Project 54 Blog

Throughout history, Turkey has been the Middle Eastern hub of Christianity. The Apostle Paul’s missionary journeys brought him through the area several times and it was in Ephesus where Paul penned 1 Corinthians. The seven churches mentioned in the book of Revelations are all in Turkey and Paul, himself, was born in Tarsus.
Today, however, 98 percent of the 73-million people who live in Turkey are Muslim.
According to the World Christian Encyclopedia, only .6% of the Turkish population is Christian, yet it remains one of the more opportune Middle Eastern countries for spreading the Gospel.
Brother Cetin, a young Turkish leader studying in the U.S., states that though there are limitations to freedom of religion, the region is more open than surrounding countries. It is the only Muslim country in the world with no state religion and that constitutionally guarantees freedom of religion.
Turkey, for the most part, is well-liked and trusted by its neighboring countries. It acts as a political referee among conflicting Middle Eastern counties. Yet, from a religious viewpoint, most neighboring countries don’t consider Turkey to be a Muslim country, but rather a mirror of Western society.
“More than half of them, they do not consider us Muslim. They see us in a polite way. They say we are secularists. In some harsher ways, they say we are the slaves of the West. We do what (the West) says because we don’t have an Islamic government,” he said.

Thank you for helping us bring light into a dark world!

For more on this see our sister site Center for International Youth Mission

An excerpt from, “Searching for Truth, A first-hand account of the spiritual vacuum in Eastern Europe”

By David Novak

Seventy-three percent of Czechs believe telepathy is real. Research done by the International Society of Political Psychology shows that one-third of Czechs believe in charms, amulets and tarot cards.
These findings show that Czechs are searching for the spiritual world and have questions concerning life after death or the purpose of life, but don’t expect that the Church will bring the right answer. They see the Church as one of many religious organizations, which has no more answers to the ultimate questions of life than any other religious organization.
People have no need to attend an official church because they see it just as an institution. Furthermore, they generally have no trust in institutions and eventually leave the Church.
Often, I have asked my students (age 17 to 19) to write an essay, “If there is God.” Interestingly, most of them claim to be agnostic. While one might expect students to write, “there in no God,” they instead write, “it is hard to say and we still have enough time to deal with this question.” To them, Faith is matter for “old people.”

Thank you for your support !

For more on this see our sister site Center for International Youth Mission

Hom Tamang, an apt and dynamic missionary to the youth of Nepal had invited two Christian mountaineers and myself to join him as he facilitated a week long outreach camp.
A few days into the outreach camp, several of the leaders and myself were perched atop the center where we witnessed a crowd of young people gathered in a circle at the bus stop below. There, Tamang and Lehk Rai, another camp leader were working to quell a fight between a gang member and another boy.
An hour later, we sat with Tamang and Rai as they contemplated the seriousness the problem at hand and weighed the idea of canceling the remaining days of camp.
The origins of the gang activity in Nepal are hard to pinpoint, but according to our indigenous company, the problem is very real and very prevalent. We are told that Pokhara boasts of more gang members than any other city in Nepal, and despite the plentitude of gangs, the problem is even younger than most of its participants.
“Pokhara is one of the most—I would say has the largest gang problem,” Tamang said.
As gangs form, there are different tiers of power and influence among the gang population as a whole. One way of sizing up where one gang stands among others is to measure where the majority of its members stand in society—see the caste system.
“There are different varieties of gangs, some are from wealthy families and there are people from middle class families,” he says.
Despite the likelihood that the gangs would return and the fear that they would bring weapons with them, it was decided that the club would continue. It was clearly a difficult decision for the leaders and it was easy to see the weight they felt and the distress they tried to tuck away.
“I really was scared of coming along that type of person, but the community where I (live) is running that way,” Rai said. “But if I cannot work, if I cannot reach that type of person, who will be the person to reach them?”

Just another reminder why we need to put forth everything we have to reaching young people with the Gospel

For more on this see our sister site Center for International Youth Mission

Sam Rajshakar, is an indigenous youthworker who started a school where young people, primarily of Hindu background, can both receive an education and learn about Christ. When it comes to meeting the numerous and varied needs of the people of India, Rajshakar is an expert, if for no other reason but because he answers the call to love his neighbor, no matter their caste.
“Ninety-five percent of our kids are Hindu or have Muslim backgrounds and we are meeting them at their time of need with education, nutrition, health care. So there are opportunities there,” he said.
But doing ministry in a context of Hinduism, means asking India’s partakers to choose between leaving the life they know and ignoring the radical call to follow Jesus.
Considering the options, it’s no surprise many Christians in India remain silent about their conversion. According to Rajshakar, thousands of such individuals, both young and old, have converted to Christianity but keep their belief under wraps so to preserve their livelihood and more importantly, their familial relationships.
“I can not second guess them. I know the cost they have to pay and the few people who have publicly come out have a heavy price to pay for that,” he said.
For some, that may mean the loss of a job. In a country with one of the highest poverty rates in the world and where the national income per individual is $340 per year according to The World Christian Encyclopedia, unemployment is a bad state to find oneself.

Kathmandu, Nepal

J. Tamang* is initiating an uncommon conversation among the Hindu youth of Kathmandu. A rare breed among Christian youth workers, Tamang is carefully but intently approaching the topic of abortion, relationships, and the familial structure in the Hindu culture.
Tamang, is not so unlike many of his Christian counterparts in the west: faithfully walking a fine line but boldly speaking Biblical truths about abortion to young Christians. While the cultural implications of abortion in the Hindu context might be indicative of an open door to a Christian perspective, the culture also brings with it an unwritten code of silence.
“Young people do not share with their parents. Like having a girlfriend or boyfriend, they do not share that with their parents,” he said. “If I had a girlfriend here, I would never share it with my father. If he asked if I had a girlfriend, I would say, No.”
When asked if it was out of shame that young Nepalis kept relationships secret he said, “It is not really a shameful thing but that is the way it is; maybe because of years back, you would have to be so afraid of your parents—[it’s] the rules. But the problems start from there. You don’t share.”

We’re greatful for the oppertuninty to help youth work in Nepal reach new hights!
*Individual’s name has been changed in order to protect his identity.