Uzbekistan: Prosecution for singing and reading Bibles on holiday
Police in Uzbekistan on 1 December raided a group of about 80 Protestants on holiday together, Forum 18 News Service has learned. Charges under six different articles of the Code of Administrative Offences have been brought against four of the group, who were meeting together discussing their faith and singing Christian songs. Police confiscated three Bibles and 100 Christian songbooks, insulted the group, and took the fingerprints of all present. People must worship ‘only in registered places specifically set up for religious purposes’, police insisted to Forum 18. In November three Protestants were fined sums of between 100 and 20 times the minimum monthly wage for meeting together, reading their Bibles, singing Christian songs, praying, and possessing religious books – all without state permission. The books, including Bibles, were ordered to be destroyed.
Pray: that God will bless and protect those who gather to worship. (Ps.5:11)
More: http://www.forum18.org/
Uzbekistan: Prosecution for singing and reading Bibles on holiday
Police in Uzbekistan on 1 December raided a group of about 80 Protestants on holiday together, Forum 18 News Service has learned. Charges under six different articles of the Code of Administrative Offences have been brought against four of the group, who were meeting together discussing their faith and singing Christian songs. Police confiscated three Bibles and 100 Christian songbooks, insulted the group, and took the fingerprints of all present. People must worship ‘only in registered places specifically set up for religious purposes’, police insisted to Forum 18. In November three Protestants were fined sums of between 100 and 20 times the minimum monthly wage for meeting together, reading their Bibles, singing Christian songs, praying, and possessing religious books – all without state permission. The books, including Bibles, were ordered to be destroyed.
Pray: that God will bless and protect those who gather to worship. (Ps.5:11)
More: http://www.forum18.org/
North Korea
The Situation in the North
Kim Jong Un's policies that seem to be aimed at creating a more modern and appealing North Korea continue to draw the ire of the ordinary people leading to some new crack downs on complaints. At the same time, there are steady efforts to build the personality cult of the new leader through, among other things, postage stamps, new mosaics (also leading to complaints) and new Kim Jong Un badges. There is also a new effort to court international approval through such things as celebrating Mother's Day for the first time in many years. At the same time the food situation continues to be difficult, particularly as soldiers take to thievery from the fields to gain money of their own.
The government continues to struggle to prevent the flow of information into the country and people out. A new ban on travel to China is in force for the period leading up to the first anniversary of the death of Kim Jong Il. In spite of these efforts, information does continue to get in.
It will be a while yet before we are really able to get a sense of the direction in which the new government is taking the country even though it has been a year now since Kim Jong Il died on December 17th of last year. At the same time there are those who continue to do humanitarian work--as Christians--and run businesses--as Christians--in North Korea with little change from before.
We continue to pray that Kim Jong Un will bring in new economic policies that truly benefit the people and provide for more openness in real ways. Join us in these prayers.
In His Name,
Ben Torrey,
Declaring 2013 a Year of Prayer for the Pashtuns, Afghanistan and Pakistan
Will you join us in a year of prayer for one of the most strategic and needy people groups on our planet? The Pushtun people, who span the border of both nations, are the ethnic group that has been called “the most resistant unreached people in the world”. They are also the force behind the Taliban and the group that are causing the majority of death and destruction in both countries. We believe they are being deeply influenced by a spirit of death and violence. They are constantly fighting and killing others, themselves, other ethnic groups. Since 2007, they also have murdered 12 Christian workers in Afghanistan and hundreds of other believers in Pakistan, destroying whole villages, churches, and homes.
We suspect that they have become traumatized by centuries of fighting off invading armies and as a result being both the recipients and purveyors of terrible atrocities of war and human suffering. We believe this could be the way that the evil one has gotten a grip upon their psyche and culture as a people and is using them to carry out his agenda to “kill, steal and destroy” as the “liar and murderer from the beginning”.
After the fall of the Taliban Regime in 2001, they slowly regrouped again and have since then continuously gained power. Many military leaders have now conceded that they cannot win this war militarily. Fighting with physical weapons as the Coalition forces have done in Afghanistan the last 11 years cannot be ultimately successful against spiritual forces of evil. We have seen that mobilization of prayer leaders and intercessors as well as praying children can be effective in putting the principalities and powers to flight in nations. E.g. Cambodia- where the Khmer Rouge, worshippers of a serpent demon, began to give up their maniacal, murderous struggle and surrendered to the government two months after a mass prayer mobilization was launched in 1994-1995; Burma- where thousands of children have been praying for their nation since last year and there are now sweeping political changes going on. Many other cases from Bosnia, Sri Lanka and Africa where God has used national prayer initiatives to end wars, create governments of national unity and bring about peaceful development. Some even have born-again presidents who are involved in nationwide prayer efforts!
In Afghanistan, since the mid1990s, prayer teams started to go into the country, and in the beginning of 2001 the Lord impressed on the hearts of local Christian workers to proclaim an end to Taliban control. As millions around the world prayed, this came to pass by the end of that year. Hundreds of Christian workers came in to help the nation. Things improved dramatically. However, the ground was not held through ongoing intercession and the Taliban have come back, threatening to take over again. Many organizations and their workers have left the country due to threats or attacks or being closed down. Over the last two years, a dozen Christian workers have been killed by the Taliban Pashtuns.
Large areas of the country have come again under the control of the Taliban and all four access roads into Kabul, the capital, are now threatened with insecurity. Many locals are nervous and want to leave the country because the Coalition forces have announced they plan to withdraw in 2014. In addition, President Karzai will be leaving power since new elections will be held during that same year. Afghans know their government will probably not hold together and is likely to be overthrown by the Taliban with terrible violence for the nation.
Pakistan is being rocked by suicide bombings and assassinations and is ruled by a corrupt and inept government that is unable to maintain order or lead the nation out of the political, economic and religious quagmire into which it has descended. The national elections that may happen early in 2013 are not likely to help as they will most likely be accompanied by riots and other destabilizing acts of violence and conflict.
Today, most public places are surrounded by guards; churches have guards for safety. Many Pakistanis who can are leaving the country, the wealthy and educated. Those who cannot leave are beginning to have a feeling of hopelessness that those of influence who can save us are leaving the country to the Taliban and fundamentalists.
The pirs, Islamic spirit mediums, have a huge influence over political leaders and also have empowered the Taliban for their terrorist actions in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. For example, many suicide bombers have been set aside for Muharram, one of the four “sacred” months of the year which is going on right now.
Since the first missionaries came to Pakistan to reach the Pashtuns dozens of them have been killed by them. Numerous Pakistani Christians have also been killed for their faith over the years. The Taliban have also targeted and attacked more liberal people who are concerned for human and minority rights within the country.
The spirit of death and violence seems to stalk Pakistan as well as Afghanistan and manifests itself most strongly through the Pashtuns. We, therefore, propose the following strategy for mobilizing prayer for the dominant Pashtun people and these two embattled, broken nations that if they collapse could become launching pads for awful destruction on the rest of our world:
1) Declaring a year of prayer for the Pashtuns, Afghanistan and Pakistan throughout 2013 and inviting prayer networks and intercessors across the world to partner with us for this project.
2) Sending out monthly one- to two-page prayer alerts with in-depth, strategic information to guide united intercession and enable the prayer of agreement for specific desired changes. Please adopt the Pashtuns as your “people of the year” with others you know and together we will watch what the Lord does among them through our prayers of agreement and faith.
Let’s first be praying that the spirit of violence and death that seems to be gripping many of the Pashtuns will be bound and driven from them and that the Taliban will dissolve as a destructive and destabilizing force within these two countries.
