In This Issue: Yee Peng, a Thai Festival of Lights
- WORLD: Hajj and Yee Peng
- ALGERIA: Protestant Churches Approved for Registration
- EGYPT: A Call to Pray and Forgive
- BURMA/MYANMAR: Army Targets Christian Civilians
- CHINA: Orphans Arrive from North Korea
But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:21-24)
Missions Catalyst is a free, weekly electronic digest of mission news and resources designed to inspire and equip Christians worldwide for global ministry. Use it to fuel your prayers, find tips and opportunities, and stay in touch with how God is building his kingdom all over the world. Please forward it freely!
WORLD: Hajj and Yee Peng
Source: Pat Noble, October 31, 2011
The day I am compiling these news brief is my least favorite holiday: Halloween. I prefer to celebrate Reformation Day instead. It was on October 31, 1517, that Martin Luther nailed 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg. In keeping with Luther’s clarification of how sin is dealt with (grace alone by faith), I ask you to pray for the many people who will be thinking about their sin this week with no understanding that it has been dealt with already on the cross of Christ.
This week is a significant time in both Muslim and Buddhist communities. Muslims around the world are preparing for the annual Hajj pilgrimage, beginning November 4, while some Buddhists anticipate the festival of Yee Peng, which starts November 5.
Praying Through the Arabian Peninsula says, “Please go to the PTAP web site and find the Hajj 2011 prayer information. This is a very strategic time to be praying for Muslims as they travel to Mecca, Saudi Arabia to seek forgiveness of their sins. We ask that you might challenge others around you and your church to pray during this time. We are seeing many changes in the Muslim world right now, and may we continue to be faithful to pray. Some people will also take a day to
pray and fast during these days. On the web site you will find four pages of PDF prayer information and a video you can download.”
Asia Stories alerted me to Yee Peng in Northern Thailand. Read more about this Buddhist festival – also known as Loy Krathong – here, and watch a great 2.5-minute video (Asia Stories).
ALGERIA: Protestant Churches Approved for Registration
Source: International Christian Concern, September 12, 2011
International Christian Concern has learned that the Protestant Church of Algeria (EPA) was granted government approval in July to officially register congregations throughout the country. Algerian Christians view the decision as a positive step toward repealing a law that restricts Christian worship.
“This is good news for the Protestant Church of Algeria. We are pleased with the promise made by the Minister of the Interior,” EPA President Mustapha Krim told Algerie Plus. “We are delighted that they took the time to understand our situation.”
The registration process for each Protestant congregation is expected to be slow, possibly taking as long as one to two years. Additionally, Ordinance 06-03, which was introduced in 2006 to regulate the worship of non-Muslims by requiring government permission to hold services, remains in place. Unless the ordinance is repealed, the EPA expects to face further hindrances throughout the registration process.
>> Full story. See also: Six Christians Arrested in Eastern Algeria.
>> Editor’s note: The Algerian church has grown from just a handful of national believers two decades ago to an estimated 80,000, as Operation Mobilization reports. See the recent OM article, Reaching Algerian Hearts with the Good News.
EGYPT: A Call to Pray and Forgive
Source: SAT-7, October 14, 2011
Egypt’s church leaders have called on their people to pray, fast, and forgive the perpetrators of anti-Christian violence after [last month’s] clashes left at least 26 people dead and more than 200 injured.
SAT-7’s Egypt Bureau Director, Mr. Farid Samir, described the events as disturbing. “This was the most violent and open attack that Christians have experienced in a long time.”
Another SAT-7 worker summed up the general atmosphere as one of sadness and that even on the streets people weren’t smiling. “I have this sense of shock and disappointment at the same time. I never imagined that it could go this far.”
“My concern is that the dream of a civil society may never come true. I’m afraid that all Christians will be obliged to leave the country or live under Islamic governance. I can’t bear the idea of Egypt becoming another Iran or Saudi Arabia.”
SAT-7 has been broadcasting special live shows from Cairo each night this week. [One] program, We Will Sing, broadcasted words and songs of encouragement and provided an opportunity for viewers to phone in and talk about what happened.
[Another program,] Salt of the Earth, is a special series of five shows tackling the latest events. Guests on the first program included church leaders, politicians (including Muslims), Christian young people who took part in the latest demonstrations, and a Christian family who lost a family member in the revolution of January 25. They will shed light on Christian citizenship and the Arab Spring revolutionist’s call for equal rights for all citizens of the country.
>> Full story.
>> Also read: A Top Egyptian Minister Quits in Protest over Killings (New York Times).
BURMA/MYANMAR: Army Targets Christian Civilians
Source: Compass Direct, October 28, 2011
A recent attack on Christians and church buildings by Burmese soldiers in Kachin state showed that Christian civilians are targeted in the military offensive against insurgents.
“Targeting of Christians is not unusual in Burma’s conflict zones,” [the] editor-in-chief of the Kachin News Group told Compass by phone, referring to the October 16 military firing at a church, detention of a priest and four parishioners, and burning of church property in Kachin state. “The incident reflects the long-time policy of the Buddhist-Burman-majority Burmese government, which discriminates against the ethnic Christian minority.”
About 90 percent of the roughly 56 million people in Burma (also known as Myanmar) are Buddhist, mostly from the Burman ethnic group. Ethnic Kachins – like six other ethnic minorities who live along the country’s borders with China, Thailand, and India – have had armed and unarmed groups fighting for independence or autonomy from successive military-led regimes for decades.
>> Full story.
>> See also Local Authorities in Kachin State Issue New Order Regulating Bible Study, Sunday School, Fasting, and Prayer (Christian Solidarity Worldwide), and read how Adoniram Judson’s tract is still being used to share the gospel with Buddhists (Baptist Press News).
CHINA: Orphans Arrive from North Korea
Source: Open Doors, October 12, 2011
“Nobody expected them, but all of a sudden, these street children just showed up in China,” says Open Doors co-worker Sun-Hi. “It must mean the situation in North Korea is even more desperate than it used to be if even groups of orphans start to cross the heavily guarded border…”
“I pray God protects the children, not only from the authorities, but also from criminals who use the young children as smugglers.”
It’s a remarkable group of children, shares Sun-Hi. “The leader is a 17-year-old boy. Some are older than him, but he is the strongest and fights them off. He has a good character. He makes sure the smallest children get food as well. And you know what? He makes all the children pray before they eat! On a previous visit to China he was taken care of by a pastor. The boy knows about God.”
>> Full story.
>> This coming Sunday, November 6, is Orphan Sunday. Get resources and watch the live webcast from Kansas City, 6:00 p.m. Central Standard Time (Christian Alliance for Orphans).
Pat Noble has been the “news sleuth” for Missions Catalyst since 2004. In addition to churning out the news, she is working to create a SWARM (Serving World A Regional Mobilizers) in Northern New York using the NorthernChristian.org website. You can connect with her at www.whatsoeverthings.com.
