Please pray for Christians in Brunei – World Watch List #27

BRUNEI (Wikipedia) – World Watch List #27 (Open Doors, UK)

Population: 413,000 (41,300 Christians)
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Constitutional Sultanate
Source of Persecution: Islamic extremism /tribal antagonism

Contact with Christians in other countries, the import of Bibles and the public celebration of Christmas are all banned in this Islamic nation. The monarchy is seen as the defender of the faith and Islamic law has been fully implemented since 2011. There is a programme of Islamisation for natives. Muslim-background believers can face hostility from family and community. The government recognises only three Catholic and three Anglican churches; unregistered churches are considered ‘illegal sects’ and are monitored by government officials.

PLEASE PRAY:

The level of fear among Christians is very high. Pray for courage to stand firm in the faith
Christian bookshops are not allowed. Pray that believers and seekers will gain access to God’s Word
The Sultan has announced that from 2013, Islamic religious studies will become a compulsory subject in schools. Pray that children will have the opportunity to hear the gospel.

PERSECUTION DYNAMICS:

Brunei is an Islamic nation, based on an ideology called Malay Muslim Monarchy. Islam governs all aspects of life here. By decree, contact with Christians in other countries, the import of Bibles and the public celebration of Christmas are all banned. There is a programme of Islamisation for locals, and those entering a tribal village are monitored by government spies and police. Family, friends and neighbours can become sources of hostility for Muslim-background believers.

The church is not able to function freely and churches are ‘spied on’ by government officials. Providing theological training is difficult and Christian bookshops are not allowed. The level of fear among Christians is very high. There are six Christian schools but they face pressure to remove Bible studies from the curriculum. Recently, the Sultan announced that from 2013 Islamic religious studies will become a compulsory subject in schools. As long as the ruling monarch perceives himself as defender of the faith and the governing authorities execute his will, the Christian minority will be neglected and discriminated against.

MORE BACKGROUND:

The Sultan of Brunei, (also known as Hassanai Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaulah) has an estimated net worth of $20 billion. — The Sultan of Brunei, (also known as Hassanai Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah) has an estimated net worth of $20 billion.

Brunei Darussalam, what means “Brunei, house of peace”, is a very small country on the Island of Borneo, bordering the much larger Malaysia. It is a young country as well, as it became fully independent from British rule in 1984, though its constitution was agreed on in 1959. Due to large oil and gas findings dating back as far as 1924, it is among the wealthiest nations on earth. In terms of GDP per capita, it ranks fifth worldwide and reportedly is one of only two nations without public debts.

Though Brunei is an ethnically mixed society with a large Chinese minority, approximately 2/3 of the population is Malay. The legislative council meets once a year in a strict advisory capacity, which means that politics are done largely by the Sultan and by the addresses he gives. As head of religion, the Sultan is called to protect the official religion of the country, Islam. All adherents of other religions may practice their faiths in peace and harmony, according to the constitution, but the country discourages practicing other faiths, and promotes Islam in all spheres of life. The recent announcements of the Sultan point to a stricter conservatism, as he introduced obligatory Islamic religious studies for all schools.

Please pray for Christians in United Arab Emirates – World Watch List #26

Peanut Gallery: I’ve fallen behind Open Doors’ posting of their weekly World Watch List update. So the plan is to post an update on Monday and Thursday until I catch up (they are on wk 30). Of course, you can go directly to their USA (here) or UK (here) website any time for the latest information and much more.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (Wikipedia) – World Watch List #26 (Open Doors UK)

Population: 8.1 million (400,000 Christians)
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Federation
Source of Persecution: Islamic extremism

Around 80 per cent of the population here are expats. The constitution provides for some religious liberty, but the law denies Muslims the freedom to change religion. Muslim-background believers may be pressured to return to Islam, hide their faith or leave the country. Non-Muslim groups can worship freely in dedicated buildings or private homes, but the government restricts the development of worship facilities for foreign Christians. Open evangelism is prohibited, but Christians in the country have many opportunities for Muslim–Christian dialogue.

PLEASE PRAY:

There are very few local believers. Pray for opportunities to meet for fellowship
That Christians will make the most of every opportunity to share the gospel
For Open Doors partners providing support and training to expat Christians.

PERSECUTION DYNAMICS:

The United Arab Emirates is one of the most liberal countries in the Gulf. The constitution provides for religious freedom on the condition that established customs, public policy or public morals are not violated. Expats enjoy some freedom but also face restrictions, especially migrant workers from developing countries. Evangelism is prohibited, but non-Muslim groups can worship freely in dedicated buildings or private homes. However, the government places restrictions on the development of worship facilities for Christian migrants.

Muslim-background believers suffer the most persecution. All citizens are defined as Muslims and the law denies Muslims the freedom to change religion under penalty of death. To avoid death, social stigma or other penalties, converts may be pressured to return to Islam, to hide their faith or to travel to another country where their conversion is allowed.

Though the Arab Spring did not have much effect in the United Arab Emirates, the latest developments in the Middle East have led the local people to question what good leadership is.

TOP TEN THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE UAE (what life is like for Christians)

Around 80 percent of the population here are expats
The constitution provides for some religious liberty, but the law denies Muslims the freedom to change religion.
Muslim Background Believers may be pressured to return to Islam, hide their faith or leave the country.
Non-Muslim groups can worship freely in dedicated buildings or private homes, but the government restricts the development of worship facilities for foreign Christians.
Open evangelism is prohibited, but Christians in the country have many opportunities for MuslimChristian dialogue.
Though there are some expat Christians, there are very few indigenous believers.
The constitution and laws are fairly new, as the UAE gained its independence in 1971.
The UAE is often seen as one of the most Westernized and liberal countries in the Middle East, but there are still a great number of restrictions for religious minorities.
Since 2006, the standard weekend has been Friday and Saturday. This was established as a compromise between the Muslim holy day (Friday) and the Western weekend (Saturday and Sunday)
Emirati typically wear a kandura, which is an ankle-length white tunic. Many Emirati women wear an abaya, which is a black over-garment, covering most parts of their body

Urgent request to pray for Christians in Egypt

Supporters of Egypt's ousted President Mohammed Morsi chant slogans against the military near Cairo University in Giza, Egypt, Monday, July 8, 2013. Photograpehr: Manu Brabo/AP Photo — Supporters of Egypt’s ousted President Mohammed Morsi chant slogans against the military near Cairo University in Giza, Egypt, Monday, July 8, 2013. Photograpehr: Manu Brabo/AP Photo

Peanut Gallery: The news out of Egypt is not good. Millions of Egyptians took to the streets demanding that Islamist President Morsi step down. He didn’t… and the Egyptian Army stepped in. Egyptian Christians have generally (although not officially) aligned themselves with the anti-Morsi forces.

But Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood are not finished yet. They have called for a counter-revolution and have taken to the streets. The result has been further chaos with shootings, military arrests and crackdown, accusations, and counter-accusations. A Coptic priest was killed by Islamists in Northern Sinai. Only God knows how it will end.

No matter who wins this current struggle for power, Egypt is a failed state and Coptic Christians live in great peril.

Egyptians civil servants are waiting in line for hours in front of these subsidized bakeries. Fights break out often, says a reporter from NPR covering the story this morning. Prices at unregulated bakers run around 8 cents per loaf… eight times the cost of the price at the government-supported stands.

Egypt cannot feed its own people, cannot supply adequate fuel, cannot borrow money (virtually bankrupt), cannot employ its teeming masses, and Egyptian tourism has shrunk to nothing. The vast majority of people live in abject poverty. There is no quick fix and no one seems to have a long range economic plan.

Coptic Christians have been brutalized under the Morsi regime – either by design or neglect. Pope Tawadros II has criticized the regime’s treatment of Christians without much success, i.e. until the current overthrow of Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood. Now Christians are aligned with the anti-Morsi forces and they will be easy targets for Islamist revenge. As mentioned a Coptic priest ( Mina Aboud Sharweem) has already been killed in a sectarian murder.

But Egypt’s problems go way beyond socio-economic and sectarian analysis.

Gang-rape of Egyptian woman in Tahrir Square

Egypt have serious, wide-spread misogyny problems. It’s not about veils or coverings – it’s about wide-spread gang rape in public spaces, the widespread practice of female genital mutilation at puberty, the kidnapping of young Christian girls by Islamists with forced marriages to older men, the practice of marriage to pre-pubescent girls as young as 8 or 9. There is something fundamentally wrong with a society that treats women (created in the image of God) like that.

Below, please find an earlier post from Open Doors UK requesting urgent prayer. That was a week ago and the situation has changed dramatically for the worse. Christians in Egypt desperately need our prayer. One Coptic brother in Christ write:

Psalm 33 has been one of the very encouraging words and promises for us as a church and we read it publicly many times, especially verses 9-11, ‘For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations’.

“We ask you to join us in praying that His name would be known and glorified in Egypt (Isaiah 19:21).”

_______________________________________

OUT OF EGYPT – Open Doors UK / 2 July 2013

With millions on the streets in Cairo, celebrating the army’s 48 hour ultimatum, Christians have been gathering night after night to pray for peace.

Army ultimatum

An Egyptian Christian brother in Cairo told us, “Last night (July 1), millions rejoiced and shouted in streets and squares until early morning today, celebrating the clear pronouncement directed to President Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood ruling party, that the army has again decided to take the side of the people rather than the rulers.”

President Morsi, however, has said the 48 hour army ultimatum ‘may cause confusion’ and vows to stick to his own plans to resolve the political crisis.

10 days of prayer for Egypt

Meanwhile, in a large church in the centre of Cairo, Christians have just concluded 10 days of prayer for Egypt. One church member told us:

“Around 800-1000 gathered every night from 7.00-9.00pm to cry out on behalf of our nation. We prayed mainly for the protection and peace of Egypt. We also prayed for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit and for a revival and great harvest in Egypt. Psalm 33 has been one of the very encouraging words and promises for us as a church and we read it publicly many times, especially verses 9-11, ‘For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast. The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect. The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations’.

“We ask you to join us in praying that His name would be known and glorified in Egypt (Isaiah 19:21).”

Source: Open Doors; BBC

Please pray for Christians in Tanzania – World Watch List #24

TANZANIA (Wikipedia) – World Watch List #24 (Open Doors UK)

Population: 47.7 million (29.5 million Christians)
Main Religion: Christianity/Islam
Government:</strong> democratic republic
Source of Persecution: Islamic extremism

A Christian majority country with a substantial Muslim population, there is a strong Islamist drive towards the Tanzanian ‘House of Islam’. On the mainland, Muslim-background believers face difficulties but not extreme persecution.

However, on the Zanzibar archipelago, Islamic militants bent on wiping out all Christians from the islands have burnt and looted churches and threatened Christians with death. The push for the spread of Islam is less violent but equally persistent on the mainland. If successful, it could threaten the presence of the church on the Zanzibar archipelago.

PLEASE PRAY:

+ For wisdom for those involved in the constitutional review process. Pray that pressure from Islamic extremists will be resisted and freedom of religion protected
+ For protection for church leaders on Zanzibar and Pemba islands
+ Give thanks for freedom to preach the gospel. Pray that Christians will have courage to share God’s love with Muslims.

PERSECUTION DYNAMICS:

The Zanzibar archipelago makes up only a very small part of Tanzania and has a president and a semi-autonomous political structure, separate from the mainland political system. Tanzania is a Christian majority country with a very substantial Muslim population. There is a strong Islamist drive towards the Tanzanian ‘House of Islam’.

The situation for Muslim-background believers is difficult but not extreme. The state hasn’t declared Islam as a prescriptive national religion and local governments seem to respect this rather well. However, Muslim-background believers have still been forced to flee their homes, and had their spouses forcefully married to another Muslim.

The aftermath of religion-linked violence in Geita, Tanzania (IRIN)

In Zanzibar there was serious violence, driven by ‘Vugu vugu la uamsho’ (‘Revival Movement for the Preservation of Islam’). It claimed to be wiping out all Christians from the Zanzibar archipelago, mainly Zanzibar Island. Churches were burnt, church property looted and Christians, especially church leaders, were threatened with death.

The Zanzibar archipelago is a very serious instigator of hostilities against Christians, not only on the islands but also on mainland Tanzania. They have strong Islamic militant groups that often persecute Christians heavily.

On mainland Tanzania the push for the further spread of Islam is less violent but equally persistent. Part of this push is through the constitutional review process, and strategic infiltration of main sectors of society. If the push for secession succeeds, the presence of the church on Zanzibar and Pemba Islands is likely to be reduced to (nearly) zero. The frantic moves of Islamists in mainland Tanzania will continue. For the church, this means difficult times are likely to be ahead.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

Tanzania was once celebrated as a role model for peace in Africa, but is no longer being considered ‘safe’ after an increase in inter-faith violence, with little evidence so far of perpetrators being brought to justice. A blast outside St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church in Arusha, a town popular with tourists visiting the Serengeti national park and Mount Kilimanjaro, was just the most recent example.

The newly built church, in the Olasti district on the outskirts of Arusha, was celebrating its first ever mass at the time of the attack, which left three dead and more than 60 injured.

Tension has been building between the two most populous religious communities in Tanzania – Christians comprise 62 percent of the population, while 35 percent is Muslim (Pew, 2010).

In Zanzibar, which is 97 percent Muslim, arsonists burned the Evangelical Church of Siloam on February 19, two days after gunmen killed a Catholic priest, Father Evaristus Mushi, in the Motni area of the island.

Earlier that month, an Assemblies of God minister, Pastor Mathayo Kachili, was hacked to death in the Geita region of Lake Victoria, when he intervened in an altercation between villagers over the slaughter of an animal, after the local government had granted Christians the right to practice as butchers.

Please pray for Christians in Mauritania – World Watch List #23

MAURITANIA (Wikipedia)

Population: 3.6 million (4,500 Christians)
Main Religion: Islam
Government: Islamic republic
Source of Persecution: Islamic extremism

Mauritania is proud to be a pure Muslim country, and its laws prohibit conversion to the Christian faith. Harsh government restrictions make it very difficult for Christian missions to operate here. Religious beliefs and practices are strongly restricted by government policies, although the government is weak in enforcing them. Pressure on Muslim-background believers from family, tribe members and local Muslim leaders is very high. The Arab Spring has not yet had an impact but Islam extremism is becoming more influential.

PLEASE PRAY:

There were reports of believers being beaten for their faith in 2012. Pray for protection and perseverance for God’s people
Al-Qaeda in the Maghreb is monitoring Christian activity. Pray that its influence will diminish
That literacy and translation projects will give more Mauritanians access to the Bible in their own language.

PERSECUTION DYNAMICS

Mauritania is not often in the news and seems to have been forgotten by the international community. Very little attention has been given to the suffering of the small, local church. The country’s constitution does not include any provisions for religious freedom and its laws prohibit conversion to the Christian faith. Pressure on Muslim-background believers from family, tribe members and leaders of local mosques is constant throughout the country.

In December 2012, Islamist Members of Parliament questioned the government about their attitude towards foreign Christian organisations and in July 2011, the council of Mauritanian Imams asked the government to criminalise obvious apostasy and proselytising. The influence of al-Qaeda in the Maghreb is growing and attempting to monitor Christian activity in the country.

BACKGROUND – There are a few countries on the World Watch List that we can’t share stories from. Even if we were to use different names, the Christian population is so small, that the story could easily be traced back to the individual. For their security, we are providing a different way to pray for the country this week.

Here are the top 10 things to know about what life is like for Christians in Mauritania:

1 – Mauritania has been under military rule for more than 30 years, with only a short democratic interruption in 2007. Promises to bring democracy back to the country have only resulted in rigged elections.

A woman breastfeeds her infant at a health centre. Lack of food and limited access to basic services have contributed to a rising rate of malnutrition in children.

2 – Mauritania is one of the world’s poorest countries. One third of the children are malnourished, and when there is enough food, it is often too expensive for the poor to afford.

3 – During the winter of 2010/2011 several articles in the local media portrayed the “foreign” activities in Mauritania, including the names and the organizations deemed most guilty of Christianization. In early July 2011, some prominent Imams published their request to the Mauritanian parliament to protect the Mauritanian people from hearing the Gospel and to reject every Christian organization by a fight to have every attempt of sharing the Gospel in Mauritania curtailed.

Militiaman from the Ansar Dine Islamic group, who said they had come from Niger and Mauritania, ride on a vehicle at Kidal in northeastern Mali, in this 16 June 2012 file photo. (Photo: Reuters - Adama Diarra)

4 – The main persecution dynamic in Mauritania is ‘Islamic extremism’ which has become more visible demonstrating the growing influence of Salafism.

5 – The first locals coming to Jesus were reported in the 90s. Mauritanian believers are few (with estimates ranging from around 150 all the way to 700).

A market in Nouakchott, the capital of Mauritania, where Christians make up a tiny 0.16% of the populatio

6 – Many Christians don’t know the Ten Commandments and their ethics are influenced by the Muslim environment. It seems that the lack of biblical knowledge creates ethic problems. Other difficult obstacles for the church are its poverty and the illiteracy.

7 – The Church is divided in many groups. Some of them are united in networks but many believers are alone in their villages. In the countryside, Mauritanian leaders notice an interest for the faith issues and the Bible. The testimonies of the believers arrested and tortured in 2009 have encouraged more local believers to share about Jesus in the country.

The most common threat to Christians abroad is militant IslamPicture: ALAMY

8 – Pressure on Muslim Background Believers from family, tribe members and leaders of local mosques, is very high. There is some freedom for expat churches, but even for expats residing in the country, it is complicated. It remains completely impossible for Mauritanian Christians to register their churches, so they must meet in secret.

9 – There are many barriers such as low literacy rates, no Scriptures completed in Hassaniya Arabic, only a few local radio broadcasts from Senegal, and laws that forbid Mauritanians from hearing the gospel or believing in Jesus.

10 – Al-Qaeda in the Maghreb is monitoring Christian activity.

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