AFWIS Joins Operation World in Prayer for the Republic of Belarus - Europe

Published on Operation World (http://www.operationworld.org)

Home > Mar 05: Belarus

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Mar 05: Belarus

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Belarus

Republic of Belarus

Europe

See Prayer Information

Geography

Area: 207,600 sq km
Landlocked; fertile agricultural land with extensive forests on the North European plains. Surrounded by Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. Smallest of the three Slavic nations of the former USSR.
Population: 9,587,940    Annual Growth: -0.47%
Capital: Minsk
Urbanites: 74.3%
HDI Rank: 68 of 182 (UN Human Development Reports 2009)

Peoples

Peoples: 28 (18% unreached) All peoples
Unreached Peoples Prayer Card

Official language: Belarusian and Russian; the latter is more widely used    Languages: 11 All languages

Religion

Largest Religion: Christian

Religion		Pop %	Ann Gr
Christians	6,762,374	70.53	0.4
Evangelicals	122,576	1.3	3.0

Challenges for Prayer

The cultural and political dominance by Russia and Poland lasted for many centuries. Belarus itself lacks, to some degree, its own identity. Pray for a truly indigenous expression of Belarusian Christianity to develop and then spread using all methods: church services, theological education, literature, broadcasting.
The Chernobyl catastrophe in 1986 occurred in the Ukraine, but affected Belarus most severely. Subsequent environmental and human devastation is significant, with 20% of the nation’s land area affected, two million people uprooted and several thousand dead or dying from radiation-induced cancer. The government views “radiophobia” as the biggest problem now, since it prevents effective resettlement and recultivation of the affected area. Many charities were set up to care for those affected, particularly orphans and children born with health issues. Pray for wisdom for those overseeing resettlement, help for those already affected and hope for those who still live in uncertainty as a result of the disaster.
     For an additional 6 Challenges for Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.

More Information

The Operation World book, CD-ROM, and DVD-ROM provide far more information and fuel for prayer for the people of Belarus.