Missionaries in Ukraine---Let's Pray!

Tomorrow, Feb 7, 2010, is expected to be tumultuous in Kiev and other parts of Ukriane. It's will be a dramatic election for sure.

Aside from the actual election, one candidate is expected to limit religious liberties---going to a system like Russia. He wants to name the Orthodox Church as the only recognized church and all others as sects. He will impose fines on evangelization. Children will have to have legalized parental consent to attend things like VBS.

We need to pray!

 

It is difficult to get legalized consent in remote villages. Consent, yes. Legalized consent, so difficult.

 

It's not yet official, as far as I know. The one candidate (the one who wants to go the way of Russia) appears to have won by a narrow margin, but the current Prime Minister refuses to step down until all votes have been counted properly. So far, however, there has been no major uproar, which is good.

 

While I understand and agree with what you are saying, this is an exceptionally difficult situation. I have a close friend who ministers in a small village in Eastern Ukraine. These are poor people. I mean poor. Many don't attend the meetings, but some do. Of those that do, they love it and want to see their children grow up in it. Now the government is going to tell them that they have to get legalized consent to send their kids to VBS. Shoot, many of these people can't even read, let alone figure out how to get this kind of thing done. It is an attempt to limit "sects". I fear that along with unrest for the missionaries, this will discourage (scare) people from coming to the meetings and letting their children go.

But this really isn't about missionaries picking up kids and taking them to VBS without permission. This is about a government labeling all churches outside the recognized church as "sects" and fining and/or jailing the missionaries/nationals.

Of course, God will provide. He's faithful. The missionaries will learn and adapt. But they will need our prayers and encouragement.

 

Thank you, but I'm not in Ukraine. I do have close friends there, though, and they are waiting and praying about this probability.

 

I'm not certain as to how it will work. I'm not sure anyone knows at this point. But this proposal, if passed, will make the Orthodox Church the only State recognized church, meaning that all others will be considered sects. If a person of a sect is found doing any sort of evangelization, there will be fines to start with. No one yet knows if it will be anything more than just fines.

In addition, legalized consent will have to be given by any parents sending their children to Sunday School, VBS, etc. I'm not sure what this will involve, but if it is anything like my host country, it will be a bunch of red tape and expense. The purpose is to discourage parents from sending their children to anything being taught by followers of a sect.