Pray Network Forum

Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin | RLPB 255 | Wed 09 Apr 2014

CHINA: THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY AND THE CROSS

by Elizabeth Kendal

With a population of some 10 million, Wenzhou, in China's eastern Zhejiang Province, is one of China's great coastal megacities. A 480km drive south of Shanghai on the East China Sea. Wenzhou is often referred to as 'China's Jerusalem' as it is believed to have the largest Christian population of any city in China - possibly as high as 30 percent. Wenzhou is a business hub known for its many successful Christian entrepreneurs who actively promote Christianity in their workplaces. Whilst the Christian entrepreneurs do strive to maintain good relations with local authorities, that they hold considerable economic power in Wenzhou is doubtless one reason why the churches seem able to be quite active. According to China expert, Dr Kurt Selles, Wenzhou has some 1800 churches which operate openly despite most not being registered with the government. For more than a decade, the success of Wenzhou's Christianity-infused businesses has aroused government interest in the link between Protestant Christianity and successful capitalism. [See the RLPB blog for related articles.] This demonstrable link has created a dilemma for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) which is keen to exploit any business model that generates wealth, yet believes it must rein in and control Christianity lest it undermine Communist Party authority.

On 8 January 2014 Zhejiang's Communist Party secretary, Xia Baolong, was conducting an inspection in Zhoushan (north-east Zhejiang) and was shocked by the proliferation of large churches. While passing a church in Baiquan town, Xia reportedly objected that the cross atop the church was 'too conspicuous', and demanded that the local Religious Affairs Bureau 'rectify' the problem by removing it. The CCP might want to reap the benefits of Christianity, but it certainly does not want the Church to grow! And so began a campaign to de-Christianise the landscapes and skylines of Zhejiang.

On 27 February officials from the Zhoushan Religious Affairs Bureau demanded that believers at the government sanctioned church in Baiquan, Zhoushan, help tear down the cross on top of their building. The Christians refused and a stand-off ensued. The cross on a government sanctioned church in the Yuhang Disctict of Hangzhou (Zhejiang's provincial capital) was forcibly removed on the same day after the authorities deemed it 'too conspicuous'. Two other local churches reportedly had their crosses forcibly removed also that day. Believers told ChinaAid that forced cross removals were also taking place in neighbouring Anhui Province as well.

Sanjiang church in Wenzhou's Ou Bei township at eight storeys tall and covering 1000 square metres is large by any standards. It has spaces for worship, teaching and accommodating the elderly. The church is registered with the authorities and is part of the government-controlled Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM). The members, along with many relatives working overseas, raised the US$4.8 million for the construction. Everything was approved by the Wenzhou municipal government, which designated the church a 'model project' in September 2013. When the Christians refused to remove the cross and several spires from the rooftop, the authorities responded by threatening to demolish the entire building, falsely accusing the church of adding illegal structures in violation of building codes that rendered it structurally unsound. Meanwhile, demolition notices were reportedly also sent to churches in Taishun, Wencheng and Ruian townships. A church in Yongjia County also is understood to have been ordered to remove its cross and the top floor of the church.

On 25 March members of Sanjiang church commenced a protest and on 3 April the pastors were notified that the church would be demolished by 18 April (Good Friday). Since then some 5000 local Christians have been participating in round-the-clock prayer vigils and sit-ins, praying that the church might be saved from demolition. He Hongying (81) said she would stay in the church day and night for as long as necessary. 'We feel at peace,' she said, 'and fearless when we are with our God.'

The struggle for Sanjiang church has come to represent the struggle between Chinese Christians who are unashamed of the transformative power of the Gospel and abusive CCP officials who love money and despise the Cross.

'For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.' (Ephesians 6:12,13 ESV)

PLEASE PRAY SPECIFICALLY THAT GOD WILL -

* use the crisis at the Sanjiang church to open the eyes and ears of multitudes of Chinese, locally, nationally and inside the CCP; may they believe what the Church has been showing - that Christianity is good not only for business, but for families and all of society, because Jesus cleanses from sin, the Holy Spirit enables righteousness, and God's wisdom is truth!

* raise up voices for justice across Wenzhou and throughout Zhejiang, so that CCP officials will be forced to relent and stop abusing their power to attack the churches.

* protect and bless all those believers who are risking their security and liberty to stand for their right to lift up the Cross of Christ as the hope of the nation; may the Lord hear their prayers and bring revival to Zhejiang.

'For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.' (Isaiah 55:8,9 ESV)


SUMMARY TO USE IN BULLETINS UNABLE TO RUN THE WHOLE ARTICLE

THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY AND THE CROSS

Wenzhou, in China's eastern Zhejiang Province, is a coastal megacity of some 10 million residents. Known as 'China's Jerusalem', it is home to as many as three million Christians. They include many Christian entrepreneurs. Objecting to the 'conspicuous' nature of large crosses atop many large churches, Zhejiang's Communist Party secretary recently demanded that authorities 'rectify' the situation by removing the crosses. The campaign to de-Christianise landscapes and skylines across Zhejiang is coming to a head in Wenzhou where a major stand-off is under way at the eight-storey, 1000 square metre Sanjiang church. When the church refused to remove its cross and spires, authorities ordered the church's demolition. Some 5000 local Christians are participating in prayer vigils and sit-ins, day and night, to prevent demolition. Please join them in prayer.


To view this RLPB with hyperlinks or to access RLPB and RLM archives, visit the Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin blog at http://rlprayerbulletin.blogspot.com

We suggest that churches and fellowships using the Summary above might also provide a copy of the listed prayer points to be used in their worship by people who are leading in prayer.

This RLPB was written by Elizabeth Kendal, an international religious liberty analyst and advocate. Elizabeth is Adjunct Research Fellow in the Centre for the Study of Islam and Other Faiths at the Melbourne School of Theology. She is Director of Advocacy for Christian Faith & Freedom based in Canberra, Australia.

RLPBs are issued as a ministry of the Evangelical Alliance in Australia.

Elizabeth Kendal is the author of 'Turn Back the Battle: Isaiah speaks to Christians today' (Deror Books, Dec. 2012) http://turnbackthebattle.com/thebook.html

If this bulletin was forwarded to you, you may receive future weekly issues direct by sending a blank email

to join-rlpb@hub.xc.org

Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin | RLPB 232 | Wed 16 Oct 2013

* Supporting International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church
* IDOP 2013: Sunday 3 November
* See http://criticalprayerrequests.blogspot.com

KAZAKHSTAN; plus CENTRAL ASIA'S COMPLEX REALITY

by Elizabeth Kendal

Bakhytzhan Kashkumbayev (aged 67 in October), a convert from Islam and pastor of Grace Church (Presbyterian) in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana, was arrested in May 2013 after the mother of a church member accused him of making her adult daughter mentally ill. Charged with 'intentional inflicting of serious harm to health' - essentially for praying for the sick - Pastor Kashkumbayev was detained and sent for psychiatric assessment (see RLPB 223, 14 Aug 2013). Despite an international outcry, Pastor Kashkumbayev's detention in the Almaty City Psychological-Psychiatric Assessment Centre was twice extended. Other prisoners of conscience recently treated this way include the atheist blogger and anti-corruption campaigner Aleksandr Kharlamov (63), charged with 'inciting religious hatred' for criticising religion, and Zinaida Mukhortova (56), a lawyer deemed delusional after she filed complaints against a regional governor.

Forum 18, closely monitoring the case, reports that Pastor Kashkumbayev was transferred back to Almaty's Investigation Prison in September. Then after being released to house arrest on 8 October, he was immediately re-arrested on charges of 'extremism'. If deemed guilty, the pastor will face seven years in prison. 'Expert analysis' of the activities of Grace Church has labelled books found at the church 'extremist' and in breach of the law against inciting religious hatred and social discord. The authorities regard evangelical witness to be just as much a threat to peace and social cohesion as jihadist or revolutionary Islam because it creates problems they would rather not have. For the authorities, it is easier to deal with the problem of unwanted minority Protestants than with the problem of majority religious intolerance.

If the troublesome, witnessing Christian is a foreigner, the usual action is deportation. Vyacheslav (Victor) Lim (37) was deported in August 2013 on the grounds he had attracted eight administrative offences in eight years: traffic infringements, late payment of tax, failing to report travel, insufficient fire safety and the like. All fines were paid immediately, even those Lim disputed. Lim was accused of conducting 'illegal missionary activity' because he had been leading a local congregation of the Grace Protestant Church (Baptist) in Borovoe, north of Astana. He had been a legal resident for eight years with a residence permit valid to 2020; his wife and two children who left Kazakhstan with him were all Kazakh citizens. Kazakh human rights activist, Yevgeny Zhovtis, considers Lim was deported for his religious activities. He described it as a 'typical religious case' and a 'misuse of justice'. Russian Orthodox priest Fr Sofrony (Pyotr Yevtikheyev) was deported from Almaty Region around the same time for reasons of 'national security'. A Russian citizen, Fr Sofrony had been a legal resident since 1991. He was the priest at St Sergy's Church in the village of Tuymebayev. He also ran an orphanage there that cared for around 110 children and an aged care facility that was home to some 120 elderly people.

THE COMPLEX REALITY OF CENTRAL ASIA

Central Asia has real and serious problems. Soviet-imposed borders continue to be a major cause of ethnic tensions and peace is tenuous. Islamic jihadist and revolutionary groups agitating for an Islamic state pose a real and serious threat. Poor governance marked by widespread corruption, human rights abuses and indifference to suffering has turned many Muslims against the government and towards groups such as Hizb-ut-Tahrir which present Islam as the solution. Whilst the laws against 'extremism' and 'inciting religious hatred' were designed to target the Islamic threat, they are routinely abused to intimidate disgruntled Muslims and persecute witnessing Protestants. That the West is seen to be siding with jihadists further complicates the states' relationship with Protestants. Protestants in Uzbekistan have long suffered harassment, repression, arrests and the confiscation of property. Also as noted by Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE/RL, 4 October), the government in Kyrgyzstan has recently proposed tightening the administrative punishment (i.e. no trial necessary) for 'illegal missionary activity' and 'religious propaganda'. The proposed law would ban collecting tithes, the propagation of religion in educational facilities and religious conversions.

PLEASE PRAY SPECIFICALLY THAT GOD WILL -

* intervene on behalf of Pastor Kashkumbayev and end the persecution of him and Grace Church; may the Lord have mercy on this family and this fellowship of believers; may justice be done.

* intervene for Pastor Lim and provide him and his family with everything they need, particularly a secure place of refuge and a divine appointment where they can witness to the Lord's goodness.

* intervene in Kyrgyzstan to stop the highly repressive, punitive and retrograde amendments to the religion law; may the Holy Spirit infiltrate any debate about religious liberty and use it to open eyes, minds and hearts.

* raise up righteous, wise leaders in Central Asia who will address the real and serious issues of ethnic tension, Islamic jihadist and revolutionary movements, corruption, poverty and hardship while upholding religious liberty and confronting religious intolerance. (1 Timothy 2:1-6)

* empower great and effectual Christian ministry and witness in Central Asia; may the Holy Spirit bring transforming revival to Central Asia. 'Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy!' (Psalm 126:5 ESV)


SUMMARY TO USE IN BULLETINS UNABLE TO RUN THE WHOLE ARTICLE

KAZAKHSTAN AND CENTRAL ASIA'S COMPLEX REALITY

Pastor Kashkumbayev (66) of Grace Church in Kazakhstan's capital, Astana, was arrested in May 2013 for allegedly harming health, ostensibly by praying for the sick. He spent months detained in a psychiatric facility before being returned to prison in mid-September. On 8 October Kashkumbayev was released to house arrest only to be re-arrested immediately on charges of 'extremism'. If deemed guilty he faces seven years in prison alongside Islamic 'extremists'. Islamic jihadist and revolutionary movements are a real and serious threat in Central Asia. Anti-terror and anti-incitement laws intended to target the Islamic threat are being abused to intimidate the desperate masses and persecute 'troublesome', witnessing Protestants. Kyrgyzstan is proposing a law to ban missionary activity, religious educational facilities and religious conversion. Please pray for the Church in Central Asia.


To view this RLPB with hyperlinks or to access RLPB and RLM archives, visit the Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin blog at http://rlprayerbulletin.blogspot.com

We suggest that churches and fellowships using the Summary above might also provide a copy of the listed prayer points to be used in their worship by people who are leading in prayer.

This RLPB was written for the Australian Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission (AEA RLC) by Elizabeth Kendal, an international religious liberty analyst and advocate, and a member of the AEA RLC team.

Elizabeth Kendal is the author of  'Turn Back the Battle: Isaiah speaks to Christians today' 
(Deror Books, Dec. 2012) http://turnbackthebattle.com/thebook.html

Elizabeth is Adjunct Research Fellow in the Centre for the Study of Islam and Other Faiths at the Melbourne School of Theology. She is Director of Advocacy for Christian Faith & Freedom based in Canberra, Australia.

If this bulletin was forwarded to you, you may receive future weekly issues direct by sending a blank email

to join-rlpb@hub.xc.org

Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin | RLPB 227 | Wed 11 Sep 2013

PERSECUTION AT UNPRECEDENTED LEVELS -
         intercessory prayer is integral to the spiritual battle 

by Elizabeth Kendal

The Body of Christ is suffering so much violence and trauma these days that when it comes to choosing a focus for prayer, it is difficult to know where to start. For example on 30 August eleven Laos families (50 people) were expelled from their village and sent out into the bush for refusing to renounce Christ. On 1 September nine Catholics were massacred by Fulani Muslim gunmen in Nigeria's Kaduna State. On 4 September jihadists killed eight Syrian soldiers before seizing control of the Aramaic-speaking, Christian village of Maaloula in western Syria. And this is just the tip of the iceberg.

* CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC (CAR) is one situation the world is ignoring which requires persistent, enduring prayer.

On 6 September the UN expressed alarm at the continuing violence in CAR, a French-speaking predominantly Christian state that has been seized by a coalition of local and foreign Arabic-speaking Islamic rebels. UN investigators report that whole villages have been burnt and abandoned. Massive displacement has resulted in widespread hunger and soaring rates of malaria - a serious humanitarian crisis unfolding. Rebel leader and self-proclaimed president Michel Djotodia cannot pay the Islamic militants who brought him to power, so he is content to let them fend for themselves, leaving them free to rape, kill and loot with impunity. Whilst Muslim villages are being spared, the Church is being targeted with all the religious hatred that the militants can muster. Pastor Gerald Bomana, the leader of an evangelical church in Bangui, was in his church office when it was thoroughly looted by a band of rebels. He was shocked and saddened to see his own neighbour amongst the looters. On 27 August between 5000 and 6000 civilians fled violence and sought refuge at the Bangui M'Poko International Airport which was being protected by 400 French troops. However, the French troops told them that protecting civilians was not part of their mandate. Eventually the displaced and traumatised civilians were 'evacuated' so that flights could resume.

Two other situations where known believers are being targeted require immediate, urgent prayer.

* AFGHANISTAN - INDIA: In RLPB 221(30 July) prayer was requested for Afghan converts, in particular the Afghan Christian refugees in the growing Afghan Church in New Delhi, India. As reports emerge about the growth of Christianity among Afghans, Afghan MPs are issuing fresh calls for Islamic laws mandating death for apostates to be implemented. When MP Nazir Ahmad Hanafi recently raised the issue in the Afghan Parliament, parliamentary speaker Abdul Rauf Rahimi ordered the country's national security services to take serious steps to stop the spread of Christianity. Furthermore, lawmaker Abdul Sattar Khawasi demanded that the Afghan government pressure the Indian authorities to provide a list of Afghans who have converted to Christianity there. We must pray for Pastor Obaid S Christ, the pastor of the 250-strong protestant Afghan Church in New Delhi. Not only is it reported he has received threats from the Afghan Embassy in New Delhi, but over ten consecutive nights around the end of August, Afghan media broadcast images of the pastor, calling for him to be killed.

* SOMALIA: On 9 September Morning Star News reported on the martyrdom of Christian wife and mother Fatuma Isak Elmi (35). It also reported the kidnapping of 13-year-old Mustaf Hassan who has already lost two Christian relatives to al-Shabaab. Last year Mustaf's parents, Hassan Mohammed and Farhio Omar, were threatened because they were Christians. While they went into hiding, so Mustaf could continue his schooling he went to live with a Muslim relative in Marka District. On 3 September Mustaf was kidnapped by al-Shabaab while walking home from school. There has been no ransom demand, leading observers to suspect that al-Shabaab is trying to draw Mustaf's parents out of hiding.


PLEASE PRAY SPECIFICALLY THAT -

* our ever-present faithful God will comfort the hearts of persecuted and threatened believers everywhere, sustaining their faith and drawing them into prayer.

* Christians in Central African Republic (CAR) will know that while they are being persecuted they are not being abandoned (2 Cor 4:9) - not by God nor by the Church; may the Lord of Hosts intervene in CAR. 'When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. This I know, that God is for me.' (Psalm 56:3,9c ESV)

* God will preserve, sustain and build his Afghan Church, protecting Afghan believers, including those who are refugees, and providing all their needs. May our sovereign faithful God be a shield and strong fortress to Pastor Obaid in New Delhi and that all plots against him will fail. 'The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.' (Proverbs 18:10 ESV)

* God, who is both a compassionate Father and consuming fire, will intervene on behalf of Mustaf Hassan and his parents, Hassan Mohammed and Farhio Omar, and that this faithful family will be reunited; may those who seek to destroy the Church find themselves destroyed. (Isaiah 40:10,11)

'I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.' (Matthew 16:18 ESV)


SUMMARY TO USE IN BULLETINS UNABLE TO RUN THE WHOLE ARTICLE

PERSECUTION AT UNPRECEDENTED LEVELS

The Body of Christ today is suffering a degree of persecution not seen previously in our lifetime. In Central African Republic a serious humanitarian crisis is unfolding as the predominantly Christian population suffers terror at the hands of Islamic rebels. Afghan converts risk death not only in Afghanistan but also in India (where there is an Afghan church in New Delhi) because Afghan media is inciting violence against them. In Somalia, al-Shabaab routinely kills Somali converts. Mustaf (13), who has already lost two Christian relatives to al-Shabaab, was recently kidnapped by militants seeking to draw his Christian parents out of hiding. Jesus promised: 'I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.' (Matthew 16:18) Intercessory prayer is integral to the spiritual battle. Please pray.


To view this RLPB with hyperlinks or to access RLPB and RLM archives, visit the Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin blog at http://rlprayerbulletin.blogspot.com

We suggest that churches and fellowships using the Summary above might also provide a copy of the listed prayer points to be used in their worship by people who are leading in prayer.

This RLPB was written for the Australian Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission (AEA RLC) by Elizabeth Kendal, an international religious liberty analyst and advocate, and a member of the AEA RLC team.

Elizabeth Kendal is the author of  'Turn Back the Battle: Isaiah speaks to Christians today' 
(Deror Books, Dec. 2012) http://turnbackthebattle.com/thebook.html

Elizabeth is Adjunct Research Fellow in the Centre for the Study of Islam and Other Faiths at the Melbourne School of Theology. She is Director of Advocacy for Christian Faith & Freedom based in Canberra, Australia.

If this bulletin was forwarded to you, you may receive future weekly issues direct by sending a blank email to

join-rlpb@hub.xc.org

Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin | RLPB 185 | Wed 14 Nov 2012

ERITREA: CHRISTIAN PRISONERS & REFUGEES SUFFERING UNIMAGINABLY

by Elizabeth Kendal

Eritrea, in the Horn of Africa on the Red Sea coast, has one of the most brutally repressive dictatorships in the world. The population is equally divided between Christians (90 percent Eritrean Orthodox) who live mostly in the highlands and Muslims who live mostly in the coastal lowlands. Eritrea won its independence from Ethiopia in 1991 and Isayas Afewerki has been the president since independence was declared and internationally recognised in 1993. In 2001, in the wake of a two-year border war with Ethiopia (1998-2000), Afewerki began cracking down hard on anything that could be viewed as a threat to national unity. He cancelled elections and closed all independent media. Opposition figures - politicians, activists and journalists - were removed, mostly to underground 'secret prisons' for the 'disappeared'.

In May 2002, reportedly at the behest of the Eritrean Orthodox Church (EOC), the government began cracking down on 'foreign' and 'non-traditional' religion. A Biblical revival and renewal movement had exploded within the EOC. While some priests accommodated or even embraced the movement, others resisted, forcing those desiring a more evangelical Christianity to leave the EOC for Protestant fellowships. The exodus has caused great angst in the hierarchy of the EOC. Now only state-sanctioned Muslim, Eritrean Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Mekane Yesus (Evangelical Lutheran) denominations are legal and worshipping in a Protestant fellowship is a criminal offence. However, by mid-2005 the authorities were oppressing the EOC as well, specifically those EOC priests supportive of the renewal movement and protesting religious persecution. When EOC head, Patriarch Abune Antonios, complained about the persecution of his priests, Afewerki had him deposed, placed under house arrest and replaced with a government administrator.

By the end of 2010 an estimated 3000 Eritrean Christians of all denominations (mostly Protestant) were incarcerated purely for their faith; today the number is estimated at around 1500. Whilst most prisoners are held in shipping containers in desert camps, some are kept in underground cells. The conditions are inhumane: children and the elderly are amongst the prisoners sharing skin diseases, dysentery and other horrors in confined, unventilated spaces. Torture is routine. Amnesty International has reported on the tortures suffered by Christian prisoners. Several Christians have died in custody and others have perished in the desert trying to escape.

Because Eritrea has no independent media, news of persecution is difficult to obtain for it must be leaked at great personal risk. Open Doors (OD) reports that on 30 October a Christian by the name of Adris Ali Mohammed (31), a Muslim convert from the town of Tesenai, died in custody. Adris had spent almost two years in a suffocating dungeon located in Eritrea's Aderset Military Camp, where some 100 Christians are believed to be detained. According to sources, Adris had stood firm through two years of terrible suffering and systematic torture aimed at forcing him to renounce his faith. According to OD, 'Military officials secretly buried Adris outside the camp.'

The repression has created a refugee crisis with many Christians amongst them. In July The Guardian reported that the Eritrea military runs a business kidnapping Eritrean refugees out of refugee camps in Sudan and trafficking them into the Sinai where they are sold to Bedouin gangs 'who use starvation, electrocution, rape and murder to extort up to $40,000 from relatives in the Eritrean diaspora for their release'. According to Strategic Policy magazine (4, 2012) Maj-Gen. Tekle 'Manjus' Kiflai has been identified as the 'co-ordinator of the human smuggling operation' which reportedly serves as 'a major revenue source for the PFDJ', the ruling People's Front for Democracy and Justice. This very powerful Maj-Gen. Tekle, an ethnic 'Christian', is rumoured to be a possible successor to Afewerki. Eritrea also funds, arms and trains anti-Ethiopian forces across the region, as well as rebels fighting against the Government of South Sudan.

But change is looming. For many years Afewerki had been funded and propped up by Gadhafi (Libya) and Mubarak (Egypt). With these two backers now removed, Eritrea's principal ally is US-allied, Islamist Qatar which is fully occupied trying to orchestrate regime change in Damascus, Syria. Furthermore, Afewerki is so unwell that when he disappeared in March, rumours circulated that he had died. Eventually he quelled those rumours by making an appearance on State TV on 29 April. Afewerki allegedly has a liver complaint for which he has received medical treatment in Qatar. Whilst Eritrea is ripe for change, the rot runs deep.

PLEASE PRAY SPECIFICALLY THAT GOD WILL -

* interpose himself in Eritrea to bring deep and radical change; may he bring judgment on all who trade in suffering and terror and bring an end to belligerence and repression. May he open the door to a new era of justice, liberty and peace, to his glory.

'In my distress I called upon the LORD . . . and my cry to him reached his ears. Then the earth reeled and rocked; the foundations also of the mountains trembled and quaked, because he was angry. He rescued me, because he delighted in me.' (Psalm 18:6,7,19b ESV)

* have mercy on his sorely persecuted Church. Lord, comfort and protect them, sustaining them in body and soul, especially prisoners and refugees. Lord, provide all their needs, fanning their faith into flame so they may not lose hope; may their trust be in you.

* redeem this era of intensive persecution by refining and unifying the Eritrean Church and use their stories of faithfulness to soften the hearts and open the eyes of multitudes.


SUMMARY TO USE IN BULLETINS UNABLE TO RUN THE WHOLE ARTICLE

CHRISTIAN PRISONERS & REFUGEES SUFFERING UNIMAGINABLY IN ERITREA

Eritrea has one of the most brutal dictatorships worldwide and the repression has created a refugee crisis. Since May 2002 Christians have been severely persecuted and an estimated 1500 are suffering torture and appalling prison conditions today, simply for their faith. With no independent media, news is extremely difficult to obtain. Open Doors reports that on 30 October a Christian Muslim convert, Adris Ali Mohammed (31), died in custody after two years of systematic torture aimed at forcing him to renounce his faith. Christians in refugee camps are no safer as the Eritrean military runs a lucrative operation on behalf of the government, trafficking them to Bedouin gangs in the Sinai. Please pray for Eritrean Christians and that God will effect deep and radical change in Eritrea.


To view this RLPB with hyperlinks, visit the Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin blog at

http://rlprayerbulletin.blogspot.com

For Critical Prayer Requests (CPR) for the nations see http://criticalprayerrequests.blogspot.com.au/


We suggest that churches and fellowships using the above Summary might also provide a copy of the listed prayer points to be used in their worship by people who are leading in prayer.

For more information, updates and helpful links see Elizabeth Kendal's blog 'Religious Liberty Monitoring'

http://elizabethkendal.blogspot.com

Previous RLPBs may be viewed at http://rlprayerbulletin.blogspot.com

This RLPB was written for the Australian Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission (AEA RLC) by Elizabeth Kendal, an international religious liberty analyst and advocate, and a member of the AEA RLC team.

Elizabeth is Adjunct Research Fellow in the Centre for the Study of Islam and Other Faiths at the Melbourne School of Theology.

If this bulletin was forwarded to you, you may receive future weekly issues direct by sending a blank email to

<join-rlpb@hub.xc.org>.

Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin | RLPB 180 | Wed 10 Oct 2012

PHILIPPINES: RELIGIOUS LIBERTY IN BANGSAMORO

plus UPDATES on Iran and Saudi Arabia

by Elizabeth Kendal

On Sunday 7 October the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) agreed to a 'framework agreement' with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). This framework is not a 'peace deal' inasmuch as it is an agreed commencement from which the two parties will work towards a comprehensive peace. The agreement will be officially signed on 15 October. As President Benigno Aquino III said, 'The work does not end here. There are still details that both sides must hammer out. Promises must be kept, institutions must be fixed, and new capacities must be built nationally and regionally in order to effectively administer the Bangsamoro.' 'Bangsamoro' is the name of the new entity that will replace the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

The Philippines Government created the ARMM in 1989 while it was engaged in a struggle with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF). When the MNLF put down their weapons in 1996, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) - hardline Islamists who had split from the MNLF to pursue an independent Islamic state - rejected peace, rejected the ARMM and fought on. Until now, the closest the GRP and the MILF have ever been to peace was the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain (MOA-AD) of July 2008. The MOA-AD would have replaced the ARMM with a greatly expanded MILF-ruled Bangsamoro Judicial Entity. After learning that they would soon be living in an Islamic sub-state, local Christians petitioned the Supreme Court which ruled the MOA-AD unconstitutional, scuttling the deal. MILF responded with a wave of violence against Mindanao Christians that left 400 dead and some 750,000 displaced. In her quest to add 'peace-maker' to her legacy, President Arroyo and those who supported the MOA-AD had shown little concern for thousands of Christians who did not want to wake up one morning in an Islamic 'Judicial Entity' under MILF rule.

The new 'framework agreement' is different in that MILF does not make the same territorial demands. Associated Press reports: 'A new autonomous region will take shape in the south, with Moro rebels giving up their quest for independence in exchange for broad powers to govern themselves.' However, as AP adds, while 'Bangsamoro' is 'broadly based on an existing autonomous region, the rebels want it expanded'. Furthermore, the MILF will not be governing 'themselves' but everyone who lives within Bangsamoro, Christians included. According to the 'framework agreement', Sharia Courts will be strengthened and their jurisdiction expanded, although (it is assured) Sharia will be applied only to Muslims. So will Muslim citizens of Bangasmoro be free to appeal to the Supreme Court for their constitutional rights or will the Islamic Courts have jurisdiction over all matters pertaining to Islam?

In every state where two systems of law operate, Muslims routinely find their constitutional rights rendered illusory by Islamic courts that retain jurisdiction over all matters pertaining to Islam. These include whom Muslims can marry, what Muslims can drink, how Muslims must dress, with whom Muslims can mix and suchlike. Would Bangsamoro Muslims be free to leave Islam - a right guaranteed them in the Philippines Constitution - or would leaving Islam fall under the jurisdiction of the Sharia Court, as it does in Malaysia which is mediating the talks? Concerning religious freedom, the 'framework agreement' states that all citizens are guaranteed the right to 'freedom and expression of religion and belief'; the right to 'freedom of speech'; and the right to 'freedom from religious, ethnic and sectarian harassment'. As harassment is not defined, this 'right' will doubtless function as the basis for laws that will stifle Christian witness.

As per the 'framework agreement' a 15-member 'Transition Commission' (TransCom) will be created to flesh out the details, propose changes to the constitution as required and then draft a law creating the new Muslim autonomous region. The process is expected to take at least two years. In the meantime the MNLF, believing it has been betrayed, is threatening to sue and is 'warning' of unrest. Along with this, the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters has split from MILF vowing to continue the jihad.


PLEASE PRAY SPECIFICALLY THAT GOD WILL -

* expose deceptions and deny the devil a foothold in the transition process, so that peace does not come at the expense of religious liberty and security.

* use this opportunity to make Muslims aware of the great value of liberty, a human right which frees them up to seek truth and follow their conscience - something they will be deprived of if they are placed under Sharia Law.

* sustain, preserve, protect, bless and build his Church in the Southern Philippines. 'The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.' (Lamentations 3:25 ESV)


SUMMARY TO USE IN BULLETINS UNABLE TO RUN THE WHOLE ARTICLE

RELIGIOUS LIBERTY IN BANGSAMORO, PHILIPPINES

On Sunday 7 October the Government of the Republic of the Philippines signed a 'framework agreement' with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). A 15-member Transition Commission will be established to flesh out the details. It will work towards a comprehensive peace deal and the creation of an Islamic sub-state, to be known as Bangsamoro. It is essentially in the area already known as the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). Sharia Courts will be strengthened and their jurisdiction expanded, seriously curtailing the human rights and religious freedom of both Muslims and Christians. The transition is expected to take several years. Unrest is highly probable. Pray that religious freedom is not traded for a tenuous peace with committed Islamists. Please pray for the Church in Southern Philippines.


UPDATES

* IRAN: INJUSTICE AND REPRESSION PREVAIL

Iranian authorities have released Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani but they did not release his heroic Muslim lawyer. Rather, on 29 September, Mohammed Ali Dadkhah was transferred to Ward 350 of Tehran's notorious Evin Prison to commence a nine-year sentence. Dadkhah is charged with 'aiding and abetting' the enemy, spreading propaganda and threatening national security. (Dadkhah provided pro bono legal representation to persecuted religious minorities.) Dadkhah advocated for Nadarkhani. Now we must advocate for him with prayer to the highest authority.


* SAUDI ARABIA: APOSTASY TRIAL ON 14 OCTOBER

Maryam (28), a Saudi convert to Christianity, remains in hiding in Sweden. Her Christian boss, Lebanese expatriate Henna Sarkees (50), along with his Saudi 'accomplice', will face court in Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia, on Sunday 14 October. Sarkees is charged with abusing his position of authority to coerce Maryam into converting to Christianity. His Saudi 'accomplice' is charged with facilitating her flight out of the country. Pray for Henna Sarkees and his Saudi associate. Pray also for Maryam. Pray for awakening in Saudi Arabia. (Ephesians 3:20,21)

To see this RLPB with hyperlinks go to http://rlprayerbulletin.blogspot.com.au

With persecution escalating and intensifying globally, please consider participating in the International Day of Prayer (IDOP) for the persecuted church between 4-11 November. 'For we wrestle not against flesh and blood
. . .' (Ephesians 6:12). Critical Prayer Requests (CPR) can be found at http://criticalprayerrequests.blogspot.com.au/ .


We suggest that churches and fellowships using the above Summary might also provide a copy of the listed prayer points to be used in their worship by people who are leading in prayer.

For more information, updates and helpful links see Elizabeth Kendal's blog 'Religious Liberty Monitoring'

http://elizabethkendal.blogspot.com

Previous RLPBs may be viewed at http://rlprayerbulletin.blogspot.com

This RLPB was written for the Australian Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission (AEA RLC) by Elizabeth Kendal, an international religious liberty analyst and advocate, and a member of the AEA RLC team.

Elizabeth is Adjunct Research Fellow in the Centre for the Study of Islam and Other Faiths at the Melbourne School of Theology.

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