By: Sophie Spencer

Determined to find Mumbai’s Christians, two young men scoured the streets, alleys and rails of Mumbai for months in order to find and map churches in India’s largest city. Photo by Amanda Crosby*

MUMBAI, India — The city flows by in streaks of color, green foliage blurring into grey water, mottled concrete and the occasional brown cow. The train rumbles steadily through the alternating scents of burning trash, baking asphalt, car exhaust and stale fish.

The “common man’s car” is unusually subdued today, as dozens of curious brown eyes flick shyly toward the two pale Westerners standing calmly in the corner, smiling and talking easily with the passengers around them.

Dylan Foster and Caleb Buechner are no ordinary tourists. They are determined to find Mumbai’s Christians. For months, they have scoured the streets, alleys and rails of Mumbai. These two young men came to India to find and map churches in India’s largest city.

The megacity of Mumbai sprawls out over several islands, much like New York City. More than a dozen languages are spoken on its streets. Often, one area’s residents will speak a completely different language from neighbors 20 minutes away.

Although Mumbai boasts one of the highest gross domestic products (GDP) in all of Asia, it is estimated that over 50% of its more than 20 million citizens live in slums, propping their tin houses on the splintering banks of creeks that run with trash and sewage.

This is no simple task.

Despite the logistical nightmare before them, Foster and Buechner set out to discover the believers in Mumbai. They left no stone unturned, from the tip of the Siddhivinayak Temple to trash piles of the Dharavi slum. Yet despite their best efforts, their first months were disappointing.

“We got nowhere,” Foster said, “We’re looking for biblically sound churches that are actively sharing the Gospel, but whenever we asked where we could find any Christian churches, people just kept pointing us toward the big Catholic cathedral in the middle of town.”

When their work began, they were told the city had no church presence whatsoever. After weeks and weeks of frustration, they were beginning to believe it.

Desperate, Foster finally turned to another missionary in the area. “He suggested going to the bookstore that his company had in the city, so I said ok and we went.” This new connection sent them in a new direction.

“They had already been here for 40-50 years, working on this exact same project. They already had 162 pages of churches mapped all over the area!” Foster said.

Like many workers before them, these men were thrilled to find Christ in the very place they’d planned to bring Him. “Our thinking radically changed from, ‘Man, everybody we talk to has never heard of Jesus before,’ to ‘There’s a solid presence here,’ ” Foster said.

A solid presence indeed, one that is living and active and determined to radically alter their city. Buechner and his team mate were thrilled to see how believers in Mumbai are working among the poor and downtrodden, charging headfirst at the decaying caste system, which has kept millions in abject poverty for centuries.

“[Indian believers] are going into slums and teaching Bible studies to everyone, regardless of caste,” Foster said. “The lowest class here, the Dalit, are eager to get out of the oppression that they’re in, and the Christans here are eager to help them.”

The Hindu caste system strictly divides all people into inescapable social classes. The Dalits (the “untouchables”) have historically occupied the lowest rungs of Indian society, enduring centuries of abuse, abasement and exploitation.

Although the caste system has been officially outlawed for years, the lowest castes continue to struggle socially and economically.

“The church here is sharing the Gospel with the Dalit, treating them like humans,” Foster said, “and it’s been such a blessing to see the successes they are having with their work.”

As Buechner and Foster move about the city, visiting different ministries and continuing their search for churches, they go by train. And as they go, they make disciples.

“People on the trains see we’re foreigners and ask us what we’re doing in India,” Foster said.

“We tell them, ‘Oh, we’re just going to visit these people that are helping educate the Dalits.’ People here see that as honorable and loving, and it just leads to, ‘They’re helping the Dalits because they believe in Jesus. Have you heard of Jesus?’ ” Foster said.

The seven islands of Mumbai are laced together with one of the busiest train networks in the world, shuffling more than six million people around the city every day. Photo by Amanda Crosby*

The seven islands of Mumbai are laced together with one of the busiest train networks in the world, shuffling more than six million people around the city every day.

“Every age group rides the train,” Buechner said, “The oldest people of the city to the youngest. You see the beggars and the well-off, the Dalit and the high-class people.”

In a land where Sikhs and high-caste Hindus regularly rub elbows with Muslims and Buddhists, religion surfaces constantly.

Unlike many Westerners, who leave their spirituality safe at home, South Asians tend to wear their faith openly, often visibly, in the form of Muslim taqiyah caps, Sikh turbans and the bright red kumkum powder Hindus place on their foreheads. Most are willing to discuss their beliefs with others, and Foster and Buechner have made use of this openness.

Constantly on the lookout for spiritual connections, these young men use every resource at their disposal to share the Gospel in the approximately two minutes they have between stops.

“Once, we were going to the mall for groceries, and we met this guy who was totally humanitarian,” Foster said, “very focused on good works. It sounded like he had a Christian background of some kind, but at the same time, was very much a universalist. So we shared with him what we believe about Christ, and he loved it.”

Impressed by Buechner and Foster’ evident concern for people like the Dalits, the young man exchanged phone numbers with them and continued to meet up with them to talk about matters of faith.

“We wound up talking for hours, about the Gospel, about the Bible, about Christ. He was just soaking it in. He even wanted to study the Bible with us!” Foster said.

Not everyone Buechner and Foster meet is as excited as their young “humanitarian” friend, though. “Some people find it really exciting, some people shrug and say, “Eh, it’s whatever,’ ” Foster said.

“They say it takes an average of 40 encounters with the Gospel for someone to accept it. Maybe we’re the last person or the first person to share with them, but I don’t mind being anywhere in that scale,” Buechner said .

—30—

*Name changed.

Dylan Foster and Caleb Buechner are students serving short-term with the IMB. To learn more about serving as a student in South Asia, visit our Students page at southasianpeoples.imb.org/students.

To learn more serving worldwide through the IMB, visit imbstudents.org.

Sophie Spencer is a recent graduate of Dallas Baptist University, serving among South Asian peoples.

Government officials stand by as walls come down

India news briefs for March/April 2013

Divya Jyoti Church, Guriya Village, Chhattisgarh
Photo: World Watch Monitor

“A temporary shed had been constructed in 2006 on this land after permission from the authorities and the same was later replaced by a permanent building,” said Rev. Rakesh Dass, a friend of Bahel’s.

Three residents of Gadia village, Yogeshwar Kashyap and two people identified as La

khmuram and Shyamlal, filed a complaint that the building encroached on government land. Their allegations were published in the local newspaper, Dass said.

The crowd arrived the next day, led by Kailash Rathi and Yogendra Kaushik, officers of the local Viśva Hindu Pariṣad, or VHP, a Hindu nationalist organization.

Budhram tried to summon help, but it did not arrive quickly enough to prevent the demolition.

Those who protested were assaulted by members of the crowd, Christian witnesses said. They said several local officials, including the revenue officer, land officer, village head, police chief and a group of police officers, watched the demolition without objection.

“They didn’t even measure the land,” Dass said.

The church filed a complaint at the Lohandiguda Police Station on March 13 and held a silent protest rally on March 16. A memorandum regarding the demolition also has been submitted to the Collector & District Magistrate of Jagdalpur, a nearby major city.

Chhattisgarh

March 24 — Hindu extremists shouting anti-Christain slogans surrounded the house of two  brothers, Kayaram and Musuram Kashyat and threatened to expel them from the village if they did not renounce Christ, said Rev. Rakesh Dass. Early the next day, the head of Gunia village, Lohandiguda, Jagdalpur, summoned the brothers to his home, where the two were attacked when they arrived. The brothers were hospitalized and then filed a police report.

March 25 — State police stopped an “Open Special Gospel Meeting” in Nagra, Balrampur Ramanujganj following complaints of forceful conversions against the Christians. Pastor Mukti Prakash Lakra said Believers Church was organizing a three day meeting from 25- 27 March when the angry extremists barged into the three-day meeting. Police arrived and urged the organizers to close down the meeting, which they did.

March 28 — The head of Mokhagoan village, backed by local Hindu residents, urged the government to halt the opening of a day-care center built by Indian Evangelical Mission. “The local area Christians have been facing social discrimination from the extremists because of their faith in Christ for a long time,” Rev. Raja Singh of Indian Evangelical Mission told World Watch Monitor. After a government inquiry into the center’s operations, authorities dismissed the petition to halt operation.

April 2 — A group of Hindus in Chhotesalna, Raipur, burned the small Believers’ Church to the ground after accusing the Christian congregation of forcefully converting members of the community. There were no injuries. Pastor Padam Pande said the Christian community received further threats the next day after they had filed a complaint with police. On April 4 the Christians were summoned to the Village Council meeting, where they were urged to take back the complaint. The Christians refused. To date, police have not taken any action.

Maharastra

April 23 — Police in the Gondia district arrested a Christian couple after Hindus accused them of forceful conversion and bribery. A representative of the evangelical organization Mission India who goes by the single name Geeta told World Watch Monitor that a group of people asked Mission India Pastor Vijay Meshram and his wife to visit a home to pray for the sick. After the prayer was over they asked the pastor and his wife to wait outside. As the couple waited, the host slipped from the back door, where a group of 100 people was waiting for his signal. The mob rushed the pastor and his wife, and accused them of bribery and forced conversions. Later, the Hindus filed a complaint against them, and police arrested the couple under several sections of the criminal code, keeping them in in custody while the crowd swelled outside, shouting anti-Christian slogans. They were released on bail the next day. “There was no case of forceful conversion and it was a false allegation against us, as we were merely praying for the sick people as they requested us” Meshram said.

Karnataka

March 8 — The Global Council of Indian Christians reported a group of Hindus barged into an all-night prayer meeting of The Word of Victory Ministry in Moodubelle village, Udupi and assaulted the participants, accusing them of forceful conversions. The pastor, Robert Lobo, and six believers suffered serious injuries and were treated in Ajarakadu Government hospital. Police arrested 10 attackers.

April 11 — A pastor and his family were hospitalized after an assault in their home in Vijapura, Chitradurga. The Evangelical Fellowship of India reported that a man named Rangappa, his wife and son beat the pastor, Kantharaj Hanumanthappa, and his family, after making several threats and complaining to the village head that the pastor had been forcefully converting residents. With the intervention of the Karnataka Legal Aid Cell, the Bharamsagara police filed a report against the attackers.

Kashmir

April 10 — A pastor in Shivpura, Srinagar, in Jammu & Kashmir state, told World Watch Monitor that he and his family were assaulted by a group of Muslims who had accused him of converting children living in the Agape Home for youth. Pastor Neethi Rajan said the attackers forced themselves into his family’s home, and also damaged a car parked nearby that belonged to a friend. Police took Rajan and his family into protective custody, but the family later relocated to another area out of fear of a repeat attack.

Andhra Pradesh

March 24 — Hindu extremists stopped a church construction In Charlapalli, Ghatkesar Mandal, alleging that the church will cause the disturbance in the neighbourhood. The All India Christian Council said a pastor identified as Bhaskar had purchased land for building a church, registered it in the name of “Life in Christ Ministries”, and obtain all required permits. However, as the Christians were digging the ground for the foundation of the church, a group of protesters stopped the construction, and filed a police complaint. Police instructed Bhaskar to obtain permission directly from the most senior local administrator. Other Christian authorities in the areas are intervening to resolve the impasse.

March 25 — Police in Vasnathvihar, Moulali, Hyderabad detained members of God Grace Ministries Church, including a pastor identified as Timothy, after local Hindus filed a complaint against the church alleging forceful conversions. The All India Christian Council said the congregation is building a church on their own land, which is drawing the opposition of some Hindus in the area.

March 26 — The All India Christian Council reported that a group of Hindus barged into a prayer meeting of Lay Men Evangelical Fellowship in in Langar House,Hyderabad, in the home of K. Kamalamma and started to verbally abuse the Christians, tore Bibles and beat up one participant, Ravi Babu. The Christians filed a police complaint and an investigation is going on.

Orissa

March 1 — A Christian family was beaten and chased from their village after they refused to pay tributes to idols and spirits of Hindu festivals. Rev. Christopher Takri told World Match Monitor that Hindu extremists led by Sahadeva Tudu summoned Rabinarayana Marandi to a village public meeting at 6 a.m on March 1 in Bhalutangara village, Kankadahada block, Dhenkanal. There Marandi was threatened with assault and banishment from the village if he did not give contributions towards the Hindu festivals. “The extremists asked Marandi to give a chick as an offering for a new baby boy to the idols, and the extremists beat him up when he refused,” Takri said. “The attack last for half an hour.” Unwilling to comply, Marandi and his family were chased out and are now taking shelter in their in- laws house in another area. , Monoranjan Mohanti, area Superintendent of police, told World Watch Monitor “Legal actions will be taken against the wrongdoers,” but declined further comment.

March 10 — A Christian convert fled his home in Dengabahalli, Dhenkanal, after hearing threats he and his family would be killed. “The Hindu extremists were planning to kill him that night” said a church leader, Rev. Christopher Takri. But the convert, Mohan Soren, and his family fled the village and took refuge in the house of a Christian leader in another area, Takri said.

By Madison Strauder

It is like watching a horrific wreck happen in slow motion. You are familiar with the surroundings and all the factors that led to the accident. You can picture the people earlier that day as they had their breakfast, took care of their kids and went to work. You know what they looked like, what they wore and how they fixed their hair. You can close your eyes and almost find yourself walking beside them that day.

Building collapses in Savar, Bangladesh

It was hot and dusty as thousands walked down the sides of the busy streets to the garment factories. They pass street vendors and rickshaws on their way to the 8 story building where they work hours of their lives away. They file in and begin their shifts. Then, the unimaginable occurs. The entire structure crumbles to the ground.

I hear the reports of the current number of deceased as well as the number of survivors. I am encouraged by all those who escaped. The realist in me however knows that the number of people missing has to be higher than what they say. Very few things in Bangladesh are done to code and almost any space is overloaded past capacity. I shudder to think how many more people are in there. I am sure the wails of family members waiting at the site can be heard for blocks. The anger of bystanders is rising as they see the deplorable conditions people work in and the terrible aftermath of negligence.

Even though I sit in a home thousands of miles away today, 10 years of life lived in this place still floods my senses. I see the wreck. I see the dead and their families and am overwhelmed with sorrow for these people. So much hardship and despair all the time! The depth of turmoil this land must face in unfathomable. Poverty, sickness, natural disasters, man-made horrors, maimed beggars, trafficked women, child slaves and the list goes on.

I seek my heavenly Father for comfort, and He then adjusts the lens of my mind’s eye to take in more of the city and country. There is a heavy darkness over it all. The words of Isaiah 60:2 are brought to mind, “See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples.” I understand. They are without Christ.  As gut wrenching as their physical plight is, it is nothing compared to the condition of their souls. The death and dying and trouble they experience on this earth are only a foreshadowing of the eternal death that awaits them. God came to bring life. Eternity without Him is eternal death.

In this digital age, we as Christians often join in as spectators of horrible events happening around the world. Some are caused by fallen man, such as war and murder. Others are a result of earthquakes, tsunamis, tornados, floods and famine. We see the devastation and stop momentarily to gasp at the stories and footage and perhaps pray for those involved.

God has my full attention, and I get the wake-up call He is giving me. We may do a good job providing humanitarian relief and raising awareness of the injustices of the world. But we must grasp the reality of the eternity that each person on this planet will face. Billions would go to hell if they were to die right now. No praying them out, no second chances, no bridging the gulf. Eternal death – forever, period!

The remainder of Isaiah 60:2-3 is “but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.”

The picture in front of me changes and the dark clouds roll back allowing a light that is beautiful beyond words to cover the earth below. This is God’s desire – that His light would shine and penetrate the darkness. We are to be light-bearers to those who are lost. We cannot change every corrupt government or end all the poverty and suffering in this world. They’re a result of sin and the enemy. They will remain until He returns and defeats Satan. However, we can do our part to give others the opportunity to have an eternity with Christ. Eternal life instead of eternal death. I am convicted. Are you?

Editor’s note: Please pray for the grieving families and friends, the injured, as well as for missionary personnel seeking to minister during these difficult days.  Pray that God’s Light would pierce the darkness, bring hope and life to many.

(Names and original blog link omitted due to security concerns; stock photos)

By Laura Fielding

VERONA, Mo.—Some children are raised in and by the church, and Jane Wise* was definitely the “church’s kid.”
So when Jane was called to serve as a missionary in Bangladesh, it was natural for her church in Missouri — Verona Baptist, a small congregation with a big heart and a generous spirit — to become involved, too.

INESCAPABLE CALLING

As a college senior at Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Mo., Jane was required to spend six months studying abroad. Just a year earlier in 2008, the International Mission Board had launched Hands On, a program that mobilizes students ages 18-29 to serve overseas four months to one year while receiving college credit.

Jane’s professors encouraged students to consider only the most unreached locations. As she studied the list of Hands On service opportunities, one in Bangladesh stood out for reasons she couldn’t explain — but she knew it was the Lord’s leading.

“It just had a little paragraph description of Light of Hope Center and the beggar girls, that you teach them life skills — it was like a school,” says Jane, now 25.

“I remember I wrote that down as my No. 1 that day.”

Jane served in Bangladesh in 2009 at the Light of Hope Learning Center, a day shelter where impoverished girls receive an education, health care, moral training and life skills.

“It’s a game-changer, because otherwise [the girls] would always be stuck maybe in a garments-type factory work … it’s just giving them an opportunity to provide for their families and have a different life,” Jane says.

She and another Hands On student did a wide range of tasks during that semester — managing the center’s finances; teaching the girls art, science and English; doing the girls’ laundry — all the while adjusting to a new culture and keeping up with their own college assignments.

LIGHT IN DARKNESS
A Light of Hope Learning Center student draws the curtains in a classroom. Girls who attend the Light of Hope can find true transformation through education, health care, life skills and the love of Jesus. (Photo by Joanna B. Pinneo)

“She fell in love with all of those girls and the work that they do there,” says Shannon Morris, wife of Verona’s pastor, Lendall. “… She had three months to go until she graduated from college, and she wanted to stay there with the girls at Light of Hope Center.” Jane’s parents practically had to “make”  her come home, says Shannon.

When her Hands On assignment was over, Jane began praying about ways to get back to the center in Bangladesh after graduation. She was encouraged to return as an independent missionary —  financially supported by the contributions of friends and family.

DEVELOPING COMMITMENT

Verona Baptist has a congregation of roughly 100; Jane has been a member since she was in junior high school.

The congregation saw a commitment develop in Jane through the years as she became involved in ministry and short-term mission trips. The church “knew that she was headed for something that was going to be God-driven,” says John Weldy, a lifelong member.

When Jane returned from her Hands On service in Bangladesh, her passion and heart for the work “was just contagious within our whole congregation,” Shannon explains.

So when Jane needed financial support to go back, they “jumped on board,” adds her pastor. Some members gave a one-time gift, others gave monthly gifts.

Despite being a small church with limited finances, Verona didn’t let that stop them from helping. Churches should put God as their first priority and commit to serving others, says Lendall, because God will provide what is needed.

“You just have to go — and it’s not a leap of faith, it really isn’t,” he says. “We say, ‘Oh, I jumped off the deep end, I’m taking the church off the deep end’ — no. You’re going and telling the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ, and God is going to honor that.”

By the end of 2010, Jane was on her way back to Bangladesh.

A FEW STEPS FURTHER

Verona did more than just fund Jane’s living expenses, though. The congregation prayed for her, sent her care packages or supplies for the center and kept in contact — Jane sent out monthly email updates, church members emailed her notes of encouragement and she and the congregation had a Skype call one Sunday.

“… Hear[ing] her relate what she saw God do in those young girls’ lives was just a very fulfilling experience,” Weldy says.

And Jane had much to share — some of her work during her two years at the center included visiting slums to share Bible stories using mhendi (henna). She eventually was asked to fill in as the center’s director while her supervisor, Geri Hennerman,* spent time in the U.S.

This role necessitated someone handling the center’s financial support while Hennerman was out of the country.

When Lendall first considered taking on the responsibility, he was unsure of how the church would react — but he was pleasantly surprised by their positive response. For a year, the church managed a bank account of the center’s funds and kept track of its financial statements.

“To us here, it was a no-brainer,” Lendall explains. “It wasn’t that difficult.”

Shannon believes it’s the job of all churches and believers to step up and get “hands on” with missions.

“Many years ago, I thought that there had to be something special to be a missionary, that maybe somebody told you you could do it. And I was wrong,”

Shannon says. “If you’re saved and you’re a disciple of Christ, you’re a missionary. And it doesn’t matter what your age is, you can do something as far as reaching other people for Christ. … We’re His hands and feet, so you have to go.”

TRUST AND OBEY

Jane says her time in Bangladesh deepened her faith and trust in God — especially in difficult circumstances.

HEALTH CARE
A Light of Hope Center staff member checks the blood pressure of one of the student’s mothers. Basic health checkups and treatment are part of the services the center provides for students and their families. (Photo by Joanna B. Pinneo)

She had to adjust to the sweltering heat, a monotonous diet of mostly rice, language and cultural barriers, being stared at constantly for being a foreigner — and even occasional dangerous situations.

In one slum where Jane was sharing Bible stories, she became especially close to a woman who revealed that her husband was beating her. Jane found a local women’s shelter that could help and passed along  the shelter’s contact information. When the husband found out what Jane had done, he was irate.

“As we were walking out of the slum, he got on his motorcycle and he kind of tried to run us down,” Jane    says. “Then he said, ‘If you come back here, I’ll break your legs.’”

It was an idle threat, but one that kept her from that particular slum for a while.

 WHAT’S NEXT?

Jane is now back in Missouri and Verona has ended its time of handling the center’s finances. Though the church’s — and Jane’s — direct involvement is over, their connection with the Light of Hope Learning Center isn’t.

Jane’s fiancé, whom she met while working at the center, is from Bangladesh. Even if the couple decide to live in the U.S., Jane knows they will visit his family there and she’ll be able to reconnect with the girls at the center.

As for Verona, missions remains a priority — at home and overseas. If the Light of Hope ever has a need, Lendall knows that “without a doubt” the church will rise to the challenge.

The connection to the center was not just Jane’s involvement, Lendall emphasizes — the church’s “heart just got burst wide open” for those girls.

“They’ll forever be a part of our hearts,” Shannon adds.

Laura Fielding is an IMB writer.

*Name changed

CONNECT

Contact

• To get in touch with the Light of Hope Learning Center directors about how you or your church can get involved, email lightofhope916@gmail.com.

• Contact Verona Baptist Church at veronapastor@yahoo.com.

Give

• Give through Baptist Global Response’s “Child and Youth Education Fund,” which provides education materials and/or opportunities to children and youth in need through projects like the Light of Hope.

• Give through the World Hunger Fund, which helps provide food for the center and helps alleviate hunger needs worldwide.

• Give through One Life’s “One Beggar” project. One Life connects U.S. students with ministry opportunities around the world.

1. VCD player to show evangelistic and health-related videos: $150
2. Funds for female national partner for a month: $150
3. Sponsor a girl in obtaining training and apprenticeships (tailoring, sewing, beautician, teaching, music, handicraft skills, etc.): $100
4. Funds for 35 Bibles: $175
5. Sponsor a girl for a year: $600
6. A meal a day for one year: $120
7. Year’s funds for a teacher: $1,680
8. Uniforms for 35 girls: $875

Resources

• Find out more at southasianpeoples.imb.org, and keep up with God’s work in South Asia with the free South Asian Peoples App (Apple and Android devices). Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.

• Students interested in serving in Hands On, a program that mobilizes students ages 18-29 to serve overseas for four months to one year while receiving college credit, can learn more by visiting the Hands On website.

• Students interested in serving through One Life can visit the “One Beggar” project page.

Pray

• for Verona Baptist as they consider ways to be involved in overseas missions
• for Jane* as she seeks the Lord’s direction in how to continue serving Him
• that Jane’s fiancé will be able to obtain a visa so he can move to the U.S. and they can marry

An upscale street in Bangalore conducts business on a normal day.

By: Sophie Spenser

BANGALORE, India – The same week that the international news was choked with days of fallout from both the Boston Marathon Blast and the West, Texas, explosion, the city of Bangalore was rattled by a disaster of its own.

On the morning of April 17, a bomb was set off outside the offices of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Thankfully, no one was killed, but sixteen people did suffer injuries, including eight on-duty policemen.

The bomb was apparently strapped to an abandoned motorcycle on the street outside. Policemen traced both the bomb and the motorcycle to several suspects in a neighboring state. A handful of men have since been arrested and charged with the attack, and some are alleging that the suspects are members of a defunct extremist group attempting to make a comeback.

Although these allegations of political extremism remain largely unproven (no individuals or groups have claimed responsibility for the event), the attack nevertheless did come at a politically significant time: less than three weeks before Legislative Assembly elections. Comparable to state elections in the United States, India is holding Legislative Assembly elections across the country throughout the next several months. Karnataka, of which Bangalore is the capital, will hold its elections on May 5, with the results announced on May 8.

Bangalore, jointly known as both the Garden City and the Silicon Valley of India, is a generally stable and peaceful metropolis, but it has had previous experience with domestic terrorism. In July 2008, one woman was killed and several others injured when several bombs hit crowded areas of the city. Indeed, this recent blast occurred on the three-year anniversary of another attack, in which several people were injured when two bombs were set off in a crowded cricket stadium.

Electoral violence has not been confined to Bangalore alone, either. In February, seventeen people were killed and more than 100 injured when the city of Hyderabad suffered two explosions.

How can you pray?

- Pray that Karnataka’s upcoming elections go smoothly and peacefully. Pray especially for the May 8^th election results announcement day, as that is the most likely time for unrest, be it angry or celebratory. Residents have been advised to remain in their homes throughout the day.

- Pray for all of India as each state holds Legislative Assembly elections during the coming months. Ask not only for peace, but also for compassionate and just leaders to rise up among the people of this country.

- Pray for India’s upcoming Parliamentary Elections in 2014. Pray the people select leaders that not only earnestly seek their people’s welfare, but also are willing to speak up on behalf of the oppressed and persecuted.

- Pray for all South Asia. In the next three years, each of these seven nations will hold national elections. Bhutan, for example, held its parliamentary elections on April 23, while Pakistan will elect its parliament on May 11. Pakistan is in particular need of intercession, as electoral violence has and continues to spread across the country in the form of repeated bombings, shootings, threats and assassinations.

Learn more about how to pray for South Asian elections with the Ask for the Nations Prayer Guide, and keep up with these events by following us on Twitter and Facebook.

—30—

Sophie Spencer is a recent graduate of Dallas Baptist University, serving among South Asian peoples.

By Sophie Spencer*

Google “Maldives.”

The top search is “Maldives honeymoon,” which yields a mother lode of tropical pictures that would put the most ambitious Photoshopper to shame: sleek bamboo huts sparkling under still lamplight, emerald palms trailing their fronds in crystal waters, buff and bikinied newlyweds sipping champagne in glass-bottomed boats. Keep scrolling, and you’ll be deafened by a chorus of travel-ad sirens beckoning you toward the “holiday of a lifetime,” “the world’s best backdrop,” “magical islands” and “the sunny side of life.”

But there is something missing from all these ravishing Maldivian photographs. Something so obvious that most people don’t even think to miss them: Maldivians.

The Republic of the Maldives is a small nation off the southwestern coast of India spread over more than a 1000 low-lying islands, but the Maldivian population is concentrated on less than 200 of these. The rest are used exclusively for agriculture (primarily fishing) and for tourism, the nation’s largest source of income. The tourist islands are stunning, serene, immaculate and decidedly off-limits to the Maldivian people. If you spend your honeymoon in the Maldives, you could very easily do so without making the lasting acquaintance of half a dozen Maldivians.

Parliament building in the capital city, Male, of the Maldives.

The Maldivian government has a solid reason to advocate the separation of tourists and citizens. Officially, the Maldives boasts a religious demographic as pure as its waters: 100% Muslim. The public observance or practice of any other religion is strictly prohibited, and contact between foreigners and locals is heavily discouraged.

According to the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Center, however, the Maldives is actually only 99.4% Muslim, but given the extreme political and social pressures against converting from Islam, its true demographics are difficult to determine. Regardless, the Maldives has historically been the site of determined persecution of non-Muslims (including Christians), with victims suffering everything from unlawful arrest and imprisonment to torture and deportation. The Christian community in the Maldives remains firmly underground and largely cut off from the rest of the Body of Christ.

In addition to its silky sands and balmy breezes, this island paradise has also recently made international news for convicting a 15-year-old rape victim of fornication and sentencing her to 100 lashes and 8 months house arrest. Her rapists (which include her stepfather) have not yet stood trial.

Headlines such as these, along with the overthrow of former Maldivian president Mohammed Nasheed less than a year ago, have somewhat sullied the international dream of tropical bliss. Nearly two million people worldwide have signed an online petition demanding this young woman’s release, with more votes pouring in every day. Many are calling for a boycott of Maldivian tourism until the national government amends its ruling.

And the Maldivians themselves have not remained silent. These international calls for justice in their country have emboldened many Maldivian citizens to being speaking up, if only quietly, for social reform and increased religious freedom. This country is bracing for an avalanche of change – pray that the Church within and without will begin praying destruction upon the walls than have held the Maldivian people, her leaders and her way of life captive to untruth.

*name changed

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An explosion occurred Wednesday, April 17 at the headquarters of a political party in Bangalore, India, injuring 16 people—including eight police officers. The blast is suspected to have come from a motorcycle parked near the office in Malleshwaram, a residential area surrounded by information technology businesses.

Bangalore is the capital of Karnataka, whose state elections are scheduled to be held May 5th, with results announced on May 8th.

Prior to 2005, Bangalore remained below the radar of bombings, such as could be found in Delhi or Mumbai. Since that time, Bangalore has seen multiple explosions in 2008 at central neighborhoods and in 2010 at a cricket stadium.

Please pray for peace and calm across Karnataka, India and all South Asian nations as many of these countries head into election season.

A quiet street with a two-story rescue home replaced dark, dingy alleys lined with brothels.

By Hope Livingston*

SOUTH ASIA — A quiet street with a two-story rescue home replaced dark, dingy alleys lined with brothels.

Don and Janice Hughes, members of The Church at Agape Outpost in Colorado, retired from investigative work in South Asia to invest in a rescue home there.

Their home, bright and airy, now houses two girls with space for 20 and has a large dining-living area used for meals, school, activities and daily exercise.

“It’s really great to walk past and listen to them laugh,” Don Hughes said. “I think, ‘what a joy to see these girls in a secure place.’”

A few years after retirement, the Hughes moved back to South Asia and a year later welcomed their first girl—a 14-year-old rescued from the sex trade.

“Our goal is to offer physical, emotional, social, educational, and spiritual help for each child so she can become all that God created her to be,” the Hughes said.

The vision for Seven Sisters Home is to promote healing and wholeness for those affected by trafficking and sexual abuse.

Upstairs, two rooms are filled with bunk beds covered in colorful quilts. Each girl is provided with one drawer and a locker for basic necessities and personal belongings. Adjacent to the bedrooms is a private counseling room which doubles as an infirmary when necessary.

A wash room provides an area for the girls to do their dishes, which is the custom in India. A large, commercial-sized kitchen with a food storage room adjacent provides nourishing meals for the girls who stay there.

To teach the importance of personal responsibility and prepare them to live on their own one day, the girls are responsible for washing their own clothes, keeping their personal area tidy and helping staff with general chores on Saturday.

Caregivers follow a full schedule of school Monday to Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m., lunch and an afternoon filled with activities such as Life Skills lessons and counseling sessions, art, dance, craft activities and sports.

“Although we don’t have a lot of outdoor space, the girls love to play badminton. I was also surprised how much they love to draw and color. Even our young housekeeper likes to join in with them sometimes,” Janice Hughes said.

Since many of the girls are illiterate or behind in grade levels, each girl will be assessed to determine her level of education, and either homeschooled by tutors here or enrolled in a local school when possible.

Weekends are filled with sports, games, cooking lessons, movie nights and other activities.

“Eventually, when our first girls get settled and we think it is safe, we will take them on an outing to a park or museum,” said Janice. “We will also be adding music lessons to our program.”

The average age of the girls cared for at Seven Sisters Home is 14 years old with a possible range of 12-18 as more girls arrive.  IMB | South Asian Peoples stock photo.

The girls have been transferred from large government homes to Seven Sisters Home, having been rescued or found by the police or NGOs locally or in other cities in India.

During their investigative work, the Hughes saw girls claiming to be 20 years old, but looking no more than 14, lining the narrow passageway of the large brothel area.

The Hughes would deliver their findings for their social workers and lawyers to assist police in raiding the brothels, rounding up the girls and protecting them in the process.

“We didn’t tell the police where the raids would take place until the last second, to prevent them from tipping off the brothel owners,” Don Hughes said.

After the raid, the rescued girls moved into large, rundown institutions filled with women of all ages and backgrounds. Some of the girls returned to rescue others held captive.

Others, however, got lonely and ran away to return to the only way of life they had known while judges and officers returned some girls to owners who paid to get them back.

“That’s one of the things that makes it very difficult from an emotional level,” Don Hughes said.

Sometimes, the police use the condition of the aftercare and government homes where the girls are taken to say, “Why bother (to rescue the girls)? Where would we put them anyway?”

A few years passed between their rescue work and when the home was built while the Hughes searched for a national partner.

Then, after being introduced by email to IMB representative Charlie Noffsinger*, the Hughes took a research trip and gained the support of a local registered trust.

“We are so grateful for this family and their hearts to minister to these young ladies,” Noffsinger said.

Back in the states, the Hughes wrestled with the labor- and resource-intensive task of setting up an aftercare home at their retired stage in life with many family and friends thinking they were “crazy.”

But they remembered the girls, neglected and worse, and “we knew God had brought us to this place,” Janice Hughes said.

After much prayer, they formed their own non-profit, Seven Sisters International, and supported themselves fully with Don Hughes’s retirement and by renting out their house in Breckenridge, Colorado.

Moving back to South Asia, the Hughes met with government officials, applied for a license, located a house to rent and put the word out to hire staff.

Ten staff members, “all very dedicated, believing, local nationals,” include a counselor, a social worker and caregivers, and the staff is prepared to serve up to 20 girls in the rescue home, Don Hughes said.

The average age of the girls cared for at Seven Sisters Home is 14 years old with a possible range of 12-18 as more girls arrive.

“Since most births are not registered and the only proof of age may be a school certificate, age is difficult to determine,” Don said. “Sometimes the girls don’t really know how old they are.”

To protect the privacy of the girls, who are minors, the Hughes do not give specific details or real names.

“We pray for each girl during our daily devotionals and for the girls that God is going to send us,” Donald Hughes said. “We are also praying for our staff – their needs and growth as they do the important and difficult work of ministering to the girls – for our financial needs and for more churches and individuals to partner with us in this exciting and rewarding work.”

*Names changed.

Hope Livingston is a writer serving among the South Asian peoples.