Displaying items by tag: Religion

Shopkeepers near the Togolese border were returning from a day at the market when terrorists attacked, killing more than twenty people. It is a disturbing trend. Terrorists have killed more than 5,000 people so far this year. Helen Williams of World Missionary Press (WMP) says local ministries are being cautious. ‘As far as we know and from everything I’ve heard, the ministry work continues. It may have restrictions and be a little bit more difficult, but the work goes on. WMP recently sent Scripture booklets to a ministry that goes into villages. I don’t know if that’s been restricted – going into different places. But we sent them a shipment of material in French and had reports and photos from them going home-to-home, having open-air campaigns and planting churches in one particular village. Eight million people who speak the Moore language they have just received their first shipment of that language. They are overjoyed.’

Pakistani Christians are crying silently for peace, understanding, and respect for their religious symbols. But their cries are not heard domestically or globally. Christianity has been an integral part of Pakistan's multi-religious society since its inception in 1947 when Muhammad Ali Jinnah promised equal citizenship rights. In 2023 Christians are treated as second-class citizens, discriminated against, and targets of hostility and violence. Often the blasphemy law is misused against them, further worsening their situation. A comprehensive strategy that includes improved security measures for religious minorities and educational campaigns to foster tolerance and mutual respect is needed urgently. The government needs to uphold its commitment to religious freedom and safeguard all its citizens, as enshrined in its constitution and in line with international covenants. Pray for the government to reassess its approach toward religious minorities and condemn violence and threats against them. Pray for incorporating religious tolerance and coexistence in the curricula for school and public awareness campaigns.

Some say ‘to be a Kazakh is to be a Muslim’. Most Kazakhs follow a version of Islam influenced by shamans and indigenous practices. Other Muslim countries send Muslim missionaries to Kazakhstan, successfully converting even ethnic Russians to Islam. After the Soviet Union broke up, the number of mosques grew from 46 to 2,300 in 2020. The government keeps Islam moderate and is the only Central Asian state where Islam has no special status. Pray for freedom from historic spiritual bondages. Kazakhstan's cultural and religious diversity provides many opportunities for evangelising. A number of Kazakh Uzbeks and Uyghurs are turning to Christ and taking the gospel back to their own people. Christianity is still largely an urban phenomenon, but churches and missions (Baptists, Korean groups, Western agencies) are recruiting for village ministry. Pray that the Gospel might be shared in the listeners' language, in the many towns and villages of this sprawling land.

The Iranian authorities are doubling down on policing and severely oppressing Iranian women and girls for defying the return of the morality law which insists women and girls wear headscarves in public with police patrols enforcing obedience. Social media is showing women being violently assaulted by officials and the people helping them to escape are being targeted by the police firing tear gas See At the same time, a clampdown on religious minorities also needs a prayerful response. Over 50 believers were arrested on unknown charges immediately following the reinstatement of the morality police. ‘The reason for this sudden surge in nationwide arrests of Christians is unclear at this stage,’ Article18’s advocacy director Mansour Borji says. ‘What is obvious is that Iran has begun a fresh crackdown on civil liberties, and the traditionally vulnerable groups, like Christians, are on the front line of those targeted.’

Speaking to Aid to the Church in Need, Bishop Kukah of Sokoto, who criticised previous governments’ failure to curb extremist violence and protect Christians, welcomed the new president, Bola Tinubu, and vice-president, Kashim Mustapha, despite fears over them both being Muslims. Bishop Kukah said he has known Tinubu for 20 years and has worked with Kashim Shettima. Referring to the fact that Tinubu is married to a Christian, Shettima said a man who has not Islamised his family will not Islamise Nigeria. Bishop Kukah stressed that politicians should not be assessed by their religion but by their capacity and competence and how they see justice, fairness, and equity, adding ‘Of course, I would like a Catholic president, but he would not govern Catholics, he would govern Nigeria.

Catloaf Software’s ‘Text with Jesus’ app allows users to have real-time text conversations using Artificial Intelligence (AI) with digital Mary, Joseph apostles, prophets, and Jesus. Catloaf said technology gives new ways to interact with scripture and explore faith. Another ChatGPT based app offers ‘Biblemate’ claiming it answers any question using only the Bible and theological insights. However some Christians view this technology as heretical. Minister and technologist, Chris Goswami, welcomes the tool but emphasises that it should never be seen as Spirit-filled, highlighting the limitations of AI's spiritual understanding. Meanwhile an animal advocacy group used ChatGPT to modify Genesis with a vegan perspective, replacing animals as beings and the use of plants for clothing not animal skins. Catloaf said they’re not looking to replace traditional Bible study but to offer a tool that makes Bible narratives immediate and personal.

The Diocese of St Albans has reported, ‘We have been informed of the resignation of Canon Mike Pilavachi from his employment at Soul Survivor Watford, and want to stress that a safeguarding investigation will continue in line with House of Bishops guidance. We will continue to listen to and offer support to those who come forward.’ The joint investigation is being run by the diocese  and the National Safeguarding Team, independently of Soul Survivor. The Church Times reported Matt Redman speaking of ‘harmful behaviour by church leadership’ and in Premier Christian News Matt said he spent years healing from his time at Soul Survivor. The Telegraph reported the Church’s abuse investigation as ‘toothless’, with no power to punish preachers. There are a number of current abuse scandals leaving a trail of destruction across the church.

Gatherings or expressions of prayer and worship occur daily throughout rural Britain, often focused on local ministry and needs. Quiet spaces, indoors and out, are offered for those seeking a place to be still in the presence of the Lord. Many are Christ-centred, but some mix or confuse beliefs and practices from other faiths, spirits and old pagan ways. We thank God for existing faithful prayer. Pray for greater connectedness amongst those praying and worshipping in our counties, and for regional or local clusters of believers to join together and support one another transcending traditional boundaries. Pray for a fuller, deeper revelation of the love of God and the reality of the Lord Jesus Christ as people pray. Pray for intentional prayer and worship to lift His name high and to see the spiritual climate change across our countryside, and for beacons of light and truth to be established in homes, hamlets and villages, the valleys and the hilltops, shining ever more brightly.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, uses the Bible to train its artificial intelligence (AI) speech tool. The project includes recordings of Bible stories, evangelistic messages, Scripture, and songs in more than 6,255 languages and dialects. In a sense, the Bible is helping AI learn other languages. Wycliffe USA Bible Translators have been using machine-assisted drafting for two decades, changing and modifying it as time goes on. Using technology to accelerate Bible translation is a priority. AI is notably beneficial in sign language Bible translation. Less than 2% of the world’s deaf population can access the Gospel in a known sign language, but that is about to change for deaf people in sensitive countries. Putting a deaf believer on camera is too risky in some countries. That’s where the Chameleon avatar project comes in. AI is not perfect yet, but the problems are being corrected to make the avatar smoother and more accurate.

Thousands of Coventry school children took part in a huge worship event organised by the Diocese of Coventry. Pupils from 76 schools across the diocese were invited to join four worship concerts led by iSingPOP Praise, Chip Kendall, and Shell Perris as part of ALIVE 2023. The diocese wanted the children to experience worship in a large setting having gone through the pandemic when they were unable to visit churches or have external groups visit schools. The event at Stoneleigh Park saw 9,000 children and parents attend. ALIVE 2023 gave thousands of children a chance to sing and dance, listen, laugh and learn, to be loud and be silent, and discover the fullness of life that comes from being world changers - people who have caught the vision of the sort of world of peace, kindness and justice that Jesus saw, and who decide to work with God for a better world for all.