Editor’s Note: We must remember to pray for our brothers and sisters around the world who are persecuted for their faith. One wonders why the outcry was heard from news agencies outside the mainline… have we become so unconcerned?
Church Dissolved for Having a Sunday School - Forum 18 News Service & Voice of the Martyrs
On March 24, a United Methodist congregation in Smolensk, Russia, was dissolved by the regional court in response to a suit filed by the Regional Public Prosecutor’s Office protesting the church having a Sunday school program. According to Forum 18 News, the court agreed with the Regional Organized Crime Police’s assertion that the Smolensk United Methodist Church was breaking the law by conducting “educational activity in a Sunday school without a corresponding license.” While the court’s decision to dissolve the church means loss of legal status rather than a complete ban, it does bar the Methodists from maintaining or developing any form of public profile as an organization. Pray that the religious rights of this church will be recognized and restored. Pray that the congregation will rejoice in the opportunity to grow in Christ likeness through the opposition they face. James 1:2-4
