Iraqi pastor told AriseNow that despite the hardships and cruelty carried out by Saddam Hussein, life as a Christian was much easier during the Saddam era. It was in relation to the 2003 US invasion and the ousting of Saddam that the challenges began. His stand was echoed by Cardinal Emanuel III Delly, who in 2010 served as the Chaldean Patriarch of Iraq. He referred the Christian life after the fall of Saddam to a “Calvary,” and since 2003 two thirds of Iraq’s Christians are believed to have left the country.

”The Aramaic speaking Christians on the border of Syria and Turkey used to make up some 500 000 in the start of the 20th century, a number today reduced to 2500.”

In conclusion, we need to be aware that the spirit of persecution comes in different disguises. Even though radical Islam is morally reprehensible, despicable and extremely dangerous, and at the moment claiming the lives of thousands of our dear brothers and sisters throughout the Middle East, we need to remember that Christian persecution does not solely stem from radical Islam. After all, the largest number of persecuted Christians in human history, with some 45 million deaths, was not carried out by radical islamists but rather by Communism and people adhering to national socialism.

Following God’s word, the body of Christ is made up of several parts, and if one part suffers the whole body will suffer. With thousands upon thousands of Christians dying and being sentenced to prison as a result of their love for Jesus, we need to ask ourselves in what way it affects us as parts of the body of Christ. Are we also suffering when our brothers and sister in Africa and Asia are suffering? Are we assisting our South American brothers through prayers or various forms of social activism? Are we truly part of one body when we are not coming to the aid of our Christian family in different parts of the Middle East? Are our prayers still aimed towards self-realization in the form of prosperity? Or are we, as we should be, more concerned with the healing of the suffering body of Christ? •

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THE

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SHIA AND SUNNI DIVIDE

A foundational component for a better comprehension of the contemporary Middle East, is the religious set up of the region. Throughout centuries the area which today constitute the heartland of the Middle East, has been conquered and reconquered by various empires such as Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines and various Muslim rulers from the region.

A crucial element for a better understanding of Islam is the two schools or directions of the religion, the Shia (followers of Ali) and the Sunni (traditionalists), and how they have shaped and are shaping the region. It is important to notice that despite the fact that Islam originates in the Middle East, the majority of the world’s Muslims can be found outside of the region from where it originated, and the reality of the Muslim demographics has it that only 25 Percent of the world’s 1, 6 billion Muslims are Arabs. It is further estimated that around 15 percent of the Muslims worldwide are adhering to Shia beliefs. If one were to consider the heartland of the Middle East and the areas with the major oil reserves such as Iran, Iraq, the Persian Gulf, and the eastern parts of Saudi Arabia, Shia Muslims make up close to 50% of the Muslims.

The split between Shia and Sunnis Muslims traces its roots to the immediate aftermath of Muhammad’s death in 632 AD, when a debate erupted as to who would lead the new religion. Four of Muhammad’s closest confidents were considered, Abu Bakr, Ali, Umar and Uthman. According to the Shia Muslim narrative, the title of caliph, or successor should have been passed on to Ali, Muhammad’s cousin and son in law married to his daughter Fatima.

But despite his close relationship to Muhammad, it would take years for Ali to assume the leadership of Islam, and as he finally did he only ruled for a couple of years before he was murdered. The death of Hasan and Hussein, Ali’s sons and the grandchildren of Muhammad would led to further division.

After Muhammad’s death the succession was passed on to Muhammad’s father in law and close friend, Abu Bakr, who was to be the first caliph of Islam. The second caliph, Omar, another of Muhammad’s close confidents, took over the area of Iraq and Syria including the region of what today encompasses Israel and Palestine in a time span of ten years. The third caliph, Othman, www.arisegeneration.org

”Muslim demographics has it that only 25 Percent of the world’s 1, 6 billion Muslims are Arabs.”

was a wealthy man from a family of traders in Mecca, and it wasn’t until after Othman’s death that Ali finally was able to assume the leadership of Islam. Ali is often referred to as the fourth caliph, while he himself chose the title of Imam only acknowledging Abu Bakr and Omar as worthy Caliphs. Nevertheless, the succession of the first four caliphs, Abu Bakr, Omar, Othman and Ali are often referred to as the rightly guided ones or the Rashidun caliphate.

Ali served as the caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, stretching from Egypt to Iran, for a number of years, and in the aftermath of Othman’s death he fought the Battle of the Camel’s, the first Muslim civil war against Othman’s son Muawiyah who refused to acknowledge Ali as the new caliph. It was as a result of this war that Shia Islam took root in Iraq, as Ali moved his forces to the city of Kufa. During the Battle of Siffin, located in what constitutes the contemporary city of Raqqah in Syria, today the self-proclaimed capital of ISIS so called Caliphate, Ali was defeated.

After the battle of Siffin it went downwards for the man who used to be Muhammad’s closest ally. Muawiyah took the title of Caliph over the Umayyad dynasty, conquered Egypt, and sent forces to Yemen, Medina and Mecca in order to kill Ali’s loyalists. In addition, Ali had to fight the Kharajites, a group rebelling against the Rashidun caliphate. In 661 during the month of Ramadan, as Ali was preparing for prayers in the city of Kufa, he was killed by what is believed to have been a kharajis.

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Ali, the first Imam, and the man Muhammed himself had named the lion of god, was given his final resting place in Najaf, east of Kufa.

The split between Shia and Sunni would further deepen through the destinies of Ali’s sons, Hasan and Hussein.

Hasan, the second Imam after his father, died according to Sunni views of natural causes in the city of Medina, while the Shiites claim that he was poisoned by orders of Muawiyah.

Hussein in his turn, died in Karbala where he was killed by forces of Muawiyah’s son, Yazid. Shia tradition has it that after the battle, Hussein and 72 of his kin were left beheaded on the fields before they were buried by farmers from a nearby village. A couple of years thereafter, pilgrims started to arrive to the site of his burial naming it Karbala, “the place of trial and tribulation.” Since then, millions of Shia Muslims travel to Karbala to commemorate the death of Hussein, and every year his suffering is remembered during the Day of Ashura, a national holiday in many countries. Some people observes the day by cutting and beating themselves with knives and chains in order to recall the pain of Hussein, the prince of martyrs.

Today Iraq is home to holy Shia sites such as the tomb of Ali in Najaf, the shrines of Hussein and his half-brother Abbas in Karbala, along with the al-Askari Mosque in Sa-

”Today Iraq is home to holy Shia sites such as the tomb of Ali in Najaf, the shrines of Hussein and his half-brother Abbas in Karbala, along with the al-Askari Mosque in Samarra.”

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marra, where the tenth and the eleventh Imams, direct descendants of Prophet Muhammad and Ali, are buried. According to Shia tradition it is here that the 12th Imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi, from the pure bloodline of Muhammad one day will return as the saviour of the world.

Today, the fray between Shia and Sunnis continues to rage, and just like Ali once was fighting against Muawiyah, Shia Iran is struggling with the Sunni Saudi Arabia over the political leadership of the Islamic world. The war in Iraq, following the 2003 US occupation of the country, is yet another example of tensions between the two branches. The 2004 Ashura massacre carried out by the Sunni inspired terrorist organization al-Qaeda, led to the death of 178 Shia Muslims. While the attacks on what can be viewed as the heart of Shia Islam, the al-Askari Mosque, was bombed in both 2006 and 2007. The war in Syria, and ISIS cruel treatment of Iraqi Sunnis perceived as apostates and cockroaches, is yet another example of this 1400 year conflict between the two schools. •

LOOKING INSIDE PANDORA’S BOX THE HISTORY OF ISIS AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE REGION

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Radical Islam is currently causing havoc around the world. New fundamental groups are born on a daily basis, and according to several commentators familiar with the field, many of these groups have been inspired by a scholar named Sayyid Qutb, viewed as one of the fathers behind modern Islamic fundamentalism. Born in Egypt in 1906, he has through his various books, touching all from the disapproval of the Western society to antiSemitism, inspired multitudes of fundamental Muslims across the globe with his ideas.

Qutb’s radical Islamism in addition to three events from the latter parts of the 20th century helped pave way for the radicalization of Islam as we know it today.

The first event was Saudi Arabia’s rise to power through its vast oil reserves, and their leadership in the 1973 US oil embargo shook the world economy and led the Arab world to look up to the country as a powerful nation. The second road block in the shaping of radical Islam was the Iranian revolution, a revolution proving that what both Marxism and Leninism had failed to do, eradicating a secular state, could be achieved by the forces of Islam. The third point is the Soviet war in Afghanistan; in this case the Islamic leaders once again attributed the victory to the power of Islam, able to defeat a world power.

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”Despite the fact that IS has a past with al-Qaeda, the two factions have several differences, one of them being Al-Zarqawi’s views on Shia Muslims.”

In the last 20 years the air waves have introduced us to a range of different radical Islamist groups such as al-Qaeda, AQIM, Al-shabbab, Ansar dine and Boko Haram to name but a few. The latest edition in the collection is ISIS, the Islamic State in Syria, also known as ISIL, the Islamic State in Syrian and the Levant, or IS, the Islamic State, a group so brutal that even al-Qaeda recently denounced them.

The terrorist group has set up a self-proclaimed Caliphate in the areas of northern Iraq and Eastern Syria under the leadership of Caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, also known as Caliph Ibrahim. Since their invasion of Syria they have gained a reputation of being the largest, most brutal and well equipped group currently fighting in the country. Earlier this year they took over the Iraqi city of Mosul with a contingent of 1000 soldiers, vs. 30 000 trained Iraqi soldiers who abandoned their posts and fled.

The history of IS originates in the Jordanian city of Zarqa, where Ahmad Fadeel al-Nazal who came to take on the nom de guerre of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was born.

Growing up in Zarqa, al- Zarqawi was dealing drugs, drinking alcohol and was involved in all sorts of criminality. It was while he served time in a Jordanian prison that he got introduced to Islam and the concept of Jihad. In 1988 after his release, he joined a Mosque in Jordan known for preparing young men for Jihad, and shortly thereafter he left for Afghanistan to fight the Soviets. After his return to Jordan he once again spent time in prison, and after his release he headed back to Afghanistan where he met bin Laden who made him the leader of the Herat training camp.

In this camp, al-Zarqawi prepared people for suicide missions, and it is believed that he was behind the bombing of the UN HQ in Baghdad which killed UN envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello. Al-Zarqawi’s organization also had a finger in the 2004 Ashura massacre, one of the Shia Muslims most holy shrines. The beheading of the American businessman Nicholas Berg the same year, is also attributed to al-Zarqawi’s organization among many other gruesome attacks.

It was in relation to the 2003 US invasion of Iraq that alZarqawi was able to unite his followers. His network which eventually was to become ISIS sought to drive out the US forces, topple the Iraqi government and set up an Islamic State. All, from the Iraqi police and local Iraqi’s in support of the US, along with foreign contractors and humanitarian workers, were targeted by different means, bombings, kidnappings and suicide attacks. In addition he sought to start a sectarian war between Sunni and Shia which he claimed would create an atmosphe-

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re forcing the US and the coalition forces to leave the country.

What we today know as ISIS emerged from a group called Jam’at al Tawhid, set up by al-Zarqawi in 2000. In 2004 it changed name to Tanzim Qaidat al-Jihad fi Bilad al-Rafidayn, and two years thereafter as al-Zarqawi was killed and the group taken over by Abu Ayyub al-Masri, the name was changed to the Islamic State in Iraq, ISI. After al-Masri’s death in 2010, the group was taken over by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the current leader of the group, described by many as the world’s most dangerous man. According to reports, al-Baghdadi got a PhD from the University of Baghdad and is said to be a descendant of Hussein, the grandson of Muhammad.

As a result of several events taking place in the region, the 2011 US withdrawal from Iraq, the Arab Spring and the Syrian civil war, in relation to the Iraqi Prime minister al-Maliki’s sectorial leadership style dividing Shia and Sunni, ISI started to gain strength and popularity. In April of 2013 al-Baghdadi announced the birth of ISIL, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, and roughly a year after on June 28, 2014, ISIL renamed itself “the Islamic State,” IS, and formed what they see as a caliphate in the territories of Syria and Iraq, with al-Baghdadi as its first Islamic Caliph and the Syrian city of Raqqah as its capital.

Today ISIS is made up of a range of different Islamic ideologies and political stands, and among its members can be found people adhering to schools such as Hanafism, Malikism, Shafiism and Wahhabism among others. The objective of the group is not only to create a Caliphate covering the whole of the Levant, their aspirations are much grander. On the first day of this year’s Muslim holiday of Ramadan, ISIS presented its five year plan with strategies to enlarge their influence to parts of Africa, Asia and Europe.

Despite the fact that ISIS has a past with al-Qaeda, the two factions have several differences, one of them being Al-Zarqawi’s views on Shia Muslims. They are apostates, “the most evil of mankind, the lurking snake, the crafty and malicious scorpion, the spying enemy and the penetrating venom,” al-Zarqawi was once heard saying.

The division between their ideologies became all the more clear as al-Qaeda’s leader, al-Zawahiri in a statement earlier this year publicly denounced ISIS. ISIS is…”not an al-Qaeda affiliate, no organizational relationship binds the two, and al-Qaeda is not responsible for its behaviour,” further claiming that the Syrian based

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terror organization al-Nusrah now was al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria.

In order to find out more about ISIS and Israel’s views on the terror group, AriseNow turned to Dr. Jacques Neriah, a former foreign policy advisor to Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and one of Israel’s foremost experts on radical Islam.

Dr. Neriah started by explaining that ISIS was first heard of in the summer of 2012, in relation to the civil war in Syria, and that they were created in the early days of the 21th century as part of al-Qaeda in Iraq. He notes that the brutality is one of the major factors setting them apart from other terrorist groups, in addition to their structure and military framework. “If their leader, al-Baghadadi, or another of their commanders is killed, there is a succession or a procedure in place which allows the organization to survive. On the ground, they are definitely using tactics from military and army doctrine, with most of their officers being made up of soldiers that were ousted from the Iraqi army in relation to the arrival of the Americans in 2003.”

Neriah confirmed ISIS presence on the Sinai Peninsula, and explained that they even have made it to Israel, where an estimated number of 10 to 20 Israeli Arabs currently are believed to be fighting for the brutal terror organization.

He continues by explaining that Israel is seen as the last bastion where the final battle will happen. “I think that as the US are combatting ISIS, they will try to make operations outside the area, mainly against US targets.

But Israel is definitely on the list, and should be worried about the possibilities of ISIS exporting their brutality and violence outside the borders of the Middle East.”

Neriah further commented on the group’s ability to use the media in order to create panic and fear. “By spreading panic they are multiplying their forces, and people would think that they are made up of hundreds of thousands of soldiers instead of their 30 000 to 50 000 fighters. From what we hear, as much as a third of ISIS soldiers are made up of volunteers from over 80 different countries, with the Tunisians in the lead, follo-

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”On the question on how long it w Neriah believes that it will probab not an operation that will finish in

wed by Moroccans, Libyans and the Saudis.”

On the question on how long it will take to defeat ISIS, Neriah believes that it will probably take years. “This is not an operation that will finish in one or six months.

You have to bear in mind that the US has no boots on the ground and that they have to rely on a weakened IRAQI army. In addition there are people from around the world identifying themselves with ISIS, making it very difficult to eradicate them.”

will take to defeat ISIS, bly take years. “This is one or six months.”

In conclusion Neriah explains that it is hard to predict what other mutations will appear once ISIS is defeated. “It’s like al-Qaida, one thought at the time that it was over with them, and then they reproduced themselves in to an even more radical group, as we have seen with al-Nusrah and the newly discovered al-Qaeda group, Khorasan. In regards to the latter, we don’t know exactly who they are and what makes them different from ISIS, but according to the US, the Khorasan could be more extreme. We don’t know yet, as we haven’t seen them on the ground,” he concluded. •

”...It is hard to predict what other mutations will appear once ISIS is defeated. It’s like alQaida, one thought at the time that it was over with them, and then they reproduced themselves”

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The Exodus OF CHRISTIANS IN IRAQ

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Reverend Canon Andrew White is the vicar of St George’s Church, Baghdad, the only Anglican church in Iraq.

What we today know as Iraq covers a region filled with a deep and rich history. For the bible reader, a multitude of events and personalities comes to mind when discussing the country. It was in this region that Mesopotamia, Babylon, the tower of Babel and according to some, the Garden of Eden was located. It was here in the city of Ur that Abraham was born and from where Isaac and later Jacob would take their wives. Jonah actively preached God’s word in the country, and David survived the lion’s den here. The three Hebrew boys, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego went through the fire in present day Iraq, and Prophet Ezekiel preached and was later buried in the country. Iraq, just like Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and also Turkey, not to mention the epicentre of Israel and Palestine, have all been used to set the stage for the coming of our Saviour, the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ.

When the Ottoman Empire ceased to exist, the area making up Iraq came under British control as a mandate under the League of Nations. It wasn’t until 1932 that Britain was to loosen its colonial shackles and grant Iraq its independence. In the years thereafter, Iraq would be thrown in to a period of wars, turmoil and upheavals, leading to years of suffering for the country that once was of such an importance to the biblical narrative.

From 1980-88 the war between Iran and Iraq killed some 1, 5 million people. The ensuing 1991 Gulf war led to the death of some 100 000 Iraqi troops and produced close www.arisegeneration.org

to three million refugees. While the 2003 US occupation of the country steered the country further in to a spiral of death and despair, opening the Pandora’s Box. Or as one Iraqi recently put it, “under Saddam we had one dictator, now we have thousands.”

It was from a high mountain somewhere in the Galilee that Jesus gave his disciples the great commission.

From here he urged them to go out into the world and teach the good news, i.e. to be world changers. Since Jesus gave his commands many men and women have obeyed His voice and preached the gospel in various ways. Men and women of God of all shapes, forms and sizes, have come and gone. They have been equipped with different gifts and callings. William J Seymour, Howard Thurman, Benjamin E. Mays and Martin Luther King are just a few examples of such servants of God who have moved in his power. They all fought for a society based on peace, justice and equality reflected in the pages of his word.

Another example of one of these powerful men of God is Canon Andrew White. He has been and is very active in the Middle East where he is working for reconciliation, bringing the bulk of the regions spiritual leaders, Jews, Christians and Muslims together to denounce the violence carried out in the name of religion. In 2002, the so called First Declaration of the Alexandria of the Religious Leaders of the Holy Land, leaders from various faiths agreed to denounce the violence and work for a

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durable and lasting peace in Israel/Palestine. White also served as the negotiator during the 2002 siege of the Nativity church in Bethlehem.

In 1998 he turned his eyes towards Iraq, where he were to be heavily involved in the reconciliation process between the ethnical and religious set up of the country represented by Sunnis, Shias, Christians, Mandeans and Yazidi’s. In 2004 he sat down the religious leaders of the country who agreed upon and signed the Baghdad Religious Accord, declaring that “killing innocents in the name of God is a desecration of the laws of heaven.”

On several occasions he has been held at gun point, or almost blown up. He has been beaten and arrested and on one occasion imprisoned in a cell filled with human limbs in the form of toes and fingers.

He has negotiated the release of hundreds of kidnapped Iraqis and internationals, and revived the worship services of the St George’s church in central Baghdad, a congregation which has developed to become the biggest in the country. On several occasions he has held services in Saddam’s throne room or in the Prime Minister’s office. In one of his books White describes how in 2006, the situation for the Christian population in Iraq worsened, and how in Baghdad’s al-Dora neighborhood over 500 Christians were being murdered on a monthly basis.

To get a clearer picture of the Christian persecution in Iraq, ICEJ’s media department caught up with Canon Andrew White while on a visit to Israel, and from Jerusalem’s Christ Church he explained about the dire situation in the country.

“I first started visiting Bagdad in 1998, but our church, the St. George’s Church, was founded in 1884 by missionaries from the Christ Church here in Jerusalem,” he explains. “I had the church going again, as it hadn’t been functioning during the Saddam years, but after the 2003 war I reopened it and we started from scratch.”

“Today there are more Iraqi Christians in Chicago than in the whole of Iraq. Many of our people have fled, as they have seen their family members and friends being killed. It was as a result of al Qaeda who started killing Christians, that so many of the Christians decided to leave the country as they were bombed, shot at and even beheaded, and in the last months thousands have been killed. We have had hundreds flee, and these are people who have already fled to the north, to Nineveh and Mosul. When I say our people I am not talking about our congregation, I am talking about the followers of Yeshua.”

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“under Saddam we had one dictator, now we have thousands.”

“The people who fled to Syria some years ago, have now been forced to return to Iraq, and from Iraq they have fled to Kurdistan, while some of them have gone in to Turkey. There are a lot of Christians in Kurdistan, and at the moment most of our people are living there. My colleagues there are providing food for the masses of Christians who have been driven in to exile, and many of the Kurdish churches are doing their part in order to bring help, aid and relief.”

White emphasizes that when one is under attack or under the threat of persecution, denominational lines are forgotten, and it doesn’t matter if one is Orthodox, Presbyterian, Catholic or Chaldean, all are Christians and share the love for Yeshua.

In conclusion, he explains that the Muslim leaders in Iraq, Sunni and Shia, clearly have spoken out against the violence committed by al-Qaeda and ISIS, and made clear that such violence is not the way forward. ISIS, he explains, are more hands on compared to al-Qaeda, using methods involving beheadings and mutilations.

“Their acts are just too terrible to talk about. What has happened to our people is just beyond reason. It’s only together that we can help the persecuted church in Iraq. We need for Christians around the world to stand with them and to strengthen them. We can’t do it on our own, but only as part of an international family,” he concluded.

”ISIS, he explains, are more hands on compared to alQaeda, using methods involving beheadings and mutilations. Their acts are just too terrible to talk about.”

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KURDISTAN; THE LAND OF SALADIN A SHELTER FOR CHRISTIANS Emanuel Mfoukou | Photography Pond5 The Kurdish people are often viewed as one of the largest ethnic groups in the Middle East after the Arabs, the Turks and the Persians. They are also considered to be the world’s largest ethnic group without its own nation. Today, an estimated 40 million Kurds are spread out over five nations, Turkey, Syria, Iran, Iraq and the southern tip of Armenia, with the majority of Kurds, belonging to the Sunni branch of Islam, along with a few Shiite believers. Kurdistan is also home to a Christian community from various denominations, but at the moment it is hard to know an exact number.

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The area of Iraqi Kurdistan

As the European Great powers in the aftermath of WWI divided the region of the Middle East between themselves, they totally ignored the presence of the Kurdish people in the region, with their own language, culture and tradition, separated from the Arabs. As a result the Kurds have throughout the years fought for independence in their respective countries, be it Syria, Turkey or Iraq, but so far none of the different factions have achieved its goal. Nevertheless, the struggle carried out by the Iraqi Kurds has been the most successful, and today they are enjoying autonomy within the state of Iraq, with their own parliament, government and President.

Many of the Kurds in the region look up to Iraqi Kurdistan as a model and the now late Mullah Mustafa Barzani, a 20th century Kurdish leader, is revered as one of the region’s most important national figures. Today his son, Masoud Barzani is holding the leadership of the Kurdish Democratic Party along with the presidency over Iraqi Kurdistan. It is interesting to note that Mustafa Barzani’s brother, Sheikh Ahmed Barzani, another prominent Kurdish leader, in 1931 announced his conversion to Christianity.

A hungry refugee boy in Iraqi Kurdistan.

Throughout the years, Kurdistan has travelled through several periods of upheaval and turmoil. Since Saddam Hussein seized power over Iraq in 1979, Iraqi Kurdistan has suffered tremendous hardship and atrocities, leading to the destruction of thousands of villages and the murder of tens of thousands of its people. During the 80’s, Saddam wittingly transferred large numbers of Arwww.arisegeneration.org

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abs to Kurdish areas in an effort to Arabize Kurdistan and change the population balance.

During the 1983 massacre carried out by the Iraqi army, around 8000 Kurdish men were abducted and killed, and names such as Halabja and Anfal would eventually be synonymous with murder and genocide. In 1986 there were around 4600 Kurdish villages in Iraq, three years later, only 600 remained, as its people had either been killed or deported to various camps. During the so called Anfal campaign led by Chemical Ali, one of Saddam’s cousins, chemical weapons were used against the Kurdish people. In 1988, 5000 people were killed as a result of chemical weapons being deployed over the city of Halabja, and in total it is believed that at least 182 000 Kurds were killed in these atrocities played out in the mid 80’s.

Despite a sea of obstacles, the Kurds have managed to get back up on their feet and today the Kurdish society is a very tolerant one compared to its immediate neighbors, both when it comes to gender equality and religious freedom. Women are active in all spheres of the society, be it in politics, business, or the Kurdish armed forces known as the Peshmerga.

Located in the northern parts of Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan constitutes three major provinces, Dohuk, Erbil and Sulaymaniyah. As these areas are situated in the immediate neighborhood of the provinces currently held by ISIS, the Kurdis Peshmerga forces are stationed along its 42 AriseNow

“The Christians who have fled to Kurdistan have lost everything, they come with nothing, no food, no clothes and no money. They have lost their homes, their cars, their jobs, factories and buildings along with their investments, literally everything, and it breaks your heart to hear their stories.”

borders, fighting to protect their territory against ISIS. Kurdistan has also opened up its arms for Iraqi Christians and other minorities forced to flee their homes as a result of the persecution and mayhem caused by ISIS in the Nineveh valley and cities such as Mosul and Qaraqosh.

And it currently serves as a temporary home for some 100 000 Iraqi Christians, 100 000 Shia Muslims, 300 000 yazidis, and close to 500 000 Syrian refugees.

To get a better feel about the situation in the area, and to learn more about the struggle against ISIS, and the Kurdish efforts to help Iraqi Christians, AriseNow talked to a former Muslim who today leads a ministry aimed to strengthen the body of Christ in northern Iraq, along with sharing the gospel with other groups in the region.

For reason of security our source who was just about to leave on a mission to Kurdistan, chose to speak under hidden identity as he described the challenges faced by the Christian community in the region.

He began by explaining that during the 80’s he witnessed the atrocities caused by Saddam against the Kurdish people, and that in 2004 he started to minister to believers in northern Iraq. Since ISIS started to win grounds, he has been busy helping the large numbers of refugees, who in the last months, have flooded the area, especially the Kurdish capital, Erbil.

“The Christians who have fled to Kurdistan have lost everything, they come with nothing,” he explains. “No food, no clothes and no money. They have lost their homes, their cars, their jobs, factories and buildings along with their investments, literally everything, and it breaks your heart to hear their stories. ”Most refugees in Kurdistan live on the streets, in the parks, in empty buildings under construction and even on the roundabouts. Orthodox, Chaldean and the Catholic Churches among others, have opened up the doors to their facilities. Currently school buildings are being used as shelters for the refugees, resulting in children which should have started school in September, being unable to return.

He continued by emphasizing that Christians are safe in Kurdistan, and the Kurdish Minister of Religious affairs with which he recently spoke concurred. “The Christians who come from Mosul to our area are under our protection and they will be safe in the Northern region of Kurdistan. Kurdistan is the only country in the Middle East where the number of Christians are increasing, it is a safe haven for Christians and other minorities,” he explained.

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In the last months there have been two waves of immigration with the first one taking place in the beginning of June. Some 4000 families left Mosul on the 10th and 11th of June, most of them went by car while other walked or made use of whatever transport means there was.

Initially 50 to 60 individuals stayed behind to protect their property, but as ISIS took over the whole of Mosul they were forced to leave the city or chose to convert or pay the jziyah, a special tax required by non-Muslims.

At present, the majority of Iraq’s Christians from the Nineveh valley have taken refuge in Erbil, but they can also be found in other areas of Kurdistan. Despite being in relative safety, Christians in Erbil are still afraid and suffer from traumas after having seen the atrocities committed by ISIS, some even worry that ISIS will manage to make their way all the way to Erbil.

Since the Kurdish government doesn’t have enough means to help the refugees, it is important for NGO’s and churches to do what they can to assist. “The refugees first of all need food and tents, in addition to fans for the heat and both heaters and blankets in preparation for the winter. Most Christians I meet and talk to in Kurdistan say that they want to leave the country, and that they have no hope. Even the Bishop of Mosul revealed that he wanted to take his family and leave, as he is unable to see a future in Iraq. It is a difficult situation because they have been in Mosul since the time of Jesus, and some of them even speak Aramaic, the same language that Jesus spoke.”

He finally explains that his heart is to help these people, first of all the Christians, but also other minority groups such as Yazidis and Shia Muslims. At the moment the priority is to provide the refugees with food and shelter, he explains, “but I also preach to them and give them bibles, as this is more important than natural food. They need the bread of life. Last week when I was handing out bags of bread to a group of Yazidis, they quickly snatched it from my hands, when I handed out bibles the same thing happened. This is a group of people who have never read the bible. We have to remember that Jesus came for everyone, also the Yazidis. My prayer is to see a revival in their community.”

“If there is one thing that young Christians from around the world concerned about the refugees in Kurdistan can do, it is to pray. Pray for wisdom and safety, and that peace and security will return to Iraq. That the refugees soon will be able to go back to their cities and villages and rebuild their lives. They need as much support and prayers as possible.” •

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THE SYRIAN PANDEMONIUM

WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?

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Contemporary Syria takes its name from Assyria, which in its turn derives its name from the ancient Assyrian city of Ashur, where the Akkadian god with the same name once was worshiped. Hearing about Assyria, most people familiar with the bible associates it to the land ruled

by Sennacherib, and to where the ten Israelite tribes were carried away. The biblical Assyria was located in the areas of present-day Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq, and while one would think that today’s Syria would be inhabited by a majority of Assyrians, such is not the case. It is estimated that only two percent of Syria’s population is made up of Assyrians, while the bulk consists of Arabs, representing over 70 percent of the population.

Like the rest of the nations in the Middle East, Syria has been ruled by a myriad of empires. In the 15th century Syria came under the control of the Ottoman Empire, and became part of what was called Greater Syria, comprising Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, Jordan and parts of Southern Turkey. In relation to the First World War and the Sykes Picot agreement, the Ottoman Empire was divided between France and Britain. Through the San Remo agreement, Syria were to fall under the supervision of France becoming a mandate under the League of Nations. French rule led to several uprisings, and during a short period in the 20’s the Syrians declared their own short-lived state, the Arab Kingdom of Syria. In 1946 Syria finally received its independence and was recognized as a sovereign state.

The land mass making up contemporary Syria, has been an area plagued by long periods of war, not to mention severe famines. In 1958, Syria merged with Egypt in what became the United Arab Republic, but in 1961 the two countries split and Syria as we know it today saw its birth in the form of the Syrian Arab Republic. In 1970, Hafez al-Assad, the father of Syria’s current President, Bashar al-Assad, carried out a coup, “the Corrective Revolution,” and assumed the presidency over Syria. During his presidency he fought the resistance of the Muslim Brotherhood among other groups, and in the famous 1982 Hama massacre, tens of thousands of people were killed by the Syrian Army. A massacre today known as the single deadliest act by any Arab government against its own people in the modern Middle East.

Name: Bashar Hafez al-Assad Born: 11 September 1965 (age 49) Damascus, Syria Marital status: Married Political party: Syrian Regional Branch of the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party Other political affiliations: National Progressive Front Education: Ophthalmologist Religion: Alawi Islam (Shia Muslim) Work: President of Syrian Arab Republic

When Hafez al-Assad died in 2000, his son, Bashar Assad assumed the presidency, ten years thereafter, the ripples of the Arab Spring, caused by the Tunisian street vendor, Mohamed Bouazizi reached the shores of Syria. By March 2011, what started as small protests, developed into major demonstrations forcing President Assad to make use of military force. By July, hundreds of thousands of Syrians had taken to the streets to call for his resignation.

As the opposition realized that peaceful demonstrations wouldn’t oust Assad, they armed themselves, and with time the weapons were used in order to drive Assad’s forces away from a number of cities and towns in the country. Eventually, armed indi-

”...the famous 1982 Hama massacre, tens of thousands of people were killed by the Syrian Army.

A massacre today known as the single deadliest act by any Arab government against its own people in the modern Middle East.”

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viduals formed rebel groups, and in 2013 some 1000 different groups operated within Syria. As the opposition parties became more and more fragmented, Islamic fundamental groups stepped in to fill the void taking advantage of the chaos in the war torn country. Apart from the Syrian Army itself, groups such as the Islamic Front, the Syrian Revolutionaries Front, ISIS, the al-Nusra Front (al-Qaida’s Syrian Wing), the Army of the Mujahideen, along with the Free Syrian Army are operating in the country.

”75 percent of the refugees in the Syrian crisis are made up of women and children, and it is estimated that 51 percent are under the age of 18.”

The fighting has led to chaos of pandemonium measures, and it is estimated that some 200 000 people have died, while some five million Syrians have been internally displaced within the country. In the meantime, the UN estimates that some 2, 7 million Syrians have sought refuge in the neighboring countries of Turkey, Lebanon, Bassous, one of the Priests in the church, who taught us Iraq and Jordan. more about the situation of Christians in Syria.

The UNHCR estimates that the number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon by the end of 2015 could reach figures around 1, 5 million, while the Turkish President, Recep Erdogan recently said that 1, 1 million Syrians had sought refuge in Turkey.

Bassous started by explaining that about a third of Syria’s Christian population has fled the country as a result of the civil war. “The people have left Syria for many different countries, Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan, Europe and Australia, but most Christian’s prefer to seek refuge in Lebanon, as Syrians can enter the country with their ID It is of importance to note that in war the children and cards, while in Jordan they need their passports.” women are always the biggest losers. 75 percent of the refugees in the Syrian crisis are made up of women and “I am often in contact with the Church in Syria, with the children, and it is estimated that 51 percent are under priests and the Bishops. Most Christians live in the south, the age of 18. In the Olive tree camp in Atmeh, a camp and in Damascus, and the church is doing its best to situated in northern Syria on the border to Turkey, 18 per- help the internal refugees in all ways possible by giving cent of its refugees were found to be under the age of them shelter in the monasteries and the churches, along four. with providing food and clothes.” Bassous explains that the situation is extremely difficult as the churches often The gargantuan Syrian refugee crisis has been especially lack sufficient funds. “It’s their country, they can’t all hard on Christians, and in Between the Barbed Wired, a leave and therefore they must do what they do. They report carried out by the Swedish Assyrian journalist Nuri have explained to me that it is their cross to help these Kino, Christian refugees testified of reprisals and kidnap- people, and that that is how it is to live as Christians, to pings. Other voices said that they couldn’t understand help one another.” why the world doesn’t care about their suffering. “They just watch when Syria is emptied of Christians,” one man Father Bassous urges young Christians from across the said. globe to do what they can to help their brothers and sister in Syria. “Always start with prayers,” he explains, “There is a great exodus taking place in silence, it has “but you can also send money or go out in the streets to been happening the last few decades and it is intensify- raise awareness and explain for the government officials ing now. We encourage our members not to leave the in your country about the suffering of the Christians in Middle East, but we can’t force them to stay,” Ignatius Syria.”

Ephrem Josef III, of the Syrian Catholic patriarch continued.

In a concluding remark, he touched on the future of the Christians in the Middle East, and explained that they To learn more, AriseNow turned to St Mark’s Syrian Or- are living in a difficult situation. “The future for the Christhodox Monastery Church in Jerusalem, known for be- tians in the Middle East is difficult, but we are still here. ing one of the possible locations of the Upper room, They are our countries, we are Aramaic people, and we where Jesus held the last supper, and where the Holy speak the language of Jesus and will stay in the region Spirit fell on the 120. Here we spoke with Father George with the help of others and the power of God.” • 46 AriseNow

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JORDAN THE OTHER BIBLICAL LAND

The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is today ruled by King Abdullah II, believed to be a descendant of Prophet Muhammad’s great grandfather, Hashim ibn ’Abd Manaf. It is because of this man, Hashim that one often refers to the country as the Hashemite Kingdom.

Emanuel Mfoukou | Per Kvamso

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Jordan derives its name from the over 250 km long Jordan River, Yarden in Hebrew, meaning one who descends. As students of God’s word we should be aware of the many biblical stories which took place on the east side of this river. The three tribes of the Israelites, Reuben, Gilead and Manasseh received their land on the Eastern bank, and many biblical stories played out in the land which today is the Kingdom of Jordan.

Unfortunately the biblical importance of Jordan has been overlooked by many Christians, but a quick bible study on “the other biblical land” reveals its importance.

It is interesting to note that apart from Israel, there is not another nation under the sun with as many biblical sites as Jordan.

from Jerusalem in a place called Rabbath Ammon which during the Iron Age served as the capital of the Ammonite Kingdom. The city flourished at the same time as Jerusalem, and later, during the Hellenistic period, Rabath Ammon was renamed Philadelphia of the Decapolis, eventually becoming the capital of the Roman province of Arabia. When the Arabs arrived to the region they changed the name to the one used by the locals, Amman, from the ancient Ammon. Today, remains of the kingdom can be found in the vicinities of Jebel al-Qal’a, in the present day capital of Jordan.

Moab in his turn would father the Moabites, and was as the bible reveals, an ancestor of Jesus through Ruth the Moabite. Another example of a Moabite was King Eglon, whom Ehud, one of the Israelite Judges slew with a dagger.

There is no doubt that Jordan has played a crucial

There are over 100 biblical locations in the country, from Machareus, the fort where John the Baptist was beheaded by Herod Antipas, to Mt Nebo, from where Moses looked over to the Holy land before he died. In the vicinities of Wadi Musa, one is able to find Ain Musa, the place where Moses is believed to have struck the rock for water, while Lot’s cave, where he stayed with his two daughters, is traditionally believed to be close to the Jordanian town of Safi. It is further interesting to note that one of the most important personalities in the Old Testament, Prophet Elijah, was born in what today is Jordan, more specifically Gilead, or Tishbe, today’s Tell Mar Elias.

There is also a wild debate raging between the State of Israel and the Kingdom of Jordan whether to what side of the river Jesus was baptized. The Jordanians claim that what the bible calls Bethany beyond the Jordan was located at Tell el-Kharrar, on the Eastern bank, while the Israelis hold on to Qasr el Yahud, on the direct opposite side of the river.

”There are over 100 biblical locations in the country” role in the creation of our faith and the biblical narrative. There is a plethora of things to see and do in this beautiful country, and while it is packed with biblical sites we cannot forget that “the other biblical land,” today is home to hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees living in one of the country’s three major refugee camp.

We urge young adults from around the world to pray for this nation as they are opening their doors, doing their best to receive a growing number of refugees from neighbouring countries. Pray for peace and tranquillity in the refugee camps and that all attempts of evil forces trying to take advantage of the situation won’t succeed. •

The biblical Jordan was further, as the Bible reveals, the home of the offspring of Lot’s sons, Moab and Ben-Ammon. Ben Ammon became the father of the Ammonites, while Moab fathered the Moabites, they both set up their respective Kingdoms in Jordan.

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INSIDE THE ZA’ATARI REFUGEE CAMP

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The average Bible reader is familiar with the biblical concept of cities of refuge. In Biblical times there were six such cities, three on each side of the Jordan River.

Kodesh, Shechem and Hebron on the western bank, and Golan, Ramot Gilead and Bezer on the eastern side. These cities were places where people who accidentally and unintentionally had killed someone, could flee in order to avoid retribution.

We cannot know exactly where in the Hashemite Kingdom these biblical cities were located, but what we do know is where to find a 21th century version of a city of refuge, the Za’atari refugee camp. The Za’atari refugee camp is located some 70 km north east of Amman, and some 30 km from the Syrian border. It is one of three refugee camps for Syrian refuges in Jordan, with the other two being Azraq and Mrejib Al Fhood.

The camp is run by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR, and is managed by the Jordanian Hashemite Charity Organization. It is further organized as a city, offering a range of various services from water, sanitation, education and protection of women and children to medical services.

In a phone interview with Nasreddine Touaibia, the Public Information and Mass Communication Associate for the UNHCR in Jordan, we got a clearer picture of the daily life and activities within the camp.

Touaibia started by explaining that Jordan officially houses 617 518 registered refugees (16/9), and as they cross the Syrian border into Jordan, their first stop is the joint operation registration center. Over 84 percent of the refugees chose to live in Jordanian cities, while the remainder goes on to stay in one of the refugee camps.

It is of further interest to note that 51 percent of the refugees in Jordan are under the age of 18, and that women make up the majority of the displaced Syrians.

When it comes to the Zaatari refugee camp, Touaibia explains that it has reached its full capacity, with 80 000 Syrians currently living in the camp. “The camp has changed a lot since its opening. In the beginning it was a violent and hostile place, but in one year the security situation has improved a lot. The violence has seized, and we no longer have any alarming numbers of crimes being committed in the camp such as drugs and murder. It’s a very secure camp to be honest with you.”

caravans for the remainder.”

In terms of challenges Touaibia touches the money issue, and explains that this is a challenge for Jordan in general. “We need more funds in order to provide for the refugees and we ask for donors to come forward to help us with funds so we can provide additional caravans this coming winter.” The current donors are made up of governments in countries such as the UK, Norway, US, Kuwait or Saudi Arabia, along with private donors.

When we ask him what young adults can do in order to assist the Syrian refugees in Jordan, he emphasizes the importance to stay updated and to create awareness. “What we expect from the public is for them to be aware of the conflict here in Syria, and that we already have three million refugees displaced in the region as a result of the conflict. People often tend to get used to conflicts, and as time goes on they forget about it and start to think that the conflict is over and that everything is back to normal, but that kind of mind-set is very dangerous.”

“This conflict has already been going on for three years, and it looks like it is going to be with us for the next five years, maybe even more. We want everyone to be aware and raise awareness of the conflict so that the funders will not stop funding us.” he concluded. •

”Over 84 percent of the refugees chose to live in Jordanian cities, while the remainder goes on to stay in one of the refugee camps.”

“We are also providing primary school education on site, and at the moment we have 15 000 kids studying in one of our four schools, with a fifth soon to be opened.

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