Displaying items by tag: Christian prayers

The ongoing attacks on Manipur’s Christians are labelled 'religious cleansing'. Over 317 churches, 70 church schools, 6,137 Christian homes and Christian administrative buildings had been destroyed by 3 May, according to an assessment by the Federation of Indian American Christian Organisations (FIACONA). Other groups estimated 45,000 people have been displaced in what FIACONA is calling ‘the worst anti-Christian violence India has ever seen’. The BJP government used a decades-old underlying ethnic tension between two ethnic groups to create the deadliest violence against Christians, instigated by Hindutva nationalists. It is ‘target killings by government forces’. Events in Manipur follow worsening conditions for Christians across India. Kerala’s Catholic bishops’ council conducted prayers and a candle-lit procession on 6 June, demanding peace should be established in Manipur immediately. Bishops, priests, and laity participated in the meeting and procession.

In Malaysia's national election on 9 May, there has been a stunning victory for the opposition led by former PM Mahathir Mohamad. Aged 92, he came out of a long retirement to take on the current PM Najib Razak and his Barisan National party, who are widely considered to have become terribly corrupted and self-serving. After some Christian leaders were kidnapped (they are still missing), and with laws threatening their religious freedom increasingly being enacted, the churches decided to join together in an all-out initiative of desperate prayer called ‘Light up Malaysia’. It looks as if their prayers are now being answered, thanks be to the Lord! Let us continue to pray with them that the results of the election will be quickly and widely accepted, and that the ruling party will accept the results and relinquish its hold on power gracefully.

During an altar of public worship last year about 1,200 Bolivians interceded for spiritual change in the nation. On 21 February a local Christian wrote, ‘Across our beloved Bolivia women, men and children took to the streets today, defending our faith and democracy. A majority of the population voted NO to the re-election of Evo Morales who is attempting to become president indefinitely by bribery, propaganda, brute force and using the resources of Bolivia to do so. The church and people of Bolivia continue to say NO to his leftist regime. We say YES to Jesus! Bolivia will NOT be Venezuela, or follow the path of Cuba. Please pray that all violence, revenge, lies, deaths, injustices in every political and social sphere, covenants to the occult, and pacts with nations that misuse our resources to their benefit, but to our economic detriment, are all uncovered.’