Religious Liberty Prayer List – No. 197 – Wed 27 Nov 2002

WELCOME to the 75 intercessors who have joined the list this month.

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DURING NOVEMBER WE HAVE PRAYED CONCERNING –

Critical Prayer Requests for Strategic Nations (http://www.idop.org [Prayer Requests]) and “…kings and all in authority…” [1 Tim 2:1-6] (RLP 195): Please continue to use these resources and pray for strategic issues and leaders.

AZERBAIJAN: where a culture of control through all levels of authority is interfering with religious freedom. Please pray for a government commitment to uphold religious liberty in practice. In RLP 196 (20/11/02), we requested prayer for ‘the release of the Christian literature being held in Customs’.

applying for permission to import 3000 copies of the Book of Proverbs, the Baptist church in Baku managed to retrieve the copies from Customs on 26 November. … Pastor Ilya Zenchenko, head of the Baptist Union, told Keston, “It is a kind of victory. We have been able to achieve our constitutional rights.” The State Committee for Work with Religious Organisations … overturned its earlier three refusals and granted permission on 21 November, allowing the Church to receive the books.’ Praise God for his goodness and thank him for his blessings. Ps 105:1-3

OTHER ISSUES IN NOVEMBER –

BELARUS: PRESSURE MOUNTS ON PRESIDENT LUKASHENKO

Belarus’ oppressive religion law was signed by President Lukashenko on 31 October and came into force on 16 November. This has caused a strong backlash against Lukashenko. The Association of Full Gospel Churches in Belarus has declared its intention to ‘obey God rather than man’. On 19 November, 14 out of 15 European Union nations voted to place a travel ban on Lukashenko and some 50 Belarusian officials. The EU cited ‘the recent approval of the law on freedom of conscience and religious organisations’ as being ‘in clear contradiction with European democratic standards’. Lukashenko was also barred from attending the NATO summit in the Czech Republic from 20-22 November. Praise God for the support of the EU nations and others. Pray for change in Belarus.

CAMBODIA: HARMONY JEOPARDISED

There has been an incident of Buddhist hostility towards Christians in Prey Veng province of Cambodia. Buddhists leaders there have used sinister disinformation and scaremongering to turn people against Christians and even to view them as the enemy. Pray that this local trouble will be quickly quelled and the disinformation corrected so that harmony can be restored. There has been no trouble previously between Buddhists and Christians in Prey Veng. The Church in Cambodia has been free for the past ten years and has seen good growth. Pray for growth to continue in peace and freedom, and that the government will uphold justice and religious liberty.

NIGERIA – KADUNA: RIOTS LEAVE MORE THAN 200 DEAD

The hosting of the Miss World competition, particularly during Ramadan, inflamed the zeal of Islamists who threatened to disrupt the pageant. On 20 November, the Nigerian newspaper THIS DAY challenged Muslim objections and suggested the prophet Mohammed would not have been offended by the pageant but rather would probably have chosen a wife from among the contestants. Muslims were offended and the paper issued an apology. However, the Islamists who had threatened to disrupt the competition used the article as justification to riot.

After burning down the newpaper offices, Muslims targeted Christians for killing. One BBC reporter was caught in the riot. “Some were saying I was a Christian,” he said. “I had to shout Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Muhammad Rasoul Illah (God is great, God is great, Muhammad is the prophet of God) before they would let me go.” In Kaduna more than 200 are dead, 1,000 injured and 12,000 left homeless, with 22 churches and 8 mosques burnt down. Pray for the Christians of Nigeria.

LEBANON: CHRISTIAN NURSE MURDERED

On 21 November, when volunteer nurse Bonnie Witherall answered a knock at the door of the Unity Centre in Sidon, a lone militant Islamist shot her three times in the head. At the funeral, her husband Garry said, “So many people think my wife’s death was a waste … but we believe that coming here with the message of Jesus would never be a waste. It is a message worth laying our lives down for. Whoever did this crime, I forgive them. It’s not easy … but I can forgive these people because God has forgiven me.”

The centre and its workers had recently been threatened because through the centre’s humanitarian service, Muslims were learning about Jesus. Rev. Sami Dagher, director of the Center and head of the Christian and Missionary Alliance churches in Lebanon said, “If they want to kill us all, we are ready to die. But we are not going to close either the clinic or the church.” Pray for wisdom for the Church and for safety for Christian witnesses in Lebanon.

“…and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing God a service. This is because they have never known the Father or me.” Jesus to his disciples, John 16:2,3

RAMADAN: PRAY FOR A NEW DESTINY

This year, the 27th night of Ramadan falls on next Monday 2 December. Known as NIGHT OF POWER or NIGHT OF DESTINY, it is when many Muslims pray, and read and recite the Quran all night in remembrance of when Mohammed allegedly received his first ‘revelation’. This is a time of heightened spiritual sensitivity for many Muslims worldwide who are desperately seeking God. Please mark in your diary to pray that night that multitudes of Muslims will indeed find God. May they meet a new power and find a new destiny in a new relationship that includes love, forgiveness, reconciliation and salvation through Jesus, the only name under heaven for people to call on to be saved. (Acts 4:12)

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The WEA Religious Liberty Commission sponsors this RL Prayer List to help individuals and groups pray specifically and regularly for religious liberty issues, and in particular to uphold the Church where it is suffering persecution.

RL Prayer is moderated by Ron Clough, a commissioner of the WEA RLC and convenor of the Australian EA RLC.

Elizabeth Kendal researched and authored this message.

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