巴基斯坦褻瀆法修訂後基督徒面臨更嚴重迫害

「但願所有投靠你的人都歡喜；讓他們永遠快樂歌唱。求你保護他們，使那些愛你名的人因你而歡喜。
(詩篇 5:11)

巴基斯坦的基督徒 巴基斯坦國民議會（聯邦議會下院）一致投票加強該國褻瀆法後，人們擔心會遭受更嚴重的迫害. 該法律可用於懲罰那些侮辱先知穆罕默德的人，現在其適用範圍已擴大到包括先知的妻子、同伴和近親。被判有罪的人可能面臨十年監禁，不得保釋，罰款一百萬盧比（約12,000美元），甚至死刑或終身監禁。

法律常被用來作為迫害和歧視的工具。在許多案件中，被告甚至在法律訴訟開始之前就遭到暴徒的攻擊和殺害。

伊斯蘭教是巴基斯坦的國教，叛教和褻瀆宗教的人將被處以死刑。巴基斯坦的基督徒被視為二等公民，在公共和私人生活的各個領域都面臨歧視。 目前，該國至少有 40 人因褻瀆宗教而被判處終身監禁或死刑。許多其他穆斯林占多數的國家對叛教者判處死刑，但對褻瀆神明者不處以死刑。

據英國亞洲基督教協會稱，基督徒在「褻瀆罪罪犯中所佔比例過高，而且被監禁的時間比這些嚴苛法律的其他受害者更長」。在無關的糾紛中，基督徒經常被誣告，這可能導致暴徒的攻擊。一個著名的案例是天主教徒阿薩亞·比比 (Asia Bibi)，他被指控褻瀆神明，在死牢裡度過了近 10 年。她於 2019 年離開巴基斯坦，但仍收到死亡威脅。 2011 年，旁遮普省省長薩爾曼·塔西爾因反對褻瀆法而被暗殺，首任少數民族事務部長、內閣中唯一的基督徒沙赫巴茲·巴蒂也因反對褻瀆法和為亞洲解放而戰而被暗殺。

獨立人權組織巴基斯坦人權委員會表示，對最新立法深感擔憂，該立法尚未獲得參議院（聯邦議會上議院）的批准。 讓我們把巴基斯坦和那裡的兄弟姊妹獻給主。

家庭小組禱告：

我們的父親，

感謝您為您熱愛的巴基斯坦這個國家以及您為之獻出生命的巴基斯坦人民。 此時此刻，我們祈禱您能以您的力量和關懷，用您的鮮血覆蓋這個國家。 願您保護那裡的我們的兄弟姊妹。

我們也讚揚該國的領導人和當權者，並要求廢除褻瀆法，並賦予所有人宗教自由。 願你的精神發揮巨大作用，改變人心並使他們轉向你。我們特別讚揚國內的婦女，特別是那些認識您的婦女，並祈求您伸出保護之手。我們知道您正在培養為受迫害者發聲的領導人，並請求您幫助他們。 願您的王國降臨巴基斯坦，願您在這個國家取得超乎我們想像的成就。

以耶穌的名義，我們將巴基斯坦、那裡的信徒和掌權者交到您手中。阿門！

印度：旁遮普邦針對基督徒的暴力事件增加

「我勸你第一要為萬人懇求、禱告、代求、祝謝，為君王和一切在位的，也該如此，使我們可以敬虔、端正、平安無事地度日。”
(提摩太前書 2:1-2)

旁遮普邦針對基督徒的暴力事件不斷增加。阿卡爾塔赫特 (Akal Takht) 是錫克教徒的最高世俗權威。其 Jathedar，即錫克教社區的首席發言人，是 Giani Harpreet Singh。他最近指責該州的基督教團體進行大規模強制皈依，並要求制定法律禁止此類皈依。與其他幾個邦不同，旁遮普邦沒有反皈依法。印度憲法第25條保障所有公民「信仰、實踐與傳播宗教」的自由。然而，這種自由是否包括改變宗教的權利一直存在爭議。

錫克教和基督教領袖被要求緩解反基督教言論後的緊張局勢。已發生一系列襲擊事件，包括 8 月 31 日，四名蒙面男子破壞了巴基斯坦邊境塔恩塔蘭地區的一座教堂，並縱火焚燒教堂車輛。當地領導人表示，這起事件是經過精心策劃的，目的是挑起旁遮普邦基督教徒和錫克教徒之間的不和。

在另一起事件中，8 月 28 日，一群人襲擊了阿姆利則區達杜阿納村傳教士主持的祈禱會。蘇克溫德·拉賈 (Sukhvinder Raja) 牧師描述了教堂遭到的襲擊，他說，500 名錫克教徒手持利刃、棍棒和槍支，襲擊了 200 名信徒，其中大部分是婦女和兒童。 “當錫克教戰士開始聚集時，大批警力趕到現場，襲擊者沒有放過任何人，造成約 45 人受傷。”

拉賈補充說：「我是他們的目標，但他們沒有發現我。教會成員救了我並把我鎖在靠近現場的一個房間裡。警方已對 150 多名錫克教徒提出擾亂會議的指控。直到最近，五旬節教會每週日都會在村裡租來的一塊田地聚會，祈禱、講道和治病，每週的聚會人數以大約 100 人的速度增長。

多年來，旁遮普邦的家庭教會已增長數千個。他們吸引了達利特錫克教徒，儘管他們經常參加教會禮拜，但並未正式皈依基督教。據估計，過去幾年中此類教堂的數量增加了5%至10%。

隨著誘導改宗的指控越來越多，旁遮普邦少數民族委員會前成員、旁遮普邦基督教聯合會主席阿爾伯特·杜阿否認了這些指控：在教堂，「他們只需要祈禱，無需支付任何費用。根本不存在宗教皈依這回事。這是心態的改變。帕明德·考爾 (Parminder Kaur) 生來就是錫克教徒，大約 13 年前皈依基督教。她否認有人為她皈依提供經濟誘因：“沒有人給我們任何報酬。”

基督教徒和錫克教徒在印度都是少數群體，但錫克教徒在旁遮普省佔多數。根據 2011 年人口普查，旁遮普省總人口接近 2,770 萬，其中基督徒佔 1.26％，而錫克教徒則佔近 58％。

家庭小組禱告：

親愛的上帝，

我們向您推崇印度這個國家，特別是旁遮普。我們感謝您，儘管面臨反對和迫害，但仍有如此多的人向您求助。我們讚揚政府和警察部隊的領導人有能力製止針對基督徒的攻擊，並請求你們為你們的人民進行說情。願聖靈的力量和臨在降臨在基督徒身上，讓他們感受到你們的安慰以及在這艱難時期超越一切理解的平安。我們與那些為信仰而遭受苦難並付出巨大代價的兄弟姐妹站在一起，並祈求您繼續吸引人們來到您身邊。

我們以你兒子耶穌基督的名請求這些。阿門！

 

寮國牧師遭酷刑折磨並慘遭殺害

欲了解更多詳情，請瀏覽‘寮國牧師遭酷刑折磨並慘遭殺害‘在 Religion Unplugged 上。

我們懷著沉重的心情告訴大家，上週在極端可疑的情況下失踪的牧師 See 的屍體於今天早上（10 月 24 日）在一條叢林道路旁的溝渠中被發現。他留下了妻子和八個孩子。 最小的才一歲。 當局多次警告牧師西不要再傳播有關耶穌的事，並且在最近幾個月一直跟踪他並威脅他將遭受可怕的後果。

寮國的基督教人口約為1.7%，但在某些省份，這一比例更高。教會領袖一直鼓勵信徒祈禱到 2030 年基督教人口增加 10%。

For more details, please go to ‘寮國牧師遭酷刑折磨並慘遭殺害‘ at Religion Unplugged.

禱告：

父親，這場悲劇讓我們心痛不已，我們為此而哭泣。 西牧師在您的懷抱中安息了。我們祈禱，給他的妻子和八個孩子安慰、關懷和幫助，讓他們平安度過難關。我們讚揚老撾的教會和所有牧師，並祈求您的存在對他們來說非常真實。 消除任何恐懼，給予他們勇氣和膽量繼續宣告你的愛。 保證他們的安全並滿足他們的一切需求。 我們祈禱祢的王國降臨寮國，祢的旨意在那裡實現。 我們以你兒子耶穌基督的名請求這些。 阿門。

印尼：褻瀆法正在實施中

「耶和華的名是堅固台。 義人奔入其中，便得安全。

(箴 18:10 NRSV)

一名皈依基督教的前穆斯林牧師因涉嫌冒犯全國穆斯林而根據印尼的褻瀆法被判處十年監禁。

穆罕默德·凱斯於 2014 年皈依基督教。去年 8 月，他在巴厘島因發布一段佈道影片涉嫌侮辱先知穆罕默德而被捕。西爪哇省 Ciamis 地方法院的法官同意檢察官的意見，對他的罪行進行判刑。數千名穆斯林包圍法庭，支持更嚴厲的起訴。在羈押期間，他曾遭到獄中犯人的殘酷毆打。

根據印尼的褻瀆法，違法者最高可被判處五年徒刑。但網路法中還有一條褻瀆條款，最高刑期為十年。在過去二十年中，褻瀆罪的起訴變得越來越普遍，損害了印尼作為寬容伊斯蘭國家的聲譽。褻瀆法主要用於針對那些被視為侮辱伊斯蘭教的人。

今年 6 月，警方以褻瀆罪起訴了 Holywings 酒吧及餐廳連鎖店的 6 名工作人員，因為該店為名叫穆罕默德或瑪麗亞的人提供免費酒精飲料的促銷活動。在宗教團體投訴後，雅加達市長阿尼斯·巴斯維丹 (Anies Baswedan) 吊銷了該連鎖店全部 12 家分店的營業執照。 2017年，雅加達前市長、基督徒鐘萬學（Basuki “Ahok” Purnama）因褻瀆神明被判處兩年監禁，而廣泛認為該指控是出於政治動機。

Under Indonesia’s Pancasila 鑑於中國的政策承認伊斯蘭教、新教、羅馬天主教、印度教、佛教和儒教為主要宗教，褻瀆法應當防範那些「扭曲」或「扭曲」這些信仰的人。自 1965 年褻瀆法通過以來，印尼已監禁了 150 多人，但其中大多數是宗教少數群體。

基督徒應該享有與其他宗教團體同等的權利。但在一些地區，他們在獲得建造教堂的許可方面面臨困難。即使教會設法滿足所有法律要求，地方當局也經常忽視教會的請求。註冊一座教堂比註冊一座清真寺更困難。

近年來，印尼基督徒遭受的迫害愈發嚴重。從事傳福音活動的教會面臨成為伊斯蘭極端組織攻擊的風險。西爪哇和亞齊的極端團體繼續對社會和政治產生強大的影響。

家庭小組禱告：

親愛的天父，

我們為美麗的印尼的兄弟姊妹祈禱，因為他們在面對宗教迫害時仍努力堅守自己的信仰。我們祈求他們能夠真實而充滿活力地感受到您的存在和靠近，並且您的聖靈將繼續滋養和安慰他們。我們要求當局尊重所有人，無論其信仰如何，特別是尊重從其他信仰皈依基督教的人，讓他們能夠自由地生活和崇拜，而不受恐懼或壓迫。

我們支持因信仰而入獄的穆罕默德·凱斯，並請求您保護他的生命和福祉。希望他能得到良好的治療並且早日獲釋。我們為他的家人以及其他生活在恐懼中的信徒祈禱。我們也為印尼政府當權者祈禱智慧和洞察力，並祈求您的旨意在這個國家實現。

我們以你兒子耶穌的名請求這些。

阿門！

 

寮國：基督徒家庭遭攻擊被迫流離失所

 「我們四面受敵，卻不被困住；困惑，但不絕望；遭受迫害，但沒有被拋棄；被擊倒，但沒有被摧毀。 

（哥林多後書 4:8-9 NIV）


(Photo courtesy of a citizen journalist)

儘管寮國國家法律保護和保障宗教自由，但寮國南部的一個基督教家庭最近遭到迫害和人身攻擊。

今年 2 月，沙灣拿吉省帕蘭賽縣東沙灣的村民襲擊了哀悼者和抬棺者，當時這些哀悼者和抬棺者正試圖將基督教主教埋葬在自家的稻田裡。死者遺孀森阿隆 (Seng Aloun) 表示，一群憤怒的暴徒出現並毆打了死者家屬和參加者，甚至用棍棒襲擊了棺材。其他村民隨後放火燒了他們的房屋，至少 12 名家庭成員被趕出家門，被迫逃離並投奔親戚。

森阿隆表示，這次襲擊是村民和地方當局對該家庭進行的一系列襲擊中的最新一次。去年 12 月，當她的丈夫去世時，他們拒絕將他埋葬在村莊的公墓裡。他們還用木棍敲打棺材並毆打家人。

Seng Aloun 在社交媒體上發布了視頻，展示了墓地發生的事情並呼籲幫助。負責調查兩次埋葬企圖中發生的襲擊事件的警察要求她撤掉這些貼文。 3 月 15 日，地區當局邀請她和當地基督教會的一些其他成員到 Phalanxay 市問題解決委員會辦公室，討論該家庭與 Dong Savanh 村官員之間的衝突。

然而，當地一名基督教領袖報道稱，“會議上，地區當局再次要求死者家屬撤下帖子以及房屋被燒毀和棺材被襲擊的視頻，或對帖子做出修改。”其中一個提議是暗示燒毀家園的是其他人，而不是村長。然而，當局既沒有就火災和徵用該戶農田一事對村長進行訊問，也沒有進行調查。

沙灣拿吉省寮國福音派教會的一名成員表示，他很擔心Seng Aloun 的家人，因為據他所說，當局不尊重寮國政府對基督徒的法律保護：「在沙灣拿吉省，從村莊到該省的人們參加了研討會，並了解了《福音派教會法》，該法詳細列出了有關基督徒的所有權利、規則和條例。但問題是許多村委會不願意遵守。就好像他們知道規則，但卻不遵守規則。

該家人拒絕刪除或更改社交媒體帖子，並表示將向省和中央政府提出投訴。由於 Seng Aloun 獨自一人在村外的森林裡撫養孩子，她希望地區官員能夠幫助找到縱火犯，並儘快解決衝突。

保護宗教自由的法律於 2019 年 12 月生效，賦予老撾基督徒舉行禮拜、在全國範圍內傳教以及與其他國家的信徒保持聯繫的權利。

家庭小組禱告：

親愛的天父，

我們為寮國面臨身體傷害和各方面迫害威脅的信徒祈禱。我們請求您的神聖保護，使他們免受身體、法律、言語或精神方面的攻擊。

我們要求當局維護和尊重旨在實施宗教自由的法律，並讓寮國基督徒能夠自由地生活和禮拜，而不受恐懼或壓迫。

我們特別為 Seng Aloun、她的孩子和被迫流離失所的家人祈禱，願他們在悲痛中迅速得到解決，並能為他們的丈夫和父親舉行適當的葬禮不再進行攻擊。

我們祈求您在這一悲慘事件中給予神聖的干預，並祝愿 Seng Aloun 和她的家人能夠早日安全返回家園。

奉耶穌的名，阿門！

巴基斯坦：牧師在主日禮拜後被殺害

 “… The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”

(Hebrews 13:6 NIV)

On 30 January, two pastors in Peshawar, Pakistan were shot by two gunmen on a motorcycle in a suspected terrorist attack. Pastor William Siraj, 75, was killed and Rev. Patrick Naeem was taken to hospital but thankfully discharged without injury. They were driving home after leading a Sunday morning service.

This latest attack and a fresh wave of incidents targeting Pakistan’s Christian community have left believers fearful. So far, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack, which the police are still investigating.

Pastor Siraj’s funeral was held on 31 January at All Saints Church, the very church where on 22 September 2013 two suicide bombers had killed as many as 127 people, including an estimated 37 children, and injured a further 170.

One of the martyrs was Pastor Siraj’s son-in-law. He had been supporting his daughter in the years since her widowing, and often ministered to the families of other victims.

While Christians make up only 1.9 percent of the population, this still totals roughly 4.1 million people. Pakistan is currently eighth on the Open Doors World Watch List of countries where Christians face the most persecution. Believers not only face the threat of death and violence, but also discrimination because of blasphemy laws.

家庭小組禱告：

Father God Almighty,

We pray for our brothers and sisters in Pakistan and the persecution they are experiencing right now. We can’t imagine the fear they live under every day and ask for your Word and your everlasting peace to comfort them in the midst of this terror.

We also ask for peace and a permanent cease to any further would-be attacks on Christians in Pakistan. We ask you to change the hearts of those who seek harm and deliver them out of the darkness they live in by shining your light on them through the power of the gospel.

We pray for the family of Pastor William Siraj and all who have been victims of all these terrible attacks over the years. We ask for your comfort to envelop them in the midst of their sorrow, for your joy to be their strength, and for your love to help them forgive.

We also pray for the government and authorities of Pakistan, that they would provide protection and support to the Christian minority and stop such attacks. We ask for their hearts to be moved by compassion and for the message of the cross of Christ to be continuously preached throughout the country without fear.

Lord! Please hear our prayer. We ask it all in the name of your son, Jesus the Christ. Amen.

伊朗：最高法院審查基督教皈依者的刑期

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will

strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

(Isaiah 41:10 NIV)

Christians in Iran have been encouraged by news that the Supreme Court in Tehran has ordered a review of prison terms handed to nine Christian converts.

The converts had been arrested in July 2019 and charged with undermining Iran’s national security by “promoting Christianity” and “Zionist evangelism”. For these offences, they were each handed a five-year prison sentence in October 2019.

Since the arrests and sentencing, human rights organisations have been raising concerns over the judicial process. There had been initial disagreements over legal representation for five of the nine defendants, who were transferred to the notorious Evin prison while the remaining four were given conditional releases. Then in February 2020, the appeals court upheld the sentences for all nine defendants with none of their lawyers present. Eight of the defendants are now in Evin prison in Tehran, which is more than four hours away by car from their families in Rasht. This distance violates their legal rights to family visits.

The encouraging news came on 24 November, when the Supreme Court announced that they disagreed the offences that the defendants had been charged with correspond to “gathering and collusion against internal or external security” as outlined in the original verdict. Given this, they will now conduct a full review of the trial.

The decision comes amid international pressure on Iran’s religious-political leadership to end a crackdown on Christians, many of whom come from Muslim backgrounds. It is understood that a positive outcome to this review could be an important precedent for similar cases and for the safety and freedom of Christians in Iran.

Home group prayer

Heavenly father, we give you thanks for the assurance that in all things you work for the good of those who love you. We thank you that we have been called according to your purpose and that you promise never to leave us nor forsake us.

Lord, today we pray for each of the nine who have been arrested and imprisoned in Iran. Might they know your presence with them more keenly than ever before and may your Holy Spirit comfort them in this dark and frightening time. Lord, we pray for your protection over them, that for each day that they remain imprisoned, you will protect their physical, mental and spiritual health.

And Lord, we pray for this Supreme Court review — might this be a moment of chains breaking for Christians across Iran, and beyond. We pray that the nine converts will receive a thorough and fair assessment and that the outcome will be in line with international norms on religious freedom and human rights.

Lord, we pray for the families of those who are imprisoned and for their brothers and sisters, the members of house churches across Iran. We pray for an end to criminalisation and harassment for your followers and for your divine equipping of them.

In Jesus’ name, amen.

越南：一個陷入危機的國家

“You are the salt of the earth. …  You are the light of the world. … let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
(Matthew 5:13, 14, 16 NIV)

It’s easy these days to gloss over or ignore any news reports you read about Covid-related crises, especially as the entire world has been dealing with the pandemic for almost two years now. However, in Vietnam, a real and urgent Covid-19 crisis has been unfolding in the last few months, triggered by the highly contagious Delta variant that has hit the country particularly hard.

This recent Covid crisis has come as a surprise and caught people off-guard in a country that was applauded and admired last year for its success in keeping the virus under control through aggressive contact tracing and quarantine measures. Average daily cases of Covid-19 hovered around 200 at the start of June but surged to more than 12,000 a day last month. As of mid-October, daily cases are almost at 4,000. In total, there have been almost 850,000 infections and more than 20,000 coronavirus-related deaths since the pandemic began.

In May, the Revival Ekklesia Mission house church in Ho Chi Minh City (also known as Saigon) was publicly singled out by authorities and blamed for an outbreak in June. They were threatened with criminal investigation and permanent closure despite numerous other outbreak sources left unmentioned by the government or reported in the media.

The government has since made a desperate bid to stem the sharp surge and spread of Covid-19.  In the outbreak epicentre of Ho Chi Minh City and 18 other provinces, the government imposed a strict lockdown that prevented citizens from leaving their homes, not even to buy food. Soldiers were deployed to enforce the restrictions by patrolling the streets. These lockdown restrictions were eased in early October.

The government has now abandoned the “Zero Covid” strategy that had been so successful before the Delta variant, but the impact of the lockdown has been widespread, with many of the poorest and those who have lost jobs going hungry without access to daily food and basic necessities.

There have been multiple examples of local churches going above and beyond to respond to this desperate need, even amidst the persecution and threats of prosecution after churches and Christians began to be blamed for spreading Covid due to two house churches that were traced as sources of two early outbreaks in March and April this year.

Church leaders have been delivering hundreds of food packages to the neediest members of their congregation as well as the poorest in their communities, despite the risk of exposure to Covid. One leader shared how there has been an opportunity to show compassion to the soldiers patrolling the streets in the heat and humidity without sufficient hydration, by loading his car with bottles of water and handing them out to the grateful soldiers.

In this dire situation, there have also been opportunities to share the gospel message. One example was a pastor including details of his online church service with food packet deliveries to those in need, many of whom are unchurched. He reported that average Facebook visits for his church exploded from a few hundred to 15,000, prompting him to make his services evangelistic.

While the Covid situation is starting to improve and the authorities are reopening the country, let’s press in to pray for Vietnam, specifically that:

  • the spread of Covid-19 and the Delta variant in particular ceases and cases drop significantly to safer and more manageable levels across the country.
  • the government secures more supplies of official vaccines, so they can boost the overall vaccination rate across the country which remains low (less than 10 percent of the population were fully vaccinated by the end of September).
  • aid, food, necessities and medical supplies reach those most in need, including the poor, unemployed and those suffering from Covid-19 infection.
  • those who have lost family members and loved ones during the pandemic have an opportunity to grieve properly, as many of those who died in this latest outbreak were buried industrially and family members were not permitted to hold funerals.
  • the local church and Christians in Vietnam are able to take advantage of this unique time and opportunity to share the redemptive message of the gospel to counter the despair and hopelessness during the pandemic and for persecution of the church by the authorities to stop.

 

孟加拉：當地教堂遭襲擊 村民逃離

“So Jesus answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My sake and the gospel’s, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time — houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions — and in the age to come, eternal life.’”
(Mark 10:29–30 NKJV)

Christians in a southeastern Bangladesh village are living in fear after a group of Buddhist extremists attacked their small Baptist church twice and damaged the building. Local reports said the attacks came after weeks of threats to force church members to recant their Christian faith and return to Buddhism. The Christian residents of Suandrapara village in Rangamati district of the Chittagong Hill Tracts fled after they and the church were finally attacked in July.

The extremists had been angered when the church members built the brick and tin-roofed church in January. The Bangladesh Bawm Tribal Baptist Church had funded this building project, since the Suandrapara Christians, who were previously Buddhists, had been worshipping in a small house since they “met Jesus Christ” in 2005.

The United People’s Democratic Front, a violent political party based in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, led the first attack on 15 July. During this attack, the church gate, cross and parts of the building were broken. The church members were given seven days to stop all church activities and re-convert to Buddhism. A week later on 22 July, the church was again attacked, and a wall, doors, and tin roofing were damaged.

The Christians were told to destroy the church themselves. However, the assistant pastor, Tubel Chakma Poran Adetion, said they refused to comply: “If we have to sacrifice our lives, we will. They threatened us to return to our old religion, but we will not return. Jesus Christ is our saviour. We will die for him.”

Pastor Adetion added that the church did not report the attacks to the police for security reasons: “We are a minority and Buddhists can do anything to us. We want to live in peace with them and discuss things with them.” However, the church may have to seek legal redress against the attackers if the standoff continues.

No mainstream media in Bangladesh reported the incident, but some people have posted about this on social media. The attackers have threatened serious consequences if the incident was shared with the media or the police.

Church leaders in Bangladesh are worried about the attacks. Rev. Leor P. Sarker, general secretary of the Bangladesh Baptist Church Fellowship, said he was concerned about the Suandrapara church members: “There are about 50. They live in fear. Most of them are staying away from their homes to protect their life after the attack. We are praying for the attackers, that they may change their way of thinking and let our people live there in peace.”

Christians represent only 0.4 percent of Bangladesh’s 166-million population, more than 90 percent of whom are Muslim. At the Chittagong Hill Tracts, however, there are roughly equal percentages of tribal peoples who mainly follow Theravada Buddhism and Bengalis who follow Islam. Open Doors ranks Bangladesh at number 31 on its 2021 World Watch List of countries where Christians face the greatest persecution.

家庭小組禱告

Lord Jesus!  May the light that sincere Buddhists seek be found through the gospel witness of the Suandrapara village church. Strengthen your followers, Lord, and let your perfect love cast out all fear. Confirm their witness with signs following. Help them find the people of peace whose hearts are ready to receive the good news of eternal life in Jesus Christ. Change the hearts of those who hate them and you. For you delight over your word to perform it. Amen!

 

阿富汗：基督徒面臨危險

“For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You.”
(2 Chronicles 20:12 NIV)

The world watched in shock as the Taliban regained  full control of Afghanistan in just 10 short days, following the withdrawal of U.S. troops leaving the Taliban to reestablish a new Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

Amidst the chaos and confusion, there have been conflicting and contrasting reports about the new regime and era for Afghanistan, making it hard to establish an accurate picture of what is actually happening on the ground at the moment.

Within this context, one thing is clear for the Church in Afghanistan: imminent persecution. Before the Taliban regained power, the situation for the fledgling church and Christians in the country was already dire. Afghanistan is ranked No. 2 on the Open Doors 2021 World Watch List (second only to North Korea) and it is nearly impossible to live openly as a Christian in a country where over 99 percent of Afghans are Muslims and most of the population have never heard the gospel message before.

Afghan Christians are forced to worship secretly in homes or other small and secret venues, while evangelism is strictly forbidden. Beatings, arrests, imprisonment, torture and kidnappings are all common place for believers as well as martyrdom.  Most Christians in the country are first generation converts from Islam which makes them especially vulnerable as apostasy is punishable by death under the strict and extreme Islamic doctrine prescribed by the Taliban. They are also persecuted by their own families and communities.

Despite all of this, Christianity has continued to grow against the odds and Afghan house churches have multiplied in the face of persecution and oppression.

The actual number of Christians in Afghanistan is generally said to be unknown .There are believed to be between 1,000 to 8,000 Christians secretly practicing their faith in Afghanistan according to the U.S. International Religious Freedom Report and only one officially recognised Christian church in the country which was the Catholic chapel situated inside the (now evacuated) Italian Embassy.

Access to Bibles is severely restricted and only available through underground ministry networks or in digital formats, while owning a physical printed Bible is effectively a death sentence.

Christians already faced the very real threat of death and persecution on a daily basis for simply converting from Islam or professing their faith, and with the Taliban now back in power, the situation will only realistically get even worse, if that were possible.

In this desperate and dire situation, the only – and yet also divinely the most crucial and key thing – we can do is to pray. As King Jehoshaphat prayed in the face of attack and desperation: “For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You.” (2 Chronicles 20:12 NIV)

Christians in the country have now been forced to go even deeper underground and completely offline with many turning off their phones and moving to undisclosed locations to seek safety and protection from the current situation. It is now impossible for most people to get out of the country as borders are controlled by the Taliban while flights out are either desperately full or unable to get off the ground amid the chaos and panic at the last remaining exit of Kabul Airport.

How should we pray? With the advance of extremism, food and practical aid shortages and a pandemic that has continued to ravage a country that suffers from decades of war, systemic poverty and lack of development, the immediate future certainly looks bleak from a human standpoint.

Pray for miraculous divine intervention for:

  • The remaining believers in the country to be given supernatural strength, faith and peace to endure / persevere and for safety, protection and provision.
  • Newly displaced Afghan refugees who are desperately fleeing the new regime and expected to end up in many different parts of the world.
  • The sick / infected / dying for access to vaccines and healthcare and for healing and recovery from COVID-19 and other illnesses and infirmities.
  • Practical humanitarian aid to be able to enter the country and reach those most in need who have no access to food and basic necessities.
  • The new Taliban government that they would have compassion on the people of Afghanistan and implement a peaceful and humane era of government against all expectations and for God to be the ultimate sovereign authority in the country and for His name and Church to be glorified against the odds.