Nov 11
1
Hello Emmaus,
I mentioned on Sunday that November 13th is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. I would like to take some time in the worship service on the 13th to lift up in prayer our brothers and sisters in Christ who are suffering in Jesus’ name throughout the world.
I would like to encourage you to do some research between now and then utilizing sites such as www.onewiththem.com and www.persecution.com. Both organizations make it their aim to bring awareness to the sufferings that Christians endure around the world because they are followers of Jesus Christ.
We need to be obedient to the command found in Hebrews 13:3 which says, “Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body.”
Below is one story taken from persecution.com. You can subscribe to their newsletter and perhaps include the persecuted church in your regular prayer time.
Blessings,
Joe
Maldives Teacher Deported
After teaching at a school in Maldives for two years, 30-year-old Indian Christian Shijo Kakkattu was deported on Oct. 14, 2011, after police found a Bible in his house, according to Compass Direct News. A co-worker reported Kakkattu to the National Administrative Center after finding Christian materials on a school computer.
According to Minivan News, an independent news agency based in Maldives, Kakkattu accidentally transferred material from his flash drive onto the school’s computer. Mohamed Shiraj, the principal of Raafainu School in Raa Atool, told Minivan News, “The videos were in Indian, so I don’t know what they were saying, but the images were Christian.”
Police raided Kakkattu’s house and discovered a Bible and other Christian materials. They then charged him with preaching the Christian faith in the Muslim nation of Maldives, which recently tightened restrictions on preaching and practicing non-Islamic faiths. Police took Kakkattu to another island for interrogation and held him for 15 days before deporting him back to India.
Last month, the Ministry of Islamic Affairs published new regulations under the Protection of Religious Unity Act of 1994. Anything that represents a religion other than Islam is strictly prohibited, according to Compass Direct News. Web sites, blogs, newspapers and magazines are forbidden from publishing anything contradictory to Islam. Violators face two to five years in prison, house arrest or banishment. As in Kakkattu’s case, foreigners accused of proselytizing will be deported.
Sources: Compass Direct News, Minivan News
