Displaying items by tag: Religion

Gao Zhisheng is a Christian human rights attorney in China who has dedicated his career toward those being persecuted by the government. While not always a Christian, Gao was a former member of the People’s Liberation Army and later of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). However, he tossed that identity aside and took up the fight for victims of persecution as China looked to rebrand its cruel identity. This made him a clear target for the CCP throughout his career, leading to many cycles of being abducted, tortured, and released. Today, his whereabouts are unknown to anyone but his most recent captors, who made Gao disappear in 2017. As Beijing cheers for the athletes fighting for glory, let us pray for those like Gao who have the courage to challenge the regime and fight for Beijing’s victims. Pray for an end to the ongoing human rights disaster in China.

Despite 2018’s change in leadership, Cuban churches face unrelenting pressure from a government that views churches as a threat to the revolution that began in the 1950s. Cubans are poor, and the government seeks to control every aspect of their lives. In April 2021, Miguel Diaz-Canel was announced as first secretary of the Communist Party, the first leader since the revolution who is not a Castro. Three months later Cubans protested over deteriorating living conditions and called for an end to dictatorship. Most Cubans are atheists and many engage in superstitious and spiritist practices, including Afro-Cuban Santeria. 11% are evangelical Christians. The government persecutes them and seizes churches. Believers meet in illegal house churches which are growing through active evangelism. Many Cubans have never owned a Bible. Many are closely watched and effectively under house arrest. Many are denied jobs. Pray for those distributing Bibles and supporting discipleship and evangelism.

Libya is overwhelming Muslim: only 0.5% of the population is Christian. It is effectively a lawless land where to be a Christian is to live a secret life of faith. Those who leave Islam to follow Jesus face immense pressure to renounce their faith. Their community ostracises them, and they can be left homeless, jobless and alone. Telling others about Jesus can lead to arrest and even violent punishment. Believers are further exposed to danger since Libya has no central government, so laws are not enforced uniformly. Targeted kidnappings and executions are always a possibility for believers. Women generally live secluded lives under strict family control, making it extremely difficult for women who convert from Islam to Christianity. If discovered, they can face house arrest, sexual assault, forced marriage and even so-called ‘honour-killing’. A Libyan man becoming a Christian can lose his job (men are the family providers), be mentally abused and excommunicated from the family.

The Government wants to ban what it calls 'conversion therapy', putting it on a collision course with the freedom to give and access appropriate support for unwanted same-sex feelings and gender confusion. The official consultation ended on 4 February, but the battle does not end. Civil servants will summarise the responses to the consultation and start drafting legislation. Unless the Government drops its plans, MPs and then the Lords will examine the proposed laws - some opposing them, but others might make the ban even more overbearing. At every stage, we need strong, principled Christian leadership working with parliamentarians and in the media to stop this ban - or to make sure it strictly applies only to genuinely harmful practices (these are already illegal and/or not happening in the UK anyway). 30 MPs are concerned about the proposals, and even the Equality and Human Rights Commission has criticised the plans.

China has been preparing for months to ensure that it puts on its best face for the Winter Olympic Games. Our TV screens will present beautiful images, majestic music, and inspiring athletic performances. They don’t want people to look behind the scenes at the totalitarian government oppressing and abusing its people, including our Christian brothers and sisters. Olympic coverage won’t include images of destroyed church buildings or interviews with imprisoned Christians. However, from 4 February the games can act as a daily reminder to pray for Christians in China. We can pray for pastors and church leaders to stand firmly for biblical truth in spite of government pressure to compromise. Pray for God's protection over Christians in prison, for their health and nutrition, and that they will have opportunities to witness for Christ to guards and fellow prisoners. China is also the biggest incarcerator of journalists; pray for protection over honest journalism.

Before Jesus ascended to heaven, he gave us the command to make disciples among all nations. Two thousand years later, there are still hundreds of unengaged, unreached people groups throughout the world. The South Asia project trains and supports pastors living closest to those unreached groups in South Asia - pastors who have committed to go and reach them with the Gospel. These indigenous pastors also receive small business training, so they will not become dependent on the North American church. In restricted countries, operating a small business is one way to open doors for the Gospel.

Opportunities for Christians to engage with unchurched people abound in Ukraine. More than a million people from 30+ unreached people groups call Ukraine home, and some parts of the country remain less than 1% evangelical. Ukraine grows more multicultural every day, as students and immigrants arrive looking for education and opportunity. The country is a fascinating mix of ancient and modern, urban and rural, scientific and intuitive. Lately, long-held passions for political freedom and stability characterise many modern Ukrainians. The evangelical church is developing a vision for reaching unfamiliar communities. SEND Ukraine is the answer to a decade-long vision to send missionaries to work in the harvest field. Believers who have been reached and discipled are now partnering with SEND Ukraine and local churches to share the gospel with the hundreds of unreached people groups which live in diaspora communities within the country.

Youtube has removed a sermon on sexuality by American pastor John MacArthur. The sermon violated their ‘hate speech policy’ when he said ‘there is no such thing as transgender. You are either XX or XY’. MacArthur’s comments related to Canada’s legislation, Bill C-4, which became law on 8 January. Some pastors and church leaders fear it could lead to the prohibition of sermons on biblical sexuality. Christian organisations say the wording of the bill is so broad, it could be used for ‘the criminal prosecution of Christians who speak biblical truth’. Four thousand preachers have affirmed their opposition to the bill and their willingness to speak out against it. Conservative commentator Todd Starnes said, ‘YouTube affirmed the Canadian law by banning any opposition to transgenderism on their platform, and it won’t be very long before the sex and gender revolutionaries target the source of our beliefs - the Holy Bible.’

How should we respond to a world that is increasingly estranged from Christian beliefs? This is a question that Finnish MP Päivi Räsänen and Bishop Juhana Pohjola are confronted with. Last year, Ms Räsänen was accused of “hate speech” for publicly voicing her deeply-held beliefs on marriage and human sexuality. The former minister of the interior, mother of five, and grandmother of seven now faces a daunting trial on 24 January in Helsinki. Rev. Dr Pohjola, who was consecrated as a Lutheran bishop in August 2021, assumes his new role at a very challenging time. He faces criminal prosecution with Ms Räsänen for publishing the pamphlet she wrote on human sexuality for his church congregation. Pray for a just outcome of their trial, that no one would be intimidated into silence, but that people would be encouraged to share their beliefs with confidence.

In October we asked you to pray for the release and safe return of missionaries held hostage in Haiti. On 16 December the twelve Canadian and American missionaries made a daring night-time escape walking on rough moonlit terrain following the sheer guidance of the stars. After a number of hours of walking, day began to dawn, and they eventually found someone who helped them make a phone call for help. They were finally free. They had faced difficult and intense circumstances in captivity, including sweltering heat, mosquito bites and limited access to food.