Sudan: Christian Holds on to his Faith despite Persecution

In Sudan the atmosphere for Christians is becoming increasingly dangerous. Since the secession of South Sudan, the government in Khartoum has made it clear that the country is a Muslim state that will be governed by strict Islamic law (Sharia). The government of President Oman Hassan al-Bashir has made it clear that there is no room for Christians. However, contrary to the desire of the government and society at large, there are Christians in Sudan who are holding on to Christ at great cost.

Moses (not his real name), 31, was born to a successful Muslim businessman in Sudan. As a young man, he helped his father run the business. Sadly, the father died when he was 16 years old. Moses' mother remarried after a short time. An uncle took in the young Moses. But he was not an honest man. He grabbed all of Moses' father's property. When Moses protested, the uncle sent him to a state-run school for "problematic" young people. Moses faced disciplining and Islamic instruction. He endured regular beatings and hard labor. After some time Moses escaped. He found refuge for a few years in a separate town where he made ends meet by doing menial jobs. Then he returned to Khartoum to live with his brother. But that did not last. When Moses and his brother had a disagreement about their late father's property, Moses moved out.

One day in 2011, Moses walked past a church and noticed the cross. He unexpectedly felt "something stirring in him." He entered the building on an impulse and was met by a church elder. They had a brief discussion about the Christian faith. This one conversation led to a number of follow-up meetings. After two years of discussion, Moses accepted Christ. The regular discussions turned into discipleship sessions.

Soon after this, Moses married a Muslim woman, Aida. She regularly joined Moses for church services at the local church and Moses sincerely hoped she would follow him to Christ. But it did not happen. At first, the couple did not tell any of their families about Moses' Christian faith. They thought it best to keep it a secret. But in April, Aida told her mother. Aida's mother was furious. She spread the word. When she told her sons, they immediately went to Moses' house and burned it to the ground. Moses lost everything in the fire, including all of his documents.

Not surprisingly, Aida left Moses. She said she would only return if he renounced his Christian faith. When Moses' in-laws informed his own relatives about his Christian faith, they also started pressuring him to return to Islam. Moses noticed that they started monitoring his activities and realized that he was in grave danger. But he was determined to hold on to Christ. So Moses decided to relocate once more. Like several times before, Moses has had to start all over again. But although he has been separated from his earthly family, God has provided a spiritual family for him. In Sudan, this is a blessing and a privilege not to be taken for granted.

Before secession, most of Sudan's Christians were Southerners. When South Sudan chose independence, it caused a great, almost forced, exodus of Christians from northern Sudan. This has greatly diminished these congregations in Sudan. But thankfully there remains an indigenous local church, and by the grace of God, Moses found a spiritual home in his new town where he is being nurtured and discipled. Open Doors is supporting the small but courageous local Church in Sudan. Open Doors is strengthening efforts of the Church to minister to unbelievers in love and helping converts such as Moses to grow strong in the faith despite the many challenges they face for choosing Christ.