As of 7^th September, the total global figure for cases of Covid-19 stood at 606 million according to Johns Hopkins University.

In addition to this, the recorded number who have died totalled 6,506,262

67.7% of the world population has received at least one dose of a vaccine and 12.2 billion doses have been administered globally.  Only 21% of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose.  

The following table charts the worldwide 7-day average of cases over the course of the pandemic.

Data on a county by country level can be found here.  

More than 10.5 million children have lost one or both parents during the coronavirus pandemic — nearly double the previous estimates — according to new data. Southeast Asia and Africa suffered the greatest rate of losses, with one out of every 50 children affected compared with one out of 150 children in the Americas, according to the research letter published in JAMA Paediatrics.  Among the countries with the highest rates of parent and caregiver deaths are Bolivia, Peru, Namibia, Egypt, Bulgaria, South Africa, Ecuador, Eswatini, Botswana and Guyana, the analysis found. Before the pandemic, there were an estimated 140 million orphaned children worldwide.

Lead author Susan Hillis, a former CDC epidemiologist who is now at the University of Oxford, called the findings “sobering” and urged world leaders to prioritise orphaned children by providing economic, educational and mental health support.  In their letter, she and her co-authors wrote that “while billions of dollars are invested in preventing COVID-19-associated deaths, little is being done to care for children left behind.”  The consequences for children can be “devastating,” including institutionalisation, abuse, traumatic grief, mental health problems, adolescent pregnancy, poor educational outcomes, and chronic and infectious diseases, they wrote.

Only a small number of countries, including the United States, have made national commitments to addressing the effects of orphanhood associated with covid. The White House under President Biden has released a memorandum promising that affected families would be able to access support programs and “connect to resources they may need to help with their healing, health, and well-being.”

Pray:

For divine intervention and for God's name to be glorified even as each nation and government tries its best to vaccinate, prevent or control the emergence of new waves of infection. (1 Peter 4:16)

For all children whose lives have been irevesibly changed by the loss of a parent or caregiver through covid. (James 1:27)

That individuals, leaders and nations continue to focus on the needs of others rather than themselves, and that co-operation and compassion lie at the heart of the world’s response to the crisis.  (Proverbs 16:12)

We continue to release faith, hope, and love over the peoples of the world. May the Church seize this opportune time to manifest Jesus our Lord and Saviour to those who are seeking answers and purpose. 

One week into a new counter-offensive, Ukrainian forces are making gains in the south, with the ambitious goal of taking back most of the Russian-occupied region of Kherson by the end of the year.

The last week has seen the most ambitious ground assaults by the Ukrainians since the beginning of the invasion, following sustained attacks on command posts, ammunition stores, and fuel reserves far behind the front lines, according to geolocation of video and satellite imagery.

The US has observed Ukrainian forces achieve some success in attacking Russian supply lines, with the intention of cutting off and isolating Russian troops currently deployed west of the Dnipro River, according to a senior US official.

At the same time, Ukraine is considering switching off the Russian-held Zaporizhzhia power plant for safety reasons, amid fears that the diesel used to power back-up generators could run out.  The facility, the largest of its kind in Europe, is currently disconnected from the national power grid, following damage to external power lines.

Oleh Korikov, Kyiv’s top nuclear safety expert, said: “The option of switching off the station is being assessed, if conditions necessitating the station to be switched off arise.”

He added: “We could potentially reach a situation where the diesel runs out, which would cause an accident involving the damage of the active zones of the reactors, which would cause the expulsion of radioactive substances into the environment,” he said.

“This would have consequences not only for the territory of Ukraine, but also cross-border consequences,” he said.  Shutting down the plant would cause further energy shortages in Ukraine this winter.

More:   CNN, Independent, EEA

Pray: A CAFOD prayer for Ukraine

Loving God,
We pray for the people of Ukraine,
for all those suffering or afraid,
that you will be close to them and protect them.

We pray for world leaders,
for compassion, strength and wisdom to guide their choices.

We pray for the world
that in this moment of crisis,
we may reach out in solidarity
to our brothers and sisters in need.

May we walk in your ways
so that peace and justice
become a reality for the people of Ukraine
and for all the world.

Amen.

The U.S. economy is going to fall into a recession next year, according to Steve Hanke, a professor of applied economics at Johns Hopkins University, and that’s not necessarily because of higher interest rates.  “We will have a recession because we’ve had five months of zero M2 growth, money supply growth, and the Fed isn’t even looking at it,” he told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia” on Monday.

In recent months, money supply has stagnated and that’s likely to lead to an economic slowdown, Hanke warned.  “We’re going to have one whopper of a recession in 2023,” he said.  Meanwhile, inflation is going to remain high because of “unprecedented growth” in money supply in the United States, Hanke said.

Historically, there has never been “sustained inflation” that isn’t the result of excess growth in money supply and pointed out that money supply in the U.S. saw “unprecedented growth” when Covid began two years ago, he said.  “That is why we are having inflation now, and that’s why, by the way, we will continue to have inflation through 2023 going into probably 2024,” he added.

“The bottom line is we’re going to have stagflation — we’re going to have the inflation because of this excess that’s now coming into the system,” he added.  “The problem we have is that the [Fed Chair Jerome Powell] does not understand, even at this point, what the causes of inflation are and were,” Hanke said.

Powell, in his policy speech at the annual Jackson Hole economic symposium on Friday, said he views the high inflation in the U.S. as a “product of strong demand and constrained supply, and that the Fed’s tools work principally on aggregate demand.”

This fall echoes dangerous parallels to the previous economic crisis of 2008-9. Some points for prayer for the USA and the world

1. According to John Williams of shadowstats.com, if honest numbers were being used the real rate of unemployment in the United States would be over 24 percent. About half of all U.S. companies say that they will be eliminating jobs within the next 12 months.

2. According to John Williams of shadowstats.com, if the rate of inflation was still calculated the way that it was back in 1980, the real rate of inflation would be somewhere around 17 percent right now.

3. At one company, the number of Americans taking out short-term loans for groceries has nearly doubled this year.

4. One out of every five home sellers in the United States dropped their asking price last month.  This is more evidence that home prices are starting to rapidly move in a downward direction. Sales of previously owned homes were about 20 percent lower this July than they were last July. One recent survey found that 3.8 million Americans believe that they could be evicted from their homes within the next two months. 

5. According to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association, approximately 20 million U.S. households are currently behind on their utility bills. 

6. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has fallen for three weeks in a row.  We also witnessed this sort of a gradual slide just prior to the big crash of 2008. 

7. In August, a whopping 2,150 corporate executives sold off shares in their companies.  Are they trying to cash in while they still can? 

More:   Prophecy newswatch, CNBC

Pray:

Pray for God’s children to find His protection and provision as in Goshen. (Genesis 45:10)

Pray for listening ears and obedient hearts to position ourselves as God directs. (Proverbs 25:12)

Pakistan’s prime minister Shehbaz Sharif has warned of a “humongous challenge” ahead following catastrophic floods in the country that have coincided with an acute financial crisis and a deepening political conflict between the government and former leader Imran Khan.

After flood waters swept away settlements, pooled in low-lying areas and caused the country’s largest lake to overflow on Wednesday, officials said about 1,400 people had been killed and as many as 40mn, or about a fifth of the population, had been displaced.

A third of the country is under water and more than half of its 160 districts have been declared “calamity hit”.

Sherry Rehman, Pakistan’s climate change minister, has described the disaster as “the climate catastrophe of the decade” and “a super-flood to beat all”. 

The government estimates at least $10bn of destruction has been caused, with analysts saying the damage appeared to be worse than in 2010, when floods across almost one-fifth of Pakistan killed nearly 2,000 people.

UN secretary-general António Guterres is due to tour some of the worst-hit areas on Friday, in a visit that Pakistan’s leaders hope to leverage to persuade foreign donors to provide emergency funds.

“This natural disaster, this calamity, should elicit an international response — which it has not elicited so far,” said Shahnaz Wazir Ali, a former MP and minister of social welfare. “If there isn’t a reasonably substantial rescue programme, then it will be a complete disaster,” she added. “There could be food riots, instability.” 

Prices are already soaring for food and other essentials. “Onions and tomatoes are twice or four times as expensive as just a month ago, and we haven’t had fruit for months,” said Dilawar Khan, a father of seven who lives with his wife and parents in a poor area of Islamabad. “We now even have to conserve on tea.” 

Analysts have warned that unless Pakistan’s ruling elite and international donors respond urgently, the crisis could fuel political unrest and militancy in a country that has long struggled to contain both.

More:    FT

Pray:

That the entire church in Pakistan will be resourced to serve people who are suffering. (Isaiah 41:10)

For wisdom and energy for local, national and international leaders as they respond to this crisis. (James 1:5)

For provision of clean water, food and safe shelter for people who have lost their belongings, homes, livestock and livelihoods. Ask God to give them courage and strength during these challenging times. (Phil. 4:6-7)

Fighting resumed last week in northern Ethiopia’s Tigray region, ending a month’s long cease-fire and burying hopes for a peaceful resolution of the country’s civil war.

The conflict began nearly two years ago and has pitted Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s federal government against the region’s rulers, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which Addis Ababa has since designated a terrorist organization. So far, as many as half a million Ethiopians have died, and more than 1.6 million people have been displaced.

“Respect for this truce over the past five months has saved countless lives,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in response to the renewed hostilities, which began last Wednesday. He warned that “a return to active conflict would result in widespread suffering, human rights abuses, and further economic hardships.”

Both the Ethiopian government and the TPLF reported fighting between their forces but denied instigating the fighting—blaming the other party.

The Ethiopian Ministry of Defence said in a statement that its Air Force shot down a plane carrying weapons for Tigrayan rebels from neighbouring Sudan on Aug. 24. TPLF spokesperson Getachew Reda wrote in a tweet that the statement was “a blatant lie.”

Hostilities have escalated quickly since then. On Friday, UNICEF condemned an airstrike by the Ethiopian government that the organization said “hit a kindergarten, killing several children, and injuring others” in Mekelle, Tigray’s capital. Local medics say at least seven people were killed. International media cannot verify these numbers because the region remains inaccessible to journalists.

“Yet again, an escalation of violence in northern Ethiopia has caused children to pay the heaviest price,” UNICEF executive director Catherine Russell wrote in a tweet.

Meanwhile, the United Nations World Food Program (WFP) said Tigrayan authorities stole 570,000 litres of fuel from its warehouses in the region last Wednesday, jeopardizing humanitarian operations there. According to the United Nations, supplies of food, medicine, and fuel in Tigray are critically low. The organization says full-blown famine looms in Tigray as East Africa experiences its worst drought in 40 years.

“Millions will starve if we do not have fuel to deliver food,” WFP executive director David Beasley wrote in a tweet condemning the theft. Tigrayan authorities hit back with a statement claiming they had loaned more than 600,000 litres of fuel to the WFP this year.

More:   FP

Pray:

May your peace, that surpasses human understanding, be shed abroad in the hearts of all Ethiopians. (Philippians 4:6-7)

May your peace bring calm among the chaos that has unfolded in different communities throughout the nation of Ethiopia. (1 Corinthians 14:33)

God of peace, we pray too for love, kindness and compassion will lead to reconciliation and lasting peace.  (Ephesians 4:32)

Lagos, Nigeria – On July 15, Reverend Fathers Donatus Cleophas and Mark Cheitnum were in the empty rectory of Christ the King parish in Yadin Garu, a town in the Southern Kaduna area of northwest Nigeria when five armed men walked in. 

The gunmen confiscated the phones of both priests, who had stayed to celebrate mass after an ordination service in that diocese, and led them into the muddy grounds of a maize farm near the parish.  There, Cheitnum was shot dead, and his body was left in the rain, while his colleague was taken away.

“We did not have any scuffle, nothing,” Cleophas, who has since regained his freedom, told Al Jazeera. “All I can think of is because maybe Father [Mark] was wearing canvas [shoes] and he could not keep up with the pace at which we were moving.”

According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), violence against Christians targeted on the basis of their religious identity has spiked, just as political violence against civilians has generally been on the rise too.  Its data shows that attacks on Christians in the country increased by 21 percent in 2021 compared with 2020. On average, monthly attacks have also risen by over 25 percent in the last year.

In June, gunmen killed dozens at a Catholic church in Ondo, spotlighting a possibly religious undertone to the country’s insecurity. The state government blamed the ISIL-linked ISWAP (Islamic State in West Africa Province) for the incident, but the group is yet to claim responsibility.

Experts say attacks against the church are also increasingly targeting Christian leaders, as operations of armed groups nationwide assume dangerous dimensions.  Indeed, between January 2020 and July 2022, there were 99 independent attacks against Nigerian clergy, ranging from abductions to outright murder, according to ACLED’s database which compiled records from local media reports.

“The data is a very vivid reflection of what is going on in our society [with regards to] the economic hardship and the booming kidnapping for ransom industry that we see today,” said Olajumoke Ayandele, a former ACLED researcher and currently a postdoctoral research fellow at New York University’s The Centre for the Study of Africa and the African Diaspora.

More:   Aljazeera

Pray:

For the families of those who have lost loved ones to violence in Nigeria. (Psalm 34:18)

For the safety and security of Christian leaders in Nigeria.  May they remain faithful in the protection of the Lord.  (2 Thessalonians 3:3)

For the economic growth and development of Nigeria, that hardship may be overcome and replaced with growth and prosperity.

One year after the U.S. pull-out from Afghanistan, the situation inside the beleaguered nation is dire.  Todd Nettleton, the spokesman for The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM), a persecution watchdog serving Christians across the globe, told CBN’s Faithwire about the tragic conditions on the ground.

“There’s a lot of hardship in Afghanistan,” Nettleton said, explaining that the Taliban, who retook power one year ago, know little about governance. “The economy is in shambles. The Taliban are fighters; they’re not governors. And now, for the last year, they’ve had to be the governors.”

As a result, he said the entire country is suffering.  “There’s not enough food,” Nettleton said. “There’s not enough housing. There’s not enough fuel for heat. Everyone is suffering.”

“There are Christians still in Afghanistan. There are Christians in every province of Afghanistan,” Nettleton said. “Many Christians did flee a year ago with the Taliban takeover, especially those who were publicly known — those who maybe had worked with Western aid organizations or had somehow been kind of publicly identified as a follower of Christ.”

“Afghan Christians who were less well known, many of them made the incredibly bold decision to stay in Afghanistan,” Nettleton said. “They knew also what the Taliban’s theology was, they knew also what would happen if they were outed as Christians, but their attitude was, ‘Listen, if all the Christians leave the country, who’s still going to be here to share the Gospel?'”

These believers have faced considerable challenges over the past year. Nettleton shared the story of one man who had to move his family three times in the first eight months of Taliban rule. Once people started to ask questions, the family found it safer to skip to another location for safety’s sake.

While Christian persecution is nothing new in Afghanistan, it has reportedly intensified even further during Taliban rule. But Nettleton said persecution doesn’t only come at the hands of the Taliban.  “There’s always been persecution of Christians in Afghanistan. It’s not just the Taliban that will persecute you for following Christ,” he said. “It might be your father. It might be your older brother who says, ‘Listen, we are a Muslim family. By following Jesus, you have brought shame on our family. The only way we can get rid of that shame is either to get you to come back to Islam or to punish you severely.””

While noting “the persecution of Christians is continuing unabated,” Release International, a U.K.-based group monitoring Christian persecution, marked the first anniversary of the U.S. pullout by reporting, “there are early signs that the Christian faith could be growing among Afghans despite — or because — of violent persecution.”

In January, Afghanistan was designated the worst nation in the world for Christian persecution, according to Open Doors USA. The shocking development was the “biggest seismic shift” in decades, as North Korea, the reclusive and oppressive East Asian country, was bumped from the top spot it had occupied for 20 years.

“This year’s 2022 World Watch List, we think, is the biggest seismic shift in over 20 years because Afghanistan is now the No. 1 country on the World Watch List, supplanting North Korea,” Open Doors USA CEO David Curry told CBN’s Faithwire.

More:   CBN News, Faithwire, Open Doors

Pray:

That secret believers in Afghanistan will not let fear of the Taliban dictate how they live. (Matthew 5:10-12)

That God will strengthen their faith as they do their best to survive under new leaders and in the midst of an unstable economy.

Lift all Afghan girls and women up to the Lord today. Pray that opportunities to grow and thrive would not be snatched away from them. (Psalm 68:5)