A ray of hope is the small but growing number of converts from Islam to Christianity.
INFO BOOKLET PRAYER
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ABOUT PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES
- Leader:President Mahmoud Abbas
- Government:Interim administration
- Population:4,928,000 (70,800 Christians)
- Main Religion:Islam
- Persecution Level:Veryhigh
- Source of Persecution:Islamic extremism
The dynamics of Christian persecution in the Palestinian Territories are complex. Christians are squeezed in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, their ethnicity causing many restrictions from the Israeli side and their religion putting them in a minority position within the Palestinian community. The territories are effectively under different governments. The West Bank’s ruling Fatah party is formally based on secular principles, and Christians enjoy several rights. Though Christians are largely tolerated by Islamist Hamas, the rights of Christians are neither upheld nor protected in Gaza. Apart from this discrimination, Christians face threats from radical Islamic vigilante groups. The total number of Christians has been decreasing in both areas over time due to emigration and lower birth rates. A ray of hope is the small but growing number of converts from Islam to Christianity. The church here has tried to focus on strengthening their youth to allow persecution to strengthen their faith, not destroy it.
In cooperation with local partners and churches, Open Doors is supporting the church in Israel and Palestine through the following activities: Training (E.g. Biblical Training, reconciliation, trauma debriefing and counseling), Bible and Christian Literature distribution, Socio-economic development (E.g. Relief work), Advocacy and presence ministry (E.g. legal funds, safe houses), Research and Prayer ministry.
RECENT NEWS FROM PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES
AUG 292017
ON THE WEST BANK: MUSLIM MAN BECOMES SECRET BELIEVER AND LOSES IT ALL FOR JESUS
Found in Stories
“I want to understand why God came to earth to ride on a donkey.”
+ READ MORE
JUN 152017
20,000 BIBLES – A STREAM OF LIVING WATER IN THE PALESTINIAN CHURCH
Found in Prayer Alerts
In less than twelve months they were completely out of stock—20,000 special edition New Testaments for Palestinian Orthodox believers. For many families, this Bible is the first one they have personally owned. A key church leader said about this project: “We should have done this 2,000 years ago.” It must have felt the same at […]
+ READ MORE
AUG 302016
YOUNG BELIEVERS CELEBRATE FAITH
Found in Stories
This summer, Open Doors provided five, young Catholic believers from Gaza with the opportunity to travel to Poland and participate in the “World Youth Day” event in Krakow. Over the course of this five day gathering, over three million believers celebrated their faith.
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PRAYER POINTS FOR PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES
- Pray for Christians here to shine as lights in the midst of the conflict and for those in fear of repercussions of their faith.
- Pray for Christians living out their faith in utmost secrecy in Gaza for fear of repercussions.
- Pray that pressure to convert to Islam would be used to strengthen the faith of Christians.
