Pray for kidnapped hostages in Yemen

It can become far too easy, as time goes on, to forget the names and faces of our persecuted brothers and sisters we have prayed for in the past. This week, an update from Middle East Concern thankfully returned my attention to the kidnapped foreigners in Yemen who remain missing.

In your prayers today and in the coming weeks, please do pray for the hostages who remain missing and for those who have been returned to their families.

In recent months we have requested prayer following the kidnapping on Friday 12^th June 2009 of nine foreigners in Saada, north-west Yemen, three of whom were murdered shortly afterwards. Recall that two were freed unharmed on 17^th May.

There continues to be no news of Johannes and Sabine (a German couple), Simon (their son, aged 2) or of Tony (a British man). Lydia and Anna (5 and 4, daughters of Johannes and Sabine) who were freed in May are with relatives in Germany.

The Muslim fasting month of Ramadan started on Wednesday. Therefore, Johannes, Sabine and Tony (assuming they are alive) will probably be forced to fast during daylight hours, which are approximately 4:15 am to 6:30 pm in northern Yemen.

Christians in Yemen thank us for our prayers and request our continued intercession. Please pray that:

1. The missing four (assuming they are alive) will know the peace, presence and daily provision of Jesus and will be released unharmed shortly

2. They will lack nothing during Ramadan

3. Efforts by those seeking to secure their release will be successful

4. Lydia, Anna and their relatives will know the presence and peace of Jesus

5. The families and colleagues of those missing and murdered will know the peace of Jesus amidst continuing speculation and uncertainty

6. All expatriate Christians in Yemen will know the Lord’s guiding and protecting at this time

7. The perpetrators will be convicted by the Spirit and drawn to the forgiveness, love and true life offered by Jesus.

This week in Church history: James Abbes burned in Bury, England

James Abbes stripped off his clothes and shoes. Where he was going in a few minutes, he would not need them--new and glorious garments would be his. But here on earth, some poor folk might find his old garments helpful.

The crowd had come to see one of the burnings that were all too common in the sixteenth century. They would not be disappointed. And they heard words of encouragement, too. As James moved toward the stake, he urged the bystanders to cling to the truth and to seal the cause of Christ with their blood if need be--just as he was now doing. The young man seemed completely confident.

One of the sheriff's servants was cut to his heart by this talk. He cursed James' faith, calling it heresy and he mocked James as a madman. To England's ruling elite as well as to the sheriff's servant, James was a heretic. He held Reformation views during the reign of Queen Mary Tudor of England.

Earlier, when the bishop of Norwich learned of James' "heresy," he ordered him arrested. James wandered about to escape capture, but an informant turned him in. The bishop of Norwich convinced James to recant and gave him a piece of money to seal the bargain.

The money burned the young man's conscience. Although he knew it meant a cruel death, he came back to the bishop and threw down the coin, saying he had been wrong to accept it.

The bishop attempted to talk James out of the stand he was taking; but this time, there was no swaying him. He was given a mock trial and condemned to be burned.

… On August 2, 1555 the sheriff's men fastened James to a stake at Bury, England. As the fire was lit, he praised and glorified God. The flame rose around his body.

At that moment, according to John Foxe's account, the servant who had mocked James and called him mad went mad himself. Imitating James, he ripped off his clothes and shoes in front of the people, exclaiming, "Thus did James Abbes, the true servant of God, who is saved but I am damned." He repeated this line again and again.

Then, as Foxe tells it, "The sheriff had him secured, and made him put his clothes on, but no sooner was he alone, than he tore them off, and exclaimed as before. Being tied in a cart, he was conveyed to his master's house, and in about half a year he died..."

(Source: www.Christianity.com)

Indonesian Sunday School teacher passes away

The following story was released recently about the passing of Ratna Bangun, an Indonesian woman who was arrested along with two other Christians in 2005 (click here to learn more).

A few days ago, Ibu Ratna Bangun died of lupus while confined at a hospital in Jakarta, Indonesia. Her husband and her two sons paid their last respects to Ibu Ratna on Wednesday in Hargeulis, her hometown.

Ratna Bangun was arrested in May 2005, with Dr. Rebekka Zakaria and Eti Pangesti, under false accusation of converting Muslim children to Christianity through a Sunday School program. All three women were given a three-year sentence on September 1, 2005 and were released from Indramayu prison on June 8, 2007…. While in prison, Ibu Ratna shared her reflections with Open Doors about being in prison:

“Before, I had always been surrounded by fellow believers. But now, I live among non-believers. I realize how hard it is to share God’s love and my life to them. It is also hard to live away from my children and  husband. But I am thankful – please note this carefully – that God’s faithful love has never left me. God has helped me through everything.

“Secondly, when Jesus broke the five loafs of bread and two fishes to feed 5,000 people, He turned nothingness into something. As for me, I feel like the insignificant breads and fishes. The suffering I face is nothing compared to what other believers around the world are going through. Just like the bread, I was crushed and distributed to become blessings for many people. I am being processed in this place.

“Thirdly, prison is a school of faith. This is where I fight for my faith, so that I could be a part of God’s plan; it is no coincidence that I am here, in this prison.”

What stood out to me in her reflections was her second point. It is amazing that she would view a situation in this way. What stood out to you?

Please pray for this dear family who has been through so much.

(Source: Open Doors)

Please take some time today to pray for those mourning her loss. Pray that they will rest in the knowledge that the Good Shepherd walks with them through this difficult time (Psalm 23). Pray that her Christ-like example will continue to inspire and challenge many. You can post a prayer of solidarity with those mourning on our Persecuted Church Prayer Wall. 

Letter to the editor: Islam a religion of peace?

"All the religions in the world teach only two things – love and peace."

Do you agree? George Vanner didn't, and so he wrote a letter to the editor of The Cambridge Times in response to an article that opened with the above claim. In his letter, George voices his disagreement and encourages the article's author to find out what is really happening to Christians and other minorities in Islamic countries today.

A friend of VOM recently mailed us the newspaper clipping and so I thought I would share it with you as well! Both the article and George's response can be read below. (By the way, if you are interested in writing to your local paper, click here for more information on how to get started.)

If you saw a similar article written in your local paper, would you write a letter to the editor? What would you write? How do you tell others about what is happening to Christians in Islamic countries today?

Veil not mandatory in Islam

Guest column-Yasmeen Sultana - Jun 09, 2010

All the religions in the world teach only two things – love and peace.

However, human beings, for their selfish motives, mould the religion, and create discrimination and hatred. This is about the Niqab or veil issue in Quebec.

Islam represents a religion of humanity, love and peace. Unfortunately, due to the wrong deeds of some misguided Muslims, the entire Islam community has been blamed in recent times. Islamic political values have always been misunderstood.

Is the Islamic political system a rival to democracy?

The word Islam refers to peace. Like all other religions, Islam teaches its followers to live harmoniously with fellow human beings. Islam does not practice any form of compulsion. This religion does not tolerate oppression.

The purpose of Muslim communities is to promote the principles of Islam and help Muslims get their due respect. Religion always teaches peace, but they are people who use religion incorrectly for their own purpose.

The veil is not a mandatory injunction of the Qur’an. Women must cover their body and head properly, but not the face.

If veiling a face was an Islamic ideology or an order of the Qur’an, then why do Muslim women not cover their faces on occasion of holy Hajj (third part of Islam) and Umra? Muslim women are not ordered in the Qur’an to veil their faces at Hajj and Umra – the ultimate forms of Islamic rituals. In Hajj and Umra, men and women are in close proximity in a very crowded space.

Islam has fallen into the same category where it can be identified by its dress, just like a Catholic priest or a rabbi. On the contrary, Islam stresses morality of intentions, behaviours and actions.

Instead of following principles of a dress code, a specific dress has itself become the principle. It is a classical example of maintaining the shell of the religion.

Globalization and the freedom of thought that it provides give us individual freedom to choose a dress of our liking. But I see it as a problem when a given dress is worn and enforced in the name of Islam.

Clearly the Qur’an defines basic standards of a dress: raiment that covers your nakedness.

And the purpose of dress: a source of (your) elegance and protection.

Goal of a dress: so that they may attain eminence. Body can be covered with a big fabric sheet. There are no such words of Burqa in Qur’an.

Niqab defines the above requirements of a dress, i.e. it neither covers nakedness nor is a source of elegance; yet in present times is a source of scrutiny thus denying the protection except that of a sun blocker.

It is someone’s own choice, like some Sikhs do not wear a pug ad on their head or, in 1996 in Canada, women are given choices to jog topless. Finally the veil is not the basis of Islam or Qur’an.

It is against Canadian values of hiding your own identity in common day life and being Canadians, we have to respect Canadians laws.

 

Islamic religion not so peaceful

In response to the guest column of Yasmeen Sultana, Veil not Mandatory in Islam, June 11.

In her letter she says, “The word Islam refers to peace”.

The main meaning of the word Islam is Submission to their God, not peace. She also says, “Islam does not practice any form of compulsion.

This religion does not tolerate oppression.”

If this is true as she claims, then organizations like The Voice of the Martyrs would not have to report that Islamic authorities are doing what she says they don’t do.

Not only are minority Christians under compulsion and oppression in these countries, many are suffering with beatings, rape, kidnapping, forced marriages, forced conversions.

I suggest Ms Sultana check out the website www.persecution.net to see what is happening in many of these Islamic countries.

George Vanner
Cambridge

Iran: An addict becomes a Christian, so do others

Zara was a drug addict living half a life in a very religious city. Zara met some Christians and desperate for anything to deal with her drug problem, she asked Christ into her life. The addiction demons went. And Zara could not stop talking. First some family members came to Christ, and then friends heard about her. Now there are at least ten who have come to faith because of her salvation, and they meet together. No law of man can stop the living Christ reaching into the lives of those oppressed by Satan. And no law of man can stop people like Zara talking about their Saviour.

The case of Ali Golchin, jailed solely because of his allegiance to the historic faith of the church, is one of many that tell us that the church suffers in Iran. The case of Zara is one of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, that tells us that Jesus Christ Himself is building his church, as usual among the poor and distressed.

Pray for:

• Zara’s group to grow
• Other addicts to come to faith
• Ali Gochin to be released

(Source: Elam)

This week in Church history: 12 Carthage Christians martyred

Vigellius Saturninus, the proconsul (Roman administrator) of North Africa in 180 A.D., spoke generously. "You can have the forgiveness of our Lord the Emperor if only you return to your senses," he said.

Speratus, one of twelve Christians who faced him, replied for the rest. "We have never done evil; we have not lent ourselves to wrong; we have never spoken ill, but when ill-treated we have given thanks, for we pay heed to our Emperor."

Evidently Saturninus was stung by that reply. "We too are religious, and our religion is simple," he said defensively. "We swear by the genius of our Lord the Emperor, and pray for his welfare, as you also ought to do."

Speratus offered to instruct Saturninus in true simplicity of worship, but the proconsul brushed him off and turned to the other offenders. "Abandon this way of thinking," he commanded.

Speratus reminded Saturninus that to murder and to lie were the real evils, not the Christian faith. Saturninus ignored him and addressed the other Christians. "Don't share his folly!" he urged them. But the others (five were women) responded as firmly as Speratus.

Cittinus said, "We have no other to fear, save only our Lord God, who is in heaven." Donata added, "Honor Caesar as Caesar; but it is God we fear." Vestia declared, "I am a Christian." Secunda assured the proconsul, "What I am, that I wish to be."

Saturninus turned back to Speratus. "Do you persist in being a Christian?" he asked.

Speratus never wavered. "I am a Christian," he replied, and all the others agreed with him.

Saturninus offered them time to reconsider. To that dangerous bait Speratus answered, "In a matter so plain, we don't need to consider."

Saturninus changed the direction of his inquiry. What were the documents he had found in Speratus lock box? he asked curiously.

"Books and letters of Paul," answered Speratus.

The proconsul made one last effort to change the minds of the Christians. When he saw that they would not bend, he read his decision from a tablet. Heralds then announced his decree: "Speratus, Nartzalus, Cittinus, Veturius, Felix, Aquilinus, Laetantius, Januaria, Generosa, Vestia, Donata, and Secunda, I have ordered to be executed."

The Christians responded with joy. "Thanks be to God," they exclaimed. This was their chance to show their love for Jesus! On July 17, 180, they were beheaded for the sake of Christ, at Scilli, near Carthage, North Africa.

(Source: www.Christianity.com)

Nepal: Pastor beaten by Maoists

Our friends at VOM-USA recently posted the following story about an attack on a prayer meeting in Nepal. Please remember these believers in your prayers today!

On June 13, Maoist rebels in Nepal attacked Christians at an evening prayer meeting, according to VOM contacts. The rebels ordered them to stop the meeting and then assaulted the pastor and believers when they refused.

Before the attack, the pastor had asked the Maoists to leave and return the next day to talk with him, but the rebels instead began to beat him with sticks. When church members, including the pastor’s father and women in the church, tried to defend the pastor, the Maoists attacked them, too. The rebels also burned Bibles and hymnals during the attack.

The following day, local villagers accused the Christians of not paying the “temple tax” and of “converting the local people to Christianity.” Each family was ordered to pay the exorbitant tax, and Christians have been warned that they will be expelled from the village if they do not pay. Some believers have voluntarily left the village, and those remaining risk losing their homes.

Pray that God will heal the pastor and others who were beaten during this attack. Pray that they will look to Christ for strength and direction and that their testimonies will draw nonbelievers into fellowship with Christ.

Colombia: "Christians are dangerous!"

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, also known as the FARC guerrillas, have inflicted violence upon Colombians for the last 40 years. Guerrilla leaders are constantly recruiting children to join their Marxist movement to replace the children and young adults who are killed. Those who speak against the violence or encourage others not to join the guerrillas are targeted, especially Christian leaders, like Dora and Ferley.

Dora Lilia Saavedra and her husband, Ferley, spoke freely about Christ to the children they taught in Santana Ramos, a farming village deep in the Colombian jungle and a hotspot for guerrilla violence. Each day children ages six to 12 piled into Dora's one-room, wooden schoolhouse and listened to her talk about Jesus, but this was risky. She was luring more away from the guerrillas’ cause. Guerrillas also didn’t like Dora’s commitment to truth. “Christians are dangerous,” they repeatedly said. “Christians cannot lie. If the army asks them about us, they will tell the truth.”

One day, while Dora was in the schoolhouse, a neighbour told her some shocking news: guerrillas were going to kill her and her husband the next day. Even though the neighbour was a guerrilla sympathizer he felt bad for the couple. “You can take your family and run,” he said. “You can leave this village right now.” Calmly, Dora told the messenger not to worry, reassuring him that she and her husband were ready to meet their Lord.

After the neighbour’s warning, Dora and her husband had a final devotion with their three children. The couple spent all night praying and fasting.

The following school day was like any other until around 10 a.m., when two armed guerrillas entered the school. “There will be no more school today!” one shouted. “Go home and return tomorrow.” The children quickly filed out the door as the guerrillas ushered Dora and her family to the back of the schoolhouse. They told Dora and her husband to say goodbye to their children. Suddenly more guerrillas burst into the room. One of them pointed to 12-yearold Marcella, saying, “We will kill her first.”

“No, please,” Dora pleaded as she stepped in between the guerrilla and her daughter. “It is me you want. Take me. Leave her here and take me now.”

Marcella cried as the armed men walked her parents across a field to a river just 300 yards away from the school. They ordered Dora and Ferley to lie face down on the ground. Marcella could not see her parents, but she remembers hearing the two shots as her parents were executed.

Just months after Marcella's parents were murdered, she said, "If I met the men who did this I would forgive them. I know this would be hard, but I know God forgives them. So I have to as well.” When asked what she would say to others who have to live with bad things happening to them, Marcella said: “In the name of Jesus nothing just happens.”

Young Marcella demonstrates the assurance that even in times of great suffering and loss, God is at work in the lives of His children. She is among many of the Christians taking a stand for Jesus in nations hostile to Christ.

You can read the full article and other testimonies of courageous believers from around the world in our Special Edition newsletter. Click here to sign up for your free copy today!

This week in Church history: Procopius, first of the Palestine martyrs

When the Roman Emperor Diocletian launched the last and most ruthless of the ten Roman persecutions against Christians, his first victim in Palestine was a young man named Procopius. Eusebius was alive at the time. The Christian author, who became bishop of Caesarea and wrote the most famous history of the early church, left an account of the martyr: 

"The first of all the martyrs who appeared in Palestine was named Procopius. In truth he was a godly man, for even before his confession he had given up his life to great endurance: and from the time that he was a little boy had been of pure habits, and of strict morals: and by the vigor of his mind he had so brought his body into subjection, that, even before his death, his soul seemed to dwell in a body completely mortified, and he had so strengthened his soul by the word of God that his body also was sustained by the power of God. His food was bread only, and his drink water; and he took nothing else besides these two. Occasionally he took food every second day only, and sometimes every third day; oftentimes too he passed a whole week without food.

"But he never ceased day nor night from the study of the word of God: and at the same time he was careful as to his manners and modesty of conduct, so that he edified by his meekness and piety all those of his own standing. And while his chief application was devoted to divine subjects, he was acquainted also in no slight degree with natural science. His family was from Baishan; and he ministered in the orders of the Church in three things: First, he had been a Reader; and in the second order he translated from Greek into Aramaic; and in the last, which is even more excellent than the preceding, he opposed the powers of the evil one, and the devils trembled before him.

"Now it happened that he was sent from Baishan to our city Caesarea, together with his brother confessors. And at the very moment that he passed the gates of the city they brought him before the Governor: and immediately upon his first entrance the judge, whose name was Flavianus, said to him: 'It is necessary that thou shouldest sacrifice to the gods': but he replied with a loud voice, 'There is no God but one only, the Maker and Creator of all things.'

"And when the judge felt himself smitten by the blow of the martyr's words, he furnished himself with arms of another kind against the doctrine of truth, and, abandoning his former order, commanded him to sacrifice to the emperors, who were four in number; but the holy martyr of God laughed still more at this saying, and repeated the words of the greatest of poets of the Greeks [Homer], which he said that 'the rule of many is not good: let there be one ruler and one sovereign.'

"And on account of his answer, which was insulting to the emperors, he, though alive in his conduct, was delivered over to death, and forthwith the head of this blessed man was struck off, and an easy transit afforded him along the way to heaven. And this took place on the seventh day of the month Heziran, in the first year of the persecution in our days. This confessor was the first who was consummated in our city Caesarea."

Over time, Eusebius' simple account became greatly exaggerated. So many conflicting details were added that the makers of church calendars became confused and honored three different men named Procopius! His feast is on July 8.

(Source: Christianity.com)

Write to Pakistani Christian imprisoned for blasphemy

On July 1, 2009, Pakistani police arrested Imran Ghafur in Punjab province after Muslims accused him of burning pages of the Qur’an. While cleaning his brother’s retail shop, Imran removed the trash he had collected, intending to burn some of it. While burning the trash, pages of an Islamic book flew into the fire and burned. Imran’s neighbour, Haji Liaqat, saw the burned pages of the Islamic book and alerted other Muslims in the area.

“Haji Liaqat saw the burned pages, and he aggressively told all resident people and travelers that Imran burnt the pages of a Qur’an also,” a VOM contact said. “He was telling everybody that Imran Ghafur is burning the Qur’an … he should be killed.”

Imran and his father were severely beaten before police arrested Imran. Following the arrest, news of the incident spread throughout the city, and angry Muslims threw stones at the police station where Imran was being held. “Give the death sentence to him who disgraces the Holy Qur’an, and hang him who disgraces the Holy Qur’an,” the Muslims said. “Christians are dogs; Imran is a dog,” they shouted.

On July 2, 2009, Imran was moved to a jail. “The situation is very tense in Hajwari town, where the Christian families live,” the VOM contact said. “Haji Liaqat and his friends are saying that they will not allow Imran’s family to live in the colony or run their business.”

Imran and his family have been managing businesses in the area and are actively involved with other Christians in the area.

Write a letter of encouragement to Imran today, reminding him that Christians in Canada and around the world are aware of his plight and are praying for him. Please do not mention The Voice of the Martyrs in your letter or write anything negative about Pakistan’s government.

You can compile a letter to Imran in his own language online at www.PrisonerAlert.com or write to him directly at:

Imran Ghafur
Central Jail of Faisalabad
Faisalabad
Pakistan

For more information on writing letters to prisoners, please click here. To write to other Christians who are imprisoned for their faith, click here.

Orissa riot sentence 'falls short of justice'

It has been nearly two years since anti-Christian violence erupted in India's Orissa state. The attacks claimed the lives of approximately 100 Christians while dozens of church buildings and homes were destroyed (click here to read more about these attacks). 

Justice and peace remains elusive for Christians in Orissa. Many believers remain in relief camps, unable to return to their villages due to threats from militant Hindus. Others no longer have homes to return to. Churches that were destroyed in the violence remain in ruins.   

According to Union of Catholic Asian News, two men were recently convicted of culpable homicide and sentenced to six years' imprisonment for burning alive a paralytic man on August 24, 2008. The lenient punishment has disappointed local Christians, who fear such light sentences could encourage more crimes.

You can read the full report below:

A verdict of culpable homicide for two Indian men accused of killing a paralyzed Christian during anti-Christian riots in Orissa has disappointed Church people.

The lenient punishment of six years’ jail for the two would encourage more crimes, said Father Dibakar Parichha, a lawyer assisting the 2008 riot victims. “It was the gruesome killing of a man, who could not move out of his bed.”

A court on June 30 convicted Sushanta Sahu and Tukuna Sahu of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and sentenced them to six years’ jail for killing Rasananda Pradhan. It also fined them 5,000 rupees (US$111).

Pradhan, a paralytic, was burnt alive when his house was set on fire by Hindu extremists on Aug. 24, 2008, according to the prosecution.

“I am disappointed at the prosecution and investigation that has led to the judgment,” said Bishop Sarat Chandra Nayak of Berhampur.

“If there is no justice, people would lose confidence” in the legal system, the prelate said.

Pradhan’s brother Ravinder also expressed dissatisfaction over the outcome of the case as the men were not convicted for murder. “There are other accused still to be arrested and prosecuted,” he said.

A total of 831 riot cases have been registered and two fast-track courts are processing 189 cases. The courts have tried 87 cases as of June 28, acquitting 621 people and convicting only 154 people, Father Parichha said.

The seven week-long riots in the state killed 93 people, destroyed some 5,000 houses and displaced 50,000, according to Church records.

Please continue to pray for Christians in Orissa as they rebuild their lives. Pray that, in the midst of such injustice, they will have the patience to entrust true justice into the hands of God (Romans 12:17-21).  

Pakistani Christian woman faces court hearing

Asia Bibi (38), a woman arrested for blasphemy in Pakistan's Punjab province in June 2009 after she and several Muslim women had a heated discussion about Islam (click here for the story), faced another court hearing on June 22, 2010. Once again, her accusers were not present in the court. Sources are hopeful that the negligence of the witnesses will make a positive impact on Asia’s case.

Asia faces another court hearing today – Tuesday, June 29. Please join together with your friends and family and pray for this sister in Christ. Pray that the charges of blasphemy will be dropped. Pray that she will be reunited with her husband and daughters. Pray that Asia will continue to look to the Lord for her strength during this difficult time.

Please also consider sending a letter of encouragement to Asia. When writing, please do not mention The Voice of the Martyrs or criticize the government of Pakistan.

You can write Asia today at:

Asia Bibi
District Jail
Sheikhupura
Punjab
Pakistan

To compose a letter in Asia’s own language, please go to www.PrisonerAlert.com. To find out more about writing letters to prisoners, please click here.

Students receive hospital treatment following bomb attack in Iraq

On May 2, a convoy of buses carrying Christian students to the University of Mosul was targeted in a bomb attack. A roadside bomb followed by a car bomb reportedly exploded in the area of Kokjaly as the buses were clearing a checkpoint staffed by U.S., Iraqi, and Iraqi Kurdish soldiers (click here for more information).

The video below shows the students receiving treatment at a hospital immediately after the bombing. As you watch, please pray for these students and their families. Pray for peace for the Christian community in Iraq. Please be advised that the footage contains scenes of blood.

Another Christian killed by Islamists in Somalia

Millstones anyone?

Every Thursday, VOM-Canada releases The Persecution & Prayer Alert, a news and prayer digest on the persecuted Church. This week, the stories were especially difficult as the victims were children and an elderly man. How does one respond to such injustice, such brutality? (You can read the Persecution & Prayer alert here.)

Twyla Penner, a VOM Ambassador and wife of our Webmaster (Twyla also works on the site), wrote the following in response to this week's Prayer Alert. I hope it will challenge you as it challenged me to not recoil from the horror of persecution, but to draw ever closer in prayer to both its victims and perpetrators.

When The Voice of the Martyrs publishes its material, no one pretends that we're handing out warm fuzzies. The stories we have to tell are hard hitting and in your face. We make no apology for that. In fact, we strongly believe that you need to hear these stories. When there's an 11-year-old boy who is living in iron chains and subjected to starvation and harsh slavery,we believe that you need to hear about it. When that same boy is told that he'll have his freedom if he will only turn to Islam, we're driven to speak out. When a 14-year-old girl sits in horrified silence because of her rapists, we cannot remain silent.

I'm not sure how you react when you hear of things like this. I realize that your reaction might be to turn away. It's too much to take. Yes, it is. These young people agonize in torment; it is too much. Do you want to rescue them? Hold them? Pray for them? I must admit, one of my first responses is to look around for the nearest millstone -- I'd be most happy to secure one to the necks of the perpetrators and be there to push them off of a cliff into the deepest ocean. Didn't Jesus say that even that would be better for them than His judgment? I think my response is somewhat natural.

Then I have to take a step back and look at the whole context of scripture.

1. The "worse than a millstone" judgment is God's to dole out. I have no business trying to step into His shoes.

2. God offers even the abusers His unconditional forgiveness and grace. That's a hard pill to swallow. If these men turn to God, we'll be spending eternity with them, and so will the faithful kids and youth that have been so deeply scarred by them.

3. I'm called to do the same. Wait a minute! I have to offer love, forgiveness and grace? Absolutely! If you've ever been abused or watched someone you love be abused, you know that this is not only impossible in ourselves, it doesn't even seem right to forgive. Abusers deserve the millstone! Yes, they absolutely do; but quite frankly, all of us deserve God's judgment. Granted, most of us have never committed such heinous acts. We have, however, offended our Holy God and only live and breathe by His grace. Abusers can and do change. To adamantly state that they can never change is to declare that their hellish acts are greater than God. Jesus commanded us to pray for them. I swallow hard, ask for God's grace and do so.

A question that is repeatedly asked by the abused is echoed in the Psalms: "Where is God in all of this?" He's right here, in you and me. If we've accepted His free gift and allowed Him to take control of our lives, His Spirit is living in us.When we, through His Spirit, sit with the rape victim and patiently wait for her to muster the strength to talk, we are God's heart and ears to her. When we tousle the lice infested head of, and embrace the boy that knows only heartache, we become Jesus' arms to him. When we hold the hand of a child who has lost her Daddy and allow her tears to soak our own hands, it's Jesus' hands that hold hers. Taking this even further, when we look the abuser in the eye and honestly tell him or her, "Jesus loves you!" we express the grace that motivated Jesus to agonize on the cross. He's given to us the task of taking His presence to others. In that sense, will we allow God to be "right there"? Let's leave the millstones to God and get busy bringing His presence to the darkest places in people's lives.

Four Christians arrested at Arab festival in Michigan

Have you heard about the four Christians who were arrested this past Friday in Michigan? According to CBN, the Christians “were arrested June 18 and charged with disorderly conduct at the Dearborn Arab International Festival in Michigan while trying to share their faith with Muslims. The festival drew an estimated 300,000 people over three days. Authorities said they are not taking any sides and must keep the peace at a festival due to the large crowd. Christian proselytizing at the festival has been a matter of dispute for several years. The evangelists, who are free on bond, insist they only spoke with people who wanted to speak with them.”

On their blog, the arrested believers later posted: “It cannot be said that we were arrested for causing a disturbance, because we did not approach anyone, rather everyone with whom we spoke first approached us. It cannot be said that we were harassing anyone, because the moment anyone said "stop talking to me", we would stop talking to them. And it cannot be said that we were spreading hate speech, because we said virtually nothing about Islam at all. On the contrary, we repeatedly affirmed our love for all Muslims. Whenever I was asked "Why would you love me?" I said "Because Jesus loves you, and he told me to love you." No hating, no disturbing, no harassing... It remains only to be concluded that we were arrested simply for being Christian Preachers at the Arab Festival in Dearborn.”

For footage of the event and interviews with those arrested, watch the video below. And, as always, we would love to hear your comments and reactions!

Kenya: Islamic courts issue stirs strife

Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin | RLPB 060 | Wed 16 Jun 2010

Last Sunday 13 June, six people were killed and some 104 wounded when grenades were thrown into a massive Christian rally in Nairobi's Uhuru Park. The rally was organised by religious leaders who advocate that Christians vote 'NO' in the 4 August referendum on Kenya's new constitution. It included evangelism, prayer for the sick and addresses from several parliamentarians from the 'NO' camp. Whilst the rally officially ended at 6 pm, many believers lingered and continued in worship and prayer. At around 6.45pm an explosion occurred at the left rear of the gathering. Assuming it was something harmless, Pastor James Ng'ang'a, who was leading prayers at the time, called on those present to gather closer to the platform. However, as bloodied victims of the explosion were being brought forward, a grenade lobbed in from the right exploded close to the main dais. This killed some, wounded many and caused a stampede that resulted in many more injuries.

No security had been provided for the event though church leaders had requested it. Despite the explosions, police did not attend from the nearest police station just 2km away until Bishop Margaret Wanjiru drove there after an hour and requested their assistance. In highly provocative statements Professor Peter Anyang Nyong'o, Co-convener of the 'YES' campaign Secretariat, and Hussein Khalid, head of Muslims For Human Rights, insinuated that the 'NO' campaign might have bombed itself to gain sympathy.

The draft constitution includes several divisive issues, one of which is the entrenchment of Kadhi (Islamic) courts. Kenyan Muslims (8 percent) have long pushed to have Kadhi courts defined in the Constitution with national rather than just local jurisdiction. This would give Khadi courts authority equal to the State's secular courts. Christians maintain that Kenya's secularism, equity, tolerance and religious freedom will then be diminished.

On 24 May a three-judge bench declared the inclusion of Kadhi courts in the current Constitution illegal and discriminatory, prompting church leaders to petition for a recall of parliament so amendments could be made. However, former Law Society of Kenya chairman, Ahmednassir Abdullahi, charged that the constitutional court had acted outside its jurisdiction, a claim supported by Kenya's Attorney-General Amos Wako. Wako has launched an appeal that he wants heard before the 4 August referendum. Tensions are running high.

Meanwhile the 'YES' campaign is busy wielding 'hate speech' laws against those who dare speak out against the dangers they believe are posed by the draft constitution. The National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) is investigating complaints made against the Higher Education Minister William Ruto, who is spearheading the 'NO' campaign, and five other Members of Parliament. The NCIC wants them prosecuted for 'hate speech' since they opined that elements of the draft constitution could trigger bloodshed and evictions (as power is devolved from the centre to 47 self-governing ethnic counties) and 'religious warfare' (due to advancing Islamisation). The 'YES' campaign was greatly bolstered last week by the visit of US Vice President Joe Biden who publicly supported the 'YES' campaign, urging Kenyans to resist those who would use 'fear' as a 'tool' to perpetuate division. He also promised the Kenyan Government more American and foreign investment if the constitution were passed. No wonder the government is hungry for a quick, untroubled 'Yes'. In the midst of this, the Church stands as a prophetic voice of opposition. Polls taken on 4 June show the powerful, elitist-led, Muslim-backed 'YES' vote clearly in front. They will be furious if the constitution fails. It is a no-win situation for the Church.

WE PRAY SPECIFICALLY THAT GOD WILL:

* grant Kenya's Church leaders great wisdom, courage and unity as they seek what is best for their nation.

* use this trial to purify and sanctify his Church in Kenya, forging spiritual maturity and unity and a God-dependency that expresses itself in prayerfulness.

* use these difficult and darkening days to lead many Kenyans to Jesus Christ; may the Church not fear the times, knowing she will shine like a star, only brighter as darkness descends.

'For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.' (Isaiah 55:9 ESV.)

Good and foolish servants

Ask a fellow Christian to speak about the faithfulness of God and they could go on for quite a while—maybe even break into that oft-sung hymn “Great is Thy Faithfulness.” But ask them to talk about the foolishness of God and I suspect they might draw back, empty of ease and ready song. It’s not a word Christians easily ascribe to the Lord. Neither is it one most use when describing those enduring persecution for their Christian witness; we much prefer words such as brave, bold, and courageous. Yet 1 Corinthians 1:25 reminds us: “[T]he foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.” Likewise, in 1 Corinthians 1:18 we read: “[T]he message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” It is in God’s foolishness, then, that the faithful find resilience, all the while aware that their acts of costly obedience and brave trust will seem illogical, rash and even silly to those who have not yet embraced the Truth.

Yesterday I read a wonderful poem by Luci Shaw in which she celebrates this call to rely on God’s "foolishness.” Those who obey this calling can go forth in confidence, knowing that their Master will not scold them for their "stupidity", but will say to these good and faithful servants "well done."

The Foolishness of God

Perform impossibilities
or perish. Thrust out now
the unseasonal ripe figs
among your leaves. Expect
the mountain to be moved.
Hate parents, friends and all
materiality. Love every enemy.
Forgive more times than seventy-
seven. Camel-like, squeeze by
into the kingdom through
the needle's eye. All fear quell.
Hack off your hand, or else,
unbloodied, go to hell.

Thus the divine unreason.
Despairing, you may cry
with earthy logic -- How?
And I, your God, reply:
Leap from your weedy shallows.
Dive into the moving water.
Eye-less, learn to see
truly. Find in my folly your
true sanity. Then, Spirit-driven,
run on the narrow way, sure
as a child. Probe, hold
my unhealed hand, and
bloody, enter heaven.

(From Polishing the Petoskey Stone)

The Overcomers: Christian woman dies in prison in Eritrea

Is religious faith the civic oxygen of our social ecology?

The Globe and Mail recently ran an excellent article by Ray Pennings -- a senior fellow and research director of Cardus, an independent policy institute –- in which he challenges the “secular pluralism” shift of the past 40 years. The topic most certainly relates to many issues VOM encounters in discussions about religious liberty in Canada and the existence of, as Pennings states, a  “growing number of Canadians who see faith not merely as a private good, but as a public bad.” You can see by the comments posted on the Globe's site that the article has generated quite an impassioned discussion! We would love to hear your opinions as well, including your reactions to some of the sentiments and opinions shared.

Religious faith is the civic oxygen of our social ecology

The secularizing experiment of the past 40 years has been a failure

Ray Pennings

Author Marci McDonald’s latest book, The Armageddon Factor, mocked for its sky-shouting alarm about a purported Christian putsch in Canadian federal politics, has been dismissed by its harsher critics as delusional rubbish being pushed through the public square.

And yet, Ms. McDonald’s face-off with public faith deserves a second look, at least for what it says about the suspicion and hostility many Canadians harbour toward mixing religious and political belief.

The Armageddon Factor may be, as its detractors argue, anti-theist fear-mongering. Yet the book’s publisher is clearly betting it will sell to the growing number of Canadians who see faith not merely as a private good, but as a public bad.

It’s hardly a reckless wager. Whether the discussion involves Muslims, Sikhs, Jews or Christians, it has become common to express uneasiness with any public expression of truth claims that might be considered exclusive to a given faith group. Such public claims are increasingly viewed as divisive or – mortal sin of the 21st century – intolerant.

Common expression need not translate into majority belief. However, 9/11 made us all profoundly aware of private belief’s public consequences. Since Canadians are committed to equality and pluralism, the thinking goes, of necessity we need great care in dealing with all religion in public.

Even granting the virtue in prudence, it’s critical to see such neo-squeamishness about public faith as itself undesirable for several reasons.

First, it’s flatly ahistorical and utterly ignores Canada’s founding nature. Second, it risks befouling the very “civic oxygen” that religious faith provides in superabundance to Canada’s social ecology.

While it is now standard fare to hear Canadian secular nationalists imitate their American counterparts by parroting phrases about separation of church and state, Christian faith and practice were essential elements in the construction of Canada.

Confederation involved the creation of a national polity within which two separate societies, French Catholic and English Protestant, could unite. In the constitutional protection for religious education, in the social gospel movement of the early 20th century, or in the relationship of the Duplessis government to the Catholic Church, we find the broad trajectory of forces that bound otherwise disparate Canadians together.

Yet our shift to the “secular pluralism” of the past 40 years has been possible primarily because of the social contributions of those who practice religious faith. There is, demonstrably, a civic oxygen on which Canadian social ecology relies, and it is generated by the nation’s churches, synagogues and mosques.

If Canada’s institutions of faith ceased to participate in our country’s public life, it would be the civic equivalent of the clearing of the rain forest. The social ecological implications would be far more significant than many comprehend.

Statistics Canada data on charitable giving demonstrates this. For example, parsing Statscan numbers, the Canadian Centre for Philanthropy calculates that the 32 per cent of Canadians who are religiously active contribute 65 per cent of direct charitable donations. Even in the secular sector, they provide 42 per cent of the $2.1-billion raised annually by direct giving.

Such statistics do not begin to factor in the importance of the institutional church in contributing to public and social infrastructural space. Institutional religion provides significant social cohesion to cities suffering fragmentation, isolation and disintegration.

Can we, reasonably and in a democratic society, demand the members of such institutions simply perform good works, give freely and then shut up? If public, political language can only exclude God, we are not just preventing believers from speaking about their faith. We are denying them the right to speak for themselves.

That is why the paradigm presented by The Armageddon Factor cannot be taken. It is not just injurious. It is not just false. It is unsustainable.

Historical, sociological, legal and philosophical evidence all prove that that the secularizing experiment of the past 40 years has been a failure. We cannot go on attempting to shape a public square in which God is neither met nor encountered.

Pray for church leaders in Iran

Elam Ministries, an organization that serves to strengthen and expand the church in Iran and beyond, is calling for prayer for pastors and church leaders. Please take some time today to pray for Iranian church leaders and their families as they follow Christ amid difficult circumstances. 

We're encouraging believers all over the world to pray for pastors in Iran. As you can imagine, the life of a church planter is very different in Iran than it is for those in "open" countries. Three Iranian church pastors were asked why they continue to serve the Lord in Iran if they know they are likely to face suffering and persecution. Here’s how they responded:

Mehdi: “Last year was a challenging year. Four of our churches stopped all activity because the pastor and his wife were imprisoned. It is also painful when I hear my young daughter say, ‘Daddy, I don’t want to go to prison. I want to die like other people.’ At the same time we are in an exciting adventure. You would think the same if you were here and could see how God is working in such an amazing way. There is so much fruit and God is preparing this land for a huge revival. I believe in that. But it is not easy—especially for my family.”

Nassim: “God is great. Even in prison, he will protect us and never leave us. God has protected others who have been imprisoned, and because of this, people know that God is great even in the most difficult situations. We are ready to go to prison because we want to witness to the people in prison. We overcome fear because we know that God is with us.”

Kourosh: “The Lord came to my life. He changed my damaged life to a peaceful life. He healed my daughter miraculously and gave her new life and a new heart. He changed my hate to love. I told the Lord. ‘If You can use me, I don’t care where You send me—even to prison. What is important is the glory of the Lord.’”

Please pray for these church leaders and others like them faithfully serving God in Iran.

Send a message of encouragement to an Iranian church leader:

If you'd like to send a word of encouragement to an Iranian church leader, please use this form.

Let's let these brave men and women know that their Christian brothers and sisters around the world love them and are supporting them in prayer.

Maryam & Marzieh: Acquitted and free!

Fourteen months after they were arrested for their Christian faith and activities, Maryam Rostampour and Marzieh Amirizadeh have been acquitted of all charges by the Iranian judicial authorities. However, they  were warned that any future Christian activity in Iran will be seriously dealt with.

[On] Saturday May 22, 2010, they left Iran and arrived safely in another country. Sam and Lin Yeghnazar, founders of Elam Ministries and spiritual parents to Maryam and Marzieh, met them at the airport. It was a tearful reunion.

“It was very emotional when we first saw them,” said Lin Yeghnazar, “Now, we want to see them rest and recover.”

Maryam and Marzieh are eager to thank Christians who have been praying for them. “We are most grateful to everyone who prayed for us,” Marzieh said, “I have no doubt that God heard the prayers of His people.” Maryam added, “I believe our arrest, imprisonment and subsequent release were in the timing and plan of God, and it was all for His glory. But the prayers of people encouraged and sustained us throughout this ordeal.”

Both young women have shown exceptional courage, daring to tell an Islamic judge that they would never deny their faith in Christ. When Sam Yeghnazar told them their example had encouraged countless people around the world, they were quick to respond, “We are frail human beings with many weaknesses. The honour and glory go to God who has kept and used us, although we don’t know why He has chosen us. All the glory goes to Him.”

Maryam and Marzieh were arrested in March 2009 because of their Christian faith and were repeatedly placed under great pressure to recant and deny Jesus Christ. They faced repeated interrogations, weeks in solitary confinement, and unhealthy prison conditions. Both became seriously sick during their imprisonment and did not receive the treatment they needed which greatly increased their suffering. Senior judges and officials also intimidated them.

Despite this, they remained faithful to Jesus Christ and did not deny Him. After their conditional release from prison in November 2009, they have had a very trying six months waiting for their case to be heard in an Islamic court where they could have been sentenced to prison again.

“We have seen the Lord do miracles over and over again. He kept us and gave us favour in prison, and sustained us during a very difficult period of waiting for our final trial,” said Marzieh.

Maryam and Marzieh have lived through many experiences during the last fourteen months. The days ahead are not certain. However, they are determined to serve the Lord and the Iranian church. “We hope to eventually share some of what the Lord allowed us to go through to highlight the need and the opportunity for the church in Iran, but right now we will take time to pray and seek the Lord for His will,” said Maryam.

Please continue to pray for Maryam and Marzieh to fully recover and continue in fruitful ministry. (Source: Elam Ministries)

Praise God for the release of these women! We encourage you to continue to pray for believers in Iran facing persecution because of their faith in Jesus. To find out more about Iran and for guidance on how to pray for its people, please click here. If you would like to post a prayer on VOM’s Persecuted Church Prayer Wall, please click here.

The Overcomers: Christian brutally murdered in Pakistan

Christian hostages released in Yemen

For nearly a year, VOM has been following the story of six Christian hostages -- a family of five from Germany and a British engineer -- who were kidnapped along with three other women in June 2009 (click here for more information).

It is the kind of story that caused a lot of fervent prayer and concern right from the beginning. With little to no updates on the situation of these believers as months went on, it was often difficult to know how to continue to most effectively pray for them. And yet, many believers around the world persisted in prayerfully beseeching the Lord on behalf of Johannes and Sabine, their children Lydia (6), Anna (4), Simon (2), and their friend Tony.

Today, it was reported that Lydia and Anna have been released!

Needless to say, this news is a cause of rejoicing for many. It is remarkable to read that both of these young Christians are in “good health” and that there are plans to fly them home tomorrow. Praise God!

The need for prayer remains abundant, however, as young Simon is believed to have died. The status of Johannes and Sabine remains uncertain. And so we encourage you to continue to commit the situation into the hands of the Lord. Pray for guidance and comfort for Lydia and Anna. Pray that as they heal from the terrible ordeal they have endured, they will know the Lord's love in their lives. Pray for protection and health for their parents and for Tony. Pray for strength for the loved ones of these believers in these uncertain times—particularly amid the recent news regarding Simon.

The Overcomers: Christian murdered in Somalia

Petition to free Alim!

Imagine that your son has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Alimujiang Yimiti’s mother, Wushuerhan, faced this harsh reality in the summer of 2009, when her son was forced to undergo two secret trials before being charged with leaking state secrets to foreigners and condemned to the maximum prison sentence by the Xinjiang Courts.

Alimujiang Yimiti is a Uyghur Christian, who converted from Islam in 1995. He and his wife Gulinuer led a house church ministry in Kashgar, Xinjiang, spreading messages of hope and peace in a region riddled with ethnic conflict and violence. Targeted for his minority faith and ethnicity, Alim has been persecuted unjustly in what his lawyer, Dr. Li Baiguang calls “the worst case of religious persecution in the past decade.”

Authorities seized Alimujiang from his home on January 11, 2008, holding him illegally for over one year on unfounded charges of illegally spreading religion in his hometown of Kashgar. Later, the charges were changed to “divulging state secrets to foreign individuals” based on a private conversation the Uyghur Christian pastor held with an American Christian friend.

For the past two years, Wushueran and Alim’s wife, Gulinuer, have petitioned police officers, government officials, and state agencies. But the officers refused to see them, even barring Alimujiang’s lawyers from visiting him in prison. Wushueran would travel miles from her hometown to stand at the gates of Alimujiang’s detention centre, crying aloud for his release, before guards could force her to leave.

On April 20, 2010, Wushueran, Gulinuer, and Alim’s two sons saw him for the first time in over two years. Barely recognizing his father, Alim’s four-year-old boy could only stare at the strange man, separated from him by a wall of glass. Wushueran encouraged her son to be strong, and Alim in turn comforted his family, not knowing when he would see them again.

Enraged by the injustice, Wushueran and Gulinuer now urge the international community to demand Alimujiang’s release. Hear their appeal for Alimujiang Yimiti, an innocent Uyghur Christian imprisoned for his faith, by watching the movie clip below. 

Alimujiang faces a long and torturous separation from his family, simply for the colour of his skin and his profession of faith. In partnership with other concerned organizations around the world, VOM partner ChinaAid urges you to sign the petition to free Alim!

By raising our voices in petition for Alimujiang Yimiti, we the international community can build a brighter, more peaceful future for China and for the world. Add your voice to the thousands around the globe calling for justice today!

To sign the petition, learn more details on Alimujiang’s case, and discover other ways to get involved, please visit www.FreeAlim.com.

Transient: A story of Assyrian Iraqi refugees

Just days ago, three buses in a convey transporting Christian students to the University of Mosul were targeted in a bomb attack. Nearly 160 people, at least 50 of them Christian students, were injured in the blasts. Radeef Hashim Mahrook, the owner of a car repair shop, was killed as he tried to help the students.

According to AFP, thousands of Christians protested in northern Iraq on Monday. "We are not a minority, we are an authentic part of the Iraqi people," said a banner at the demonstration. "We ask the prime minister (Nuri al-Maliki) to stop the tragedy of the Christians," it added.

As a recent graduate from university myself, the bomb attack on these students especially impacted me. When I walked the short distance from my residence to my classes, I didn't fear for my life or for the lives of my loved ones. I wasn't dealing with the fact that many from my community had fled the country, leaving everything behind. As I think of the students – some of them recovering in hospital, others now possibly planning their own exit voyage from Iraq – my heart aches that they have had to endure such violence instead of attending classes, going out with friends, and looking forward in anticipation for the future.

After reading about this latest attack on the Christian community in Iraq, I again watched a short online film called Transient that features interviews with Assyrian Iraqis who have fled for Syria. In this beautiful and haunting film, the Christians share the struggles they've faced, the new lives they are trying to build, and the future they envision for themselves and their country.

For me, one of the most devastating parts in the film is when a Christian man, sitting with his wife and two daughters, explains how they will eventually move away to another country. “We'll live there, far from our home, far from our history, far from our family, far from our history of 7,000 years,” he says. “And we'll die there as strangers.”

Hear their stories in their own words. You can watch Transient here.

Nigerian president dies

Yesterday the world learned of the death of Nigeria’s president, Umaru Yar'Adua. Today, acting President Goodluck Jonathan -- who had been running the nation for months during Yar'Adua's illness -- was sworn in as president.

Those aware of the political and religious tensions in the nation, which recently culminated in horrific incidents of violence between Muslims and Christians (click here for more), have reacted to the news with much trepidation over how this sudden shift could intensify the instability. It is most certainly a time to lift up Nigeria in prayer.

• Pray that the peace of Christ will continue to fill Nigeria, bringing forth reconciliation and stability
• Pray that those in power will act justly toward all citizens
• Pray that Christians in Nigeria will demonstrate God’s love, even amid adversity
• Pray that one law, with equality for all, will govern the nation

The follow article gives an informative summary of some of the challenges Nigeria faces in light of the recent change in power:

Nigeria's shaky balance of power takes a hit as new president is sworn in

Reporting from Johannesburg, South Africa

Nigeria swore in Goodluck Jonathan as president Thursday after the death of his predecessor, sparking fears of a debilitating power struggle in the ruling party.

Politicians hailed the smooth power transfer, but the death of President Umaru Yar'Adua on Wednesday night after a long illness threw open the possibility of a fierce battle between the northerners and southerners in the ruling People's Democratic Party should Jonathan decide to run for the presidency in elections due next year.

If Jonathan contests, it would shatter an unwritten deal in the PDP, vital to Nigeria's political stability, which rotates the presidency for eight years to a leader from the mainly Christian south and eight years to someone from the mainly Muslim north.

The agreement, known as the "zoning" policy, was recently affirmed by the party and means an Islamic candidate should run as the PDP candidate because Yar'Adua, a Muslim, served less than four years.

But differences over the zoning policy between top ruling party figures underscore the divisions and unfolding battle for power.

Jonathan, a southerner who as vice president has been serving as the country's interim leader in recent months, has made no announcement on whether he intends to run. But some political figures in the ruling party and opposition said Thursday he would lose out on votes in the north, the country's larger voting constituency.

After he was sworn in Thursday, Jonathan said he took office in sad and unusual circumstances and described Yar'Adua as a man of integrity and humility. He declared a week of mourning.

Yar'Adua was due to be buried later Thursday in his northern home city of Katsina, where he presided as governor from 1999 to 2007 before taking office as president.

Yar'Adua's frequent bouts of illness undermined his presidency and prevented him from delivering on pledges to reform Nigeria, attack corruption and implement the rule of law.

He had suffered a kidney ailment since the 1990s. Last November, he flew to Saudi Arabia for medical treatment for pericarditis, inflammation of the sac around the heart. He failed to formally hand over executive powers to Jonathan and was never seen in public again.

The legislature's vote to hand executive powers to Jonathan in February was condemned by some lawyers as unconstitutional – and Yar'Adua's return soon after deepened the political crisis.

Presidential aides were accused of trying to cling to power, with Yar'Adua on his death bed. Jonathan was repeatedly prevented from meeting the president. Yar'Adua never addressed the public, and no clarity on his health was offered before Wednesday's announcement of his death.

PDP Chairman Vincent Ogbulafor said recently the presidency would remain with the north after the 2011 elections, in accordance with the zoning policy.

Nigeria, the world's eight-largest oil exporter and Africa's most populous nation with 150-million people, is almost equally divided between northern Muslims and southern Christians.

Since independence in 1960, the volatile and ethnically diverse nation has suffered chronic bouts of ill governance, whether by military or civilian rulers. Billions of dollars in oil wealth have been stolen or squandered by the corrupt political elite.

Yar'Adua was widely seen as a man of integrity and honesty. He came to office promising reform, but he lacked the political strength to counter widespread corruption.

In recent years, the country has been wracked by violence in the volatile oil-producing Niger Delta, with attacks on oil facilities and kidnappings by rebel groups demanding independence for the region. Yar'Adua, determined to increase flagging oil exports, succeeded in establishing a shaky peace in the region by introducing an amnesty for rebels, many of whom surrendered arms.

But there were other flare-ups, with renewed ethnic and religious violence in Plateau state, central Nigeria, that left hundreds dead in the last few months.

And in July last year, security forces violently crushed a rebellion in the north by an extremist Islamic group that calls itself Nigeria's Taliban. The group's leader and numerous others were apparently executed in captivity by security forces, undermining Yar'Adua's mantra of respect for the rule of law. On March 19, police were charged in the killings.

To read the rest of this report, click here

Christian human rights lawyer disappears again in China

According to a recent report from The New York Times, Gao Zhisheng has again gone missing. Gao, a Christian human rights lawyer, has faced detention and torture from authorities for defending the rights of oppressed people in China (click here to find out more).

At this time, please bring Gao to the Lord in prayer. Pray for his health and safety. Pray too for continued strength for Gao’s family. Pray that they will keep their eyes on Jesus, persevere in their faith, and not grow weary or lose heart (Hebrews 10:32-39; Hebrews 12:1-3).

Gao Zhisheng, a prominent human rights lawyer whose 13-month disappearance at the hands of Chinese security agents stirred an international outcry until he resurfaced in March, has again vanished, his friends said Friday.

Associates said Mr. Gao failed to return to a Beijing apartment on April 20 after spending more than a week in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang region in western China, where he had been visiting his father-in-law. Mr. Gao telephoned his father-in-law as his plane left Urumqi, saying he would call upon his arrival in Beijing, they said.

That appeared to be his last contact with the outside world. Li Heping, another Beijing human rights lawyer and a close friend, said he had visited Mr. Gao’s apartment repeatedly, but had not found him. “No one had been there for a while,” said Mr. Li, who last went to the apartment on Thursday. “I have no idea who to call, or who has taken him.”

Others said they were sure that the government had again removed him from public view and that the authorities’ earlier decision to allow him to resurface briefly had been a ploy to try to demonstrate to the outside world that he had not been mistreated.

“Now we understand that the freedom was arranged by the authorities just for a show,” Jiang Tianyong, a Beijing lawyer and rights activist, said by telephone. “He is missing again; he is still under their control. We must continue to pay attention to his case.”

An official of Amnesty International said Friday that the organization was “seriously concerned” for Mr. Gao’s safety.

“It’s a matter of serious concern when he loses contact with his family and friends,” the organization’s deputy director for Asia and Pacific programs, Catherine Baber, said in a telephone interview from London.

Mr. Gao, whose outspoken approach has made him a contentious figure, is one of the nation’s best-known activists. He has also been a ceaseless gadfly to Chinese authorities.

In the early 2000s he earned international attention, and the government’s enmity, for his legal work on behalf of marginalized citizens, including members of underground Christian churches and practitioners of Falun Gong, the spiritual movement that Chinese authorities say is an antigovernment cabal.

After Mr. Gao sent letters to President Hu Jintao and Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, accusing the government of persecuting Falun Gong members, he was stripped of his law license and sentenced to prison in late 2006 on charges of inciting subversion.

After being released, Mr. Gao said he had been tortured, adding that he had also been warned that discussing his torture publicly would result in his death.

China’s foreign minister, Yang Jiechi, denied those claims at a news conference in March. “There is no such thing as him being tortured,” he said.

Mr. Gao and his family were under constant surveillance and harassment after his release. Early last year his wife and two children escaped from China, eventually gaining asylum in the United States.

Mr. Gao disappeared shortly afterward. Despite pleas from the United States, the European Union and the United Nations, he was not seen again until he appeared in March at a Buddhist monastery in northern China.

In a telephone interview then with The New York Times, he said he had given up his work as a human rights defender and merely sought “to calm down and lead a quiet life.”

He refused to say whether he had suffered mistreatment while in captivity. In an April 7 interview with The Associated Press, he said simply, “I don’t have the capacity to persevere.”

But The South China Morning Post, based in Hong Kong, which first reported Mr. Gao’s disappearance on Friday, said in an article that he had been “quite outspoken” during an April 6 interview in his Beijing apartment, despite the near certainty that security agents were recording his conversation.

But the article said he had asked that details of his treatment by the authorities while in captivity not be made public. “If this is reported,” he was quoted as saying, “I’ll disappear again.”

Annual report on religious freedom in the world released

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recently announced its 2010 recommendations to Congress, the White House, and the State Department that 13 nations -- Burma, China, North Korea, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam -- be named “countries of particular concern,” or CPCs.

“Over the past few months USCIRF has visited a number of human rights ‘hot spots’ where freedom of religion is obstructed and related human rights are trampled,” said Leonard Leo, USCIRF chair.

USCIRF’s 2010 Annual Report documents serious abuses of freedom of thought, conscience, religion, and belief around the world. The report provides policy prescriptions for each nation on the CPC list.

Further, USCIRF announced that the following countries are on the 2010 USCIRF Watch List: Afghanistan, Belarus, Cuba, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Laos, Russia, Somalia, Tajikistan, Turkey, and Venezuela.

While not rising to the statutory level set forth in IRFA requiring designation as a “country of particular concern,” watch list countries require close monitoring due to the nature and extent of violations of religious freedom engaged in or tolerated by the governments.

To download the report, click here.