Father Tom Uzhunnalil requests help to be freed from terrorists

Father Tom Ushannalil, earlier picture (l), latest (R)

Report: Bibles for Mideast

A video with Father Tom Uzhunnalil, an Indian Catholic priest has been released by his captors in which the abducted Indian priest calls upon Pope Francis and also the President and Prime Minister of India to do more to save him. In the video, Fr. Tom says nothing is being done to save him, and wonders if this is because he Indian.

Father Tom had been working in a retirement home run by Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity in Port City of Edan in Yemen back on March 4, when militants stormed his workplace, killing fifteen people, including four nuns. The priest was taken hostage.

His captors threatened to kill him almost immediately, while Church and government officials scrambled to locate him and determine if he was alive or dead. On Good Friday, the Archbishop of Vienna, Christoph Schonborn, said that Father Tom had been crucified. The news was shocking, but the premature report proved false.

Since then, there has been virtually no news about him. His loved ones have waited for news of his fate, unsure if they will see him alive ever again.

On the day after Christmas, the priest has appeared in a video made by his captors. His statements are painful to hear. It is obvious that the captors are wearing him down and he is losing hope.

"If I were a European priest, I would have been taken more seriously. I am from India. I am perhaps not considered of much value," he said in the video.

"Dear Pope Francis, dear Holy Father, as a father please take care of my life. I am very much depressed. My health is deteriorating.... I am very sad that nothing has been done seriously."

"I am from India and not considered. Dear people, I pray you all, ask you all, beg you all to do your might to help me to save my life. I need hospitalization soon. Please come to my help quickly," he begged.

For their part, Indian officials say they are working hard to secure his release, but that the process takes time. They have not specified what efforts are underway, nor what demands the terrorists have made.

For now, it remains up to the Indian government and Pope Francis to negotiate the priest's release. The rest of us must do our part to secure his release though prayer. We must also petition the Church and the government of India to do more to save Fr. Tom, a humble priest whose only purpose was to comfort the elderly. He does not deserve to be imprisoned for his Christian faith.

"We have spared no effort and we will spare no effort to secure Fr Tom's release from captivity. The government will do everything to resolve to bring him back," Sushama Swaraj, the External Affairs Minister of India tweeted after seeing Father Tom’s video.

Please pray for Tom Uzhunnalil’s soon release.

Click and view the video of Fr. Tom's request:  https://youtu.be/sv8S6DkTDF8

Wonder what the Face of God looks like?

Have you ever wondered what the face of God looks like? Have you ever thought what you would say to Him? What you would do in His presence?

I lay awake one night and began to think about what I would do. As I was praising Him, I kept thinking: I wanted more, I wanted something more personal. Do I dare?

To start, I am a Christian. I have God’s only Son, Jesus Christ, first in my life. Then, thinking I was in heaven, I could hear chanting.

"Holy is the Lord God Almighty, Who was, and is and is forever more!’’ At first, I can’t see a thing. I can only hear the chanting. It is beautiful. You can’t describe it. You can just say it is the most beautiful and wonderful sound you have ever heard.

I listen for a time and realize that there is no darkness, only light. I could see! The light is not blinding, but a pure light. A light that gives you a sense of warmth and peace. You feel drawn to the light but there is no source. There is only the warm, soothing pure light. A light with no beginning, it is everywhere and everlasting!

Something touched me as I was enjoying the presence of everything. I heard a Voice say, “Come with me, I want to show you something.’’

I could now see, hear and feel. Everything was so wonderful, what more could there be? As I looked, I saw my life before me. The good things, the bad things and the missed blessings I could have had. For the first time there was sorrow in me. The sorrow was for me, and those I should have tried to witnessed to. I had the realization that I may not have led someone to know Jesus as I did, to know Jesus as their personal Savior. There was such sorrow in my soul. I thought I could have done more and could have done better.

At once, I was at the foot of the most splendid individual you could envision. The experience and feeling was far beyond any explanation. I was happy to stay there. There were 24 saints seated with Him. I believed they were the leaders of the 12 tribes of the Jews and the 12 Apostles of Jesus Christ. There were angels going to and from the 24 with reports and tasks to do.

The 24 saints were continually praising God the Father, the Creator, the Almighty.

I felt a touch; a warm, gentle touch. It was Jesus, my Savior, my Lord and Kinsmen-Redeemer, The Prince of Peace. He is my Shepherd. I remembered His words that He would remain at the right hand of God the Father. His elect will be with Him forever.

Jesus said, “Cover your face for now. There is much to do. I need saints who will be willing to give their all, even their life to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.’’ Again I became sad for those who have and will lose their lives to spread the Gospel to lost souls who are following the deceiver, Satan.

I heard Jesus talk to the Father but could not understand what was said. Jesus said to me, ‘’Come here, I want you to meet the Father.’’

As I kept my head down, not wanting to look up, I felt myself weak and falling to my knees. I heard Jesus introduce me to the Father as His good and faithful servant. It was an introduction, but really I felt so unworthy of it.

I kept thinking the only reason I was there is because of the willingness of His Son to redeem me from Satan’s hold on me. Humanity is so unworthy. I am so undeserving. God is so caring. He didn’t need to do this for me.

I found myself chanting, "Worthy is the Kinsmen-Redeemer of the world. All praise and honor is to be given to Him and the Father.’’ I kept saying it over and over.

An angel came over to me and stood between the Father and me. He told me to look up. As I looked up, I could see the outline of Glory. The silhouette of the angel only just dimmed the brightness and warmth of the light of the face of God.

How does the face of God look? His face is greater than the best you could ever describe here on earth. If you could come into the physical presence of the Father and see Him, you would want to stay there and worship Him forever.

Please pray with me.

"Give us the strength, dear Heavenly Father, to endure the temptations of this world. Keep Your saints safe. Empower us with the Holy Spirit to be witnesses around the globe till the day of the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!"

At the sound of Jesus’ voice, militants toppled, guns blown from their hands

Haroon (not his real name) grew up in a prominent Muslim family of the Middle East. His father, a leading religious authority following the dictates of Sharia law, strictly regulated religious behavior in their state. 

“I was commanding a militant wing to protect the religion and taking immediate operations against its enemies,” explains Haroon, who had trained as a sharp shooter.

Early one morning several weeks ago, Haroon got word of a baptismal service to be held in the Arabian Sea.

“I picked up militants and rushed to the seashore,” he says. “We were 19 members in our wing for the operation.  Our ultimate aim was to kill everybody in the sea itself during the service. We wanted the world to wake up to this breaking news. We wanted Christians to fear Muslims and stop evangelizing them in our region.”

But the service had ended by the time they arrived. Seeing the bus full of Christians driving away, they opened fire. Within seconds, a giant dust storm formed in front of the militants’ vehicles, preventing them from moving forward.

“We all got out of our cars and continued shooting through the dust storm,” he says. “Suddenly, we saw Christ Jesus appear in the dust storm! He was angry and his eyes were like blazing fire. With a mighty voice he told us, ‘Why are you persecuting me; it’s hard for you to kick against the pricks’.”

“Oh, it was a terrible experience! His voice produced a strong wind and we all fell down on the road. Our guns flew away from us. Somehow we stood up from the road, but we were unable to say anything. Our voices were lost.”

Jesus spoke again to them. “I came to the world not to destroy anyone; but to save you. Go in peace.” He then disappeared, as did the dust.

Haroon says he and his fighters somehow felt both “terrible fear and an abundant peace” at the same time, something none of them had ever experienced.

When they recovered their voices, all but two of them began praising and thanking God. The two dissenters refused to believe God would do such a thing. Argument ensued, and the group left in confusion.

Haroon shared the experience with his father, who warned him not to tell anyone else. But he and the men he commanded could no longer pursue military activities.

A few days later, Haroon and his family headed to the desert for an evening bonfire. There, his sister Hajira was bitten by a highly poisonous Saharan horned viper and, near death, rushed to hospital. While in a coma she had a vision of an angel who explained to her the truth of Jesus—how He wanted to be both her healer and Savior.

When the angel disappeared she became conscious, and noticed her brother at her bedside. She shared the vision with him, and to her surprise found him receptive. Soon realizing they’d had similar experiences, the siblings prayed to Jesus to save and guide them.

Shortly afterward, Pastor Paul, Director of Bibles for Mideast, came to the hospital room. He explained to them that he too had been visited by the angel Hajira had seen, and been told to visit them in the hospital. He knew both their names. He explained to Haroon how he had been among the Christians Haroon’s troop had tried to attack that day of the dust storm.

“The Lord Jesus saved me and my group from your guns,” he explained. “He showed Himself as a mighty and wonderful Man, holding out His protecting and lovely hands towards us with a sweet smile. I was one among them and was leading the group.”

Brother and sister confessed their sins, and readily accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior. When Pastor Paul prayed over them, Hajira was totally healed.

Hajira’s healing made a believer of their father, and their whole family and 17 of the men who had witnessed the dust storm soon followed.

“We are praying for other two, and also for the Muslim world to be saved,” says Haroon.

Saharan snake bites Muslim woman, Jesus heals, family believes

Hajira (not her real name) grew up in a prominent Middle Eastern Muslim family. Her father, a top religious authority in their state, helped enforce the dictates of Sharia law, particularly those regarding religious matters.

She and her brother Haroon (not his real name), the only children of their mother, share other brothers and sisters by their father’s other wives. Her sharp-shooting brother commanded a militant Islamic wing intent on protecting the faith. The large extended family strictly followed Sharia law, and Hajira felt deeply loved by all of them.

Once a year, the family—with their cooks, drivers and servants—enjoyed setting off for the desert to enjoy a bonfire under the moonlight. This year they selected some nearby rocky hills for the gathering, Hajira told Bibles for Mideast. After the evening’s festivities, she felt like going on a little walk out further into the desert, and her siblings decided to join her. Their father and mothers remained near the bonfire with the servants.

saharan horned viper

While they walked, she suddenly felt something bite her leg. The siblings saw a big snake slither quickly away, then bury itself in the sand. Haroon grabbed his revolver, took aim, and killed it. It proved to be a Saharan horned viper, fairly common in the area but with highly toxic venom.

Within seconds Hajira became unconscious, and was rushed to hospital. She lay there four days in a coma. She remembers waking up briefly on the fourth day, in severe pain and unable to move. She heard the doctors discussing renal failure and increasing fibrinolysis. Her prognosis was grim.

“I gave up my hope and tried to prepare my mind for death,” she explained. “I turned my face to the wall and wept. I did not want others to see my tears. I prayed to God for a painless death in sleep.”

While she slept, she remembers an angel appearing before her and saying, ‘Call upon Jesus, the son of the Most High who was crucified, died for you, and rose from the dead.’

The words irritated her. “Prophet Jesus, the son of Mary?” she challenged the angel. “He was not crucified. And he was not greater than my prophet.”

 “You are wrong,” the angel replied.  “Jesus is the Lord of the prophets. He is the true savior. He can heal you from all sickness and save you from sin and death. Call upon Him with your heart, and with your mouth.”

The angel disappeared, and she woke up to see her brother standing beside her bed.

“Were you dreaming?” he asked her. “I heard you saying something about the prophet Jesus.”

She told him about the angel and what he had said, and was surprised when Haroon looked enthralled rather than angry.

She then learned of his own experience with Jesus in a dust storm, when he and his team of militants were intent on killing a group of Christians. He shared that remarkable incident with her (you can read it here), and brother and sister then joined hands and prayed.

 “Lord Jesus, if you are the true savior, show us the way,” Haroon began. “Jesus, if you are the true savior, forgive our sins.”

“Jesus, if you are the true savior, heal both our physical and mental sickness,” Hajira continued. “Jesus, if you are the true savior, send somebody to us for further guidance. Amen”.

“We prayed from our heart,” Hajira said. “While praying, both of our eyes overflew with tears.”

In about two hours, she said, two strangers came to her room unexpectedly. The senior person knew both her and her brother’s names.

“But we never met them before,” she said.  “Without any introduction he said, ‘Lord Jesus heard your prayers which you both prayed together. The angel who visited you appeared before me too and asked me to visit you, guide you to salvation and pray for you.’ At once I left my house to see you.”

The elder man introduced himself as Pastor Paul of Bibles for Mideast. He explained to them who Jesus is, why he was crucified and died. Hajira and her brother repented of their sins and accepted Jesus as their Lord and savior. Pastor Paul put his hands on Hajira’s head and prayed.

“Immediately I felt something extraordinary flowing through my veins,” she said. “I got up from the bed and knelt down on the floor. Yes, Lord Jesus totally healed my sickness and sealed me by His precious and victorious blood.”

She told the doctors Jesus had healed her. After thoroughly examining her, they accepted her recovery as miraculous. Seeing their precious Hajira restored to health, all her family members accepted Jesus as savior as well..

“Pray that our Lord Jesus protects us and gives us strength to survive persecutions,” she asks.

________________________________

The experience of Haroon (update on Dec 20):   At the sound of Jesus’ voice, militants toppled, guns blown from their hands.

Story of Oct. 02:  Heavenly dust storm protects newly-baptized from militant gunfire

The ministries of Bibles for Mideast operate on faith alone. 
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UN Petition from Muslim women seeking ban on female genital mutilation (FGM)

A group of Muslim women belonging to the Dawoodi Bohra community in India, who underwent Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), have launched a petition to the UN seeking support to abolish the practice. According to the World Health Organisation, between 100 million and 140 million females across the world are thought to be living with the consequences of FGM.

The online petition, aimed at rooting out this ancient practice, was launched by an advocacy group known as 'Speak Out on FGM' on Change.org on Thursday ahead of International Human Rights Day being observed on Saturday, December 10, 2016.

In December 2014, Joice George, a Member of Parliament, asked a question in Lok Sabha. He wanted to know if the incidence of FGM had been reported in the country and whether the government had taken any preventive steps to curb this practice. The answer to both these questions was that there was no official information on the incidence of FGM.

The reality is quite contrary to this official government response. A fairly large community of Bohras—numbering around 2 million—practise FGM. The reason that no incident has been reported is perhaps because FGM happens to a child of seven and is shrouded in complete secrecy.

Its knowledge is restricted to the mother, grandmother or aunt who take the child for the procedure. The child is deceived to begin with about the fact that she will be circumcised/cut. The pain and physical and emotional trauma are such that in most cases the girls never utters a word about this to anyone. That leaves us with the mother and grandmother who are the perpetrators of this act—and there is no reason they would ever report this to the government or any official for that matter.

For hundreds of years this practice continued under a shroud of secrecy and silence, and no one outside of the Bohra community even knew of its existence.

All this has now changed. Women from within the community have now begun to speak up. In 2011, a young lady, Tasneem, launched a petition on change.org addressed to the Bohra clergy–asking for an end to FGM in the community. This petition received over 5,000 signatures, but the Bohra clergy did not pay any heed.

The online petition was submitted to the wing of the United Nations dealing with the welfare of women and children, a senior associate with the group said. The group launched a similar petition in December last year, which has received over 80,000 responses so far and was submitted to Union Women and Child Development minister Maneka Gandhi.

"Our main objective to make everyone aware at least of this age-old practice being observed in our country for the last 1,400 years, which in not only shameful but is unconstitutional and utterly violates human rights," said Masooma Ranalvi, a 50-year-old working woman from Delhi.

"I have no hesitation in admitting that I was subjected to FGM at a very young age, but I have ensured that my daughter, who is now 22, does not undergo this brutality," said Ranalvi, adding even today over 80 percent of the Bohra girls are subjected to this hurtful tradition.

A senior associate of the group from Pune Shabnam Poonawala said, "Though this is practiced in the US and Canada too, but their respective governments have brought laws to curb this evil. But unfortunately, no one speaks about this here, forget bringing a law for it."

In December 2012, the UN General Assembly adopted a unanimous resolution on banning FGM. The World Health Organisation (WHO) classifies FGM as a violation of the human rights of girls and women.

The WHO defines FGM—sometimes called female circumcision—as all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to their genital organs for non-medical reasons.

Recounting her ordeal that she underwent at a tender age, a survivor from Mumbai said, "I was very young, around seven years of age. I was subjected to FGM in Mumbai in unhygienic conditions and in a clandestine manner. The shock, the physical and psychological trauma of that day is still fresh in my mind.It's good that thousands of survivors are joining this campaign not only from India, but also from the US, the UK, Canada, Australia, South Africa, other African countries, Middle East, France and 

Survivors maintain the aim of FGM was to curb the natural sex drive in women. They claimed FGM has nothing to do with religion and is more of a cultural practice.

On October 24, 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that "Muslim women also have to be protected and be given equal rights as per the Constitution of India."