2.19.13 Church Condition Report: Ethiopia

Some will argue that The Hunger Strike would not be in existence if it wasn’t for the band WILLET taking a trip to Ethiopia in 2007.  The Lord used that trip to work mighty things in the hearts of Jeremy, Jordan, and Justin, and out of those workings came the vision for The Hunger Strike and impacting global poverty with the Gospel.  Ever since that time, Ethiopia has held a special place in the hearts of our staff, including leading Jeremy and Kathleen to start the adoption process from Ethiopia in 2010.  Just as we pray for their son, who is still in Ethiopia, we ask that you pray with us for this beautiful country in this month’s Church Condition Report.

Ethiopia, a monarchy for most of its existence, was one of only 2 nations to maintain sovereignty during the scramble for Africa, one of only four African countries to be a member of the League of Nations, and one of the founding members of the United Nations. It is the most populated landlocked country in the world, and the second most populated African nation.  It is now considered a democracy, though most recent elections have been met with heavy scrutiny from international observers and have fallen short of most widely accepted standards for “free and fair elections”.

Ethiopia boasts one of the fastest growing economies in the world, with over a 10% economic growth from 2004-2009.  This, however, has come under fire recently with the double threat of high inflation  and payment balance issues.  Even with more recent struggles, Ethiopia can definitely be considered one of Africa’s most economically stable countries.

The religious demographic breakdown of Ethiopia is very diverse- while the majority of Ethiopians claim to be Christians (62.8%), over ⅓ of the population are Muslim (33.9%).  There have been, at times, significant Jewish populations as well, though most of these have continued on to Israel in recent years.  In addition, Ethiopia is the spiritual homeland of Rastafarianism.  there are, of course, many people who practice traditional African religions as well (2.6% of the population). In general, Christians live in the highlands of Ethiopia, while Muslims and traditional African religionists live in lower lands of the country.

Life in Ethiopia, especially for those in rural poverty, can be a pretty grim picture.  Around 16% of the population lives on less than $1 a day, and only 65% of rural households consume the WHO’s minimum standard of food intake per day (2,200 calories).  45% of children under the age of 5 are underweight, and 40% of them sleep on the floor.  Many families share sleeping quarters with their livestock.  Poverty in Ethiopia, unfortunately, is a deplorable cycle- because land holdings are so small, it is difficult to work the land into fertility, or to make enough money in excess produce to be able to buy more land or make the land you are working more fertile.  Cultural necessities, such as burning manure for fuel rather than tilling it into the soil, leave the land even more depleted of nutrients.  Livestock yields, especially milk, are then less than desirable because of the lack of nutrition being received by the livestock.

Urban Ethiopia is not much better- sanitation is a big problem, and most people (55%) live in slums without access to waste treatment facilities and rarely a home with a floor.  However, 69% of children in urban areas are enrolled in some type of education facility, with 35% eligible for secondary school.  The literacy rate, in urban Ethiopia, is a respectable 82%.

Health concerns in Ethiopia are numerous: like many countries in Africa, the spread of AIDS is pandemic and effects most of the female and impoverished populations.  Along with the spread of AIDS, waterborne illnesses and other diseases due to poor sanitation and malnutrition are common.  On the whole, infant and maternal death rates are very high in Ethiopia, though they are generally lower in the cities, where a higher percentage of women have access to professional healthcare and hospitals in which to give birth.  In rural Ethiopia, a vast majority of births take place at home and are attended by an elderly midwife, who assists in the birth.  Many common medical complications of birth can become life-threatening in a rural circumstance.  However, infant death rates have dropped from a shocking 16% in 1965 to a still-unsettling 8% currently.

Join us this month in praying for the people of Ethiopia:

-Pray for missionaries serving there, that they would understand the culture and be sensitive to how best to represent the Gospel.

-Pray for knowledgeable health workers to be trained in Ethiopia and be made available to the public, especially in rural areas.

-Pray for government funding to be allocated properly, especially in waste management and sanitation services.

-Pray for the infant mortality rates to continue to drop.

-Pray for fertility in the land, good crop yields, and good economic and agricultural decisions to help break the cycle of poverty in rural Ethiopia.

-Pray that more children would be able to attend school, and that the literacy rate would continue to rise.

-Pray for truth and love to be properly articulated by the Ethiopian church, especially to the prevalent Muslim population.

-Pray for the church to lead the way in education, sanitation, health standards, generosity, and standing up for the justice of the people.

 

12.4.12 Church Condition Report: Mozambique

Our first Country Profile & Church Condition Report features the country of Mozambique– a country where our team has been, and continues to be active in providing meals and sustainable development solutions in the midst of famine and internal chaos. We hope that, as you pray for the people of Mozambique, this provides you with deeper insight into the lives of those living there.

Religious freedom is guaranteed to everyone in Mozambique- whether you want to follow a religion, or simply follow none at all, it is your choice. While there are no nationally observed religious holidays, people in Mozambique are generally allowed to take days off to celebrate their respective religious holidays without fuss.

While the most recent census states that Christianity is the most prevalent religion, it certainly is complicated in Mozambique. Spirit and body are closely intertwined here, as in most of Africa, and physical ailments are almost always attributed to spiritual unrest in the person. ‘Curanderos’ are sort of like witch doctors that handle spiritualized healing, also some involvement of ancestral worship. They are seen for both physical healing and other solutions to problems, such as luck, etc. African tradition employs witch doctors for physical healing, which almost always include much negative spirituality and oppressive spirits to those participating- making true Christianity a difficult thing to come by in it’s purest form.

One of the biggest obstacles to Christianity in Mozambique is the presence of other religions claiming to be Christianity, the most notable being the Zion Christian Church (15.5% of the population states this as their religious preference). The ZCC seems to be a legitimate form of Christianity at first glance, but mixes both African animism and an unhealthy dose of prosperity gospel into its truth, making finding Jesus, grace, and forgiveness quite a muddy job. The ZCC might employ such things as “buying forgiveness” or seeing witch doctors for healing. While in name it seems fine, the truth is hard to find in the ZCC.

In addition to those sects claiming to be Christian, there are other religions as well- the most popular being Islam, which contains almost 18% of the population, concentrated in the northern parts of the country. Ba’Hai, Latter Day Saints, and other smaller religions are also starting to have a presence in Mozambique. Pray for the seeking souls of Mozambique, that they would see clearly the light of the Lord in the midst of so much darkness and confusion around them.

While Mozambique has been a free country for quite some time, and continues to remain at peace with outside nations, within the country there is quite a lot of turmoil and chaos. The government was at one point classified as a democracy, but after some stressful and corrupt elections several years ago, it was declassified back into some type of “anarchy”. Political parties have terrible relations and refute to cooperate. With the government in such an unstable condition, it is no surprise that the economy is struggling as well.

As any follower of our organization knows, we have been responding to the East Africa famine/food crisis since 2011. Although the famine impacted Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Northern Uganda the most, the food shortage certainly had repercussions on other East Africa countries, including Mozambique. Though the famine has been officially downgraded to a food crisis, this is only the beginning of the answers to our prayers for these people. Millions are still going without even one meal per day, and slim access to proper medical care along with low nutrition makes death close for many.

As you pray for Mozambique, remember these things:

Pray that the land would continue to heal and bear fruit.

Pray for less government corruption and more people to lookout for the hungry of Mozambique.

Pray for sustainable relief projects to take hold there- farming, school feeding programs, educational opportunities that will support the economy.

Pray for the church to be leading the charge in innovation and encouraging others to see hope in their futures.

Pray for missionaries serving in Mozambique, that they would be sensitive to the Spirit and to the culture, and minister in the best way possible.