Prayer Requests for Afghanistan

Imagine a country where you had to keep your faith silent for fear of being arrested. There are many people living in countries throughout the world that face this threat. Afghanistan is one of them.

Islam is the official state religion of Afghanistan. Source: Masoud Akbari

There are no churches, but mosques can be found on every street corner in the rugged and mountainous terrain of central Asia.

Persecution in Afghanistan

Afghanistan is No. 2 on the World Watch List, an annual report put out by Open Doors USA that brings awareness to what’s happening to Christians around the world.

Islam is the official religion of Afghanistan, thereby making Christianity seem like an alien religion. Afghans who convert to Christianity may face the death penalty or imprisonment.

The Afghani culture is an honor-shame based culture, where reputations and community expectations guide the way of life. When a family member converts to Christianity, the entire family unit loses its reputation. Because of the shame brought to their family, relatives may even kill new believers in Christ to bring back honor to their family.

War in Afghanistan

Afghanistan’s people have endured multiple wars. There has been 3,000 years of war over their land. In 1979, Russia attempted a coup to make Afghanistan a communist country. The Islamic extremists rebelled and the war ended in a stalemate. In 1988 the Soviet Union signed accords and was forced to withdraw troops. The most recent was the war American military against terrorists groups such as Al Qaeda and the Taliban that make this country their home.

According to Operation World the people of Afghanistan are:

0.005 percent Christians
0.000 percent Evangelicals
99.85 percent Muslim

In the country of Afghanistan, there are 70 groups of people who have never heard of Christ’s love for them. Even though there is little Christian witness, God’s Word says that even a small light can shine in the darkness.

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.”

— Matthew 5:14-15