Why Christian women are doubly vulnerable in World Watch List countries

A thin, quiet woman with tired eyes sits in the last row. It’s difficult to make out her name when she shyly introduces herself. Her exhaustion is almost palpable.

Over the next three days in an undisclosed location and country in Central Asia, the beleaguered wife, mother and ministry leader gathered with other women who all came together for trauma care. On the last day, she walked forward to share her testimony and finally, her name was clear to everyone—Amida*. She bravely shared what God had done in her life over the last few days.

“One day I was praying for Jesus to take away my pain and within two hours of that prayer, a pastor called and told me about this training for women,” Amida said. “I didn’t expect much from it, but now, I see it was God who prepared this seminar for me.”
‘I felt endless pain’

The training, organized by an Open Doors local partner, came at just the right time for the grieving woman. In the three months before, Amida had said too many goodbyes she wasn’t prepared for—deaths that had left her devastated and emotionally drained.

At age 26, Amida’s younger brother passed away unexpectedly. The last time she talked to him, he was healthy and joyful, planning for the future. The next day, he didn’t wake up. His death was the first in the gauntlet she would walk through in a short time. Within a few weeks of losing him, Amida’s father also passed away, not able to bear the loss, Amida says. And some months later, her older brother also grew critically ill. “For over a month, Yunus was between life and death,” she says. “Our Christian family members were constantly praying.”

And with each trial, Amida’s Muslim neighbors added more pain, taking every opportunity to blame their tragedies on the family’s decision to leave Islam to follow Jesus.

““You are cursed by Allah for your belief in a foreign God! All of you are worthy of death!

This is the punishment from Allah for your faith,” they said again and again, Amida remembers. “Some even said, ‘You all left the faith of our fathers. You left Allah—now he left you.’”

The grief and worry eventually took their toll on Amida, both physically and emotionally as depression set in and her overall health declined.

“I felt endless pain. I was exhausted,” Amida says. “I was praying to God to heal me, to give me strength to live, to cope with all the difficulties, and to overcome the grief. I had to continue my ministry and care for my husband, children and mother.”

More open to the gospel

Our local partners chose to focus on the topic of trauma care after researching the most crucial needs of women in Central Asia. In this region, women have many duties and responsibilities. All the training participants were women who are leading ministries, churches, home groups, and children’s and youth ministries. Many are wives of pastors and church leaders. They are all very busy and tired. With no time to care for themselves, some are even burned out or on the cusp.

The need for trauma care among women in Central Asia is immense. The majority of church members in official and underground churches are women because in Muslim society, women are seen and treated as less valuable, making them more vulnerable to discrimination, abuse and even attack.

As a result, they are more open to the gospel and how it values men and women equally. Also in Central Asian countries, most men leave to find work in neighboring countries—another reason why most of the region’s population and church members are predominantly women. But in Central Asia and throughout the countries on Open Doors’ 2024 World Watch List, a woman’s decision to choose Christianity over Islam makes her doubly vulnerable for both her gender and her faith.

Rolf Zeeger, a World Watch research analyst for Open Doors, explains: “According to the information collected for our World Watch List, women in Central Asia who converted to Christianity continue to suffer from abduction, incarceration by family (house arrest), denied access to social community/networks, forced marriages and divorce, denied custody of children, and physical and verbal violence.”

The comforter of all our troubles

During the training that Amida attended, the women learned about negative emotions and depression, including its signs and how to cope with it.

Every evening after the day-long training sessions, participants enjoyed special therapy sessions like massages, time in a sauna and a swimming pool—comforts they rarely, if ever, get to experience. There was even a dance lesson one day.

“For the first time in my life, I got a massage,” Amida says. “I never knew it would be so good. At the dance lesson, I was shy in the beginning, but then I started dancing step by step. For the first time in several months, I was happy.”

The training gave Amida and the other participants the tools and mettle to cope with the demands and trials of life as a Christian woman in Central Asia. Because of your support and prayers, our local partners in these areas can offer this kind of soul nurturing to grieving and exhausted women like Amida, who will, in turn, strengthen others. It’s Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 1:3-6 in action:

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”
“I learned about grief and its negative effects,” Amida shares. “I learned how I can go through it in a ‘healthy way’ to avoid emotional destruction. The knowledge helped me to understand my own feelings and the condition of my heart. This was also useful for my ministry for other women. Now I can help others.”

Open Doors works with partners in Central Asia to provide women with trauma counseling, vocational training and other practical aid. It is a lifeline for many.

please pray

Pray with your sisters in Central Asia:

• Pray for Christian women like Amida who are persecuted for their faith. Ask God to bring believers to help, support and walk alongside them.
• Pray for Open Doors’ trauma counseling support … that it would bring healing to all women who attend and participate.
• Thank God for how He is using women to reach others to build His Kingdom in Central Asia.
• Thank God for these training programs and our local partners who equip and empower women in their faith.
• Pray that all women in Central Asia would feel loved and celebrated on International Women’s Day, March 8. The international holiday is very special for them. It is customary for people and organizations to give presents to the women in their lives. On this day, they can feel needed and loved and can hear kind words and wishes from others.

GIVE TODAY

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Open Doors aims to “strengthen what remains and is about to die” (Rev 3:2). Your Monthly Donation can help us provide continuous support to the persecuted church worldwide and enable us to respond immediately to emergencies.

MY MONTHLY GIFT

Why Christian women are doubly vulnerable in World Watch List countries

More open to the gospel

The comforter of all our troubles

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