International Christian Concern
PERSECUTION MAY 2012
Seeking
Refuge .org
PERSECU ION
I N T E R N AT IONAL CHRIS TIAN CONCERN
Your bridge to the persecuted church.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE May 2012
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Lost and Taken The most horrific news to a parent is that your child has gone missing. Read Anwar and Magda’s story of finding their daughter, and then losing her to Egypt’s Islamic radicals.
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My Journey Through Persecuted Asia Read Regional Manager Ryan Morgan’s journal as he investigates persecution throughout Asia, from elderly refugees to young, orphaned children.
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Loving Thy Neighbor Could you forgive a man who kills your child? A woman in Orissa, India is challenged to love an angry mob who attacked her and her unborn child.
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Seeking Refuge Persecuted Christians of Vietname left everything behind, choosing abject poverty rather than the dangers of their home country. Read more about their journey.
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Not My Will Iranian pastor, Youcef Nadarkhani, on death row challenges the Church to participate in Christ’s suffering.
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Tests and Testimonies A new addition to Persecution, this section is dedicated to the stories of our partners. This month, read one woman’s story of being widowed for Christ.
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Your Dollars at Work Meet just a few children who belong to an ICC-sponsored orphanage in Thailand, and were recipients of Special Blessings last month. Thank you December donors!
LETTER FROM THE
PRESIDENT
Your daughter has been abducted. The police find her and invite you to the station to see her. She comes into the police investigation room accompanied by four Muslim radicals and is shrouded head to toe in a burka. You try to comfort her, but she will not speak a word in your presence. They tell you she is a Muslim now. Her kidnappers and the police are in collusion. She is struck in the face in front of you—a reminder to stay in line and not to speak up. After this short meeting, she is stolen away again by the police and the radical Muslims. You will never see her again. Tragically, this is not a nightmare that either of you will awaken from. Unfortunately, it is a familiar story to us at ICC. It happens on a regular basis to the parents of daughters in Egypt. That’s right—the “tolerant” and “moderate” Muslim country of Egypt. For this reason, Coptic Christians in Egypt have begun tattooing a cross on their babies’ wrists so that even if they are taken, they will always know where they came from. This story breaks my heart and I know it will break yours as well. It is incredibly frustrating to me that ICC and other organizations can do nothing to help these parents who suffer the worst pain a human being could go through; not to mention the girls who are abducted and raped, never to return to their former lives. For now, we just ask you to pray for the abducted girls and their families. For 700 years, Christians in Egypt have suffered. It is mind-boggling when you think about what they have endured. Please join us in caring for them, bandaging their wounds, and bringing the Gospel into this incredibly dark place. We will use your gifts ethically, efficiently, and effectively. . . . I promise!
Jeff King President, International Christian Concern
L ost a nd
ta keN In Egypt, Islam legitimizes violence against Christians. The most tragic anti-Christian violence is that directed towards young Christian girls. Anwar and Magda recount the crushing heartbreak of losing their daughter...twice! “We don’t know if our daughter is still alive,” Magda told ICC during a recent visit to Egypt. “We haven’t seen or heard from her in five years… Her kidnapper called us and said she was dead and buried.” Mary disappeared in June 2007, but to her mother, Magda, it feels like only yesterday that she was sleeping peacefully in her own bed under the loving care of her parents. For those who lose a child, as Magda has, the pain never goes away. 3 | You can help today! www.persecution.org
“There were no warning signs. There was nothing we could do, but the guilt doesn’t go away. If only we could have known [what would happen],” Magda explained, fighting back tears.
Where is Mary? The abduction took place on an ordinary Thursday evening. Like most teenagers, Mary went out with friends for pizza and a movie after school, thankful to start her weekend early.
While sipping cocoa at a restaurant, Mary began to feel dizzy and sick. “You go ahead and go home,” said Nahla, a Muslim girl. “The rest of us want to go to the cinema.” Nahla was new to Mary’s group of friends; they had only known her a few weeks.
real
Mary left the group to catch a bus home alone. This was the last time her friends would see her. No one knows what happened next, but one thing was for sure: Mary was gone. Mary’s friends and parents believe Nahla had something to do with it; perhaps she was an accomplice to Mary’s abductors who put drugs in Mary’s drink. Although this suspicion has yet to be confirmed, after Mary’s disappearance, Nahla was nowhere to be found.
Found and Lost Mary’s parents stayed up throughout the night waiting anxiously for their daughter’s return. Mary’s father, Anwar, filed a report at the police station the next morning. He stayed at the station the entire day, determined to see that an investigation was being carried out. Late that afternoon, the police told Anwar they had found his daughter. Mary was escorted along with several other women into the station by four men in Islamic dress with long beards. The men were Salafis, a group that follows the strict doctrine of Wahhabi Islam from Saudi Arabia. Mary was covered head to toe in a burka. “[My husband] recognized her by her shoes,”
Authorities refused to help Anwar and Magda find their daughter, even with proof of documentation, her real birth certificate birth .
fake
Mary’s forged birth certificate, certifying her as a Muslim, erased any connection and claims her parents have to her.
You can help today! 800-ICC-5441 | 4
Magda told ICC. Two armed policemen stood by, watching the father’s every move. When Anwar called Mary by name, a Muslim man hit her in the face. There was no answer. Then Anwar tried to grab his daughter, but she was quickly taken away by the police. Anwar yelled after her while struggling desperately to free himself from the grip of the police officers who were holding him down. It was no use. Mary was forced into the back of a van and driven away. “I went back to the police station that night with my son,” Magda said. “They cursed us and humiliated us. They treated us very badly.” Anwar and Magda soon began receiving threatening e-mails and phone calls. “Become a Muslim and we’ll spare your life,” one caller said. “Pay a £6,000 ransom or your daughter is dead,” said another. One caller told Magda that Mary had been killed and buried. “Look at me. I’m dying inside,” said Anwar. “Jesus Christ gave me my daughter. He gave her to me, not to them.”
Erased Identity Two months later, several police officers showed up at Anwar and Magda’s house. “They demanded that we sign documents that said Mary had changed her religion to Islam,” Magda said. Anwar and Magda refused. Months later, 5 | You can help today! www.persecution.org
however, they learned that a birth certificate had been forged stating that Mary was now a Muslim.
“Jesus Christ gave me my daughter. He gave her to me, not to them.” -Mary’s father, Anwar Still, the family would not give up. They hired a renowned Christian lawyer who demanded to see Mary. Agreeing to meet at a neutral location –Mary’s former university–Magda saw her daughter one last time. There she sat, fully covered on the sofa in the dean’s office. “My dear, are you OK?” Magda asked. There was no response. “Mary, can you hear me?” Mary seemingly did not understand or was not coherent enough to respond. “She is a Muslim now. What right do you have to see her?” questioned the security officers, who were growing increasingly angry during the meeting. The meeting lasted 10 minutes, but not a sound was uttered from Mary’s lips. Magda’s lawyer regrettably said there was nothing more he could do. “‘There [is] no case,’ he said, because Mary’s birth certificate had been forged and she is Muslim now,” explained Magda. On a dreary February afternoon, the parents sat in a Cairo office, trying to understand a world where Mary did not exist. “We don’t even know if she’s still alive,” Magda told ICC.
Abductions of Christian girls are nothing new in Egypt. Records exist of cases that were filed as early as the 1970s. However, kidnappings have increased significantly since Egypt’s revolution last year. It is often the police—the very people that are trusted to uphold the law—who are responsible. “I have proof there are corrupt police officers,” said Coptic lawyer Karam Gabriel, who had worked months to find 15-year-old Nabila Sedky, a Christian girl who was abducted in Cairo on April 5, 2011. “I gave the investigators tips where to look, information we got through three months of hard work, and instead they were [investigating] a Coptic [Christian] with an alibi.”
Reclaiming Egypt’s Daughters
Mary is only one among hundreds of Christian girls who fall prey to Egypt’s cultural norms. Rooted in Islam these norms legitimize violence against women and non-Muslims. The abductions, forced conversions, and forced marriages of Christian girls are often accompanied by acts of violence, including rape, beatings, and other forms of physical and mental abuse. Few organizations are able or allowed to undertake the vast efforts needed to defend, rehabilitate, and minister
mother magda “There were no warning signs. There was nothing we could do, but the guilt doesn’t go away.” -Mary’s mother, Magda to these girls. By discreet methods, ICC is partnering with Egyptian Christian ministries who are courageously fighting to reclaim the dignity of these young Christian women. When Magda looks at the bed where Mary once slept, she cannot help but cry. She says a silent prayer for her daughter, and continues on with her day, believing that someday God will reunite them. You can help today! 800-ICC-5441 | 6
My Journey through Persecuted Asia On an investigatory trip to Asia last month, Regional Manager Ryan Morgan stepped into the shoes of Bible smugglers, Con Dau refugees, and orphaned children rescued from Burma’s militant dictatorship. 7 | You can help today! www.persecution.org
PART ONE:
China
waiting to be transported into the hands of believers across China.
The following day I become a smuggler myself, loading a suitcase full of Bibles that I pray will make it into the I’m sitting on a sticky black leather hands of one of my Chinese brothers couch in a small office space sur- and sisters who has never had one to rounded by boxes of Bibles. It is hot, call their own. I cannot help sweating hotter than I expected, and a few feet a bit as I ignore the x-ray machine at away three people I have yet to meet the checkpoint and walk past a group are snoring soundly in their bunk of sullen-looking customs officials beds. After 19 hours of flying I’ve fi- with a suitcase full of what they connally made it to my destination, and sider illegal contraband. The crowd although the jet lag is doing its best is thick though, and they don’t seem to notice my “absent to knock me uncon“I cannot help sweating a bit minded” mistake of scious, I can’t help as I ignore the x-ray machine skipping the x-ray but feel a tinge of check. I’ve made it at the checkpoint and walk excitement that I’m customs, actually here. This past a group of sullen-looking through is China, and those customs officials with a suit- and along with the people sleeping case full of what they consider flood of relief I’m suddenly hit with a illegal contraband.” soundly in the other startling realization: room are Bible smugI live where people excitedly line up glers. for the latest iPad while not giving a The next morning, my contacts and second thought to the Bible sitting on I pile into a crowded city bus that their bookshelf. And here I am, halfwinds its way to an unassuming busi- way around the world, being forced ness district. The Bibles piled up at the to quietly sneak the Book in that miloffice were just the tip of the iceberg, lions still cannot wait to get a hold of. and here, in a dimly lit storage room It is a humbling realization. I find myself staring at thousands upon thousands more, all
Every year ICC moves tens of thousands of Bibles into China, but the demand keeps growing. You can help today! 800-ICC-5441 | 8
PART TWO:
Southeast Asia It is only a few days later, but I’ve already moved on to another part of Asia and the weather is even hotter. I’m scheduled to meet with several representatives from a group of Vietnamese refugee families. They fled their homes after their faith in Christ put them at odds with the Communist Vietnamese authorities. I’ve read a small summary of the persecution they’ve faced and one of my objectives is to record their stories first hand. The other objective is to figure out the best way ICC can get them help. Even though they have escaped Vietnam, they are still in danger. Most left their possessions behind, and are now living in abject poverty. I have arrived at a run-down apartment complex, surrounded by trash and the occasional stray dog. The heat isn’t letting up, and it is pretty obvious there is not going to be any air conditioning once I get inside. Walking up a flight of stairs, the smell of garbage becomes thick, but I am quickly 9 | You can help today! www.persecution.org
distracted by the smiling faces that draw near to greet me. It turns out that there are up to ten refugees crammed into each room on this floor, rooms no bigger than my bedroom back home. Their stories are heartrending. All have faced years of harassment, arrest, and even torture for following Christ. I meet a man, Dao*, whose family was targeted for arrest and torture after he refused to let a false altar be built in his village. Eventually Dao fled, but his life as a refugee is precarious at best. He tells me that he must often resort to begging in order to provide for his family. As tragic as Dao’s story is, it seems almost commonplace among the stories I listen to throughout the afternoon. In fact, compared with the next group I meet, it seems almost mild. After traveling to a similar apartment building, I find myself being introduced to familiar, yet foreign faces. The smiles and laughter are genuine and I cannot help but feel powerfully connected to these brothers and sisters. These are the victims of the Con *Name changed for security.
Dau Massacre, where Vietnamese police violently cracked down on a Christian funeral procession. Every one of them has spent at least six months in prison for defending their faith, not to mention repeated beatings, torture, and, in one particular case, the death of a dearly loved husband at the hands of the police. For nine months, ICC provided support to each of these individuals and their families while they faced a trial of their faith beyond imagination. They tell me that, thanks to the support ICC has provided, their families have been able to buy food and even hire an attorney to work on their
PART THREE:
Burma
cases. This, along with international pressure, helped to get them released long before the years they had been sentenced to in prison were up. But the harassment from the authorities never really ended. The pick-up truck in front of me is weaving in and out of both lanes, making its way through the dense, jungle-covered mountains as if on a life or death mission. Close behind on a motorcycle, I’m trying to keep up and cannot help but smile when I think about what is inside the truck. It is full of teddy bears, baby dolls, dinosaurs, and bags of clothing, all headed for an orphanage somewhere in that jungle up ahead. This ICC-established and supported orphanage (with an
on-the-ground partner) is the last leg of my journey, and although I’ve already collected pages of information and hundreds of photos, I wouldn’t miss this next part of the trip for anything. As soon as my contacts and I pull into the orphanage, the children come running out of the orphanage to greet us, yelling and laughing with excitement. They don’t even know what is in the truck yet; they’re just incredibly happy to have visitors. As I’m surrounded by a mass of hugs and high fives from these kids who have never even met me before, the hours of travel simply melt away, and I’m already wishing I had more than a day to spend with these implausibly happy children. You can help today! 800-ICC-5441 | 10
After a short night’s sleep under a thick mosquito net, I am up for chapel, and the kids are singing their hearts out in worship, something they do twice a day, six days a week. Listening to their small voices pouring out love for God, one would never guess that some of them have experienced more horror in their brief lives than many of us will ever know. They are from Burma, and their stories range from stepping on land mines, to finding their parents shot to death, to being forced into a life as a child soldier—all before graduating high school. Their country is openly anti-Christian, yet here, somehow, they are standing in front of me in the early morning light, singing praises and thanking Jesus for saving them. It is an unforgettable sight. Finally, the afternoon has arrived and it is time to distribute the clothing and toys that ICC’s donors sent in for our annual Special Blessings project. Their eyes sparkle with joy as their names are called and they are instructed to change into their new clothing. Next come the toys, and within minutes the room is full of excited children engaging in a passionate bartering process. A pink baby doll is exchanged for a purple octopus, which is then 11 | You can help today! www.persecution.org
traded for a very happy-looking TRex. Soon, the trades are finished and the children head off, wearing new clothes and carrying the first new toy they have received in who knows how long. I don’t think I have smiled this much the whole trip. The trip is over now, and even though I am happy to be headed home, my thoughts keep going back to Asia. Ten days, seven flights, six cities and four countries later I have had more experiences than I could possibly record in this journal, yet one of them keeps coming back to me. It is of a Vietnamese refugee, and he has just finished showing me a large black bruise he got from bouncing around in the trunk of a car as it smuggled him out of Vietnam. His decision to follow Jesus has cost more than I could imagine, yet when I ask him how his faith has been changed by everything, he responds confidently: “Persecution has made my faith stronger, and I would be willing to die for my faith.” I believe him, and suddenly it hits me that for the first time in my life I know I was talking to a man who would not hesitate to die for his King. If for nothing else, I would do the whole trip over again just to meet that man.
LOVING THY
NEIGHBOR After surviving a brutal beating at her child’s funeral, Sona Dei’s faith is tested when she encounters her attackers once more as brothers in Christ Sona Dei lives in a village in the state of Orissa, one of the top Christian persecution states in India. In 2008 alone, Hindu radicals killed over 100 Christians and forced more than 55,000 to leave their homes. Christians in Orissa continue to be killed for their faith in Christ. Sona Dei’s life exemplifies the very personal tragedy that believers endure for holding on to their faith in Orissa.
the attack The difficult journey of Sona Dei started October 27 when her 18-month-old baby girl died of illness. Although pregnant with child number two, the heart-broken and grief-stricken Sona Dei and her husband were forced to organize a funeral for their first child. They brushed her hair and gathered flowers to lie at her grave. They prayed for her, and began to sing songs of love and loss. But the funeral ceremony was abruptly upset by Hindu radicals who started to assault Sona Dei and others attending the funeral. They attacked the attendees, scream-
You can help today! 800-ICC-5441 | 12
ing and beating them; they took hold of Sona Dei, kicking her as she cried out. The radicals were enraged that a Christian was to be buried in the village. For the radicals, India is Hindu ground, and Christians defile this sacred land by burying their dead here. The radicals showed no empathy for this child’s death, her funeral, or those who came to mourn the loss. For them, all Christians are foreigners to be destroyed. They severely assaulted Sona Dei and the other believers. The Christians were forced to run for their lives while carrying the dead body of Sona Dei’s daughter. An eight-month pregnant Sona Dei suffered injuries to the head and stomach, causing her to bleed without end. With no hospital in sight and the night growing dark, Sona Dei was forced to spend the night in hiding, still carrying the decomposing body of her 18-month-old daughter. With one child growing inside of her, and another dead in her arms, the pain was unbearable. The Christians spent the night in fear, terrified that the Hindu radicals would kill them if they tried to escape the village and worried that Sona Dei might not make it through the night. Sona Dei was losing blood rapidly, and her deceased daughter had yet to be buried.
help is on the way 13 | You can help today! www.persecution.org
ICC was contacted the night of the attack by a source in India. Immediately, a press release was issued detailing the attack and Sona Dei’s declining health, and urging supporters to call Indian embassies in their home countries. The Indian authorities were alerted of the incident as it was unfolding. Pastor Vijay Kumar, one of the Christians in hiding with Sona Dei was also attacked at the funeral. He explained how panicked the group was and asked for prayer. That night, the Hindu radicals did not find the Christians, and the night passed without incident. The next day, the Christians were able to transport Sona Dei to another village for medical treatment. Thanks to the generous gifts of donors, ICC was able to pay for her medical expenses.
one more tear Sona Dei survived despite the brutal assault on her and her unborn child. She gave birth to a baby girl November 4. Sona Dei was overjoyed with God’s gift. After all, God blessed her with a new baby just a few days after she lost her first child. It was time to rejoice, but it would not last long. The days of joy were quickly replaced with sorrow when Sona Dei’s new baby died only three days after birth. The doctor said she died of head injuries she sustained in her mother’s womb during the attack. Not only had
the radicals disrupted her first child’s funeral, they had now killed her second. Sona Dei’s little girl was a martyr, killed for the faith of her parents.
Seeing the full picture A few months later, Sona Dei encountered the Hindu radicals again. But instead of anger in their eyes, there was regret. They described how the Spirit of the Lord Jesus had convicted them of their attack. They had forsaken their Hindu ways, and given their lives to Christ. Sona Dei was shocked! How, in such a short time, had they completely transformed their lives? In fact, the mastermind behind the attack, a local Hindu priest, was among the new believers, and as an act of faith, offered a portion of the land for the Christians to build their first church in the village—land where Christians were at one time not permitted to bury their dead was now the foundation for others to be born again.
ICC provided financial assistance towards the building of the church. On February 10, 2012, the church building opened its doors, dedicating the miracle to God. Sona Dei was in attendance, along with her husband, Adam, who had become the pastor of the new church, and one more addition: a baby boy, Samuel, whom the Lord blessed Sona Dei with earlier that year. In a letter she wrote to ICC, Sona Dei was thankful for the protection of God over her life and the help she received for medical treatment. She said: “I thank you in the name of Jesus Christ. I didn’t have any hope that I would live again. At that point, God helped me through ICC for my medical treatment. I want to thank you for your timely help and thank God for using you. I covet your continued prayers for the protection of our congregation. Please pray that God would strengthen us, increase our faith and help us continue to walk in faith.” The testimony of Sona Dei and the Gospel of Jesus Christ continues to spread in the village and the surrounding area. The church is full of new and old believers, including the former Hindu radicals.
sona dei, with her son, rejoices in god’s protection and provision. She and her husband are now pastors in the first church their village has ever built.
You can help today! 800-ICC-5441 | 14
Seeking
Refuge
Vietnam has garnered worldwide attention for allegedly becoming an “open” country; yet officials continue to crack down on Christian groups by arresting, detaining and torturing them, especially in the central and northern parts of the country. On a recent investigation, ICC met with refugees from Vietnam who are seeking asylum in Southeast Asia. Most live in abject poverty as they pursue official refugee status with the United Nations (which includes aid and relocation). In the meantime, ICC is working to provide for their needs.
Mrs. Dang* In 1990, Mrs. Dang and her family were evicted from their homes. The authorities told her and her husband, “This land doesn’t belong to Jesus, so it doesn’t belong to you.” The Dang family spent the next 13 years as nomads until resettling in Laos. In *Names changed for security. 15 | You can help today! www.persecution.org
2008, Vietnamese authorities found them. They were searching for her son, a church leader, but upon hearing that he had fled the area, they demanded Mr. and Mrs. Dang lure the boy back home. They threatened to arrest Mr. Dang if they did not comply. Mr. Dang willingly agreed to be arrested in his son’s place. They found her son eventually, and the two were detained, tortured and eventually killed by the Vietnamese government. Now an elderly widow, Mrs. Dang depends on the kindness of her community to survive.
Pastor Pham* Mr. Ngo*
Pastor Pham comes from three generations of ministers in Vietnam, all of which have suffered various levels of persecution. His grandfather was murdered after refusing to fight for the Communists; his father’s church was confiscated. Pastor Pham’s own church and home were burned to the ground. While taking pictures as evidence, police caught him and beat him unconscious. He believes authorities later caused a violent car accident in an attempt to murder him. Pastor Pham also has photo evidence of Vietnamese police raiding one of his services. Eventually Pastor Pham and his wife fled Vietnam. They have been living off of savings but are unable to consistently provide enough food for their three children. In spite of systematic persecution, his faith remains strong. Pastor Pham stated, “If I didn’t have my faith, I would kill myself.”
After converting to Christianity in 1998, Mr. Ngo, a Hmong Vietnamese Protestant, was elected as a church leader. He tore down the altar used by his village for ancestor worship, causing the Vietnamese government to demand he rebuild it and reconvert. Although Mr. Ngo’s father was considered a patriot for fighting with the Communists in the Vietnamese war, this afforded Mr. Ngo little protection, and authorities soon began to monitor his activities. In 2004, after being arrested for preaching, Mr. Ngo was imprisoned. During Mr. Ngo’s imprisonment, his elderly father was unable to find food or care for himself and died.After escaping Vietnam, Mr. Ngo has been unable to find work. Two of his children, ages nine and ten, have managed to find work as dishwashers and provide the majority of the family’s income.
You can help today! 800-ICC-5441 | 16
NOT MY WILL: Iranian pastor on death row challenges the Church to participate in Christ’s suffering
As Christians living in the West, we sometimes forget that a spiritual war is being waged around us. Yet, there are times when the voices of the persecuted do not allow us to forget; when the cries of the saints rise above prison walls and beyond the borders of oppressive regimes to stir the Church from its sleep and call it into action. This is one of those times. Youcef Nadarkhani, a pastor on death row in Iran, has resolved to not suffer alone, but to instead appeal for the prayers and support of the worldwide 17 | You can help today! www.persecution.org
Church. “Remember me and those who are bearing efforts for His name in your prayers,” Youcef wrote from an Iranian prison on June 2, 2010. “Your loyalty to God is the cause of my strength and encouragement.” Since Youcef’s arrest in October 2009, he has been beaten by authorities during frequent interrogations and held in solitary confinement for weeks at a time. In September 2010, Youcef was told he would be executed by hanging for apostasy (conversion to Christianity from Islam).
Youcef’s wife, Fatemeh, was arrested and detained in 2010, and threatened to lose her children if she did not convert. imitate. In September 2011, Youcef would again be tested. Brought before three appellate court hearings, Youcef was commanded to return to Islam. Despite tremendous pressure to recant his Christian faith, Youcef refused, preferring to die than to deny the name of Christ. In his letter to the Church, Youcef did not dwell on his trials, but instead challenged the reader to accept persecution and trust in the One who will not “test us more than our faith and our endurance [can handle].” Youcef was not the only one in danger for his refusal to return to Islam. Iranian police had also arrested his wife, Fatemeh, in June 2010 and told her that unless her husband renounced Christianity, their children, ages six and eight, would be given to Muslim parents. Still, Youcef refused to abandon Christ. Fatemeh was released on bail four months later. “Many attempt to flee from their spiritual tests, and they have to face those same tests in a more difficult manner, because no one will be victorious by escaping from them,” Youcef said. “But with patience and humility we will be able to overcome all the tests and gain victory.” Youcef clung to the promises of Scripture, personifying the Christian life that he urged fellow believers to
Standing before the judge, Youcef looked more like a hostage in the grip of a terrorist than a man appealing a verdict. “Repent!” the judge demanded before reviewing any evidence against Youcef. “Repent means to return. What should I return to?” Youcef replied. “To the blasphemy that I had before my faith in Christ?” “To the religion of your ancestors, Islam,” said the judge. “I cannot,” said Youcef. No verdict was given after the hearings, but in late February, reports began surfacing that Youcef’s execution order would stand. Taking courage, Youcef reflected on Christ’s response to His own death. “As we have learned from him in Gethsemane, he surrendered his will to the father, ‘My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will’” (Matt 26:39 NIV). As of press time, Youcef remains on death row. You can help today! 800-ICC-5441 | 18
TESTS & TESTIMONIES WIDOWED FOR CHRIST
This section is dedicated to the testimonies of our partners. We hope you are edified by their stories.
19 | You can help today! www.persecution.org
hen Aysha met and married Ali*, she could not foresee that her time with him was limited. Yet in the midst of her grief, God be- gan providing for her and her unborn child, testifying to the love God has for his people. Aysha’s husband, Ali Hussein was a convert from Islam. As with his fellow Somalis, he was raised learning about Islam and told that Islam is the only religion that he must follow—he could be killed for leaving Islam. But
the love of Christ transformed his life after he heard the message of the Gospel. Shortly after their wedding, Ali traveled to his hometown to visit family. While conversing with a fellow traveler, the subject of religion came up. When prompted on his religious views, Ali did not falter in his faith in Jesus Christ, a testament that is punishable by death.
“RELIGION THAT GOD OUR FATHER ACCEPTS AS PURE AND FAULTLESS IS THIS: TO LOOK AFTER ORPHANS AND WIDOWS IN THEIR DISTRESS AND TO KEEP ONESELF FROM BEING POLLUTED BY THE WORLD.” -JAMES 1:27 NIV
The traveler alerted Muslim radicals immediately about the conversation, and it did not take long for the group to find Ali guilty of offense against Islam. Enraged by his claims, they publicly executed Ali as a warning to other Muslims. The news of her husband’s death left
Aysha heartbroken. Losing her husband only a few months after they were married was too hard for her. At the time, she was pregnant with their child. Aysha was distressed, not knowing how to raise her child by herself. Aysha also faced pressure from her inlaws to marry her husband’s Muslim brother, a long-standing tradition in the culture. ICC provided funds to rent a place where she runs a small business, and seed money for her future. When our staff recently met with her, Aysha, now a mother of a beautiful baby girl, expressed her joy about the help she received. She asked our staff to thank the donors for helping to rebuild her life. We would like to join her in thanking you for providing for Aysha and her child. The Bible clearly states that God delights when we help widows and orphans. James 1:27 (NIV) says, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” Please continue to pray for Aysha to continue standing firm in her faith until the end, specifically with her inlaws’ demand of a Muslim marriage. *Names have been changed for security.
You can help today! 800-ICC-5441 | 20
Your Dollars
AT WORK When parents are arrested or assassinated, orphaned children are left defenseless. With no control over their destiny, they are prey to acts of violence, abduction, conversion, and casualty. Thanks to the generous support of our donors, ICC is able to sponsor and operate three orphananges in Asia. The children at an orphanage in Thailand are fed, clothed, and able to live and play in safety. They learn Bible lessons and are taught how to grow in Christ. This past month, clothes, toys, and school supplies that donors gave to our Special Blessings campaign in December were hand-delivered to the kids.
DITAW Ditaw is an 18-year-old boy. His father was killed in the war and his mother died from illness. Ditaw lived with his brother until he was recruited by the Karen Buddhist Army and forced to be a porter. He then began training as a soldier and was forced to shoot at people. Eventually he escaped and came with his cousin to live and study at the school. When asked about his favorite food, Ditaw laughed and responded, “Anything at all!” His favorite verse is Proverbs 20:7 (KJV), “The just man walks in his integrity: his children are blessed after him.” One day Ditaw would like to return to Burma to help his brother continue farming.
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Yako Yako is a 14-year-old boy born in Burma. In Thailand, his mother was unable to provide for him and she brought him to the orphanage. She now lives in a refugee camp along the border. Yako was at our orphanage three years ago when it was attacked by Burmese soldiers. He remembers hearing gunshots and being very scared as he was loaded into a boat and ferried to safety. Yako wants to become a soldier so he can defend his people. His favorite food is chicken, although he is happy to confirm that he has also eaten mouse before. His favorite verse is Luke 1:37 (KJV): “For with God nothing shall be impossible.�
nele ooh BLe lepaw Ble Lapaw is a 12-yearold girl from Burma who has lost both of her parents. Her father was killed in a work accident, and her mother died of illness. She was brought to our orphanage when the Burmese military attacked her village looking to recruit porters. Ble Lapaw likes to draw and play volleyball. Her favorite food is fish paste and chicken, and she enjoys reading Psalm 23. One day Ble Lapaw would like to be a teacher.
Nele Ooh is an 11-year-old boy who is nearly blind after an intoxicated teacher at his previous school smashed his head against a wall. After multiple trips to the hospital, doctors said there was nothing they could do. The teachers and kids at the orphanage have been praying for him since his arrival, and his sight has slowly but surely been coming back. During the interview, Nele Ooh was able to correctly identify new colors that he was unable to see days before.
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