Christians Flee Baghdad as Gunmen Impose Sharia Law

This report was recently sent to our office by our Middle East Partners. Though the news is sobering, it gives us a glimpse into what Christians in the area are facing and what nearby believers are doing to help them.

The first-hand stories we hear continue to break our hearts. Every single Iraqi family has experienced one or more areas of persecution, murder, kidnapping, fleeing, disease, or grief, and in many cases, because of their faith. We have been involved in aiding Christian Iraqis for years, both in and outside of Iraq, but now because of the security situation in Iraq and the increased numbers of refugees, 18 months ago, the efforts shifted to assist refugees in Syria and Jordan. On a monthly basis hundreds of families in Aleppo, Damascus, and Amman are assisted with food parcels and basic medical care.

We have also started the printing of 50,000 Arabic Bibles to be provided to Iraqis in Syria. With winter approaching, and with the increased number of refugees who live under extremely difficult conditions, the situation is now alarming. Your contribution is very much needed at this time. Please talk to your church, organization, family and friends about supporting the work among Iraqi Christians. Some of the projects needing help are described below.

Christians Flee Baghdad as Gunmen Impose Sharia Law

More than 300 families have fled from the Dora District in Baghdad following the imposition of Sharia law by Islamic militants in August. The gunmen are especially targeting Christian families who are forced to convert to Islam or pay huge taxes. Men have to wear long beards and women veils, and the latter are not allowed to leave their homes without their husbands. Girls are forbidden from going to school. Relief organizations have been banned from delivering aid inside the district, leaving hundreds of people without assistance.

One Christian said his son had been kidnapped for ransom and the family was selling their home to raise the money to free him. He reported that the gunmen killed everyone in the house next door because the inhabitants refused to pay the taxes and didn’t want to convert to Islam. Government officials have been contacted about the attacks. The local police force was simply too small to take control of security in the area.

Camp Gilead

This year hundreds of children and young people gave their lives to Christ and many of them are now attending youth meetings all over Jordan. The extensive preparations, thorough leadership training and most of all the consistent prayer before and during camps made a tremendous impact! Mainly through a ministry team from Michigan, there was continuous prayer coverage during the programs. This team that was originally intended to help with various projects around the camp gracefully spent endless hours in prayer and fasting. The Gilead team has already started the 2008 planning with a clearer vision to youth evangelism and leadership training.

Bibles and Literature

Printing is underway for 50,000 Bibles for Syria. We are very excited about the opportunities the Lord is providing for literature. We have sent several shipments of Bibles and books into Iraq and the staff there has reported they are almost running out of stock. This is great news. Also, the bookshop and cafe in Amman is doing very well compared to other bookshops in the country and is able to reach out with many titles to the entire region. A book team is now in Lebanon setting up a bookshop in Beirut.

Please consider sending gifts for food, Bibles, counselor training and medical relief to help assist our Middle Eastern partners.

Hope and Opportunity Amidst Adversity

Our Christian ministry partners have been working at the forefront of Christian outreach in the Middle East for over 30 years. They are uniquely positioned to impact communities throughout the region through emergency relief work, discipleship initiatives, and leadership training programs. These ministries are playing a vital role among Christians through projects such as:

Relief and Development campaigns: Feeding poverty stricken families in Jordan, Iraq, West Bank, Lebanon and Syria, in addition to micro-enterprise projects in poor Christian villages in Jordan.

• Education: preschool programs for impoverished children
• Literature: Distribution of Christian and educational books throughout the region, including Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan
• Equipping Christian Youth Initiatives: Youth summer camps accompanied by preparatory training programs

Thousands of families have been blessed and sustained through the outreach programs of our ministry partners. Endless prayers have been answered. God has used these frontline ministries in profound and practical ways. Through our partnerships with Christian ministries, today there are amazing opportunities to do pioneer work in aiding and strengthening the Iraqi Christian community.

Christians in the Crossfire

It is clear that Iraq today is not simply wracked by political conflicts; it is profoundly a religious battleground. The sectarian violence engulfing Iraq involves not only Sunnis and Shiites; it also pits Muslim insurgents against Christians. Iraqi Christians are often viewed as part of the “Christian occupying West”, and thus blamed for the current hardships and traumas. As a result, the marginalized Christian community in Iraq faces adversity and persecution.

Yet, despite these struggles, there is a growing number of churches in Iraq. Through our ministry partners working in Iraq, we seek to strengthen and encourage these frontier churches by providing them with essential training resources. Would you like to help provide the following resources to Christians in Iraq:

Bible Commentaries for Iraqi Christian Leaders

Bible Correspondence Courses for Young Iraqis

Christian Books for Iraqi Widows

Work Among Iraqi Refugees:

The number of Iraqi Christians living in Iraq has fallen from 1.4 million in the 1980’s to less than 500,000 today. The largest host countries of Iraqi refugees are Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon. Most of these refugees have lost all assets and property and live on the margins of society, both socially and economically, with few options for employment and limited access, if any, to medical services and education for their children. They have been traumatized, lost loved ones and seen their lives shaken to the core. They ache to see God’s face in the midst of their sufferings. Our ministry partners are supporting Christian schools that have opened their doors to Iraqi refugees. Your help is needed to keep these schools running.

To contribute to any of the above mentioned programs go to our Contribute page and designate your gift there. All gifts are tax deductible.

Bibles for Syria

There is a shortage of Bibles in Syria. The difficulties between Syria and Lebanon have made Bibles less accessible in Syria. Syria has a growing church and a much higher percentage of Christians than many of the surrounding Arab countries except Lebanon. It also has a growing influx of refugees from Iraq.

There is also a growing interest in the Bible among the Kurds and other groups in Syria. Recent instability has stirred up an interest in the last days. 50,000 Bibles are needed at a cost of $5 each.

Will you help us reach this goal?