barnabas november december 2012

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012

THE AID AGENCY FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH www.barnabasfund.org

IN THIS ISSUE

Salvation in Christ the Lord

Day of Prayer Intercede with Barnabas for the persecuted Church

Pakistan Bringing joy to suffering Christians

Front Cover: This Pakistani Christian woman has received support from Barnabas Fund following the fl oods of 2010-11Page 16: Source: Fergal of Claddagh, OP, Flickr.comTo guard the safety of Christians in hostile environments, names may have been changed or omitted. Thank you for your understanding.Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations are taken from the New International Version®.Every effort has been made to trace copyright holders and obtain permission for stories and images used in this publication. Barnabas Fund apologises for any errors or omissions and will be grateful for any further information regarding copyright. © Barnabas Fund 2012

The paper used in this publication comes from sustainable forests and can be 100% recycled

TThis year you can spread the messaageg aabob ut tthehe workrk oof Barnabas Fund as you blesss yyoour frieendndsand famiilyly wwith Christmas greetinggs.s We havee created Christstmam s eCards thah t can be emailed for free to your loveded ones, alongng with a pepersonalised message. There aare threee diffeerrent Chrisi tmas designs to choose frrf omom, and the cards include e a abrief message abbouo t t ouo r work alongg with a a Bibleverse.

To send the Christmas eCards to your fammilily y annddfriends, simply visit our website at www.w barnabasfund.org/christmas-carardss aannd fi ll in yoyouru details, choose the design you woouuld lil ke and supppplyly ttheh email address of the reecicippient.

Thhiss is a quuicick k and eaeasy way to o spread the wordababout supppoortingng thee ppere seecucuted ChChurch, whwhileremem mberining youru llovo ed ones this CChristmas time.

@Barnabas

Christmas eCards

2 BARNABAS AID NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012

WELCOME FROM THE DIRECTOR

December 26 is celebrated in Britain and many other countries under the rather mysterious name of “Boxing Day”. There are various theories about the origin of the name, mainly

linked to the tradition of giving gifts to servants on this day. But Boxing Day has now developed into a sport and spending spree with little connection to the events of the previous day. Instead of being a day of refl ection on the enormity of the incarnation and its implications for spiritual life, growth and development, it has become one of pleasure and indulgence.

In some Christian traditions, 26 December is called St Stephen’s Day after the fi rst Christian martyr. The Church, having rejoiced in the incarnation of our Lord Jesus, is faced at once with the cost of following Him.

Stephen was martyred on a charge of blasphemy (Acts 6:11). He used words that offended his hearers, and they silenced him by death (Acts 7:56-58). Likewise it was the accusation of blasphemy that was used to silence his Lord and condemn Him to death (Mark 14:64).

Today blasphemy is much in vogue. The past few months have seen Islamic rage across the world as Muslims have felt offended by comments about their prophet. While we totally condemn all abuse of religious leaders, the charge of “blasphemy” or “offence” should not be used to curtail freedom of speech and conscience, nor injured feelings as a reason to destroy property and lives.

Section 295-C of the Pakistan Penal Code specifi es the death penalty for defi ling the name of Muhammad, and Section 295-B prescribes life imprisonment for desecrating the Quran. Many Christians in Pakistan have suffered under this iniquitous “blasphemy law”, and rightly there are calls for its abandonment. Yet today the cry is going

up for similar laws to be enshrined not just in national law but even at the United Nations.

These laws are in no way to be equated with, for example, Britain’s essentially toothless blasphemy law. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has for years been working to pass UN resolutions to combat the “defamation of religion”. But support has been dwindling as other countries realise the alarming implications of not being able to criticise religions. So the OIC has moderated its demands, seeking now to combat “intolerance, negative stereotyping and stigmatization of, and discrimination, incitement to violence and violence against, persons based on religion or belief”.

It is of great concern, therefore, that Christian leaders are also seeking a ban on the defamation of “persons (such as prophets) … deemed holy by people of faith”. This call was made in a recent letter from an Anglican archbishop in the Middle East.

What price freedom, liberty, conscience? Are these to be sacrifi ced on the altar of hurt religious sensibilities? Recently churches have been torched and Christians killed because Muslim feelings are hurt. How can Muslim feelings be worth more than Christian lives? By its apathy, the world seems to agree that Muslim feelings are worth more than Christian lives. Was it acceptable then for the High Priest and the Sanhedrin to soothe their hurt feelings by taking the lives of Stephen and of Christ?

For Christians the offence of the cross brings with it humiliation and shame. So we rejoice and glory in our sufferings – hurt feelings, destroyed property, even death – knowing that these are for the Lord. This does not mean that Christians should not seek justice, for it is right that people should be protected under the law. But ideas are another matter.

Dr Patrick SookhdeoInternational Director

Martyred for Blasphemy

Contents

7 13 14Biblical Refl ectionCelebrating the coming of the LordIn TouchChristmas cards and gift cards

Barnabas International Day of PrayerJoin us in praying for the persecuted Church

Spotlight“I felt privileged to meet these Christians”: visiting projects in Pakistan

CampaignsHow you can help to proclaim freedom

Equipping the ChurchWhat does the Bible say about salvation?

NewsdeskPakistani Christian girl accused of blasphemy

Compassion in ActionAirlift of Christians from Sudan begins 4 11 16

8 12 18

PULL-OUT 14

3BARNABAS AID NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012

COMPASSIONIN ACTION

Barnabas Fund responded immediately after two churches in Garissa, Kenya, were attacked by suspected al-Shabaab militants in July. At least 17 people were killed and around 65 injured.

Medical items and equipment were promptly bought with the grant by a local ministry to care for the wounded. Grieving family members were helped with the burial costs of many of the victims. And food was provided for affected families.

Timely and life-saving surgery was also provided for a church elder, who had sustained gunshot and blast wounds to his chest. After the operation, a local project coordinator wrote, “The prognosis is amazing! Only Christ could have helped his situation and we truly thank you for funds that enabled us to save this one life from the terrorists’ bullets.”

“[Your support] has been a big source of help and a glimpse of hope for many who feel left alone to face the worst,” wrote a Christian partner in Syria about the difference help from Barnabas Fund is making.

Barnabas Fund is providing thousands of Syrian Christians with food, children’s milk, medicines (often for heart conditions or diabetes), personal hygiene items, money for rent and other essentials. Tens of thousands of Christians have fl ed their homes amidst violent fi ghting between government troops and opposition forces and have been left without work or income. Many have experienced targeted intimidation because of their faith. The price of many basic commodities has also risen two- or threefold since the crisis began.

Hundreds of Christians fl ed in a panic from their homes in Maherabad village, Islamabad in August, after mobs of local Muslims violently attacked them and started looting their houses following the false blasphemy accusation against Rimsha, a young teenage Christian girl with Down’s syndrome.

At night at a secret location made known only to the Christians, 300 of the displaced Christian families were given cooked meals, enough to eat for two days, through a grant from Barnabas. A few days later the same Christian families each received a food package at the same location, which gave them enough to eat for one month at a cost of £25 per family.

Prompt help for church attack victims in Kenya

A glimpse of hope for Christians in Syria

Pakistan: feeding displaced Christians following blasphemy accusation

Barnabas supplied medical items to help the injuredChristians

Proje

ct re

feren

ce

00-3

45 (V

ictim

s of V

iolen

ce F

und)

Proje

ct re

feren

ce

00-1

032

Proje

ct re

feren

ce

00-3

45 (V

ictim

s of V

iolen

ce F

und)

£7,498 for emergency feeding(US$12,103; €9,385)

£9,500 to help victims of church attack (US$15,400; €11,800)

£40,000 (latest grant) for food, medicine and other necessities(US$65,000; €50,000)

Assembling food packagesMeeting together at a secretlocation

how barnabas


COMPASSIONIN ACTION

“I was full of joy when receiving this food. We always depend upon God and He is giving us strength to stand fi rm in faith,” said Bivash, after receiving a bag full of food and medicines through Barnabas Fund in a direct answer to prayer.

He had shared with a visiting local pastor the serious problem faced by his family and had asked for prayer. Exceptionally heavy monsoon rains had made it impossible for Bivash to work the farmland, either where he was employed as a daily labourer, or his own small plot of land. Their money had run out, and he could no longer buy food for his family. The relief from Barnabas came soon after.

Bivash’s family was one of 300 Christian families, many of whom are converts from Islam, in south-eastern and north-eastern parts of Bangladesh who received rice, dal (lentils), soya bean oil, salt, sugar, antibiotics and saline for rehydration thanks to Barnabas Fund. The supplies were enough to feed them for one month.

Parents of 59 Christian children in rural, western Burma (Myanmar) were delighted to see their children embark on a year at a regular government school in June, made possible by Barnabas Fund, who paid the school fees.

The parents, who are impove rished farmers and belong to the predominantly Christian Chin minority, were extremely relieved that their children were saved from attending Buddhist monastery schools. Their children would have had to live at the monasteries, away from the family homes. Or they would have gone to free government schools for minority groups, which are used to coerce Chin children to convert to Buddhism. At these schools Christian students are prevented from practising their faith; they are frequently forced to shave their heads and wear monastic robes or beaten for failing to recite Buddhist scriptures.

A group of Christians from the Karen people in Burma (Myanmar) fl ed to Thailand to escape the Burmese army’s violent campaign. But they had to leave the land where they had built a church when the authorities refused to renew their lease.

In April they started building on a new site by transferring materials from their former building. They got as far as preparing the ground, erecting posts and putting on a roof, but they did not have the funds to complete the work.

Using a grant of £786 from Barnabas they were able to buy cheap building materials. Knowing that their church might have to be moved again when their new lease expires, they used bamboo for the walls, sand and rocks for the foundation, and cement for the fl oor. They also bought chairs and a table, and 50 Bibles for the congregation.

Prayers answered during fl oods in Bangladesh

Burma: a school year without pressure to convert

Thailand: building for a refugee congregation

Bivash with emergency food and medicines

The opening ceremony of the new church

Proje

ct re

feren

ce

00-6

34 (D

isaste

r Reli

ef Fu

nd)

Proje

ct re

feren

ce

75-1

065

Proje

ct re

feren

ce75

-763

(Aid

for pe

rsecu

ted B

urme

se C

hrist

ians)

£1,623 for school fees(US$2,620; €2,032)

Your support is making it possible for us to help Christians around the globe as they pass through particularly diffi cult times and to bring some hope to those whose suffering for their faith is part of their daily lives. Highlighted here and on the following pages are news and updates from just a small selection of the many projects we support. Please pray as you read.

£5,524 for fl ood relief(US$8,981; €6,877)

£780 for building and equipping church(US$1,270; €970)

Children in Burma about to goto school

is helping


COMPASSIONIN ACTION bringing hope,

Realising that they are not alone

Equipping a new generation of leaders

Besides supporting Bible schools, Barnabas Fund also encourages and equips Christian leaders in Central Asia through conferences and seminars. Participants at a four-day conference in Kyrgyzstan in March were greatly encouraged to discover that they are not alone in the problems they face and that many fellow-pastors are struggling with the same needs. Most of them are converts from Islam, as are the members of their small, isolated congregations. And so they face much harassment from local Muslims. Since the

conference one group of pastors from the same district, who did not know each other before, have started to meet and pray together.

In Tajikistan 60 students with a Muslim background are receiving training for two days at a time, four times a year, from experienced church planters, with the help of Barnabas Fund. The aim is to help them plant or lead churches of Muslim converts.

The coordinators of a Bible school in Central Asia recently realised that they had to change their strategy. When they started the school three years ago, they had invited all the senior Christian leaders of their country together for training. But the risk that a police raid during a class would result in all the country’s main leaders being imprisoned at the same time proved too great.

Instead, they decided to focus on equipping younger leaders so that they could take on new responsibilities if more senior leaders were arrested, a danger that is increasing each year as the government steps up its attacks and searches. Last academic year 42 students attended evening classes for three evenings a week at the school, where they received knowledge and skills that they needed for their ministries, thanks to funding from Barnabas.

During the classes someone would always be on alert to signal that a new person had entered the church in case the person was a secret agent.

The students were so eager to learn more that the organisers decided to extend the school by a month and a half. Barnabas Fund recently sent a grant to fund the 2012-2013 academic year as well.

A Bible school in Moldova, also supported by Barnabas Fund, has a vision to train the future Christian leaders of Central Asia. Many of their students come from Central Asia, and some graduates are now involved in ministry at two underground training centres founded by the Bible school. Barnabas Fund also recently sent support to a Bible school in Kyrgyzstan, where 83 students, many of them converts from Islam, are being trained.

Project reference 00-430 (Leadership Training Fund)

Bible schools:

• £10,000 in Central Asia (US$16,300; €12,400)

• £25,000 in Moldova (US$41,600; €31,100)

• £7,987 in Kyrgyzstan (US$12,897; €10,000)

Conferences:

• £2,680 in Kyrgyzstan (US$4,360; €3,330)

• £6,200 in Tajikistan (US$10,100; €7,700)

Worship during a conference in Kyrgyzstan

Students at a Bible school listen attentively to their teacher

Spotlight on Central Asia


COMPASSIONIN ACTION transforming lives

In September Barnabas Fund began a major rescue operation to airlift 2,000 of the neediest, most vulnerable

Christians stranded and endangered in Sudan to safety and a new life in South Sudan.

After a number of signifi cant obstacles were overcome, the fi rst of 12 chartered fl ights departed from Khartoum for Juba on 19 September. The rescue mission is ongoing. About two-thirds of the women are widows.

Hundreds of thousands of people of Southern origin were stripped of their citizenship of the strongly Islamic Sudan after the independence of the mainly Christian South Sudan in July 2011. Many of the Southerners living in the North had fl ed there during the long and bitter civil war in which the South was completely ravaged, its infrastructure destroyed and two million people killed.

After Sudan told them to get out of the country, Southerners began making their way home, but the poorest and most vulnerable remained trapped in a place that is increasingly hostile to their presence.

Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir has made it very clear that the Christians are not welcome. He has said that the country’s next constitution will be 100% Islamic and has promised to strengthen sharia law. When anger fl ared in Sudan over the American fi lm Innocence of Muslims, threats were made against Christians in Khartoum.

As well as facing danger, the impoverished Christians were living in dire conditions in makeshift shelters on the outskirts of Khartoum for many months, without the resources to help themselves.

But now, having been taken to safety, they are embarking on new lives in the mainly Christian South Sudan. They were welcomed at temporary reception facilities set up by the South Sudanese government in Juba before moving on to extended family connections around the country. They also received practical support from the Church in South Sudan.

The plans to evacuate the 2,000 Christian women and children were praised by the South Sudanese ambassador in Khartoum. We and our partners,

Africa Inland Church – Sudan, have worked closely with him on this challenging rescue mission.

In addition to paying for the 2,000 fl ights – at a cost of about £175 (US $283; €219) per person – we also sent a grant to help other Christians arriving, many of them on foot, at the Hai Salaam returnee camp in Malakal. This was used to provide food, cooking utensils, mosquito nets, canvas and plastic sheeting for shelters and other essential items.

Our partner in Malakal said the help was “well received with heartfelt thanksgiving and God’s name was blessed richly and lifted high for remembering them through this journey”.

Project references 48-1078 (airlift) 48-1056 (aid for returnees)

£347,000 (US $562,000; €434,000) to provide fl ights for 2,000 Christian women and children from Khartoum to Juba

£33,217 (US $53,789; €41,575) to provide essential supplies for Christians at the Malakal returnee camp

Barnabas rescue mission2,000 Christian women and children airlifted from danger in Sudan

Christian women and children helped by Barnabas to return home to South Sudan


NEWSDESK

FRAMING OF CHRISTIAN GIRL FOR BLASPHEMY HIGHLIGHTS WIDESPREAD PERSECUTION

PAKISTAN: In an incident that graphically highlights the plight of the beleaguered Christian minority in Pakistan, Rimsha Masih, a young Christian girl with Down’s syndrome, was falsely accused of blasphemy in August. Rimsha, whose age is estimated to be around 14, spent three weeks in a maximum-security jail before she was bailed on 7 September.

Rimsha, from Maherabad village, Islamabad, was originally accused on 16 August of burning pages of a copy of Noorani Quaida, a booklet used for learning the basics of the Quran. After details of the accusation were broadcast over the loudspeakers of the local mosque, Rimsha, her family and other Christians in the area were subjected to brutal violence; they were beaten and their houses were torched.

Most disturbingly, the imam of the local mosque, Qari Khalid Jadoon Chistti, even called for Rimsha to be publicly burned. Hundreds of Christians were forced to fl ee the area, as they were unable to stay in their homes or buy groceries owing to the vitriolic Muslim reaction to the case. Barnabas Fund is helping them with their practical needs.

In a dramatic twist, however, the assistant imam and two other witnesses later came forward and alleged that Chistti had planted the burnt pages in the ashes found with Rimsha. Chistti has since been arrested and was charged with blasphemy himself.

Several Muslim groups in Pakistan have come out in support of Rimsha, in an unprecedented display of solidarity. She is also the fi rst person to be given bail for blasphemy in Pakistan, but this may be because she is a minor. Rimsha’s treatment has attracted international condemnation.

This case comes as Aasia

Bibi, who was falsely accused of making derogatory remarks about Muhammad in 2009, is still in a Pakistani prison as she awaits her appeal against a death sentence. Aasia is able to see her family only on rare occasions. Two Pakistani politicians, who were prominent critics of the “blasphemy law” under which both Aasia Bibi and Rimsha Masih are charged, were assassinated last year.

Christians and other minorities

are very vulnerable to being accused under the law, which demands the death penalty for anyone who is found guilty of “defi ling the name of Muhammad” and life imprisonment for desecrating the Quran. The laws are

often misused, fuelled by prejudice against Christians and other non-Muslims. Violent attacks following such accusations are common, and

are part of a rising tide of Islamic extremism that has fuelled many incidents of unprovoked violence against non-Muslims in recent years.

Furthermore, a recent report by the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP) shows a signifi cant increase in the amount of “hate material” targeted at Christians and other religious minorities. Drawing a link to the Rimsha Masih case, the NCJP’s Peter Jacob said that such

material must be eliminated from textbooks, otherwise similar incidents would continue to happen.

Vulnerability under the “blasphemy law” is only one part of the wider climate of persecution and discrimination

endured by Christians in Pakistan. Another serious challenge is the kidnap, forced marriage and forced conversion of Christian women and

girls. An estimated 700 Pakistani Christian girls are kidnapped annually and forcibly married to their Muslim captors. The police often do little to protect Christians, whether from violent attack, sexual assault or forced marriage, and few of those responsible are brought to justice.

While the “blasphemy law” and the attacks on women and girls are the two issues that cause the greatest fear and distress, Pakistani Christians also face frequent discrimination in education and in the workplace. They are often from the lowest economic strata of society, and families can remain trapped in poverty because their members are denied employment opportunities. Christian young people face great pressures at school and – for the few who can go on to further study – also at university. This can include being failed in their exams, enduring strong pressure to convert to Islam, and occasionally even violence. Christians can fi nd that employers refuse to hire them because of their faith, and that even when they are given a job they are paid less than a Muslim doing the same job or denied promotion.

Political representation for Christians is also a major problem. Separate electorates were established for non-Muslim minorities in 1979, which diminished their political participation, and although these were later abolished, the growing infl uence of Islamist groups has ensured that Christians remain marginalised.

During emergencies in Pakistan, such as the severe flooding in 2010-11, discrimination can mean that Christians even miss out in the distribution of aid.

Please turn to pages 12-13 to read about the projects that Barnabas Fund supports in Pakistan.

An estimated 700 Pakistani Christian girls are kidnapped annually and forcibly married to their

Muslim captors. The police often do little to protect Christians, whether from violent attack, sexual assault or forced marriage, and few of

those responsible are brought to justice

Barnabas Fund is supporting Christian families who have fl edviolence in the area after Rimsha’s arrest


NEWSDESK

ISLAMISTS CALL FOR CHRISTIANS TO BE

KILLEDEGYPT: Fears for the safety of Christians in Egypt have intensifi ed as President Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood begins to assert

his authority. Jihadi organisations have distributed leafl ets calling on “all brothers and sisters” to “kill or physically attack the enemies of the religion of Allah – the Christians in all of Egypt’s provinces”. A monetary reward was offered for those who obeyed. There have also been calls from Islamists for state monitoring of church fi nances.

These calls come as President Morsi has gone back on promises of an inclusive administration. On 12 August, he seized full executive

and legislative control, limiting the power of his opponents. Morsi has since been removing rivals to his power, installing Islamists in several

prominent positions, and silencing media critics by replacing editors of major state-owned newspapers and taking TV channels off the air.

A new report, by an Egyptian Christian human rights activist and a professor from George Washington University, has also found that Christian women in Egypt are more vulnerable since the Arab Spring uprising to kidnap, forced conversion and forced marriage.

CHRISTIANS CONTINUE TO SUFFER IN SYRIA CONFLICT

SYRIA: The humanitarian crisis facing the large but vulnerable Christian minority in Syria continues, as several predominantly Christian areas have come under attack.

On 28 August a car bomb targeted a funeral procession in Jaramana, a suburb of Damascus mainly inhabited by Christians and Druze. At least twelve people, fi ve of whom were children, were killed and around 50 were injured in this attack, which Syrian state media has attributed to “terrorists”. Many Iraqi Christian refugees live in Jaramana.

In a particularly sustained and

targeted assault, 12,000 people in the predominantly Christian town of Rableh were under a blockade for two weeks. Snipers from anti-government forces shot down anyone who tried to leave, killing three men, and residents suffered from a shortage of food and medical supplies. A predominantly Christian area of Aleppo was also hit by heavy fi ghting in early August, and churches joined forces in a united relief effort.

Christians are particularly at risk during the civil war as the opposition forces, and the militant groups that back them, believe them to be

government supporters. Since the confl ict began, tens of thousands of Christians in Syria have lost their homes and been driven out of their cities, leaving them without basic supplies. Barnabas Fund is helping displaced Christian families within Syria and in other countries with food, medicine, money for rent and other essentials.

If the confl ict leads to an Islamist takeover, the violence against Christians is likely to intensify. Many believe that they have no alternative but to fl ee their homeland.

CHRISTIANS KILLED AS BOKO HARAM CONTINUES WAR

NIGERIA: In the latest in a continuing series of violent incidents targeting Christians, at least 20 people were killed in a gun attack on a church in Kogi state on 6 August. On the same day, an evangelist was shot dead in Borno state. Although no-one has yet claimed responsibility for these attacks, the Islamist group Boko Haram has previously carried out many acts of violence against Christians and other targets in their campaign to create an Islamist state in Northern Nigeria. The murdered evangelist, Ali Samari, had been warned previously by Boko Haram militants to leave his property.

The Kogi attack targeted Deeper Life Church in Otite, in the Okene region. A group of gunmen stormed an evening service, blocking the exits and opening fi re on those trapped inside. Fifteen people died at the scene and fi ve subsequently in hospital, while many were wounded. Kogi state, in the country’s Middle Belt, is more

southerly than the locations of most previous Boko Haram attacks. This raises fears that their campaign may soon spread into the predominantly Christian South.

Although some Islamic leaders in Nigeria have urged Boko Haram to cease their violent activities, measures by the Nigerian authorities have as yet been unsuccessful in curbing them. The reluctance of the US State Department to designate Boko Haram as a foreign terrorist group has also compounded fears that the attacks will not be effectively counteracted. Barnabas Fund and the Westminster Institute sponsored the recent visit of Nigerian Archbishop Nicholas Dikeriehi Okoh, the Primate of the Church of Nigeria, to Washington D.C. During this visit he challenged the US policy on Nigeria, which considers that Boko Haram is motivated by poverty and marginalisation rather than by the religious motives that Boko Haram themselves have often declared.

“all brothers and sisters…kill or physically attack the enemies of the religion of Allah– the Christians in all of Egypt’s provinces”

This church orphanagebuilding in Homs has beenbadly damaged by the violence


per month helps to support a displaced, persecuted family in Syria

per month can provide milk powder for a child in Syria

How you can helpBarnabas Fund works through local churches to provide food parcels to Christians in need. Between June 2011 and June 2012 we helped feed 60,000 Christians in long-term projects.

For example: Food parcels from Barnabas give 1,177 Christian families in Pakistan enough to eat every day. Robin Masih, whose family had to fl ee their home because of the violence following Rimsha Masih’s arrest, said “Being a Christian it is our faith that Jesus Christ is our Provider. Yes, it has been proved that He is our Provider! We are thankful to Barnabas Fund.”

Feed a Christian Family“Give us today our daily bread” (Matthew 6:11)

Millions of Christians who suffer pressure and persecution go to bed hungry

every night. These brothers and sisters live with food shortages to a degree that most of us cannot even imagine. In many parts of the world, discrimination, violence and displacement trap Christians in crushing cycles of hunger and debt.

Long-standing discrimination can keep Christian families in poverty. In countries such as Pakistan and Egypt, Christians may be denied the exam result or job that could lift their family out of hunger. Even when they are hired, Christians are often paid less than a Muslim doing the same job and may be denied promotion. This can lead to a vicious cycle in which children cannot go to school because their families are poor, and their lack of education then leaves the next generation stuck in poverty.

Hunger can also be a result of having to fl ee from violence. In the last two decades hundreds of thousands of Iraqi Christians have fl ed to Syria, Jordan and Lebanon due to increasing anti-Christian

aggression in their own country. Unable to get jobs, once their savings run out, many cannot afford to buy enough food for their families. Then this year, as Syria too has descended into chaos and civil war, tens of thousands of Syrian Christians have been displaced from their homes and are in urgent need of food and other basics.

The lives of very poor Christians are extremely precarious. If the breadwinner in a Christian family is killed or imprisoned, or has to go into hiding, their family can go hungry as a result.

For example, Pakistan’s “blasphemy law” is often used against Christians. If a Christian is arrested for blasphemy, there are often threats or violent attacks against their family or the whole of their local Christian community. Barnabas is helping the families of Aasia Bibi and Rimsha Masih, who were both arrested under this law. Aasia’s family has had to go into hiding, and Rimsha’s Christian community has been driven from their village. Having lost their incomes, they are at risk of going hungry. Barnabas is supporting them with food parcels.

Global food crisis Around 925 million people worldwide do not get enough to eat. With the recent sharp rise in food prices, this fi gure could increase further.

Experts fear the possibility of another food crisis similar to that of 2007-2008, which saw a record increase in the global number of hungry people. The current price rise was caused by droughts in

both the American midwest and Eastern Europe, which have led to a dramatic increase in grain prices. The World Bank estimates that global food prices jumped by 10% in July 2012. A statement by three UN food agencies, released on 4 September, called for an immediate response, saying:

“We need to act urgently to make sure that these price shocks do not

turn into a catastrophe hurting tens of millions.”

People in poor, food-importing countries will be the hardest hit, and this is not a temporary issue. Food price spikes are a symptom of an underlying vulnerability caused by weather, population increase and the fact that only a few nations are large producers of food staples.

BarBarBarBarBarBarnabnabnabnabnabnabas as asas asas isisisi helhelhe pinping SSaimimma MMasaaaasias h and her familmilmilmilmily, y, y, y,y, whowhowhowhowho wewewewew re displaced frofrofrooom tm tm tmm m heiheiheiheiheiheir hr hr r hr hr homeomeomeo as a a resultu ofofof aaana ti-Christian viviviviviv oleoleoleoleoleencencencencencec ininininin IsIsIsIsIslalamlala abad

Barnabas supports long-term feeding programmes in:• Burma

(Myanmar)• Egypt• Holy Land• Iraq• Kenya• Pakistan• South Sudan• Zimbabwe

per month helps a needy family in Pakistan with nutritious food

Can you help us to feed a Christian family? Either a one-off or a regular gift of whatever you can afford will make a real difference to hungry Christian families.

Barnabas is also helping Christian families in Syria who are suffering in the violent confl ict there.


FEEDING APPEAL

EQUIPPING THE CHURCH

Introduction

“W hat must I do to be saved?” The question of the Philippian jailer to Paul and Silas (Acts 16:30) is one of the most important that

anyone can ask. It presupposes three fundamental claims about our human condition: that there is something from which we need to be saved, that we need someone else to save us, and that there is something we must do in order to be saved. Much of the Bible, especially the New Testament (NT), is devoted to expounding these statements.

The Christian view of salvation marks Christianity off sharply from other religions and philosophies. Some of these would not even pose the jailer’s question, because they deny all three of the statements above. Others would frame the question differently, perhaps asking instead how we can be enlightened or what we must do to save ourselves. Still others would ask the same question but give very dif-ferent answers to it.

For example, Islam affi rms that people need salva-tion from the judgment of Allah, and that in order to obtain that salvation they must fulfi l certain obligations laid down by Allah. But although these general assertions refl ect a superfi cial similarity between Christianity and Islam, when we look beyond them to Islam’s more specifi c teachings, major differences rapidly emerge. Moreover, Islam cannot accept that we can or need to be saved by someone else, but believes that we must save ourselves. Thus the Muslim and Christian doctrines of salvation prove on inspection to be vastly different.

In this article we shall look briefl y at key elements of NT teaching on salvation, organised in three broad areas: What are we saved from (and for)? Whom are we saved by? And what must we do to be saved? We will then con-trast this with Islamic doctrine to identify the key points of difference, which must be borne in mind when sharing our faith with Muslims.

We begin, however, with some general comments about the language of “salvation” in the NT.

Salvation in the BibleIn the language and time of the NT the various terms

relating to deliverance (“save”, “saving”, “salvation”, “Sav-iour”) often appear in secular contexts. Sometimes to “save” someone is to rescue them from life-threatening danger and bring them into a state of safety and well-being. Elsewhere

“salvation” is a synonym for healing, denoting the means or process by which a sick person is made healthy again, or their resulting state of health and wholeness. It commonly refers to the benefi ts brought by a human ruler, and in NT times specifi cally to those provided by the Roman emperor.

But the vocabulary of salvation was of course also used to refer to deliverance brought about by gods, or in

the Old Testament (OT) by God. This theological usage incorporates the two ordinary senses of the word men-tioned above, namely rescue and restoration; divine sal-vation includes both the releasing of people from danger and the repair or renewal of their health and life. But it extends the idea of well-being and wholeness to embrace the whole person, and it is sometimes associated with the life of heaven or the life of the age to come. It comes from the heavenly and supreme ruler/s of the universe, and in the OT from God Himself.

Our discussion of salvation in the NT will focus particularly on Paul, in whose writings this language is most concentrated, and on the fi rst three (Synoptic) Gos-pels and Acts, where it is generally less dominant but more varied. Additional perspectives will be provided from other NT writings.

What are we saved from (and for)?For Paul the terms relating to salvation almost al-

ways refer to God’s action in Christ to rescue people from sin and its destructive consequences, and the benefi cial results of this. In other words, he uses them as general descriptions of the blessings brought to human beings by the Gospel (Romans 1:16).

Salvation has both negative and positive aspects for Paul. Negatively it involves deliverance from God’s con-demnation and wrath at the fi nal judgment (1 Thessalonians 1:10; cp. Romans 8:1), and from the power of evil in the present through the gift of the Spirit (Ephesians 1:13; cp. Romans 8:4). Positively it includes being conformed to the image of God’s Son in His resurrection (Romans 8:29; Philippians 3:21) and entry into the heavenly kingdom of Christ (Colossians 1:13; 2 Timothy 4:18). In 1 Corinthians 1:18 “being saved” is contrasted with “perishing”; it is a process of escaping from death into life.

Salvation also has past, present and future dimen-sions for Paul. In one sense it is something that has al-ready been accomplished for us when we became believ-ers (Romans 8:24; Ephesians 2:4-7). In another sense it is a continuing process, to be experienced in the present (1 Corinthians 1:18; 2 Corinthians 6:2). And in still another sense it is a future event to be enjoyed when Christ appears (1 Thessalonians 5:8-9, cp. 1:10; Philippians 3:20), some-thing that is nearer to us now than when we fi rst believed (Romans 13:11).

In the Synoptic Gospels the language of salvation also refers to the benefi ts received through the Gospel. Jesus announces the good news of the kingdom of God, which involves the defeat of Satan and his rule; so salva-tion is the deliverance of those held captive by Satan from all the forms of evil in which he binds them.

We continue our series on key teachings of the Christian faith by looking in this issue at the doctrine of salvation.We continue our series on key teachings of the Christian faith by looking in this issue at the doctrine of salvation.on.tiovatsalvof sotheat te asueisss i e oinectrioce dooky loby th baitfa isthiin tng ikinhe f ths ofgshinch n ianisthriChs oieserir seouro aceay tekeyn kWeW e nuentinone co

What does the Bible say about salvation?

IBARNABAS AID NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012



The Synoptics echo Paul’s emphasis on deliverance from sin and entry into the kingdom of God. Jesus’ mission is to save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21), and salvation includes the forgiveness of sins (Matthew 26:28; Luke 1:77; cp. Acts 10:43). Jesus and His disciples equate entry to the kingdom with being saved (Mark 10:23-26). Salvation also brings light and peace to its recipients (Luke 1:78-79) and involves a new way of life in fellowship with Jesus (Luke 19:1-10) and in the service of God (Luke 1:74).

The other senses of salvation – rescue and restora-tion – are much more common in the Synoptics and Acts than they are in Paul. The language is used for deliverance from various kinds of danger, including physical peril (Acts 27:34), enemies (Luke 1:74), Sa-tan (Matthew 6:13) and death (Matthew 27:43). It also refers to healing, in the wide sense of pro-moting physical life and health: whether curing of disease or in-fi rmity (Acts 4:9-10), release from demonic oppression (Luke 8:36), restoration to community life (Luke 17:11-19), or raising from death (Luke 8:50).

But these dimensions of salvation are not seen by the Gospel writers as something distinct from or subsidi-ary to Jesus’ work of saving people from sin. Rescue from danger and restoration of wholeness are part of the salva-tion that He has come to bring, and Jesus’ acts of healing and deliverance symbolise a saving process that involves the whole person (“Your faith has saved you,” Luke 7:50, emphasis added).

Again like Paul, the Synoptics and Acts speak of salvation as something that is both future and present. On the one hand it is associated with the fi nal judgment and the renewal of all things (Matthew 19:25-29) and is realised (for some disciples at least) on the far side of death (Mat-thew 10:21-22). But on the other hand, although it belongs to the last days (Acts 2:17, 21), these days are already here (Acts 2:32-33), such that people can be saved in their own generation (Acts 2:40) and today (Luke 19:9).

The rest of the NT refl ects the same perspectives with only differences of emphasis. Eternal salvation from sin and judgment remains primary (Hebrews 5:9; James 5:19-20; 1 Peter 4:18), although its positive aspect is de-scribed in various ways, including eternal life (John 3:16-17) and sharing in the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4). Occasion-ally the words can also refer to rescue (Jude 5) or healing (James 5:15), though here too these references are inte-grated within the wider view. Most of the writings place salvation mainly in the future (Hebrews 9:28; 1 Peter 1:5; 2 Peter 3:15, Revelation 19:1), whereas John emphasises its present reality (John 5:24).

Whom are we saved by?For Paul both God and Christ are the agents of salva-

tion; indeed, in the Pastoral Epistles each is given the title of “Saviour” (1 Timothy 1:1; 2 Timothy 1:10). Salvation is by God’s grace (Ephesians 2:8) and mercy (Titus 3:5), which means that He takes the initiative to accomplish it. But it is also received through and in Christ (1 Thessalo-nians 5:9; 2 Timothy 2:10), and specifi cally through His death and resurrection (Romans 5:9-10). The salvation of

sinners is said to be His purpose in coming into the world (1 Timothy 1:15), and He will bring it to completion at His coming again (Philippians 3:20-21).

God puts salvation into action through His call (2 Timothy 1:9), which He issues through the preaching of the Gospel message (1 Corinthians 15:1-2; Ephesians 1:13). This in turn is supported and made effective by the min-istry and lifestyle, and even the sufferings, of those who proclaim it (Romans 11:14; 1 Corinthians 10:31-33; 2 Cor-inthians 1:6). Salvation is achieved progressively through the Scriptures and Christian teaching (2 Timothy 3:15; 1 Timothy 4:16).

In the Synoptic Gospels and Acts the role of Sav-iour is again ascribed to both God and Christ. God is the Saviour of His people (Luke 1:47), and He acts in might to fulfi l His cove-nant promise of salvation for them (Luke 1:51-55). Indeed, only His

sovereign power is able to save (Mark 10:26-27). But God’s saving intervention is made in the coming of the Messiah and Lord who exercises God’s own function as Saviour on His behalf (Luke 2:11; Acts 5:31).

Jesus thus brings the salvation that God has pre-pared for all peoples (Luke 2:30-32). His mission is to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10) and sinners (Luke 19:7; cp. Matthew 9:13). Salvation is effected through His death (Matthew 26:28) and resurrection (Acts 13:26, 37-39). The book of Acts says explicitly that salvation is found in no-one else, because there is no other name by which to be saved (Acts 4:12).

The rest of the NT explicitly affi rms many of these claims. God is the Saviour (James 4:12; Jude 25), and so also is Jesus (John 4:42; 2 Peter 1:1); the book of Revelation attributes salvation interchangeably to God and to the Lamb (Revelation 7:10; 12:10; 19:1). Jesus is sent by the Father with the specifi c mission of saving the world (1 John 4:14). Salvation is accomplished through his death as an atoning sacrifi ce (1 John 4:10; cp. 1 Peter 2:24) and also through His resurrection (1 Peter 3:21; cp. 1:3). It is administered through the Gospel message (Hebrews 2:3; 1 Peter 1:12, 23) and nourished by preaching and teaching (1 Peter 2:2).

The letter to the Hebrews provides some especially rich refl ections on the role of Christ as Saviour, using some terms and concepts scarcely used elsewhere in the NT. Thus Christ is presented as the author and source of salvation (Hebrews 2:10; 5:9). His saving death (Hebrews 9:28a) is effective because He is the great high priest who of-fers Himself as a perfect sacrifi ce for sin (Hebrews 8:1-2; 10:11-18). As the risen one He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He is always alive to pray for them (Hebrews 7:25). And He will come a second time for the salvation of those who wait for Him (Hebrews 9:28b).

It is important to note that by referring to both God and Christ as “Saviour” the NT writers were posing an indirect challenge to the claims of the contemporary Ro-man emperors to be the saviours of the world. Rescue from danger, restoration to wholeness, deliverance from human evil and all its harmful consequences: all these could be derived ultimately and perfectly not from the emperor or

Jesus thus brings the salvation that God has prepared for all peoples. His mission is to seek and save the

lost and sinners

II BARNABAS AID NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012



any other human ruler, but only from God in Christ. The emperor might style himself as a god, but his claim to pro-vide salvation was still empty, as no object of worship apart from the one true God and His Son Jesus Christ could save.

What must we do to be saved?The letters of Paul indicate that God’s salvation is

intended for and available to all people (1 Timothy 2:4; Titus 2:11). At the heart of Paul’s understanding of the Gospel of Christ is that salvation is for Jew and Gentile alike (Romans 11:25-26), and is provided to them on the same terms (Romans 1:16-17; cp. 3:22, 29-30). However, this salvation is not actually obtained by everyone (Romans 9:27); a human response is needed to the call of God in the Gospel.

Romans 1:16-17 is a key-note statement of Paul’s view of the Gospel. Here he declares that the Good News of Jesus Christ is the power of God for salvation to all who believe, fi rst to the Jew and also to the Greek (or Gentile). Through the Gospel God saves everyone who has faith, without making any distinction based on religious, ethnic or social background. The message has this power to save believers because in it God’s righteousness is revealed – His faithfulness to His covenant promises – and because that righteousness is ef-fective only through faith (“by faith from fi rst to last”, NIV). Later in Romans, quoting the prophet Joel, Paul defi nes this faith as calling on the name of the Lord (Romans 10:13), probably a dual reference to God and to Christ.

Yet despite his strong emphasis on faith as the means of being saved, Paul can also call upon his readers to work out their salvation in fear and trembling, because God is at work in them to will and to do what is pleasing to Him (Philippians 2:12-13). Elsewhere he ascribes the blessings of salvation to those who do what is good (Romans 2:9-10) and suggests that these can also be forfeited (1 Corinthians 9:24-27). Salvation is indeed by faith, but by faith working through love (Galatians 5:6).

In the Synoptic Gospels the salvation brought by Jesus is offered mainly to Israel (Luke 1:68-69; Matthew 10:5-6). But He notably crosses the boundaries laid down within Israel between the righteous and sinners, in order to extend God’s salvation to the latter (Luke 7:50, cp. v. 39; Mark 2:17). And even before His death and resurrection there are hints and foreshadowings of the inclusion of non-Jews as well (Luke 2:31-32; 17:16-19). The commission-ing of the disciples by the risen Lord in both Matthew and Luke includes references to “all nations” (Matthew 28:19; Luke 24:47), and in Acts the Church’s mission is associated explicitly with the sending of salvation to both Israel (Acts 13:26) and the Gentiles / end of the earth (Acts 13:46-47).

The Gospels and Acts confi rm Paul’s assertion that salvation is by grace (Acts 15:11) and through faith (Mark 10:52; Luke 8:48). The faith that is effective for salvation involves recognising Jesus as the agent of God who is able to save (Mark 5:27-28, 34; Luke 17:11-19; cp. Matthew 8:8-10). In Acts, as in Paul, it amounts to calling on the name of the Lord (Acts 2:21) and also to believing in the Lord Jesus (Acts 16:31) in response to the Gospel message that brings salvation (Acts 11:14).

But again as in Paul, the Gospel writers indicate that one’s possession of salvation has to be confi rmed by one’s lifestyle and continuing commitment to the Lord. Follow-ing Peter’s confession of faith in Him, Jesus declares that it is those who say no to self, who relinquish the things of this life and even life itself for Him, and who associate themselves with Him even to the point of death, who will be saved (Mark 8:34-38, esp. v. 35). And His announcement that salvation has come to the house of Zacchaeus is made in response to the tax collector’s undertaking to give half his possessions to the poor and make multiple restitution for money he has defrauded (Luke 19:8-10).

The rest of the NT affi rms many of the above points, though generally more briefl y or only in passing. In John’s

Gospel the universal offer of sal-vation is emphasised: salvation is from (and for) the Jews (John 4:22), but Jesus is also the Saviour of the world, including those be-

lieved by the Jews to be excluded from God’s favour (John 4:42; cp. 4:9). The general letters affi rm that salvation is by faith (1 Peter 1:9; cp. Hebrews 10:39), but they also associate it with baptism (1 Peter 3:20-21) and sanctifi ca-tion (2 Peter 3:14-15), suggesting again that saving faith is expressed in action. This idea is confi rmed by James’ blunt insistence that faith is unable to save in the absence of deeds (James 2:14ff.).

Salvation and Christian missionThe above overview of NT teaching enables us to

identify the many differences between the Christian view of salvation and those of other religious groups and philo-sophical schools. For example, the NT emphasis on being saved from sin and judgment contrasts with the Buddhist claim that the greatest human need is for enlightenment from ignorance. The NT’s locating of salvation in the fu-ture and heavenly kingdom of God is very different from the Hindu idea of multiple reincarnations within this age and world. And the NT acknowledgment of our depend-ence upon God and Christ for salvation stands against the humanist view that all human ills must (and perhaps can) be cured by humans alone.

Islam strongly affi rms two of the three statements with which we began: that there is something from which we need to be saved, and that there is something we must do in order to be saved. But the Muslim understanding of both of these statements is very different from the NT one, and Islam denies that we need someone else to save us.

What are we saved from (and for)?In Islam salvation is understood entirely in terms

of deliverance at the fi nal judgment, a deliverance that involves both escaping the torments of hell and admission to the pleasures of paradise. The Day of Judgment is one of the six Muslim articles of faith, and Muslims believe that on this day the eternal destinies – salvation or hell – of all people will be determined by Allah (Q 23:102-103).

But the Muslim idea of deliverance from fi nal judg-ment is limited by comparison with that of the NT. The positive aspect of future salvation described in the Quran – heaven as essentially a place of sensuous delights (Q 56:11-

The Good News of Jesus Christ is the power of God for salvation to

all who believe

IIIBARNABAS AID NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012

UK9 Priory Row, Coventry CV1 5EXTelephone 024 7623 1923Fax 024 7683 4718

From outside the UKTelephone +44 24 7623 1923Fax +44 24 7683 4718Email [email protected]

Registered Charity Number 1092935Company Registered in England Number 4029536

New ZealandPO Box 27 6018, Manukau City, Auckland, 2241 Telephone (09) 280 4385 or 0800 008 805Email offi [email protected]

AustraliaPO Box 3527Loganholme QLD 4129Telephone (07) 3806 1076 or 1300 365799Fax (07) 3806 4076Email [email protected]

JerseyLe Jardin, La Rue A Don, Grouville, Jersey, Channel Islands JE3 9GBTelephone 700600 Fax 700601Email [email protected]

USA6731 Curran St, McLean, VA 22101Telephone (703) 288-1681 or toll-free 1-866-936-2525Fax (703) 288-1682Email [email protected]

International HeadquartersThe Old Rectory, River Street, Pewsey, Wiltshire SN9 5DB, UK Telephone 01672 564938 Fax 01672 565030

From outside UKTelephone +44 1672 564938Fax +44 1672 565030Email [email protected]

BARNABAS FUND HOPE AND AID FOR THE PERSECUTED CHURCH


www.barnabasfund.org


38; 88:8-16) – lacks any sense of our being conformed to the divine nature and character, which Islam’s insistence on the absolute uniqueness of Allah is unable to accommo-date. Moreover, there is no present (or past) dimension to the Muslim doctrine of salvation. We are not set free from the power and effects of sin here and now, through the gift and working of the Holy Spirit; the idea of present rescue or restoration from evil is noticeably absent.

Another sharp distinction between Christian and Islamic teaching on the nature of salvation lies in the im-portance attached to forgiveness. There is very little in the Quran about forgiveness, and it is not guaranteed to anyone. This uncertainty refl ects the Muslim view of Allah’s role in salvation and of how salvation is received (see below).

Whom are we saved by?Islam has no concept of grace. It does affi rm a role

for Allah in salvation, but this is essentially that of revealing his commands to the prophets and supremely to Muham-mad; aside from this he takes no initiative to save people. Nor does he need to do so, because Islam denies the need for any divine act of redemption and reconciliation such as the death and resurrection of Christ.

Because Islam denies that Jesus is the Son of God or one of the persons of a divine Trinity, it gives Him no role in salvation except that of a prophet, whose role was to teach people to submit to Allah. It denies not only the saving power of His death, but even that He was crucifi ed at all (Q 4:156-158); Muslims believe that Allah would not allow one of his prophets to die a shameful death.

On the Muslim view, Allah is absolutely sovereign and omnipotent, and does whatever he pleases. So although Islam lays down a particular way to salvation (see below), assurance of obtaining it is impossible for anyone except martyrs, as no one can predict what Allah may choose to do: he forgives whom he pleases and punishes whom he pleases (Q 2:284). Furthermore, many Islamic traditions teach a strong version of predestination in which Allah guides whom he wills and leaves others to stray (Q 35:8). These ideas are far removed from the NT picture of a gra-cious and faithful Saviour God, who initiates, effects and completes the salvation of His people in Christ.

What must we do to be saved?Salvation in Islam is obtained through the perfor-

mance of good works and religious rituals. The Quran and hadiths (traditions about Muhammad and his earliest followers) prescribe fi ve obligatory duties for Muslims to perform: confession of faith, prayer, fasting, almsgiving

and pilgrimage to Mecca. There are other duties that a good Muslim is expected to carry out, and also a range of forbidden actions.

On the Day of Judgment good and bad deeds will be weighed in the divine scales. Those whose good deeds outweigh their bad ones will enter paradise, though most will have to spend some time in hell fi rst as punishment for their sins. Those whose bad deeds are heavier will be con-signed to hell for ever. No-one can tell if their good deeds will be greater than their bad, or how Allah will make the assessment (see above).

It is too simple to say that the NT teaches salvation by faith alone while Islam offers salvation only by works. We have seen above how the NT writers affi rm that saving faith is faith that works itself out in love and good deeds; and Islam also requires something it calls “faith”, defi ned as “confession with the tongue and belief with the heart”. But this confession is of the Muslim creed, that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is his prophet, which is

very different from calling on the name of God and of Christ.

Also no place is given to the performance of ritual acts in the NT’s teaching on obedience to God, nor to the weighing of

good against bad deeds in its account of the fi nal judgment. Instead, it declares that those who put their faith in God through Christ and express it in ongoing faithfulnss to Him may be assured of salvation in the present and the future.

ConclusionThe Christian doctrine of salvation set out in the NT

describes God’s comprehensive provision in Christ for sinful and broken humanity. Its analysis of our need for salvation, God’s action in Christ as our Saviour, and what we must do in order to be saved, offers an all-inclusive, assured and accessible solution to our plight. It is neither captured by nor consistent with Islamic teaching on salva-tion, which offers a much lesser blessing, bestowed by an arbitrary divine decree, and conditional on the performance of religious ritual. To understand the difference is essential to effective Christian mission to Muslims.

But the difference should not surprise or disturb us. Just as in the 1st century the NT claim that God and Christ are the Saviour was an effective challenge to the claims of the Roman emperors, so in the 21st century it inevitably challenges and subverts the claims of the god of Islam, and indeed of all the other “gods” and “lords” in our day who claim to provide salvation. In our mission as well as in our worship, we should expect to confess God and Christ as the only Saviour of the world.

Islam denies the need for any divine act of redemption and reconciliation such as the death and resurrection

of Christ

IV BARNABAS AID NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012

Proclaim Freedom petition – last opportunity to gather signatures!We give thanks to the Lord that at the time of writing more than 23,000 people have signed our Proclaim Freedom petition. We are closing it on 31 December, so we would like to encourage you to use these last few weeks to gather as many further signatures as you can. The more we have, the greater impact we can make.

A copy of the petition sheet is enclosed with this mailing. Please feel free to make photocopies of this. Alternatively the form can be downloaded from www.barnabasfund.org/sign-the-petition, where the petition can also be signed online.

Signed petition sheets should be returned to your nearest Barnabas offi ce (addresses on back cover) before 31 December.

Barnabas Fund’s Proclaim Freedom campaign aims to press Western governments to promote freedom of religion, human rights and justice in other countries, especially for the millions of persecuted Christians, and for those who incite or engage in anti-Christian hatred and violence to be held accountable.

The Proclaim Freedom campaign calls upon governments to:

• recognise that Christians around the world currently face unprecedented levels of persecution and are one of the most persecuted groups in the world

• put the plight of persecuted Christians, both individually and as communities, at the forefront of their relations with the countries concerned

• promote freedom of religion for all, using diplomatic relations, bi-lateral ties, aid, and agreed international obligations on core human rights

• promote justice for all and specifi cally to ensure that those who incite hatred or act violently against Christians are held accountable for their crimes

Will you help us proclaim freedom?The Proclaim Freedom campaign is well under way as Christians throughout the world join in pursuit of greater hope and freedom for our persecuted brothers and sisters.

The campaign aims to raise the profi le of the persecuted Church around the world. It calls on governments to promote human rights, religious freedom and justice in other countries for all minorities, but especially for the roughly 200 million Christians living in contexts of persecution, discrimination and disadvantage. It also puts pressure on governments to ensure that other countries hold accountable those who incite or engage in anti-Christian hatred or violence.

Proclaim Freedom will succeed only through prayerful dependence on the Lord, who alone can give release to His suffering people, but we all have an important role to play in praying and taking action on their behalf. Below is a list of ideas of how you can help support the campaign. Please consider how you can get involved, and let’s proclaim freedom together!

1. Visit the special Proclaim Freedom section of the Barnabas Fund website to get started. Alternatively, call your nearest Barnabas offi ce for more information.

2. Show the Proclaim Freedom video in your church service.

3. Request a Proclaim Freedom wristband and/or lapel pin badge for your own use and make some available at your church (£1 each or £9 for 10).

4. Consider providing a special Barnabas Fund money box that could be used in conjunction with the wristbands and lapel pin badges. Also make available free bookmarks and persecuted Church postcards from Barnabas Fund.

5. Download or request the Proclaim Freedom petition and share it with your church.

6. Use the sample letter on our website to write to your elected representative.

7. Invite people you know to set time aside on 1 November to pray for the persecuted Church either individually or as a group, join the event on Facebook, download a copy of the Prayer Guide and tell us what you have planned on our interactive map on our website.

8. Consider holding a Suffering Church Sunday in November (or any Sunday that is preferable for your church). Don’t forget to order a free Suffering Church Sunday pack, designed to equip your church for this occasion.

9. Tell us what your church is planning for Suffering Church Sunday by posting it on our interactive online map.

10. Consider how the new children’s resource, Brothers and Sisters: Loving our Persecuted Family, could be used to support the Proclaim Freedom campaign, either on Suffering Church Sunday or by holding a special children’s event focused on the persecuted Church.


CAMPAIGNS

Safety for the victimised

It had become dark outside when we fi nally pulled up at a large house at the end of a cul-de-sac. We had been driving through a dizzying number of back alleys,

twisting and swerving around crowds of ambling people, donkey carts and auto rickshaws. A curtain fl icked back briefl y on the fi rst fl oor, revealing the silhouette of a young woman anxiously checking who was coming. We had arrived at a Barnabas Fund-supported safe house for Christian women and children.

Sparse-looking but immaculately clean rooms and stairs led us to a spacious fi rst fl oor, which we were told is the living room of six women who are living at the safe house with three of their children. Simple wooden crosses hang above doors leading to two shared bedrooms and a large kitchen.

Gulshan, a dignifi ed-looking young woman, regularly glances away while she tells us the events that brought her here. Four years earlier at age 16 she was raped by a Muslim man in the presence of two other Muslim men. Her family fi led a complaint, and the man was arrested. A medical examination proved that she had indeed been raped by the accused. He was sentenced to a prison term, which he is now sitting out.

But after the sentence Muslim neighbours tried to pressurise Gulshan to withdraw her accusation. The risk that they would kidnap her and force her to retract her statement at gunpoint became so great that she had to go into hiding. “I prayed a lot during that time,” she said, “and asked God that I can stay strong in my statement.”

Even though the circumstances that have brought the six Christian women together are diffi cult and sad, they seem to enjoy spending time together. Gulshan says, “I like living here at the safe house. It feels as if I’m at home. ”

At the safe house she is learning to sew. “The training in sewing will give me a respectable earning while living at home. No harmful incidences can happen to me at home. I often read Psalms because I feel as if some have been written especially for me. They give me strength and the knowledge that God is with me.”

Accused of blasphemyCLAAS, the Christian ministry that shelters Gulshan and the other women and their children, also provides legal assistance to Christians. Barnabas Fund supports their intrepid legal work for Pakistan’s Christian minority, who often face injustice and rarely receive proper legal representation.

I met Munir Masih at the CLAAS offi ce. He is a serious-looking man of 35, who is husband to Ruqqiya. At the time of the meeting his wife had been in prison for almost four years, sentenced to life imprisonment for desecrating a Quran in their home. Munir and their six children have been living in hiding all this time after receiving threats that Muslims would kill them because of their association with Ruqqiya.

Munir told me that before the blasphemy incident he had a good job as a businessman, but now he can often fi nd work for only a couple of days in the month as a daily labourer, earning a pitifully low wage. Barnabas Fund has been providing him and his family with monthly food packages. “The food from Barnabas Fund is a big support,” Munir said. “I can feed my children and am very thankful.”

Since I met Munir, Ruqqiya has been unexpectedly cleared of the blasphemy charges in the High Court with help from CLAAS. Although this is joyful news and an answer to prayer, the family will remain in danger of attack for the rest of their lives and in need of practical help just to survive.

A Barnabas Fund staff member visits a range of projects in Pakistan supported by Barnabas Fund

SPOTLIGHT

Reference number 41-980 (Pakistan General Fund)

Safety for the victimised

SPSPOTOTLILIGHGHTT

Gulshan fefefefeeleleleee s s prprototececteted dd annnddd hahaappppppy yy atatataa

the safe houusesssssssss


“We have an aim”Thousands of other Christian families in Pakistan are receiving monthly food packages thanks to Barnabas Fund. The majority are not dealing with the life-threatening circumstances that Munir’s family are in, but their lives are precarious for other reasons: decades-long discrimination has trapped them in a cycle of illiteracy and poverty.

Akran and Nusrat, a cheerful young couple, have come with three of their children to their church to pick up the bags of rice, fl our, oil and other food items. The pastor who coordinates the monthly food distribution told me that Akran is a choir master and knows many beautiful Christian songs. But, they told me themselves, both are illiterate because they grew up too poor to be able to go to school. Their house consists of just one room.

Although they work long hours, their joint income is not enough to support their family. Nusrat can fi nd work only as a cleaner in a Muslim household. “Working in a Muslim house isn’t easy,” she explains to me. “They keep on telling us that our faith is no good. I have no choice but to listen to them.”

The food support that they have been receiving from Barnabas Fund for a year and a half is making it possible for the couple to send their children to school for the fi rst time. Their oldest son, Daud, is now attending a Christian school. He has expressed a desire to become a pastor . And the parents are even thinking ahead about showing Christian love to others in need. “We have an aim,” says Nusrat brightly and decisively. “Once our children are educated, we want to help other people by giving them food.”

Safe to be a Christian childThere was not time enough to visit all 34 Christian schools that Barnabas Fund currently supports in Pakistan. But the fi ve we visited provided a good overview. To visit one in a rural area, we had to travel several hours on lonely, dusty roads, seeing just an occasional group of people working in the fi elds or water buffaloes lumbering after their owners. A collection of light-coloured buildings suddenly loomed up on the horizon, and I was told they housed a Christian community, living close together for protection.

Classes were underway as the principal showed us around the large school building. It was exhilarating to see classrooms full of Christian children hard at work in their neat uniforms, and to know that this school is a place where the children can openly express their Christian faith without fear of contempt or harassment.

Courageous evangelistsOne evening we joined a large meeting of pastors who are all receiving support from Barnabas Fund. Many had travelled for hours on motorcycles to be there. Just as the main speaker started reading from the Bible, a familiar, tinny wail could be heard over loudspeakers; a nearby mosque was issuing the Muslim call to prayer. It highlighted one of many injustices, great and small, that Christians have to face in Pakistan, namely that only Muslims may use loudspeakers.

Tarbele, an evangelist, came to talk with me. Speaking with much emphasis and conviction in his deep voice, he told me that he had grown up in a wealthy Muslim household, but that he had had many questions about eternal life. Only a Christian evangelist had been able to answer them satisfactorily.

This conversation led him to dedicate his life to Christ and to become an evangelist himself, despite the many risks. “I am threatened every single day,” he said, looking at me with penetrating eyes. “My life is always uncertain.” And yet he continues to go to market places and on buses and trains to tell the people the Good News.

“When talking to Muslims I compare the Quran and Bible and tell them who gave the right answers about forgiveness of sin and salvation.” Through his work 21 Muslim families have found the Lord. He also pastors a congregation of 150 families.

Diverse helpOn our trip we met many other Christians in Pakistan who are being helped by Barnabas Fund in a variety of ways. Christian students are attending university with scholarships from Barnabas Fund; Christian publishers are producing culturally relevant Christian training material in Urdu to equip thousands of Christians; Christian women in rural areas are receiving healthcare instruction and are learning skills such as sewing and weaving.

I felt privileged to meet these Christians and see them strong in their faith despite very diffi cult circumstances. They, in turn, responded with joy when hearing that Christians in the West care about their problems and are praying for them.

A street scene in Pakistan

PerPerPerforforforforforminmiminminminmim g ag ggg Chrisistian ssong with actacttions

SPOTLIGHT

oughly 200 million Christians live in contexts of pressure and persecution. This means that around 1 in 10 Christians f ace the possibility of violence, poverty and

discrimination because of their faith. Their needs are acute, and they greatly value our prayers. A Barnabas Fund project partner in Egypt said:

“Please keep us in your prayers. We believe that our mission does not only work through projects but extremely needs lots of prayer to seek the Holy Spirit working into peoples’ hearts. We cannot thank you enough.”

Barnabas Fund is holding a Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church on Thursday 1 November. We are encouraging Christians worldwide to dedicate time on this date to praying for our brothers and sisters who suffer because of their faith in Christ. Christians from all around the world will be taking part, from Romania to Bangladesh, from the Philippines to the United States, and from Malawi to Malaysia. This is a fantastic opportunity for us to come together in prayer as one international body of believers in support of our Lord’s suffering family.

So please do join us in prayer on Thursday 1 November, and get your friends at church involved too.

How can I get involved? “Truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven” (Matthew 18:19).It is easy to get involved with the Day of Prayer.

• Link up with a group event in your area. The map on our website makes it easy to fi nd and join in with a prayer event. The number and varied locations of events around the world that have already been registered with us is an inspiration for our prayers.

• There is still time to plan your own prayer event if one is not yet organised near you. Some suggestions are offered below for how your event could be set up.

• Commit to praying as an individual on this date. You can join our Facebook event or Twitter feed to connect with others who are doing the same. Updates will be posted throughout the day, and those praying can share their ideas and prayers with others.

• Come to our International Prayer Summit in London (for details see below).

ResourcesWhether you are praying individually or in a group, a Prayer Guide, including a timetable with information on individual countries, will be available to help you. Every half an hour a country is suggested for you to pray for, with some background and specifi c prayer points. The fact that this will be used across time zones means that each country will be repeatedly lifted up to the Lord. There are several ways by which you can access the Prayer Guide:

• Order free of charge from your local Barnabas Fund offi ce (addresses can be found on the back page of this magazine)

• Download from our website (www.barnabasfund.org/scs)• Follow the prayer requests as they appear on our Facebook and Twitter feeds on the day

Other resources include:• Our Lent prayer booklet, which gives more

detailed profi les of countries to pray for

• Recent editions of our Prayer Focus Update, with recent stories and points for prayer from various countries

• The most recent copy of our Barnabas Prayer diary, which provides a short prayer point for each day of a two-month period

• Barnabas Fund’s website. Browsing our news archive will give you information on recent incidents of anti-Christian persecution to stimulate your prayers

• Your daily newspaper. You could pray for how the day’s news items will affect Christians who live in the countries affected

Barnabas International Day of Prayer for the

Day of Prayer for the Persecuted ChurchInternational Prayer Summit

St. Michael’s Chester Square, London SW1W 9HH.All are welcome, so please join us at any time

and for as long as you can on

Thursday 1 November, from 1:30 until 6:00pm.There will be an Evening Prayer Service on the same theme at 7:00pm.

For more information, email [email protected]

ChChiChhildrldrenennn ppray ay at at aaat aa reefugfugeeee camp iip ip ip inn Bn Bn Burmurmurmrma(My(M(My(M(M anmaaarar)r)aar), ww, herherherrrre Be Bararnnabas h helpelpelpelpsss ws withthhith thtthttthe ee prapraprpr ctic calcala neen edsedseds ooofof ChChrisstiatiaan oooon rprphrphhannnsanana

Barnabas Fund resources can be downloaded from our website or ordered through your local offi ce (addresses on back page) provided that time remains for them to arrive with you by 1 November.

DAY OF PRAYER


A prayer for the persecuted Church

For more information and resources visit www.barnabasfund.org/UK/PrayJoin our Day of Prayer event on Facebook – visit www.facebook.com/BarnabasFund and choose Events.Follow our Twitter feed for updates – at www.twitter.com/BarnabasFund

Ten ways to pray for the persecuted Church1. Praise God that He is all-knowing, that in Christ He Himself experienced shame, pain and agonising death. Thank Him for His promise: “I will never leave you nor forsake you”. (Joshua 1:5)

2. Pray that all governments will work for justice. While Jesus says that in this world we will have trouble, He does not say that it will always be present in every place.

3. Pray that leaders of the liberal democracies will use their infl uence to seek to reduce, if not end, persecution in countries where it occurs. Just as Paul appealed to Caesar to seek justice, so we can appeal to secular government.

4. Pray for growth of the Church where persecution fl ourishes, remembering that “the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church”.

5. Pray for strength and courage for those experiencing persecution, and for the peace that only God can bring. Thank Him that His grace is suffi cient for their needs (2 Corinthians 12:9). Pray that their faith will not fail, but that their suffering will draw them closer to Him.

6. Pray that the Holy Spirit will enable persecuted Christians to forgive and love their persecutors (Matt. 5:44) and that their Christ-like reactions will have an impact on their persecutors.

7. Pray that the Lord will be at work in the hearts of those who currently persecute our sisters and brothers to bring them to a saving knowledge of Himself, as He did with Saul of Tarsus.

8. Thank the Lord for the privilege of entering into the sufferings of our sisters and brothers, remembering that “if one part of the body suffers, every part suffers with it”. (1 Corinthians 12:26)

9. Pray that Christians who experience persecution will not lose the ability to accept and genuinely trust approaches from those who have formerly persecuted them. Pray that the Lord will give them discernment and relief from unnecessary fears as He did when the believers in Jerusalem had to accept the reality of Saul’s conversion. (Acts 9:10-28)

10. Pray for yourself and for persecuted Christians to be spiritually ready for whatever tomorrow brings, be that persecution, respite from suffering, or Christ’s return.

O Triune God, Creator of all that exists, bringer of salvation and the hope of Your people, we come before You to pray for our suffering brothers and sisters who today experience discrimination, marginalisation, alienation, injustice, hatred and persecution, just as Jesus Himself suffered on earth.

Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Father of your suffering people, we adore you and bless you for your power, greatness and covenant love. We confess that we have neither remembered nor cared for Your suffering children as we should. We thank You that Your Name is sealed on their forehead, that they are held in the palm of Your hand, and carried in your arms. We supplicate You to bring them aid, and gather them to Yourself when their time on earth is over, and pray that you would give to us true compassion for them.


Son of our loving Father God, Brother and Kinsman of Your suffering people, we recognise that Your Body is again being broken, as Your people suffer at the hands of their tormentors. Fill them with Your love and forgiveness, as You extended Your love and forgiveness on the cross to those who persecuted You.


Holy Spirit, the Strengthener of Your suffering people, give them Your strength to sustain them in their trials, Your wisdom to know how to respond, and Your perseverance to endure faithfully to the end.


O Triune God, we pray for the persecutors of Your people that they will experience Your compelling love that casts out all fear and hatred, and will turn their hearts to You.

We pray these things in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Amen© Patrick Sookhdeo, 2012

Persecuted Church

What could your Day of Prayer look like? “The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” (James 5:16).

If your church is planning to join in Barnabas Fund’s International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, here are some ideas for how you could set this up.

• Set aside a room or space in which to pray. Make this space comfortable and welcoming for those who will use it. If you don’t plan to use the Prayer Guide to space out the day, one option could be to set up prayer stations for separate countries or regions in different parts of the room or building. Maps, Bible verses or background information, perhaps from our Prayer Guide or other resources, could be used to decorate your prayer area or stations.

• In order to space out the day, you could arrange a vigil of manageable time slots that people can sign up to beforehand. You could also have a prayer leader for each slot or for each country. The day could be arranged around the Prayer Guide.

• You could provide large sheets of paper on walls or tables and coloured pens, so that prayers could be written down or illustrated. These could help the prayer area to look vibrant, and keeping them could provide inspiration for prayer over the coming weeks and months.

• Remember you do not have to set aside a whole day if this is not feasible for your church. Whatever time you could give to prayer will make a difference. You could arrange an hour’s prayer meeting, or organise a half-day or all-day prayer session as a “drop-in”, when people can come and go as they please.

Stay in touch!

Day of Prayer

November 1st

15

DAY OF PRAYER

But like other popular Bible readings, this one can become so familiar to us that its remarkable message gets muted, and then it no longer has the impact upon us that the Biblical author intended. The Song of Mary is an exuberant celebration of the powerful and compassionate action of God in Christ, for the salvation of His people and in fulfi lment of His ancient covenant promises. As such it speaks forcefully to all Christians, as the benefi ciaries of what God has done, and particularly to those for whom poverty and oppression are part of their daily experience.

So what is the message of this great passage for the persecuted Church, and for us who are called to support them in their need?

The coming of JesusThe context of the Song of Mary is the early chapters of Luke’s Gospel, in which he focuses on the birth of Jesus Christ and the events surrounding it. Mary has received the angel’s

message that she is to give birth to a child who will be both King of Israel and Son of God. She hurries away to visit her relative Elizabeth, who is already bearing the infant John the Baptist, and who greets her as one who is blessed among women. Mary in turn bursts out in praise to the Lord.

So the passage recounts Mary’s response to God’s fulfi lment of the promises He made to her regarding the birth of Jesus. Its purpose is to explain the meaning and the effect of Jesus’ coming, and also to indicate the proper response to it. In this way the Song fi ts within the overall goal of Luke’s Gospel, both to explain the signifi cance of Jesus and to confi rm and strengthen Christian readers in their discipleship, which they must sometimes live out in the face of opposition.

A right understanding of what God has done for us in Christ enables us to set all our experiences

as Christians, including the sufferings that we endure for Him, in their proper context. This then allows us to respond appropriately to them. When we recognise how God has blessed and will bless us through the coming of Jesus as Messiah and Son of God, we are able to persevere and grow in faithfulness to Him and in the furthering of His purpose in the world.

Praise and joyIn verses 46-47 Mary declares her response to the great work of God of which she has become a recipient. Her soul, she says, magnifi es the Lord; she devotes herself to making His Name great in the sight of others. Also her spirit has rejoiced in God her Saviour; her life is now constantly committed to jubilant celebration of His saving action.

The nature of God’s work in Christ as the Saviour of His people will be spelled out much more fully in the following verses. But it is Mary’s reaction of

The Song of Mary in Luke’s Gospel, often called the Magnifi cat, is one of the best-known passages in the New Testament. Many churches use it as part of their regular worship, and it has been set to music by great classical composers and distinguished hymn-

writers. Most of us will hear it read in one of our Christmas services in the next few weeks.

“My soul magnifi es the Lord!” Luke 1:46-55

THE VIVIISITSSITATIATITION by Ricchhharharrharharhh d Kd Kd KKd Kd KKKKingggg


BIBLICAL REFLECTIONBIBLICAL REFLECTION

joy and praise that grabs our attention fi rst. Mary’s experience as the mother of the Lord will not be an unmixed blessing for her; indeed, in the very next chapter she is told that as a result of His coming a sword will pierce her soul (Luke 2:35). But here she recognises what God has done as a compelling reason to exalt Him and be glad; this is the right response to what He has done.

It might seem to us that Christians who suffer discrimination, harassment or violence as a result of their faith would be unable to respond to God’s saving work in the same way as Mary does. Yet time and again they prove us wrong.

For example, the churches of what is now South Sudan have suffered unbelievable deprivation and distress in the last 30 years; yet they are renowned for their joyful praise. And the mainly Chin people of Burma (Myanmar), who have faced severe persecution from their government, are also well known for their loud and lively worship. They know that even in the face of opposition and pain, this is the fi tting response for them to make to God our Saviour.

Concern for the lowlyIn verses 48-50 Mary sets out the basic reasons why she magnifi es the Lord and has rejoiced in God her Saviour. He has been actively concerned about the lowly status that she experiences as a result of being His servant, and He has done such great things for her benefi t that people of every generation will recognise that she is blessed by Him. He has put forth His might on her behalf, and she acknowledges that His compassion extends in every age to those who reverence Him.

In many parts of the world Christians have a very low status because they have chosen to

serve God instead of conforming to the religion or ideology of the majority community. For instance, in Muslim-majority contexts Christians have traditionally been regarded as inferior to Muslims, unclean and contemptible, and treated as second-class citizens at best. This attitude is still widespread today; it is often propagated by the Muslim media and expressed in unoffi cial but very severe discrimination.

These verses tell us that God is not indifferent to the contempt in which so many of His people have been held down the centuries. In Christ He has taken thought for them and acted in great

power and mercy to bless them mightily. His work on behalf of those who honour Him is as real for downtrodden Christians today as it was for Mary.

Reversal of statusEach of the next three verses comprises a pair of statements in which God’s action in Christ to benefi t His lowly people is described in more detail. He has shown His strength to deliver them from bondage by scattering their enemies and His, those whose attitude is arrogant and self-suffi cient and who do not acknowledge His sovereignty. He has pulled down those who are strong from their positions of power and has raised the standing of those whose status is lowly. Those who are in want He has satisfi ed with His blessings, while those who have plenty He has dismissed with nothing.

We learn here that in the coming of Jesus, God has completely reversed the status of His oppressed people and those who oppress them. Christians may be consigned to a very low standing in society because they serve God, but in the kingdom of God that He is bringing in

Christ they are honoured and fi lled with His good things. The proud who have power and wealth may trample on them to establish and maintain their own high position, but in God’s kingdom these people are cast down into disgrace and are excluded from its blessings.

As we read on in Luke’s Gospel and especially the Acts of the Apostles, we see this process of status reversal being worked out in the context of the Christian community, where those who have much care for those who have little so that there are no needy people among them (e.g. Acts 4:32-37). So the message of Mary’s Song fi nds its fulfi lment in the practical support of despised and needy Christians through the resources of their Christian family. Barnabas Fund exists to help this happen.

Faithful to His promisesFinally, in verses 54-55, Mary confesses that God has taken His servant Israel into His hand to support and succour them. He has done this in recollection of the mercy that He promised to the fathers of the nation, the eternal covenant that He made with Abraham and his descendants. In Christ God has been faithful to His promise to show compassion to His people by exalting and blessing them. And although in this passage only Israel is in view, later in Luke’s Gospel and in Acts believers from other nations also become benefi ciaries of His saving work.

The faithfulness of God to His covenant promises, demonstrated and made effective in the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, is the guarantee to persecuted Christians in our own time that God is their Saviour. What Mary’s Song says that He has done for His suffering and lowly people, He will do for them. And for us who belong to the same Christian family, the Song is an encouragement to play our part in God’s saving purpose to lift them up and fi ll them with His blessing – as He will for us too.

1. Why is it important for suffering and persecuted Christians to understand what God has done for us in Christ?

2. How is it possible for Christians to magnify and rejoice in God (vv. 46-47) even in the face of ill-treatment for their faith?

3. How could verses 48-50 encourage Christians who are treated with contempt by the majority community in their country?

4. How can Christians in the West be God’s instruments to exalt His downtrodden people in other places, and to bless them (vv. 51-53)?

5. What does the faithfulness of God to His ancient promises (vv. 54-55) mean for Christians today in their experiences of oppression and distress?

6. Give thanks for God’s saving work in Christ, and consider how you can be the instrument of His salvation to your persecuted brothers and sisters.

Questions for personal study or group discussion

the churches of what is now South Sudan have suffered unbelievable deprivation and distress in the last 30 years; yet they are renowned for their joyful praise.


BIBLICAL REFLECTION

IN TOUCHN TOUCH

On Sunday 13 May, a group of young people from North Point Alliance

Church in Hong Kong held a cookie sale to raise funds for Barnabas. On the

preceding Friday, the young people gave up their evening to gather at the

home of one of their group and bake 300 cookies. Some of them had never

baked before and others rushed to join in straight from taking their exams! The

cookies were sold at the church’s Sunday service, and the demand for them

exceeded all expectations, with every pack sold after around 20 minutes.

The group were encouraged by the enthusiastic support of their

congregation. A member said, “It was a wonderful and uplifting experience

for everybody, for each person has contributed throughout the whole

process, and we were united as one. May our suffering brothers and sisters

be blessed and encouraged as well.”

We are always grateful to receive your donations and to hear your

imaginative ideas for fundraising from around the world. The sale raised

around HK$2770 (£224; US$357; €279) to support persecuted Christians.

A label attached to a cookie pack

d ans.

As part of Operation Nehemiah, which works towards the spiritual transformation of society in the West, 113 primary schools in the UK have so far received ACTS (Assisting Christianity Teaching in Schools) packs of Christian books and resources for their pupils and teachers. Barnabas Fund has received some lovely thank you letters from the children of Lyneham Primary School in Chippenham. They wrote, “We are so thankful to you for giving us these fantastic books… We have the best books in England because of you.” ACTS is one way of reaching out to schools and equipping them with material that will make a difference. The headteacher of the school, Julie Carr, wrote that the donation has been “a huge success”.

ACTS pack makes an impactkkkkkkkkkk

Cookie sale goes down a treat

This year Barnabas Fund is giving you the opportunity to purchase both Christmas cards and gifts to help support persecuted Christians. We are grateful for our partnership with Just Cards Direct, a Christian organisation that supports the work of Christian aid agencies. They sell handmade greeting cards and gifts from Africa as well as printed cards and a wide range of other gifts. You can purchase their beautiful cards and gifts using the form included with this magazine or online at www.justcardsdirect.com. Just select “Barnabas Fund” on their website at the payment stage and we will receive 10% of all sales from our supporters.

Christmas greetings for Barnabas

Christmas is an opportunity to share with young people in our churches the circumstances of our Saviour’s birth. The stories of other children and young people who also face poverty and danger can help them to identify with the Christmas story.

Born in a strange town, in an untidy stable, to parents who were to become refugees as they fl ed to Egypt to escape Herod’s massacre of infants, our Saviour’s life was at risk from the start.As you re-live that story this Christmas, why not use the Barnabas Fund Suffering Church Sunday children’s materials in the book Brothers and Sisters – loving our persecuted family? Share with the young people

Loving our persecuted family at Christmasin your church the stories of children who trust in Christ and, following in His footsteps, fi nd themselves in poverty or fl eeing their country as refugees.

This resource includes a Bible lesson plan, games, a song, stories and more on the theme of loving our Christian brothers and sisters. It is available to order for free from your national Barnabas offi ce (addresses on back cover) or at www.barnabasfund.org/scs.

New designs of gift cards

for alternative gifts

Take a look!

g ul These delightfulChristmas decorations, handmade in South Africa, make great gifts


Instruction to your bank or building society to pay by Direct Debit

Please fi ll in the whole form using a ball point pen and send it to: Barnabas Fund, 9 Priory Row, Coventry CV1 5EXName and full postal address of your bank or building society

Name(s) of account holder(s)

Bank/building society account number Branch sort code

Service User Number 2 5 3 6 4 5Reference (Barnabas Fund to complete)

Signature(s)Date

Instruction to your bank or building society: Please pay Barnabas Fund Direct Debits from the account detailed in this instruction subject to the safeguards assured to by the Direct Debit Guarantee. I understand that this instruction may remain with Barnabas Fund and, if so, details will be passed electronically to my bank/building society. DD18

YES, I WOULD LIKE TO HELP THE PERSECUTED CHURCH

Title...................... Full Name .....................................................................................................................................

Address .........................................................................................................................................................................

...........................................................................................................................................................................................

Postcode .................................... Telephone ...........................................................................................................

Email .....................................................................................................

I WOULD LIKE TO GIVE REGULARLY THROUGH MY BANK

Please send me the appropriate form (UK supporters may use the

Direct Debit form below.)

£ ..........................................

(amount in words) ..............................................................................................

Starting on 1st/11th/21st .............. and then every month/quarter/year (delete as applicable) until further notice. This Direct Debit is a new one/in addition to/replaces an earlier Standing Order/Direct Debit in favour of Barnabas Fund. (delete as applicable).

GIFT AID DECLARATION (Applicable to UK tax payers only) Name of charity: Barnabas Fund

Please treat as Gift Aid donations all qualifying gifts of money made: (Please tick all

boxes you wish to apply)

today in the past 4 years in the future

I confi rm I have paid or will pay an amount of Income Tax and/or Capital Gains Tax for each tax year (6 April to 5 April) that is at least equal to the amount of tax that all the charities or Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) that I donate to will reclaim on my gifts for that tax year. I understand that other taxes such as VAT and Council Tax do not qualify. I understand the charity will reclaim 25p of tax on every

£1 that I give on or after 6 April 2008.

Signature.................................................................................... Date ...................................................

Please inform us if you want to cancel this declaration, change your name or home address or no longer pay suffi cient tax on your income and/or capital gains. If you pay Income Tax at the higher or additional rate and want to receive the additional tax relief due to you, you must include all your Gift Aid donations on your Self-Assessment tax return or ask HM Revenue and Customs to adjust your tax code.

HERE IS MY SINGLE GIFT OF £ ...........................................................................

I enclose a cheque/voucher payable to “Barnabas Fund” OR

Please debit my Visa Mastercard

American Express Maestro CAF card /other charity card

Card Number

Maestro issue number or issue date /

Expiry Date / Signature .......................................................................

I do not require an acknowledgement of this gift

THE DIRECT DEBIT GUARANTEEThis Guarantee is offered by all Banks and Building Societies that accept instructions to pay Direct Debits. If there are any changes to the amount, date or frequency of your Direct Debit Barnabas Fund will notify you 10 working days in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed. If you request Barnabas Fund to collect a payment, confi rmation of the amount and date will be given to you at the time of the request. If an error is made in the payment of your Direct Debit by Barnabas Fund or your bank or building society, you are guaranteed a full and immediate refund of the amount paid from your bank or building society. If you receive a refund you are not entitled to, you must pay it back when Barnabas Fund asks you to. You can cancel a Direct Debit at any time by simply contacting your bank or building society. Written confi rmation may be required. Please also notify us.

*If the project chosen is suffi ciently funded, we reserve the right to use designated gifts either for another project of a similar type or for another project in the same country.

Registered Charity number 1092935 Company registered in England number 4029536

ALTERNATIVE GIFT CARD If you would like to make a donation as an alternative Christmas gift for a friend or relative, we can supply you with an attractive “Thank you” card, which you can send to the person for whom you have made the donation. Please fi ll in the details as you would like them to appear on the card.

“Dear .................................................... A gift of £ .......... has been received on

your behalf from ................................ This gift will assist Christians who are persecuted for their faith. With many thanks on behalf of the persecuted Church”

Tick here if you do not want the amount to be stated on the card

Tick here if you do wish details about the project to be included on the card

Please state your preferred card choice (see below): ..........

If you would like to have the card sent directly to the recipient, or if you would prefer to receive blank cards and fi ll them out yourself, please contact your national offi ce (address details on back cover).

If you would like more cards, please photocopy the form or attach a separate piece of paper with the details for extra cards and send it with your donation. You can also call your nearest Barnabas Fund offi ce with the details and pay by credit/debit card over the phone.nd offi ce with the detailss and pay by credit/debs a bit card over the phone.bit c

A B C D

Please return this form to Barnabas Fund at your national offi ce or to the UK offi ce. Addresses are on the back cover. Barnabas Fund will not give your address, telephone number or email to anyone else.

Supporters in Germany: please turn to back cover for how to send gifts to Barnabas Fund. Phone 0800 587 4006 or visit our website at www.barnabasfund.org to make a credit/debit card donation. From outside UK phone +44 1672 565031.

Mag 11/12 Mag 11/12

Mag 11/12

PLEASE USE MY GIFT FOR Wherever the need is the greatest (General Fund) Other .................. *(give reference number of project to be supported)

Please send the following free resources (indicate quantity required):• Proclaim Freedom SCS pack _____ • Persecuted Church postcard_____• Prayer bookmark_____• Day of Prayer Prayer Guide_____

UK9 Priory Row, Coventry CV1 5EXTelephone 024 7623 1923 Fax 024 7683 4718

From outside the UKTelephone +44 24 7623 1923 Fax +44 24 7683 4718Email [email protected] charity number 1092935Company registered in England number 4029536For a list of all trustees, please contact Barnabas Fund UK at the Coventry address above.

AustraliaPO BOX 3527, LOGANHOLME, QLD 4129Telephone (07) 3806 1076 or 1300 365 799 Fax (07) 3806 4076 Email [email protected]

GermanyGerman supporters may send gifts for Barnabas Fund via Hilfe für Brüder who will provide you with a tax-deductible receipt. Please mention that the donation is for “SPC 20 Barnabas Fund”. If you would like your donation to go to a specifi c project of Barnabas Fund, please inform the Barnabas Fund offi ce in Pewsey, UK. Account holder: Hilfe für Brüder e.V. Account number: 415 600 Bank: Evang Kreditgenossenschaft Stuttgart Bankcode (BLZ): 520 604 10

JerseyLe Jardin, La Rue A Don, Grouville, Jersey, Channel Islands JE3 9GBTelephone 700600 Fax 700601 Email [email protected]

New ZealandPO Box 27 6018, Manukau City, Auckland, 2241 Telephone (09) 280 4385 or 0800 008 805Email offi [email protected]

USA6731 Curran St, McLean, VA 22101Telephone (703) 288-1681 or toll-free 1-866-936-2525 Fax (703) 288-1682 Email [email protected]

SingaporeCheques in Singapore dollars payable to “Barnabas Fund” may be sent to:13 Nathan Road, 04-03 Regency Park, Singapore 248737

International HeadquartersThe Old Rectory, River Street, Pewsey,Wiltshire SN9 5DB, UK Telephone 01672 564938 Fax 01672 565030 From outside UK: Telephone +44 1672 564938Fax +44 1672 565030Email [email protected]

www.barnabasfund.org To donate by credit card, please visit the website or phone 0800 587 4006 (from outside the UK phone +44 1672 565031).

The resources can be ordered individually or as a pack, which contains:

A3 poster to advertise your service or meetingBarnabas Aid September/October 2012, which includes a sermon outline, an accompanying small-group Bible study and a drama script Suffering Church Sunday 2012-13 DVD which includes a short video, PowerPoint slides and two worship songsChildren’s resourcesPersecuted Church postcard with response form Prayer bookmark Proclaim Freedom wristbandProclaim Freedom lapel pinProclaim Freedom money box

Free Suffering Church Sunday 2012-13 resources – order now!

PROCLAIM FREEDOM

“He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners” (Luke 4:18)

HOW CAN WE BE SILENT?

Free resources for your church’s Suffering Church Sunday service are now available. You can download them from our website (www.barnabasfund.org/scs). You can also order them from our online shop or from your nearest Barnabas offi ce (addresses below).

••

•

••••••

© Barnabas Fund 2012. For permission to reproduce articles from this magazine, please contact the International Headquarters address above. The paper used is produced using wood fi bre at a mill that has been awarded the ISO14001 certifi cate for environmental management.

barnabasaid the magazine of Barnabas Fund

Managing Editor: Steve Carter Published by Barnabas Fund The Old Rectory, River Street, Pewsey, Wiltshire SN9 5DB, UK Telephone 01672 564938 Fax 01672 565030 From outside UK: Telephone +44 1672 564938 Fax +44 1672 565030 Email [email protected]

How to Find Us You may contact Barnabas Fund at the following addresses:

You can also order additional postcards and bookmarks free of charge; why not order enough for everyone in your congregation to take home after your service on Suffering Church Sunday?Further wristbands and lapel pins can be ordered for £1 each or 10 for £9.

barnabas november december 2012

Documents

boxing day

previous day

st stephens day

day of refl ection

charge of blasphemy

persecuted church pakistan

christian martyr

christian traditions