Population:
84.2 million
Evangelical population:
0.04%
People groups:
68
Unreached people groups:
45
You Can Send Emergency Aid to Victims in Turkey and Syria
Turkey
With most of its land mass in the Anatolian peninsula of western Asia and a lesser part on the Balkan peninsula of southeastern Europe, Turkey has a rich cultural and religious history and is a major political force in the region. Though overwhelmingly Muslim at 96.2 percent of the population, most adherents are nominal, as few have knowledge of the Quran, yet fiercely loyal, as Islam is integral to nationalistic fervor.
Another paradox: while Turkey has had a secular government for most of the past century, the current administration of Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been marked by strongly Islamist tendencies. At the same time, the non-religious portion of the population has been growing, with estimates ranging from 3.1 percent to into the double digits. Only 0.04 percent of the population evangelical, according to Joshua Project.
Local missionaries in Turkey report unprecedented openness to the gospel among a growing number of Turkish Muslims and Muslim refugees from Syria and elsewhere. With so few evangelical Christians, however, churches can hardly support evangelists and pastors, and they need donations for their monthly expenses and for tools such as ministry vehicles vital for outreaches to refugee camps.
One effective ministry has planted churches in the Black Sea region, and they need assistance for rental of their worship places. Meantime, the demand for Bibles has increased as Muslim refugees’ disillusionment with Islam drives them to seek answers elsewhere. Local workers request assistance to keep Bibles and New Testaments in stock, as well as an apologetics book written by a native missionary. These books are distributed in refugee camps and prisons, during one-on-one outreach and in stands in front of a church building.
Media and social media are having an increasingly strong impact. One native missionary publishes a magazine that clarifies who Christ is and addresses various topics from a Christian perspective, and another has a radio program with a large audience. The latter also posts teaching and preaching on Internet outlets, reaching a potential audience of millions. Through responses to these media, local missionaries are seeing the prevalence of disillusion with Islam and interest in the person of Christ.
Sources: Joshua Project, Wikipedia
How to Pray for Turkey
- Pray for protection of local missionaries, as they are facing increasing threats and attacks in media, on the street and among powers and authorities.
- Pray that Muslims putting their faith in Christ will be protected from family and societal opposition and will find support in Christian community.
- Pray that native leadership will be developed in spite of a national ban on Christian seminaries in the country.
More stories from Turkey
Disciple New Believers in Türkiye
When a teenage girl told her family she’d become a Christian, they destroyed her Turkish Bible and forbade her from attending any church services. Refusing to renounce her beliefs, the girl marked a tree near her home with the sign of the cross and sits beneath it to read an English Bible, which her family cannot understand and therefore does not realize its value.
Provide Critical Aid to Refugees in Türkiye
Refugees from Syria needing clean water, food and health care are facing even greater shortages because of runaway inflation. Local missionaries are helping to meet these needs, including distributions of rice, flour, sunflower oil, sugar, salt, lentils and baby food, along with clean water, soap and feminine hygiene items. “Everything is unfortunately very expensive,” the ministry leader said.
Provide Aid for Traumatized Refugees in Türkiye
Many employers refuse to hire refugees, and those that do would not pay enough for them to cover rent. The refugees tell workers that they cannot return to Syria as war has turned residential areas into areas of dangerous conflict or crime. Native Christian workers are the only ones providing them food, water and other aid, opening hearts to the Bible, prayer and the gospel.
Equip Gospel Workers in Türkiye
A native ministry’s rehabilitation center welcomed four new residents last year – two alcoholics, a drug abuser and an internet addict in his early 20s who was incessantly playing computer games. Initially he was withdrawn, rude and suffered insomnia, but now he no longer plays computer games, his sleeping disorders have disappeared and his health and manners have improved. “He asks a lot of good questions during morning devotions and is eager to know more about God,” the ministry leader said. Donations are needed for such evangelism needs throughout the region. Pray workers will be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Equip Workers to Proclaim Christ in Türkiye
A university student entered a native ministry’s church building to take a few photos to post on Instagram and spent nearly an hour asking questions about Christianity. She took home a New Testament, read Mark and Matthew, returned for the Sunday worship service and said she finally felt the peace and contentment she had sought. She put her faith in Christ in spite of opposition from her family.
Help Sow Gospel Seed in Türkiye
So many people have come to Christ that a Turkish disciple who began assisting the leader of a native ministry has been commissioned to pastor a church that is growing in another town. “Just a few years ago there was only a handful of believers there, but now there are about 120 people coming to worship,” the leader said.
