~The Weekly
Persecution & Prayer Alert
The Voice of the Martyrs, Canada
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Against the persecution of a tyrant the godly have no remedy but
prayer.
- John Calvin
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In this week's edition: reports from Indonesia, Sudan, Pakistan
and Egypt.
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1. Churches sealed shut in Indonesia
(Sources: Compass Direct News, Jakarta Globe)
Seventeen churches have been forcibly closed in Indonesia's Aceh
province following last month's election of a hard-line Islamic
governor.
Emboldened by the April election of Zaini Abdullah of the
staunchly Islamic Aceh Party, hundreds of Islamic demonstrators
gathered and demanded that church buildings be demolished and not
just closed.
Officials said grounds for the closures included improper permits
and a more than a decade-old agreement that stated that only one
church and four small houses that function as churches could be
built in the entire district. About 12,000 people in the district
are Christian -- accounting for about one-sixth of the population,
and the number of churches in the area had grown to 22.
Please pray that the decisions to close these places of worship
will be overturned. Pray that the number of believers in Aceh will
continue to multiply. Please pray that Zaini Abdullah and other
authorities in Aceh will come to know and love Christ. Pray that
believers will be encouraged to continue to meet together despite
opposition (Hebrews 10:23-25).
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2. Sudanese officials close Christian offices in South Darfur
(Source: Compass Direct News)
Authorities in South Darfur shut down offices of the Sudan Council
of Churches (SCC) and Sudan Aid, ordering staff off the property
and arresting three employees of Sudan Aid.
Agents from the Sudanese National Intelligence and Security
Service (NISS) arrived without notice or explanation at the
organizations' offices in Nyala early in the morning on April 22,
demanding SCC staff hand over keys to the buildings and vehicles
and ordering them to leave. NISS agents also closed down a church
clinic that was serving the needy in the area.
The day after the closure of the offices in South Darfur, staff
members arrived back at work to find more than a dozen security
personnel, some carrying arms, cordoning off the compound. The
security agents told the employees the offices were closed and to
go home. Two days after the closure, Sudan's federal Humanitarian
Aid Commission froze the bank accounts of the SCC in Nyala.
Christianity is being treated as a foreign faith in Sudan
following the secession of the largely Christian South Sudan last
year. About 350,000 ethnic South Sudanese, many of them Christians
with no ties to South Sudan, remain in the north under intense
pressure to leave.
Pray that believers affected by these closures will not be fearful
but trust God (Revelation 2:10). Please pray that southerners
living in the north will be protected from harm. Pray that those
travelling to the south will make it there safely and will be
warmly received and cared for by Christian brothers and sisters.
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3. Families trust in Christ in Pakistan
(Source: VOM-USA)
An evangelist in Pakistan supported by VOM has asked for prayer
for several people who have recently been receiving the gospel
message.
The evangelist, "Sam," had been praying for his good friend Hadi
for months, but had never had the opportunity to share his faith.
Hadi recently asked for a copy of the New Testament and has been
reading it.
Sam was invited to pray for a girl with chronic kidney pain, and
after Sam prayed for her in her home, the pain suddenly
disappeared. The girl's family was amazed and asked how this was
possible. Sam said, "Everything is possible in the Lord Jesus
Christ." The entire family made the decision to follow Jesus.
A few Sundays ago, after Sam preached in a church service, a man
confessed to him that he was feeling suicidal. His family was
pressuring him to divorce his wife because they had no children,
but after talking with Sam and praying with his family, the whole
family gave their lives to Christ.
While there is a notable degree of religious freedom promised to
minorities by law, non-Muslims must practice their faith
cautiously and under varying degrees of threat from Islamists.
Christians in Pakistan face severe opposition from militant
Islamic groups, including imprisonment, torture and even death.
Please pray that Hadi will be saved. Pray that the faith of the
two families will grow strong so they can also effectively share
the gospel. Ask God to continue growing His Church in Pakistan.
Pray that Christians facing persecution for their faith in
Pakistan will look to God for their strength.
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4. Judge upholds Christian's prison sentence in Egypt
(Source: VOM-USA)
A judge in Upper Egypt has upheld a six-year sentence of a
Christian man convicted of blasphemy against Islam.
The charges resulted from an argument between 49-year-old Makarem
Diab and a co-worker about differences between Jesus and Muhammad.
Diab was sentenced on February 29 in a 10-minute hearing during
which he had no defense attorney.
At his first appeals hearing on March 16, Diab's co-worker
instigated a riot by Muslim attorneys outside the courthouse. The
angry lawyers interrupted Diab's hearing, assaulted his attorneys
and blocked access to the courtroom. Diab's lawyer, who said the
judge upheld the sentence out of fear, is attempting to appeal the
sentence again. Diab is being held in Assiut General Prison.
Pray that Diab will get a fair hearing and that he will remain
strong during his imprisonment. Pray that he will exemplify the
love of God through consistent love and prayer for those who
persecute him (Matthew 5:43-48).
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