A Vision for the Arab World
We need to pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ who are at the coalface ministering inside the heart of the Arab world.
Arab Vision, a television production company that broadcasts evangelising programs throughout the Arab world, is one of these organisations we must be in prayer for. The international director Abu Banaat has requested our prayers. Since the violent aftermath of the Danish cartoons, Christians and in particular Christian ministries have come under increased threat of persecution and violent retribution.
Arab Vision programmes can be viewed on TV almost anywhere in the Arab world for more than 15 hours each day. They employ about 35 Arab Christians in addition to one American and three Dutch workers who are stationed in different Arab countries.
Unfortunately for them every time something is done in the West that Muslims do not like, Christians are made into the targets of their anger. Since the publishing of the Danish cartoons it is an increasingly more dangerous place to be for Christian people. In different Islamic countries people have died as a result of this crisis.
At the same time it is important that Western governments should stand firm against Islamic violent threats and terrorism. The principles of freedom of speech and expression should never be apologised for or surrendered by the West. If we truly believe these principles we will have the courage to stand by them despite adversity.
The opinion of Arab Vision is that the right to criticise and satirise Islam should be defended but that at the same time we should ask ourselves: What is the use of it all? I fear that we as Christians in the Arab world will become the real losers. Mocking the prophet of Islam is not necessary at all. Muslims are taught that Mohammed had 8 wives and a group of concubines, that he had sexual contact with his ‘wife’ Aisha before she was 12 years old, that he planned raids against and attacked Christians and Jews, that he taught that thieves had to have their hands cut off. These things by themselves are off-putting enough without our adding to it.
Arab Vision is not the only organisation beating the Christian drum in the Arab world. The office of the Bible Society was threatened with an attack in February. At the office location masked militiamen distributed folders in which they announced an ultimatum for the owner to evict the Bible Society before the 28th of February. They threatened to blow up the building and were later slightly damaged by a bomb blast.
It is fortunate that most Muslims do not want to be associated with the violence. Many are permanently turning away from Islam as a result of the evangelism being done in the Arab world and the disillusionment they see with their traditional beliefs.
Please pray fervently for the work of Arab Vision as they risk their lives for the sake of the Gospel.
For more information about Arab Vision go to their website.
GORDON MOYES
