Displaying items by tag: Asia

At a UN summit on religious freedom, Donald Trump praised President Erdogan. But since 2016 Turkey’s Protestant community of mostly Muslim converts, meeting in 150 Christian fellowships, report an increase of crimes against churches. There have been targeted deportations of senior foreign Christian leaders, many long-term residents. Since the Ottoman era Turkey has recognised Orthodox faiths, but now the interior ministry refuses to allow new patriarchs to be elected. Protestants are refused religious worker visas and are barred from running educational programmes. Forcing out Christians once welcomed in Turkey is part of a systematic attempt to eradicate them. There is now concern for Christian refugees in Turkey: 6,000 to 10,000 Iranians and thousands of Iraqi and Syrian Christians are under threat. Deportation for many could equal a death sentence. Many are demanding that the authorities explain how these Christians are a threat to Turkish society.

A local authority has ordered the demolition of a newly-built church after a month of use, ostensibly for lack of planning permission, even though no other building in the locality had any. Pastor Newton Das bought land for a church in August 2018. To save costs he hired local contractors and had substantial help through congregation volunteers, eager to begin worshipping in a proper church. The vision was fulfilled on 7 August, when 200+ believers attended 'Church of Jesus’ Anointing' at its launch, but by the second week the church was asked to close as they had no planning permission. Discussions were unsuccessful, and a JCB demolished the church boundary wall and building. Other unplanned buildings have been left intact. The congregation have not let hatred towards them shake their confidence or love for God.

The persecuted Iranian Christians belong to what is said to be the fastest-growing church network in the world. The core of their theology is that all roads lead to Jerusalem, which is why they are praying for the salvation of Israel. They feel that it has been prophesied (Jer. 30:7; Zech. 14:2) that in the days approaching Jesus’ return to Jerusalem as King, there will be trouble for the Jewish state. The Persian people (as many Iranians still prefer to be called) blessed Israel in the past. King Cyrus freed the exiles so that they could return to the Land and rebuild the Temple; Queen Esther saved her people from extermination, so that Iranian Christians might stand in the gap for the Jewish people. What Satan has meant for evil, God can turn for good.

After a US policy reversal, withdrawing its troops, Turkey was free to send forces into northern Syria, and they have done so - causing tens of thousands of people to flee an area controlled by the US-backed Kurdish militia who fought against IS. Turkey is bombing people who are also part of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). It wants a ‘safe zone’ along its border where it can send an unwanted 3.6 million Syrian refugees, and also aims to prevent Kurds from establishing a self-ruling Kurdish area on its doorstep. Pray that the Kurds, the Middle East’s largest ethnic group without an independent country, will be allowed to settle without persecution. Pray for the safety of Syrian refugees forced to move to a ‘safe zone’ and the refugees fleeing current bombing. Pray for the 60,000 fighters of SDF, cut loose from America, who may be looking for alliances with Russia or Iran. Also, SDF Syrian prisons hold 10,000+ IS fighters who could now escape and find a path back to the battlefield. See also

Bishop Samson Shukardin of Hyderabad told Aid to the Church in Need that abuse was an issue for minority students at public schools. He said that Christian parents in the country are resorting to giving their children Islamic names to prevent them suffering ‘abuse’ at school. With Islamic names, they will not be singled out as Christians and become potential targets for discrimination in primary or secondary schools or colleges. The bishop said that even school textbooks portrayed minorities in a negative light, and they are considered as infidels. The fundamentalists believe that Islam is the only complete religion - that salvation is only found in the Qur'an as the last holy book. Therefore most minorities, particularly Christians, are persecuted, and some religious minorities are at risk of being kidnapped.

The ancient Silk Road connected east and southeast Asia with Iran, the Arabian Peninsula, East Africa, and Southern Europe. Recently, after Central Asian pastors and leaders fasted and prayed for three days, a vision to raise up strong, unified, consistent prayer for this region of the world was ignited. With Central Asian Consultation, they are launching ‘Silk Road Prayer’, sending out regular prayer updates with specific information on how to pray for current needs in the region, and using social media to spread information for focused prayer. Intercessors everywhere are invited to join them in this effort to see God move in a new and unprecedented way along the ancient Silk Road. May believers and churches facing persecution across the region have His great strength to stand strong. Current needs are for churches in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan to have registration to meet freely without persecution and a Kazakh church to have justice in a court case.

Since Hong Kong’s anti-government protests began, Beijing’s state TV (CCTV) has gone to great lengths to demonise protesters and mislead Chinese and international audiences about the nature of the movement. CCTV’s flagship news programme runs segments denouncing the protests, claiming they are linked to ‘external forces’. It also reported that a protester had blinded a woman, whereas she was actually struck in the eye by a police bean-bag round. The station’s international arm released videos and graphics on YouTube and Facebook, comparing protesters to Islamist militants and claiming they are backed by US spy agencies. Recently a news video platform urged its 89 million followers to identify, investigate, and publish online the personal information of Hong Kong protesters and journalists - thus targeting the political enemies of the Communist party, which celebrated its 70th anniversary on 1 October. It has taken China less than 70 years to emerge from isolation to become one of the world's greatest economic powers.

Iran has world’s ‘fastest-growing church,’ despite no buildings - and it's mostly led by women: documentary | Fox News

A new film tells the story of the "fastest-growing church" in the world, an underground, persecuted Christian movement in a country known for exporting radical Islamic terrorism -- Iran.

But the Muslim-majority nation's citizens are reportedly fleeing Islam in droves, as believers bow their knee to Jesus, and become aggressively pro-Israel.

“What if I told you Islam is dead?” one unidentified Iranian church leader says in the film, which was directed by Dalton Thomas and produced by Frontier Alliance International Studios.

“What if I told you the mosques are empty inside Iran?" he continues. "What if I told you no one follows Islam inside of Iran? Would you believe me? This is exactly what is happening inside of Iran. God is moving powerfully inside of Iran.”

The pastor adds: “What if I told you the best evangelist for Jesus was the Ayatollah Khomeini? The ayatollahs brought the true face of Islam to light and people discovered it was a lie...After 40 years under Islamic law — a utopia according to them — they’ve had the worst devastation in the 5,000-year history of Iran.”

The documentary, "Sheep Among Wolves Volume II," directed by Dalton Thomas and produced by Frontier Alliance International Studios, a non-profit group "dedicated to disciple-making," highlights the untold story of the persecuted church in Iran.

Thomas calls the movement "the Iranian awakening."

"It owns no property, no buildings, no central leadership, and is predominantly led by women," he said in a statement.

More at: https://www.foxnews.com/faith-values/worlds-fastest-growing-church-women-documentary-film

Praise God - for the many testimonies to people finding Jesus through natural and supernatual encounters.

Pray: for those for whom renouncing Islam comes at a huge personal cost.

Pray: for this 'church without walls' to continue to grow and nurture those young in the faith.

Pray: for the Supreme Leader of Iran – using this videofrom PrayerCast

With ever-escalating political divides and turmoil sadly being superimposed on the church, many churches in Korea have split apart, made strife with one another, and altogether have been too eager to find reasons to be in antagonism rather than in unity.

Well-known leaders of the church publicly denouncing one another has earned the scorn of many and has left the younger generation disillusioned.

Young adults in the church are confused, leaving the church, or downright apathetic. And this is why we believe the turning point is near.

As many are disillusioned, a hopeful number of believers are springing up from various groups and churches all across Korea who believe this is surely the time to get down to our knees. Many are starting to cry out to the Lord with greater resolve to see revival.

Please pray for the Korean church to be united,not by ideological/political sameness but by sameness of our passion for Jesus and His Kingdom.
Please pray that the church would be fervent in our love for the Lord and for one another.
Pray that believers in Korea would diligently live out the calling to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with our God.
Please pray for those who are at the forefront of bringing unity especially among the leaders, that the Lord would give these reconcilers/intercessors words to convict, change and inspire hearts.

More info:

http://news.kmib.co.kr/article/view.asp?arcid=0011325679
http://www.christiantoday.co.kr/news/

Becky Park - IPC Leadership Team

Let’s join with many across Korea (and worldwide) in 50 Days of Prayer for Revival for Korea and the Korean Church - September 1 'til October 20th.http://aniprayer.org/2247-2/

China is killing religious and ethnic minorities and harvesting their organs, UN Human Rights Council told.

Lawyers for independent China Tribunal say UN member states have ‘legal obligation’ to act.

The Chinese government is harvesting and selling organs from persecuted religious and ethnic minorities on an industrial scale, the UN Human Rights Council has been told.

Speaking at the council’s headquarters in Geneva on Tuesday, lawyer Hamid Sabi presented the findings of the China Tribunal, an independent tribunal on allegations of forced organ harvesting.

Mr Sabi told the council that UN member states have a “legal obligation” to act after the tribunal’s final report in June found that “the commission of crimes against humanity against the Falun Gong and Uighur [minorities] had been proved beyond reasonable doubt”.

The China Tribunal was chaired by Sir Geoffrey Nice QC. It concluded that there was clear evidence China had been extracting organs from, and thereby killing, members of the Falun Gong spiritual group for at least 20 years, and that the practice was ongoing today.

Detainees were “killed to order - cut open while still alive for their kidneys, livers, hearts, lungs, cornea and skin to be removed and turned into commodities for sale”, the tribunal’s final judgement said. 

The tribunal said there was also possible evidence, though in less volume, of forced organ harvesting in detainees from the Uighur Muslim minority, as well as Tibetans and some Christian sects.

China’s campaign of detention and “re-education” of more than a million Uighurs in the northwestern Xinjiang province has gained significant international attention and condemnation. The tribunal found evidence they were “being used as a bank of organs” and subjected to regular medical testing.

China has repeatedly denied the use of unethical organ transplant practices, and said that it stopped using the organs from executed prisoners in 2015. In a statement earlier this year, it accused the London-based China Tribunal of perpetuating “rumours”.

But Sir Geoffrey said the evidence collated by the tribunal meant the international community “can no longer avoid what it is inconvenient for them to admit”.

The organ transplant industry is estimated to earn China more than $1bn (£801.4m) a year, according to the tribunal. Sir Geoffrey called on the International Transplant Society and national medical associations dealing with transplant surgery to “face up to what is revealed in the China Tribunal judgment and act”.

The International Coalition to End Transplant Abuse in China (Etac), which initiated the China Tribunal, said it expects a private members bill to stop unethical organ tourism will be tabled in the UK parliament in October. Etac is hoping its findings will prompt the Human Rights Council to open up a UN Commission of Inquiry into forced organ harvesting in China, said Susie Hughes, the organisation’s executive director.

Adam Withnall Asia Editor - Independent

More at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/china-religious-ethnic-minorities-uighur-muslim-harvest-organs-un-human-rights-a9117911.html

Pray: that the international community will take a stand against this shocking and inhumane treatment of minority groups.

Pray: for the ‘re-education projects’ to be closed and for the human rights of all people across China to be restored and respected.

Pray: Lets pray continually, for the church in China, that despite persecution, it will grow stronger. (Matt 5:10)