End Times and Current Events
March 28, 2024, 01:57:17 pm
Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
News: "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." John 5:39 (KJB)
 
  Home Help Search Gallery Staff List Login Register  

African Christians Fear Future After Nigerian Massacre

Shoutbox
March 27, 2024, 12:55:24 pm Mark says: Shocked Shocked Shocked Shocked  When Hamas spokesman Abu Ubaida began a speech marking the 100th day of the war in Gaza, one confounding yet eye-opening proclamation escaped the headlines. Listing the motives for the Palestinian militant group's Oct. 7 massacre in Israel, he accused Jews of "bringing red cows" to the Holy Land.
December 31, 2022, 10:08:58 am NilsFor1611 says: blessings
August 08, 2018, 02:38:10 am suzytr says: Hello, any good churches in the Sacto, CA area, also looking in Reno NV, thanks in advance and God Bless you Smiley
January 29, 2018, 01:21:57 am Christian40 says: It will be interesting to see what happens this year Israel being 70 years as a modern nation may 14 2018
October 17, 2017, 01:25:20 am Christian40 says: It is good to type Mark is here again!  Smiley
October 16, 2017, 03:28:18 am Christian40 says: anyone else thinking that time is accelerating now? it seems im doing days in shorter time now is time being affected in some way?
September 24, 2017, 10:45:16 pm Psalm 51:17 says: The specific rule pertaining to the national anthem is found on pages A62-63 of the league rulebook. It states: “The National Anthem must be played prior to every NFL game, and all players must be on the sideline for the National Anthem. “During the National Anthem, players on the field and bench area should stand at attention, face the flag, hold helmets in their left hand, and refrain from talking. The home team should ensure that the American flag is in good condition. It should be pointed out to players and coaches that we continue to be judged by the public in this area of respect for the flag and our country. Failure to be on the field by the start of the National Anthem may result in discipline, such as fines, suspensions, and/or the forfeiture of draft choice(s) for violations of the above, including first offenses.”
September 20, 2017, 04:32:32 am Christian40 says: "The most popular Hepatitis B vaccine is nothing short of a witch’s brew including aluminum, formaldehyde, yeast, amino acids, and soy. Aluminum is a known neurotoxin that destroys cellular metabolism and function. Hundreds of studies link to the ravaging effects of aluminum. The other proteins and formaldehyde serve to activate the immune system and open up the blood-brain barrier. This is NOT a good thing."
http://www.naturalnews.com/2017-08-11-new-fda-approved-hepatitis-b-vaccine-found-to-increase-heart-attack-risk-by-700.html
September 19, 2017, 03:59:21 am Christian40 says: bbc international did a video about there street preaching they are good witnesses
September 14, 2017, 08:06:04 am Psalm 51:17 says: bro Mark Hunter on YT has some good, edifying stuff too.
View Shout History
Pages: [1]   Go Down
  Print  
Author Topic: African Christians Fear Future After Nigerian Massacre  (Read 883 times)
Christian40
Moderators
Hero Member
*****
Offline Offline

Posts: 3836


View Profile
« on: May 11, 2011, 12:57:17 am »

ABUJA, NIGERIA (Worthy News) -- Christian missionaries in Africa remained concerned about their future after reports that colleagues and over 500 other Christians have been killed in Nigeria alone.

Thousands of Christians in North Africa and Nigeria spent the Easter holidays locked behind closed doors for their safety, said Rae Burnett, Africa Director at U.S.-based Christian Aid Mission (CAM),which supports native missionaries.
She said during the last 10 days of rioting over the outcome of the presidential election, more than 60 churches were burned down in Maiduguri and Sokoto by anti-Christian mobs in northern Nigeria along with thousands of homes and businesses owned by Christians.

Among those killed are native missionaries, pastors and leaders, Rae told Worthy News in a statement. Thousands more are reportedly fleeing to the predominantly Christian South, despite government-imposed curfews.

Last year, more than 2000 Christians were killed in targeted Nigerian violence, more than in any other country in the world, CAM said.

MORE SUFFERING

Nigeria is no exception.

"We need to pray for our fellow believers, not only in Nigeria but also throughout North Africa,"said Burnett. "Many of our brothers and sisters in these areas are undergoing severe and increasing persecution. Native missionaries survive and minister in what seems to be a continual state of war or political upheaval - particularly right now in Egypt, Ivory Coast, Libya, Eritrea, Zimbabwe, Somalia and Sudan."

She said mission work has become dangerous in several parts of Africa. "Ministry leaders tell me that travel is impossible, so few first-hand reports are available yet. But we are still sending relief funds so they will be ready when curfews are lifted."
"In Ivory Coast," Burnett explained, "foreigners fled the country as post-election civil war erupted. More than 90,000 Ivorians are flooding into other West African countries. Neighboring Liberia is especially burdened. CAM assisted indigenous ministries are doing their best to help the homeless and starving."

Burnett said Christian workers "are fearful" that a new government in Ivory Coast will lead to "persecution of Christians. It is clear that this new administration is backed by well-organized and financed anti-Christian groups."

The CAM leader spoke after meetings with mission leaders in Chad, which she called "one of the poorest and most neglected African countries" where "Christians are praying that they will be able to handle the influx of Libyan war refugees."

EVANGELISM CONTINUES

She said they "want to witness to them" about the Christian faith "with emergency aid and lead them to the Lord."Many native missionaries, she said, "are already involved with Darfur relief efforts since Sudan shares Chad's eastern border. Libya shares the border to the north."

However there are also some hopeful signs for devoted Christians, she said. "Indigenous ministries helped by CAMare leading Darfur refugees to Christ as well as helping poor villagers through ministry-established clinics and schools. Many have come to know the Lord through these efforts".

She said her organization has also urged prayers for believers in other troubled nations, includingAlgeria, Morocco and Mauritania "who live under constant surveillance and uncertainly of what will happen to them next."

Burnett cited a West Saharan Christian as saying that believing can be dangerous. "Even my own father would cut my throat," the Christian was quoted as saying.

She said she was followed "constantly by secret police" when visiting the northern Moroccan portion of that divided and war-torn country.

FACING DANGER

In Senegal, Christians in the southern Casamance face danger from both sides as rebel forces have been fighting for independence since 1990. There are also concerns over Burkina Faso where, she said, "anti-government violence has broken out in and near" the capital.

"We here in the United States and other free countries often have more information about some of these situations than even local leaders. We need to use our knowledge to pray and help with humanitarian aid along with the Gospel."
As Africa Director for CAM, Rae Burnett has traveled extensively in North Africa, which her group described as the most neglected and hard to reach part of the continent.

"I have met underground believers secretly in tents and on the desert. Sometimes, we sit together in a noisy public place, over coffee or a meal, where they are sure there is no surveillance. Under threat of persecution and even death, these men and women are quietly, wisely, and successfully bringing the Gospel to their people."

It must be understood, she said, that "for these men and women, every moment of their lives has been potentially dangerous since the day they became followers of Christ."

From:
http://www.worthynews.com/10222-africa-christians-fear-future-after-nigerian-massacre
Report Spam   Logged

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter

Christian40
Moderators
Hero Member
*****
Offline Offline

Posts: 3836


View Profile
« Reply #1 on: May 11, 2011, 12:59:16 am »

ABUJA, NIGERIA (Worthy News) -- Christians in northern Nigeria were mourning Saturday, May 7, after Muslim attackers reportedly killed 17 Christians, including the wife and three children of a pastor. Several Christian homes were also burned in the village of Kurum in Nigeria's tense Bauchi State, said advocacy group International Christian Concern (ICC).

ICC told Worthy News that it learned about the massacre Friday, May 6. “It is not right for anyone to kill another person, life is precious and a gift from God," explained ICC's Regional Manager for Africa, Jonathan Racho. No more details were immediately available, but the attack was the latest in a series of recent incidents in which hundreds of people died.

"Since 1999 in Bauchi state, several Christians have been killed but no one has been brought before justice. The government has to intervene. The government has to be fair to all its citizens,” said Reverend Turbe Ngodem in published remarks.

Reverend Ngodem is the General Secretary of Christian Association of Nigeria in Bauchi State. Since the introduction of Sharia, or Muslim, law in northern Nigeria in 1999, thousands of Christians have been killed by Muslim extremists, according to several rights groups and churches.

VIOLENCE ROUND

The latest round of violence followed April elections in which President Goodluck Jonathan, a southern Christian, was declared the winner.

Muslim supporters of his rival Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler, protested the outcome and attacked churches, witnesses said.

Racho said ICC has urged Nigeria's government to "prevent the bloodshed of innocent Christians in northern Nigeria. Nigeria must end impunity for the perpetrators of these heinous crimes.”

Jonathan warned last week he was considering imposing a state of emergency in two northern states.

From:
http://www.worthynews.com/10230-muslim-attackers-kill-17-christians-in-nigeria
Report Spam   Logged
Christian40
Moderators
Hero Member
*****
Offline Offline

Posts: 3836


View Profile
« Reply #2 on: May 16, 2011, 12:51:44 am »



Islamic extremists target Christian village near Bogoro, Bauchi state.

KURUM, Nigeria, May 10 (CDN) — As she lay on the ground after being shot and then slashed with a machete, Dune James Rike looked into her husband’s tear-filled eyes and asked, “Is this the end between us, so we shall not be together again?”

Pastor James Musa Rike told Compass he held the hands of his dying, 35-year-old wife and told her, “Hold on to your faith in Jesus, and we shall meet and never part again.”

Muslim extremists who attacked Kurum village, in the Bogoro local government area of Nigeria’s Bauchi state, had already killed two of the couple’s children in a rampage that began Wednesday (May 4) at midnight. Rike, pastor of a Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN)congregation in Kurum, next heard the cries of his 13-year-old daughter, Sum James Rike, a few yards away.

“I rushed to my daughter, only to discover that she too was cut with a machete on her stomach, and her intestines were all around her,” he said. “I held her hand and began to pray, knowing she too was about to die. She told me that the Muslim militants told her they would kill her and “see how your Jesus will save you.”

The girl told her father that she responded by telling them that Jesus had already saved her, and that by killing her they would only be making it possible for her to be with Him. Pastor Rike prayed for her as she died.

Shooting and setting homes on fire, the Muslim extremists killed 12 other Christians in the attack. Bauchi police reported 16 people dead – one man, three women and 12 children.

Pastor Rike said that when the attackers reached his house, they tried to force their way into their bedrooms.

“I opened a backdoor, and we ran out into the dark night while the militants pursued us,” he said. “They shot my wife and two of our kids as they tried to escape.”

Pastor Rike said that after killing the two children, Faith James Rike and 1-year-old Fyali James Rike, the assailants cut his wife’s abdomen with a machete.

“I was shocked at what I saw,” he said. “I knew my wife would not last long, and the only thing I did was to encourage her to hold on to her faith in Jesus.”

The Muslim extremists set more than 20 houses ablaze before leaving the village, he said.

Pastor Rike and his son survived the attack, and he said his adopted daughter, Whulham James Rike, was injured and receiving treatment at the General Hospital in Bogoro. He said five others others were also receiving hospital treatment.

Among those killed, church sources said, were Murna Ayuba; Angelina Ezekiel; Dorcas Sunday; Asabar Toma; Rhoda Joseph; Dhunhgwa Zakka; Bukata Amos; Ishaku Amos; Kalla Amos; Amos Daniel; Samidah Joel; and Changtan Joel.

The Muslim jihadists also stole money and the other valuables from the Christian village as they withdrew, church sources said.

The area has a history of sectarian violence, and the attack follows the death of hundreds of people in Bauchi and other northern states last month after Muslims rioted over the April 16 election of a Christian, Goodluck Jonathan, as president. He defeated a Muslim candidate, Muhammadu Buhari. Saying more than 200 church buildings were burned, Christian leaders in northern Nigeria have called for a federal probe into the violence, in which Christians mounted counter attacks.

Northern Nigeria climbed to 23rd place in 2010 from 27th in 2009 on Christian support organization Open Doors’ World Watch List of nations with the worst persecution.

The church where Pastor Rike ministers has about 30 members and has been in existence for more than 50 years. Those killed were members of the three churches in the village – the COCIN church, St. John’s Catholic Church and an Evangelical Church of West Africa congregation.

Pastor Rike said the incident has strengthened his faith in Jesus.

“Whatever is the situation, I will never forsake Christ,” he said. “All human beings are created by God, and our attackers must know that they need to abandon anything that will lead them to destroy creations of God.”

Nigeria’s population of more than 158.2 million is almost evenly divided between Christians, who make up 51.3 percent of the population and live mainly in the south, and Muslims, who account for 45 percent of the population and live mainly in the north. The percentages may be less, however, as those practicing indigenous religions may be as high as 10 percent of the total population, according to Operation World.

From:
http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/nigeria/article_112257.html
Report Spam   Logged
Christian40
Moderators
Hero Member
*****
Offline Offline

Posts: 3836


View Profile
« Reply #3 on: July 17, 2011, 03:50:53 am »



ABUJA, NIGERIA (Worthy News) – A feud between the Kona and Mumuye tribes in eastern Nigeria has resulted in the deaths of as many as 100 people, including Christians, more than previous estimates, missionaries said.
Police officials earlier said about a dozen people were killed since tribal fighting erupted last Sunday, July 10, in the country’s Taraba State.
Among those killed are at least four believers “brought to Christ” by local missionaries of Missionary Crusaders Ministries, explained U.S.-based Christian Aid Mission (CAM) which supports the group. Additionally, “entire villages have been burned, including the homes of 25 native Christians,” CAM told Worthy News in a statement.
Over 1,000 people have fled the clashes to the nearby state capital Jalingo, taking refuge in the local Jolly Nyame Stadium, while hundreds are hiding in a nearby government-run secondary school, officials said.
CAM suggested that clashes have erupted over land claimed by the Mumuye in an area where the Kona lived for generations and refuse to relinquish.

REFUGEE CAMP
It said Missionary Crusaders Ministries also set up a camp for 500 displaced families. “Ministry leader, Gabriel Barau, contacted Christian Aid [Mission] for help to provide tents, blankets, food, clothing, and medicine. Approximately $15,000 is immediately needed for initial provisions which will be used as a means to share Christ with these desperate people who have lost everything” CAM explained.
Bibles in the local Hausa language ($10 each) are also needed, according to missionaries.
CAM said its partners have been active in the region since 1993 when local missionaries discovered “that the Kona people had never heard the name of Jesus.”
“Extremely resistant to the Gospel, the Kona have proved a challenging mission field. After laboring seven years without a single convert, Missionary Crusaders Ministries found success through meeting practical needs. The establishment of a primary and secondary school brought several Kona youth to Christ,” CAM reported.

DRILLING WELLS
Later, Missionary Crusaders Ministries “drilled five wells in Kona villages, opened a clinic, and sent trained health workers into the Kona community,” CAM said, adding that missionaries have also planted ten churches in Kona villages.
They also started reached Mumuye people since late 2008, according to CAM investigators.
“The Mumuye culture is steeped in witchcraft and idol worship. They worship the sun as the supreme being, and regularly offer sacrifices to images of gods and the skulls of ancestors,” CAM added.
News of the latest clashes comes as Nigeria is also coping with deadly attacks by suspected Islamic militants of Boko Haram, a group fighting to spread shariah, or Islamic law. Several people have died in recent days in bombings against churches and security forces. (With reporting by Worthy News’s Stefan J. Bos).

From:
http://www.worthynews.com/10654-nigeria-christians-flee-deadly-tribal-clashes
Report Spam   Logged
Christian40
Moderators
Hero Member
*****
Offline Offline

Posts: 3836


View Profile
« Reply #4 on: July 30, 2011, 04:17:29 am »

ABUJA, NIGERIA (Worthy News) – Many churches throughout Nigeria have begun a 21-day fast to invoke divine intervention and protection from Boko Haram, an Islamic cult that has threatened to attack on the anniversary of the death of the sect’s founder.
Leaders of the Christian Association of Nigeria advised churches that remain open to suspend, or reschedule services; church leaders said attendance in recent weeks has dropped to less than half.
Although security was increased in the Northern Nigerian communities of Bauchi and Maidugur after authorities uncovered the sect’s plan, the situation in Maiduguri remained grim as Christians and Muslims alike flee the city for the safety of the countryside.
On July 5, militants bombed two churches and on the following weekend more than 30 people were killed and 20 homes burned; the resulting mass exodus from Maiduguri has turned it into a “ghost town,” leaving churches padlocked; the remaining Christians are bracing themselves for a massive assault on July 30 when Boko Haram is expected to avenge the death of their founder, Mohammed Yusuf, who died while in police custody. The sect recently issued a warning for Nigerians to avoid Christians, security guards and government officials, or face death.
A former Boko Haram member who later turned to Christ, said that the sect’s rituals are reminiscent of an occult group.
“Once you join the group, it takes only the grace of God to come out of it,” he said. “It seems like you almost lose your will and ability to think, and you only do what you are told.”

Please consider joining Nigerian Christians during their time of crisis by fasting and praying with them.

From:
http://www.worthynews.com/10783-nigerian-christians-call-for-21-day-fast
Report Spam   Logged
Pages: [1]   Go Up
  Print  
 
Jump to:  

Powered by EzPortal
Bookmark this site! | Upgrade This Forum
Free SMF Hosting - Create your own Forum

Powered by SMF | SMF © 2016, Simple Machines
Privacy Policy