As voice of the Martyrs workers recently met with the family of Pastor Dmitry Shestakov their hearts were touched as his 7 year old
daughter Vera showed them one of her favorite videos of her and her father. It was videoed on a camera phone during Christmas of 2006
just one month before Uzbek police arrested Dmitry for his involvement of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In March 2007 Dmitry
was sentenced to 4 years in prison and was moved to a forced labor camp a long distance from his family.
To see the video with Pastor
Dmitry dancing with his 7 year old daughter 1 month before he went to prison click on the link then use the pass code DmitryDance
Dearly Beloved in the Lord,
The state of Orissa continues to see massive violence against Christians since 24TH. The report collected
by some of the native brothers reports that 65 churches burned down, more than 700 Christian homes destroyed, 19 dead bodies found
hundreds of Christians forced to flee into forests to save their lives, and thousands homeless. Despite promises by state and central
government the violence which began on Christmas as Eve is continuing.
Roads to the affected areas are continue to be blocked
by Hindu fundamentalists by cutting down the tree on the road, and other blocked, and police curfews prevent any one traveling to
the affected arias. Confirmed reports from one village give a sense of the carnage which is likely being under-reported. In Barkhama,
a village near Baliguda in Kandhamal district, three pastors emerged after hiding in the jungle for five days with out food and water
has reported:
Efforts
by our brothers to visit Baminigaon, called the epicenter of the trouble, were unsuccessful because of the restriction for traveling
to those areas.
The government’s actions seem to be too little, too late. We are deeply worried by media reports that police
and other local authorities in Orissa stood by and watched attacks on Christians.
There are reports that some who were missing
has returned but still there is a large number who are missing.
These brothers and sister needs our prayers for the time of persecution.
Regi Mathai