Christians in Afghanistan Feel ‘Thrown to the Wolves’
According to Open Doors, which ranks Afghanistan second on its “World Watch List” of nations that persecute Christians, the country “is already a brutal place for the Church.” In the nation of 38 million, the number of Christians isn’t known, partly because “it is impossible to live openly as a Christian” there.
Now Christians in Afghanistan face even more peril. In a video tweeted by Newsmax host Benny Johnson, a pastor who built Christian churches in Afghanistan tearfully warns that the Taliban will “exterminate” followers of Jesus. “Pray for the believers there,” the pastor says. “President Biden has thrown them to the wolves… Pray that they be strong.”
Mindy Belz, senior editor of World magazine, tweeted, “A person who works with house church networks in Afghanistan reports its leaders received letters last night from the #Taliban warning them that they know where they are and what they are doing. The leaders say they aren’t going anywhere. So it begins.”
Regarding those letters, worship leader Sean Feucht tweeted: “The rise of persecution is HERE. The church must PRAY ‘Peter was kept in prison: but prayer was made WITHOUT CEASING of the church unto God for him.’ Acts 12:5.”
Open Doors lists five prayer needs for the situation in Afghanistan:
- Pray for an end to violence and death.
- Pray for hungry people, that God will “provide them both physical and spiritual food to nourish their bodies and souls.”
- Pray for the sick, especially for those affected by COVID-19. Pray for more vaccines and for a smooth rollout.
- Pray for people who are fleeing or displaced from their homes.
- Pray for protection and peace for Christians in Afghanistan, that the Holy Spirit will “strengthen these secret believers in their inner being.”
Human Rights Concerns for Women and Girls
Ahead of an emergency United Nations session on Monday, U.N. Secretary General António Guterres said he is “particularly concerned by accounts of mounting human rights violations against the women and girls of Afghanistan who fear a return to the darkest days.”
Although Taliban officials have promised that women will have more rights—and more access to education—this time around, residents are leery. Women are in hiding, and images of females are disappearing from public. According to reports, the Taliban is already going door to door, seeking retribution on Afghans who assisted U.S. forces.
Rev. Johnnie Moore, who serves on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, tweeted Sunday: “One group will suffer more than any other by the disaster we are witnessing in Afghanistan: women & girls God help them & please ‘experts’ save us all the platitudes [about] human rights after pleading to appease Iran & now this. There are no human rights to be had w/o security.”
Ed Stetzer also urged prayer for Afghans, tweeting: “When radical Islamists take over, so many suffer. Pray: -for persecuted Christians. -for women and girls who will lose their rights. -for other religious minorities who will be targeted. Such a heartbreaking moment.”
