| Source: mnnonline.org | 2011-06-17 - 1?day ago The Muslim Gujjar family, in hopes of reclaiming their eloped daughter, persecuted the Christian Masih family for several weeks. Pakistan (MNN) -- After a month of enduring kidnappings, torture, and persecution by the powerful Muslim Gujjar family and Pakistani police, the Masih family thinks their ordeal has finally been resolved, according to Open Doors who have been following the case. Sajih Ashraf Masih, a Christian man had eloped with Saleha Gujjar, a woman from an influential Muslim family in Pakistan. To prevent further retaliation by members of the Gujjar family who were angered by the elopement, Saleha was returned to her home and Sajih is in hiding with a divorce process underway. It is the only choice the couple has left after all the Masih family has suffered since they disappeared. On May 13 after Sajih and Saleha fled their village 25 miles north of Lahore, the Gujjar family stormed the home of Christian Masih's. Several male family members of the Masih family and Sajih's sister, Rakhel, were kidnapped by the Gujjars who were hoping to find out the couple's whereabouts. The men were beaten and then released the next day. Rakhel was also beaten, but was held for five days before being released in exchange for her 17-year-old sister, Maryam. Maryam was taken by force. Meanwhile, the Gujjars filed their case with the police saying that their daughter, Saleha, had been kidnapped. They named Rakhel and three others as a pressure tactic for the police to recover their daughter. The police then arrested Rakhel and tortured her into giving the name of Community Development Initiative (CDI), the company that the Masihs had gone to for legal help. The police along with the Gujjars invaded the office of CDI and beat many of the Masih family members in the process. "As soon as we got the information, we vacated the building to avoid any harm to our staff," said Asif Aqeel, executive director of CDI. "However, we didn't know that a heavy police contingent was also accompanying them. I rushed home, fearing that the Gujjars might want to harm my family, too." According to Aqeel, several CDI lawyers tracked down the eloped couple, who by then had contracted a marriage, and convinced them to return and try to reconcile the situation. They negotiated the safe return of the Gujjar's daughter, Saleha, on the condition that they would stop harassing the Masih family and withdraw all cases against them. "Rakhel's family says they are not being threatened now," Aqeel said. "No legal development has taken place, and the situation seems to have settled down by the grace of God." Open Doors asks for prayer for the Masih family as they recover from the physical and mental distress of the last month. Please also pray for Sajid as he is still in hiding. Pakistan is a country riddled with persecution cases against Christians. The political and justice systems are not in their favor, and many have suffered for the name of Christ. But the opportunity to be an encouragement to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ is greater still. Through prayer and supporting organizations such as Open Doors, one can make a difference for God's Kingdom and advance the hope we have even in the face of dire circumstances. |
| Source: mnnonline.org | 2011-06-17 - 1?day ago Uzbekistan (MNN) -- A long string of reports has come out of the country ranked ninth on the World Watch List for the persecution of believers. Forum 18 News Service recently released several reports on rights violations and police brutality against believers in Uzbekistan. Joel Griffith with Slavic Gospel Association comments, "It's alleged that police officers conducted some sort of an assault on a woman at her home while her parents were undergoing some interrogation over their religious activity at a local police station." The woman was reportedly given a concussion and refused hospital treatment by several hospitals under pressure of police. Other reports describe police threatening a believer with death. The man had been fined after police raided his home and found Christian literature. His fine is 80 times the minimum monthly wage. Forum 18 reports an officer allegedly threatening the believer to pay the fine by telling him, "I have prepared an axe for you, which will be flying after you, observing you, and if need be, kill you." A separate report says a man was threatened with beating if he did not sign statements against his church's pastor and bookkeeper. A woman was fined 50 times the monthly minimum wage for proselytizing when she gave a children's Bible to a co-worker. Forum 18 notes that instances like these violations are typical, and many have been tortured or threatened with torture. Griffith agrees that the situation is worsening for Uzbek Christians. "As we've noted [previously], and hearing from our own church-planting missionaries who are there, as well as these occasional news media reports that come in, the situation for the churches in these largely Muslim-dominated republics of central Asia is just increasingly growing difficult," says Griffith. And yet amid the onslaught, the church continues to remain strong and to grow. "We know that they're not going to stop proclaiming the Gospel because of this," notes Griffith. SGA continues to support its missionaries and pastors financially, and you can help with that here. But most importantly, SGA asks you to help bathe these believers in prayer. "We really need to just redouble our prayer efforts on their behalf," pleads Griffith. Pray for safety and for continued church growth. Pray that believers would not back down, despite what police might throw in their way. Uzbekistan has a history of persecution. Learn more about it here. |
| Source: mnnonline.org | 2011-06-17 - 1?day ago Photos by Syria -Frames-of-Freedom/File photo footage of Syrian protests Syria (MNN) - President Bashar al-Assad may be losing Syria. His attempts to stamp out protests across the country of 23 million are like a game of ?Whack-a-Mole'. Whenever security forces dealt with one center of rebellion, other towns rose up and authorities would have to fight for control there. Dubbed the "Arab Spring", the term covers the months since March of pro-democracy uprisings that swept the Middle East and North Africa. When Syria joined in, Assad's forces moved quickly to silence the unrest. The Syrian regime is allied to Shia Iran and Hezbollah; however, the nation's population is 90 percent Sunni Arab, adding to fears that intense sectarian conflict similar to that in Iraq could arise in the country. Greg Mussleman, spokesman for Voice of the Martyrs Canada says, "When you look at the situation that's taking place, in Syria, you can draw some parallels to what has gone on in Iraq and I think the consequences could be similar for the church", which means that the risks of sectarian war are significant, because of the possibility of regionalized conflict in Lebanon, Turkey and across the borders with Israel. As the crackdown spreads, he adds that, "There's slaughter going on there and people are being killed. As a result, now you've got another refugee crisis." "With Turkey, they're not always the best country for refugees to go into, but at least they're recognizing what is going on", says Mussleman. "Of course, there's difficulty between those two countries as well, from a leadership standpoint." By Tuesday, there were nearly nine-thousand Syrians in Turkish camps. "One of the countries of destination because of proximity, was Syria", he explains. For some of these, it's the repetition of their worst fears. "So you have the Assyrian and the Chaldean Christians that left from Iraq, and now they're in a situation where [sic} they're having to leave again." However, as time has passed, rather than dying down, the opposite effect emerged. The more brutal the regime's response, the louder were the cries from his people for change. Syrian Christians, Mussleman notes, have been keeping a very low-key approach both politically and religiously. "There's a lot of fear that the Christians will be attacked. They HAVE been attacked, and they have been killed, in some cases, and their churches burnt down. So, when the violence begins to spin out of control, the Christians become a target." The concerns of the believers are valid because they've already watch a pattern reveal itself once. He says, "What happened in Iraq is that when you have a change in regime and sectarian violence taking place between the Muslims, the Christians become easy targets." However, the mass movement of people also means new opportunities, says Mussleman. "People that have been locked under Islam and not had an opportunity to respond to Christ are going to places like Turkey (we're in Istanbul) . Some had come to Christ as a result of being out of their countries." Ask God to embolden, comfort and encourage all Syria's Christians with His presence. Pray followers of Christ in Syria will be a strong witness to their family, friends, neighbors and their oppressors, seeing the current unrest as an opportunity to evangelize. "We have to believe that the Lord is shaking the nations in many ways. As hard as it is to see people suffering, for the eternal perspective, people are coming to know Christ." |
| Source: mnnonline.org | 2011-06-17 - 1?day ago Cards much like these are made by women of West Michigan, donating proceeds to give women freed from sexual slavery in Ghana a better life. USA (MNN) -- Who ever imagined that making greeting cards could become a method of impacting the lives of women coming from the horrific background of sexual slavery halfway across the world? Apparently, longtime friends Mollie Carnes and Renee TerBeek did. Carnes and TerBeek of West Michigan have paired up with International Needs Network (INN) and to host card making parties all over the West Michigan area, donating the proceeds toward freeing women from sexual slavery in Ghana. The evil practice of Trokosi, or sexual shrine slavery, in Ghana has been going on for many years. With Trokosi, a family will hand over their daughter to the village priests to pay for their sins for fear of the priests' death curses. The girls live in slavery to pay for the offenses of others and are both sexually and physically abused by the priests. International Needs Network has been fighting the Trokosi practice in Ghana since 1984 and has freed over 3,500 women and girls from this evil tradition. By negotiating with the priests and pointing out the evils of slavery, the practice has dwindled over the years. INN then teaches the freed women and girls how to earn a decent living at their training center. But there are still hundreds of girls left in sexual slavery in Ghana waiting to be set free. Carnes first heard of INN through one of their local bases and was inspired to aid the plight of women in Ghana. She was an elementary teacher at the time and decided to put her creative flair to good use by making and selling cards in the teacher's lounge. The money she made from this was donated toward buying a new sewing machine for freed Ghanaian women trying to learn a new living. "I just thought this is easy; it's easy to make a difference," said Carnes. Soon, Carnes paired up with her friend, TerBeek, and the pair started hosting parties in churches, homes, and even a local jail. Carnes also conducts a card-making class twice a month. The goal of these parties is to raise both money and awareness, and each session begins by the attendees being informed about the plight of these women in sexual slavery in Ghana. The cards are then made using the batik fabric from the vocational training school for the freed Ghanaian women. "We really feel like every woman can make a difference even if they don't have deep pockets," TerBeek said. Also, Teri Van Hekken, senior vice president for I.N. Network USA, commented, "I think it's just incredible how God has raised up these women and they are providing the leadership to this program. It's exciting to see women here having a heart for women a world away." Ministry doesn't always have to take place through travel. By being creative and having a heart for spreading the love of Christ, men and women are making a huge impact for the Kingdom of God wherever they are. |
| Source: mnnonline.org | 2011-06-17 - 1?day ago Todd Agnew at the CRI concert. (CRI photo) International (MNN) -- Concerts by godly artists have certainly brought people to the cross for the first time in the past, but not typically people from halfway across the globe. One concert--hopefully to be followed by many more--was able to do that. Christian Resources International hosted a concert with the help of Family Life Radio and singer Todd Agnew to bring the Good News to people across the globe. And they did it without the use of a satellite or internet connection. CRI is a ministry designed to deliver the message of Christ to people worldwide by distributing Christian literature, Bibles, and other resources to believers in need. And for this particular concert, the entry fee wasn't cash: it was a Bible. "We had over a thousand Bibles that had been donated along with the funds to send those Bibles," reflects Jason Woolford, Executive Director of CRI. "I let [the audience] know that as we were standing there, they had become book missionaries by simply bringing a Bible and a buck." The Bibles will go on to pastors and Christian leaders across the globe who do not have their own. The potential for outreach is immeasurable. "One gentleman who had contacted our ministry reached 40,000 people in India with one Bible that we had sent," says Woolford. Each crate CRI sends to another nation contains 30,000 Bibles and books. The impact of just that one concert will be great, but CRI hopes to expand the impact to bring the Truth to thousands more people. Here is where you come in. In a recent MNN interview with Woolford, we asked how others could replicate this experience. Woolford told us he dreams that many people will "go to their church and say, ?Hey, have you ever thought about doing a concert with a cause and having it be free, but have it be the cost of a Christian book?'" Family Life Radio hopes to assist you and CRI in hosting more concerts across the country to collect more Bibles and Christian books for the global church. Whether you host a concert or another event, it's easy to get this life-changing giving option in motion. Contact Jamie Holdecraft at jamie@cribooks.org or through www.cribooks.org, and she'll point you in the right direction. There's really no better way to spread God's Word fast and effectively. Woolford adds, "God says that' faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.' So I guess we can't get any better than what we send if we're sending the Word of God." |
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