Life on the edge – with Syrian refugees in Lebanon
February 2016More than two-thirds of Syrian refugees in Lebanon are living in extreme poverty, according to a United Nations study released in December. In the second of three articles, Lindsay Shaw from SAT-7 UK, describes visiting refugees in Zahle, Lebanon, where he saw their precarious existence on the margins of a society where 1 in 4 people is now a refugee. […]
Christians in Lebanon: living near a volcano
January 2016Beirut National Evangelical Church pastor Revd Dr Habib Badr tells Wazala why he sees “quality Christian presence” as the key to future peace and inclusion in a fragile and volatile country. A wall of coiled razor wire stands guard over the entrance to Evangelical Church Road in Central Beirut. It’s there not to protect the church but to control access […]
The exiled Syrians discovering the God of miracles
January 2016In the first of a series of articles from Lebanon, Lindsay Shaw from SAT-7 UK reports on how God is changing lives among Syrian refugees in the Bekaa Valley A soaring unfinished entrance wing announces a church in the midst of major expansion. But it is the hundreds of people the church is serving that reveal the real growth at […]
From fear to joy – a Saviour is born
January 2016The angels’ command to “Fear not” has never been more relevant, says Munther Isaac, Academic Dean of Bethlehem Bible College. But how does news of a Saviour drive out fear? “And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born […]
Iranian songs of fellowship
November 2015Newly returned from a marathon recording session in Finland of 44 Iranian worship songs, London-based worship leader Hovan Hovsepian-Mehr spoke to Wazala about the importance and nature of worship in the Iranian diaspora Church. In many ways Christian worship is in Hovan’s blood. His father, Edward, is one of the most respected leaders of the Iranian church and was for […]
Bridge building through art in Alexandria
Wazala profiles a pioneering cultural project that is bridging religious and social divisions in Egypt What does it take to unify a country? Five years ago it was a national hunger for political change that brought Egyptians of diverse creeds and backgrounds together. At that time they were calling for the end of the rule of President Hosni Mubarak. But […]
Practical support for asylum seekers
October 2015How to fulfil Matthew 25. The UK government has agree to accept 20,000 of the most vulnerable Syrian refugees over the next five years. A Middle East writer living in the UK offers some practical suggestions to help us care for these new arrivals and other refugees already living among us. “Then the King will say to those on his […]
Standing Room Only At Remote Algerian Church
August 2015How early would you be willing to get out of bed to go to church on a Sunday morning? New believers in remote communities in Algeria have to get up at 5am to get transport up to the mountains for their weekly service – but that is not putting them off! SAT-7 producer Samia Jallali Kessai said: “The church service […]