ishtartv.com - hmnnonline.org
By
Julie BourdonDecember 11, 2017
Middle
East (MNN) – Yesterday was Human Rights Day which has been around for nearly 70
years. It marks the day when the United Nations established the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights. Today, Open Doors USA is drawing attention to a
specific instance where human rights need to improve.
Over
the last few months, the organization has been collecting signatures in their
“Hope for the Middle East Campaign.” As of last week, they had gathered well
over 800,000 signatures. The petition urges support for Christians in the
Middle East, particularly Syria and Iraq, especially in light of the major
rebuild that is just beginning in the war-torn nations. They will present the
signatures to the UN Secretary-General and his office.
“So
many Christians have been displaced and pushed out of their homes in the Middle
East. And we want them to be part of their communities. What we’re really
asking is that Christians have the same rights in civil society as everybody
else, are part of the restoration and reconciliation within their
countries—Iraq and Syria. Christians need to be part of that. And that they
have a right to housing, you know, the basics of life and that they should not
be discriminated upon in Iraq and Syria and the Middle East just because of
their faith in Jesus.”
More
specifically, the petition asks three things:
• The right to equal citizenship
• Dignified living conditions
• Involvement in reconciling and
rebuilding their society
Why
it matters to be a voice for the voiceless
The
petition was created after Open Doors surveyed Christians in the Middle East on
what their greatest needs were going forward.
Curry
says the petition is not just about creating a bill and establishing
international pressure on the issue, but also to create awareness of the
situation and draw the Body of Christ into advocacy.
He
explains that if we miss this opportunity to direct change going forward, we’ll
be feeding into a negative cycle of oppression in the Middle East. Now is the
time for action. But, he says, this isn’t just a calling for some portions of
the Church, but all.
“The
entire Body of Christ has been called to pray for and to reach out and care for
people who are in prison for the name of Jesus. So it’s a universal calling; I
think it’s important to recognize that. And so, when we are advocating, caring
for, speaking out for people who are followers of Jesus, we are doing what the
Lord has asked us to do. We are being obedient.”
While
there is time
Another
factor that can seem far away in the west is our own connection with
persecution. Curry reminds us that it doesn’t take much stretching of the
imagination to see how persecution could quickly hit home.
“Eventually
this persecution may come to you and some of your family. And we need to recognize
that we wish somebody would speak out on our behalf, this is our chance to do
it for our brothers and sisters around the world.
“And
it’s not a long stretch to imagine that persecution could increase in the west,
that laws could be passed… all kinds of things which are going to be used to
paint Christians as intolerant and all these sorts of things. That’s only going
to grow. Aggressive secularism is going to impinge upon the rights of
Christians over time, certainly.
“Wouldn’t
you like to know that people around the world are going to be thinking and
praying and lifting you up when your time comes? Absolutely, you would. That’s
why we need to reach out and care for our brothers and sisters around the
world.”
Learn
more about this petition, here. And pray. Ask God to create a ripple effect
among the Church and peoples of influence. Ask God to strengthen the foundation
of believers in the Middle East so that those who haven’t heard of Jesus before
can know him.
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