Day: September 4, 2012

Please pray for King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain

Peanut Gallery: Religious freedom in the Islamic world is an oxymoron. Any attempt by an Islamic government to move toward a more tolerant society – no matter how small – is met by fierce resistance.

Imagine that you are the King of Bahrain with all the power of a monarchy – what would you do in this situation? He really can’t win for losing. He has no easy choices.

Please pray for King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa – for God’s wisdom and justice and a clear path through the chaos over which he presides.
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PLAN for CATHOLIC CHURCH MAKES WAVES in BAHRAIN
Published September 03, 2012 – Associated Press

MANAMA, Bahrain – The building of the largest Roman Catholic church in the Gulf was supposed to be a chance for the tiny island kingdom of Bahrain to showcase its traditions of religious tolerance in a conservative Muslim region where churches largely operate under heavy limitations.

Instead, the planned church — intended to be the main center for Catholics in the region — has turned into another point of tension in a country already being pulled apart by sectarian battles between its Sunni and Shiite Muslim communities.

Hardline Sunni clerics have strongly opposed the construction of the church complex, in a rare open challenge of the country’s Sunni king. More than 70 clerics signed a petition last week saying it was forbidden to build churches in the Arabian Peninsula, the birthplace of Islam. Continue reading “Please pray for King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain” →

Please pray for Iraqi believers

September 4 | Iraq – Continue to pray for the struggling church in Baghdad. It’s been another challenging year. The great thing is that the church is still reaching out in an amazing way. Pray also that the media will reach many people with hope, as there is very little of it in the city.

Wikipedia contains an extensive entry on Iraq – click here – and, in summary, the current turmoil is described here.

Overwhelmingly a Muslim country (95%), Religion in Iraq is described here. However, Christianity has a long history in Iraq – predating Islam by 500 years – click here.

OPEN DOORS describes the current plight of Iraqi’s 300,000 believers here –

Sectarian violence caused tens of thousands of Christians to leave the country in 2011. Christians feel that the government fails to protect them, with individuals being threatened, robbed, raped or kidnapped and churches being bombed. Iraq’s constitution says each individual has freedom of thought, conscience and belief, but there is no article on changing one’s religion and Islamic law forbids conversion of Muslims to other religions. In August, at least four churches were targeted by bomb attacks in Kirkuk. The situation in Kurdistan, for a long time considered a safe haven for Christians, has deteriorated due to Islamic extremism.

Please pray for Iraqi belivers – for the refugees, for protection, and for strength.

Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. (Ps. 25:5)