Category: News Briefs

Source: Pioneers-USA, May 17, 2023

Do you know about the Fulani? Considered the world’s largest nomadic people group, they are found in many countries across Western Africa and beyond. Most Fulani people are Muslims, and occult practices are also widespread among them. Many have been disenfranchised by their communities and as a result, are quite poor. So it is not surprising that the majority are illiterate.

During a week-long training, a group of Fulani women who follow Jesus or have expressed strong interest learned oral discipleship methods. These strategies are effective with both educated and uneducated people and are great for mixed groups. As the days went by, trainers saw the Lord use this course to speak into the hearts of the women and their families.

“At one point, we were talking about repentance. During the worship time that followed, all of the women felt convicted to kneel before God to sort out the hidden things in their lives. We witnessed how the Holy Spirit was transforming their hearts. It was incredibly moving. We were also encouraged to see several men participating.

“God deeply touched the husband of one of the women there. He told us that he had been a ‘friend of evil spirits,’ but that from now on he would leave all of that behind. At the end of the week, he decided to be baptized.”

Read the full story and another testimony about a husband’s new-found faith and how his wife responded.

Source: The Christian Post, June 5, 2023

The Ghana National Association of Authors and Publishers has offered an apology and admitted to errors amid criticism from parents, educators, and the country’s deputy education minister for a textbook’s negative depiction of the impact Christian missionaries have had on the country.

In a statement, the association offered an “unqualified apology” to the Ministry of Education, The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, Ghanaian Schools, Nananom, the Christian Council of Ghana, and “any Ghanaian who find the statements obnoxious.”

The book, titled History of Ghana for Basic Schools, Learners Book 4, reportedly touches on what it describes as the negative consequences of Christian missionary activities and claims Christianity has led to an increase in poverty in the country, according to Ghana’s largest English radio station.

As of the 2021 census, Christianity is the predominant faith in Ghana, practiced by 71.3% of the population across numerous denominations, [and] Islam constitutes the religious beliefs of 19.9% of the nation’s total populace.

Read the full story. It’s an interesting, current example of the debates about whether missionaries destroy cultures.

You might also enjoy reading about OneWay Ministries’ Livingstone School of Missions in Ghana.

Finally, from a different part of the world, hear what an American’s Filipino translation partner told him about how his parents responded when missionaries first arrived in their area (Ethnos360).

Source: Christian Today, May 29, 2023

During a recent trip to Chad [to] implement an emerging model of Bible translation called church-centric Bible translation, I worked alongside other members of the unfoldingWord training team to train and resource Chad nationals to translate 50 Bible stories into eight minority languages.

Muslims and Christians [came] together to embark on this translation journey [which] takes a fraction of the time. Ultimately this will have the potential to impact around 2 million people in Chad who speak something other than Chadian Arabic.

I knew it would be a challenging road ahead as a group of eight language teams, with five members each (two all Muslim, two all Christian, and four mixed groups) came together. I have spent decades of my working life developing leaders and teams and didn’t underestimate the barriers they needed to overcome as they began the first in a series of six translation workshops.

This translation project succeeds the first translation group of its kind in Chad which began in 2018 and was completed 18 months later. From this first group of eight language teams, at least two new churches have been planted and the new believers are assigned to the associated missionary for the people group.

Read the full story or a similar one from Christianity Today.

Did you know? Chad is home to more than 200 ethnic groups who speak more than 100 languages, according to 5 Things You Need to Know about Chad (World Relief).

1. Ukraine: Pentecostal and Evangelical Churches Growing Tremendously
2. Australia: Making God Stories Available to Aboriginal People
3. Bhutan: Scripture for a Staunchly Buddhist Nation
4. Libya: Christians Arrested and Could Face Death Penalty if Convicted
5. India: Is Violence in Manipur Ethnic Cleansing? or Religious Cleansing?

Read or share the email edition or scroll down for more.

Source: Assemblies of God World Missions, May 8, 2023

A recent road trip across Ukraine revealed that Pentecostal and evangelical churches are experiencing significant growth, and may emerge from the war stronger than ever before.

“Churches are packed out because people are seeking God,” says Jane M. Dollar, 57, an Assemblies of God world missionary to Ukraine who has spent the past year operating a center for Ukrainian refugees in Poland.

There is great spiritual hunger in the nation, according to Mykhailo Panochko, senior bishop of the 100-year-old Ukrainian Pentecostal Church.

“People heard the message of the good news,” Panochko says. “Many repented and have been discipled and baptized. The harvest is so big that we lack workers, ministers, people who can feed and grow the people, maturing them in Christ.”

For example, a small church in the once-occupied southern city of Kherson has more than 500 new people attending, but only one minister.

“Everyone has many questions about the present situation, but also the future destiny of their souls,” Panochko says. “People are looking for answers.”

Read the full story.

Source: Eternity News, May 2, 2023

Susanna Baldwin, Kathy Dadd, and Dave Glasgow were thrilled to launch the Plain English Version Mini Bible at the Katherine Christian Convention in the Northern Territory at the weekend.

Susanna and Kathy have taken over the bulk of the translation work from Dave Glasgow, who launched the project to make the Word of God more accessible to speakers of Aboriginal languages who learn English as a third or fourth language. The Mini Bible contains most of the New Testament and parts of the Old Testament, including Genesis chapters 1-21.

Speaking to about 200 people at the Saturday night celebration event, Dave mentioned that the Plain English Version, or PEV, is being used by Aboriginal people not just in the Territory but all up the east coast as far as Cairns, as well as in the Pacific and Asia and even migrant communities in Australia.

It is also one of the most popular versions of the Bible downloaded on YouVersion—something that has come as a welcome surprise.

The full story explains more about the ideas behind the PEV and shows how its translation brings to life captivating stories that are good for sharing, especially with those who do not have the Bible in their own language yet.

From the other side of the world, see also this updated list of America’s 50 largest foreign missions and Bible translation organizations, in terms of revenue and excluding denominational groups (Ministry Watch).

Source: Back to Jerusalem, April 2023

For the first time, an audio version of the Bhutan Bible in the Dzongkha language is being secretly recorded inside the country. Indigenous believers are armed with an underground recording studio, supported by BTJ, and are recording the audio Bible in the local language.

Bhutan is one of the most unreached nations in the world. About 0.3% of the population in Bhutan are believers, but the majority of the believers who live in Bhutan are Nepalese. Thus, 99.7% of the indigenous Bhutanese have never heard the gospel, or have ever heard the name of Jesus. In fact, the government doesn’t want to claim the existence of any Christian missionaries within their border.

BTJ is working directly with the Bhutanese underground house church by sponsoring a recording of the Old Testament in an audio format. Please pray that they are able to finish the recording correctly and in a prompt and safe manner.

Read the full story and another from BTJ, How the Very First Chinese Bible Translation Came to Be.

See also What’s Behind the Boom of Christianity in China? (China Christian Daily). It describes an interesting project to build a public database of Christian activity in China during a 400-year period (from 1550 to 1950).

Source: Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin, May 10, 2023

Six Christian Libyan nationals arrested during March and early April for apostasy (leaving Islam) and Christian proselytism (missionary work) could face the death penalty if found guilty. Videos of the detained believers confessing to their “crimes” have been posted on-line. One believer is a 22-year-old woman who became a follower of Christ [at] aged 15. Another believer is reported to have renounced his faith under torture; may he be comforted by the amazing grace of his Savior, Jesus Christ.

Two U.S. citizens arrested around the same time for alleged Christian proselytism have been released and deported to Tunisia (Libya Update).

Meanwhile, Nigerian pastor Femi Abraham Akinboye—arrested by an Islamic militia in July 2021 while seeking a permit for the church he had established—remains detained, his fate unknown. Lord have mercy! Please pray.

The full story includes links, background, and more prayer points.

From another part of the world, we read that in Cuba, documented violations of religious freedom more than doubled from 2021 to 2022 (story from Baptist Standard, responding to a report from Christian Solidarity Worldwide).

Closer to home for some: In February, we included a news brief about after-school Satan clubs in the U.S. Those are back in the news after a court ruled in favor of The Satanic Temple (The Hill).

Source: Mission Network News, May 17, 2023

In Manipur, India, more than 2,500 homes of tribal Christians are now just frames and ashes. Meitei Hindus in northeast India began attacking tribal Christians two weeks ago in a horrific campaign of violence.

So far, at least 68 people have been killed and over 25,000 displaced—forced to flee while their houses and churches burned.

With different messages coming from various media outlets, people are asking, is this an ethnic cleansing? Or a religious cleansing?

A ministry worker with A3 (formerly Asian Access) says, “Personally, I feel it’s both. So it’s part of ethnic cleansing, but also it’s part of the Hindu fanatics propagating their religious views because Christians are considered to be one of the greatest enemies and they will try to destroy the strongholds of Christianity. If it’s ethnic cleansing only, why do they have to burn 121 churches? To me, I think it’s more like two sides of the same coin.”

Read the full story. Please pray.

For more background on this conflict check out Indian Troops Ordered to “Shoot on Sight” amid Violence in Manipur (The Guardian) as well as a roundup from the Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin.