Algeria (MNN) — The president of Algeria, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, announced on March 21 that the nation’s next presidential election will be held September 7. Since 2019, the year Tebboune’s term in office began, Algeria’s government has pressured and shut down more than forty churches. 

Yet Algeria’s capital-C Church is far from crushed. 

“God’s churches are human beings, and they cannot be shut down,” says Yernathen*, a North African leader serving with A3.

(Graphic courtesy of A3)

“They (the government) cannot prevent the Holy Spirit to work in people’s hearts. People are continuing to come to the Lord. Families and (a) number of our leaders are bringing people into fellowships in the homes in different places,” Yernathen says. 

He admits that most of the church buildings have been closed. For people who consider a building the only way to have church gatherings, this leaves them with little to no options. 

But there is a plan B, in which Yernathen says “just like the Acts of the Apostles, they have to meet wherever they find peace.” Sometimes that means private homes, and sometimes that means out in forests where there is greater freedom. 

The fact that churches have even received the government’s attention is encouraging to Yernathen in a country that is 97% Muslim. 

“To see the church, the Body of Christ, getting to a point where it disturbed the government and the government has to make a decision to see how they can regulate that, that means a lot. That means God is working,” he says. 

“There is a persecution, there is an oppression. But that joy that is overflowing covers the multitude of those persecution(s). It has furthered the kingdom of God, no matter how they persecuted the church.”

Yernathen asks for prayer for Algeria’s leaders facing immense pressure from the government and families. 

He also invites the Church of the West to share insights and experiences for the struggles Algerian churches are dealing with.  Those challenges include how to best counsel abused women as well as help Christians from Muslim backgrounds walk with the Lord despite the pressure of their culture. 

A3 is working to equip North African leaders with mentorship and resources for godly leadership. Would you prayerfully consider partnering with them? Learn more here. 

*Pseudonym

Header photo is a representative stock image in Algeria courtesy of Nasro Azaizia/Unsplash. 

Algeria (MNN) — Christians in Algeria are allowed to practice their faith, but it isn’t made easy for them. Since 2019, Algerian churches have faced forcible closure and opposition from the government — or what Voice of the Martyrs calls “squeeze” persecution. Furthermore, evangelism of Muslims by non-Muslims is prohibited by the nation’s Constitution.

Karim Arezki is a professor of comparative religions involved in the North African Christian community. In a recent conversation with The Voice of the Martyrs Canada, he described the big picture this way:

“The underground church and ministries are growing and God is opening many doors through persecution, which is part of our faith. But our leaders and people in our Christian community are tired because of the situation.”

Karim Madi, an Algerian pastor living in Europe, says, “Before 2019 when we could say there was persecution in society and from the family. But after 2019 the persecution started to come from the government.”

With only a few churches open across the country today, many believers meet online or underground.

Arezki says that when Algeria gained its independence from France in 1962, it allowed for more freedom for missionaries. This led to people coming to know Christ, and, eventually, revival.

Photo of Bejaia, Algeria courtesy of SLPix via Pixabay

“In the 1970s, more Algerians were accepting the Lord. But it wasn’t easy. From 1982 until 1999, Christianity was growing, and people of all generations — teenagers, older people, men and women — accepted the Lord. There was a revival in the Kabyle area. In every village, there were underground churches, and they were growing in the Arab areas as well,” says Arezki.

“The revival of Christianity in Algeria started in 1990, with a new generation of believers. This encouraged others in their faith in Jesus and to share, but they paid the price. Some of them went on to have a good position in society, including in the government. The persecution began when it was learned there were many Christians.”

Arezki says Christians lost their jobs and faced verbal and physical abuse when their faith in Christ became known.

“What we see in this second generation of Christians [who are] growing up in Christian homes [is] the fruit because of their faith of their parents, and how they educated their children in school and in faith.”

Pray for Algerian believers as they face pressure from the government in addition to pressure from their family and society. Pray that Muslims will be curious about the Christianity they see and will turn to Christ.

“The persecution isn’t stopping us from our faith. Yes, we have had arrests and we will never know what will happen next. Many churches are closed and few are open. But we have underground churches that continue to practice their faith under these circumstances.”

Find out more about how you can be invested in the persecuted Church at Voice of the Martyrs Canada.

(Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Himsan via Pixabay.)

Algeria (MNN) — The Body of Christ is growing in Algeria. Believers proclaim Jesus boldly in and around al-Qaida terrorist camps. However, sharing the Gospel with Arabs can cause serious problems.

As part of an effort to stem Christianity’s rapid growth, Algeria’s government banned unregistered religious gatherings. Yet, it won’t give meeting or building permits to Christians.

“They assume every group that gathers together is against the law and the government,” A3’s Yemathen* says.

After dozens of church closures in recent years, Algerian Christians found a workaround.

“Most Christians are now training to find another way of doing church or getting together without risking another [church] closure,” Yemathen says.

“A number of leaders are convening their meetings in their homes, and sometimes in the wilderness or the forests.”

Unfortunately, this approach is not foolproof. “One of my leaders in Algeria decided to meet in ‘the bush’ (wilderness) because they had just started a church,” Yemathen says.

“They were followed by 20 policemen who stopped the meeting and inquired about the nature of the meeting. They (police) asked for their IDs, recorded their names, and [the believers] may be called for a court case.”

Ask the Lord to strengthen and encourage persecuted Christians in Algeria. Learn more about A3’s work in the Middle East/North Africa region here.

“The churches are growing, not necessarily in buildings, but spreading all over the place,” Yemathen says.

“The fact that they are persecuted [adds] value to the faith professed by our brothers and sisters because they stand on the truth and the conviction that Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth, and Life, and there is no other way.”

*Pseudonym

Header image is a representative stock photo courtesy of Artem Zhukov/Pexels.

Algeria (MNN) — The Algerian government continues to pressure Protestant churches.

“More than 40 churches have been closed down in Algeria over the last six years,” Todd Nettleton with The Voice of the Martyrs USA says.

Like water erodes stone over time, government pressure wears down the Christian community and avoids international attention.

“At Voice of the Martyrs, we discuss ‘smash’ and ‘squeeze’ persecution. ‘Smash’ persecution is [when] you come in and burn down our church, beat somebody up, arrest a bunch of Christians, and take them off to jail.

“‘Squeeze’ persecution is a little different. You try to make them uncomfortable, to make life harder – that’s what we’re seeing in Algeria.”

So far, believers have overcome this pressure and continue their work for Jesus.

“Christians in Algeria have had to move to an ‘underground’ form of worship, meeting in private homes,” Nettleton says.

Pray Gospel workers will not be discouraged.

“As you see your church [getting] a padlock on the door and you can no longer go there, it would be discouraging and hard to go through that experience,” Nettleton says.

Pray believers will always be ready to share the reason why they hope.

“Muslims are watching what is happening [to Algerian Christians.] I have talked to Algerian Christians who say [that] when their church was closed down, Muslim neighbors reached out and said, ‘Hey, we’re sorry this happened to you. We know you guys are good people; they shouldn’t have done this,’” Nettleton says.

As they watch events unfold, “Muslims grow curious,” he says.

They ask themselves, “‘Why does our government see the churches such a threat? I wonder what those Christians believe that is so dangerous for the government.’ Maybe they go on to Google or turn on a satellite TV channel and hear the Gospel message.”

In the header image, Algerian special police put a lock on a church door while Christians took photos. (Photo, caption courtesy of VOM USA)

Algeria (MNN) — The Church is thriving in Algeria, but it’s thriving underground. Algeria’s government recognizes an official organization called the Association of the Protestant Church of Algeria (APCA), but getting certified as part of that organization is next to impossible. And for churches that don’t register? According to Riadh Jaballah of Voice of the Martyrs Canada, they become targets.

To date, Jaballah’s contacts have counted 46 closed churches without any newly opened ones. Churches that are not a part of the APCA are not formally allowed to open, and any attempt to do so would be met with automatic government shutdowns.

This essentially shuts down any opportunity for smaller churches to grow or remote plants to start. The churches that do fall under the APCA umbrella are so big – some reaching 2,000 congregants – that there is little space for personal connections or discipleship.

The size of these legal churches confuses local believers, Jaballah says. How can churches have the negative social impact that the Algerian government claims they have when these registered churches have so many members already? “The government searches for any excuse to persecute them and close the churches,” he says.

Plus, the rules are applied inconsistently. Some Catholic churches or churches that promise not to engage in vandalism, for example, don’t seem to require government oversight. This can potentially create division within the Algerian Church as a whole and drives leadership into unnecessary conflict.

“Our brothers [are] still fighting for their faith,” Jaballah says. “They’re [still] worshipping God.”

Christians in Algeria are trying to turn crisis into opportunity. Amazingly, Jaballah says, “We are happy that the church buildings are closed because God opened many opportunities for the underground Church.”

Christians are careful to exercise caution. “If more than 10 or 15 people [meet], they suspect; why are you together?” Jaballah says. “If the number is more than that, they suspect them, and right away they can stop them.” Instead, Christians enter churches one by one so they don’t draw too much attention.

Jaballah draws comparisons to the first-century Church, which met in houses and found creative ways to worship. Like the early Church, Algerian believers are hungry for sound theology and meaningful discipleship.

“We keep praying for our brothers and sisters,” Jaballah says. “We need to pray for unity among the believers. Secondly, I want to pray for wisdom. It’s not about us. It’s about him at the end of the day, for all of us when we serve the ministry.”

Pray for humility, courage, and faith. Learn more about how you can pray with Voice of the Martyrs Canada.

Header photo courtesy of Unsplash.

Algeria (MNN) — An Algerian Christian is free today after spending over two years in prison. Hamid Soudad was arrested years ago on blasphemy charges for a social media post he made back in 2018.

We spoke with The Voice of the Marytrs Canada’s Riadh Jabballah who knows Hamid. “I met him many years ago when I was there in Algeria. He’s a very humble man and a really simple believer. He received a message from his friend about the caricature about the Prophet Muhammad. Right away, he shared this caricature on his Facebook page.”

Man with Algerian flag. (Photo courtesy of Nasro Azaizia/Unsplash)

The husband and father of four young children thought the charges would be dropped, but he was sentenced to five years in prison.

Yet, in July, Soudad was released early as part of Algeria’s Independence Day celebrations. At least 8,500 prisoners were pardoned or had sentences decreased.

As the Body of Christ, we can pray for persecuted Algerian Christians like Soudad to have wisdom and be encouraged in their faith. And praise God for Soudad’s release!

Jabballah says, “We need to build a bridge. We need to open doors interfaith. We need also to plant the seeds here and there.”

It’s only the seeds of the Gospel that will soften hearts. Algeria is almost totally unreached with the Gospel, and Islam is the state religion. Yet the small underground Church in Algeria is growing.

Learn more about VOM Canada’s ministry to persecuted believers.

Header photo courtesy of Pixabay.

Algeria (MNN) — Persecution can lead to purification in Christian teaching. In Algeria, pastors used to teach believers that “this building is your church,” says Youssef*, a Protestant Christian leader who partners with Operation Mobilization USA.

“A lot of the leaders focused on [growing] their own kingdom” with big and beautiful church buildings, he continues. As a result, the average Christian in Algeria understood that “the building has something to do with their faith.”

The government has closed Protestant churches nationwide in recent years, forcing believers underground. Initially, fear filled the hearts of most Algerian Christians. Many wondered how they could worship without a church building.

“Overcoming fear [has been] very, very important. When the churches closed, they (Christians) were lost [and] didn’t know what to do,” Youssef says.

Today, “we are trying to encourage [believers to meet in] house churches and cell groups.”

Believers rely on God for the strength and will to press on, and His mercies are new every morning.

“Where we are facing this persecution, there is an incredible movement of prayer and fasting. We’re not giving in; we must persevere by faith,” Youssef says.

“We were not prepared for this persecution, honestly. But God is in control.”

Yousseff and his wife Hee-Tee train Christian leaders and disciple-makers in Algeria with help from OM. You can support their efforts here.

“We want to pray for the best ones to be recruited for training and then for sending off. We hope we can send out 15 missionaries this year,” Hee-Tee says.

“Please pray that the Lord would bring quality people to us. We are very keen to train them [to] go [to] Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria [and] the ends of the earth.”

*Name withheld for security purposes.

Header image courtesy of Operation Mobilization USA.