#central-asia

[cyber-sec]

Stan Ghouls Deploys NetSupport RAT in Central Asia

Targeted attacks by Stan Ghouls hit organisations in Uzbekistan and nearby countries using spear-phishing PDFs and Java-based loaders to install NetSupport RAT for persistent access.

Source: Kaspersky

Read more: CyberSecBrief

[reallifesultanas]

Life of the nomad folks / A nomád népek élete

In my last post about Ertugrul I mentioned that he was the bey of an Oghuz tribe, the Kayı tribe. But who were these people? Where they were from? How they lived their life? What did they wear in a regular day? The women really knew how to fight?

Origin of the Oghuz Türks

The original homeland of the Oghuz was east of the Altai Mountains of Central Asia, which had been the domain of Turkic peoples since prehistory. They migrated a lot, so for example in the 8th century, they made a new home in the area between the Caspian and Aral seas. They had moved westward from the Altay mountains passing through the Siberian steppes and settled in this region, and also penetrated into southern Russia and in west, China. Mahmud of Kashgar, in the 11th century, described the Karachuk Mountains which are located just east of the Aral Sea as the original homeland of the Oghuz Türks. The Karachuk mountains are now known the Tian Shan Mountains.

The extension from the Karachuk Mountains towards the Caspian Sea was called the "Oghuz Steppe Lands" from where the Oghuz Türks established trading, religious and cultural contacts with the Abbasid Arab caliphate who ruled to the south. This is around the same time that they first converted to Islam and renounced their Tengriism belief system. The Arab historians mentioned that the Oghuz Türks were ruled by a number of kings and chieftains.It was in this area that they later founded the Seljuk Empire, and it was from this area that they spread west into western Asia and eastern Europe during Turkic migrations from the 9th until the 12th century. 

The Kayı tribe was among the 24 Oghuz turkish tribes, they were direct descendants of Oghuz-khan, who was the ancient progenitor of the Oghuz people, and the name of the tribe can be translated as “strong” or “powerful”.

There were a lot of nomad folks in Anatolia in the 13th century. The Kayı tribe appeare to have entered Anatolia either just before, with or immediately after the Mongol incursions of the 1240s and 1250s. Maybe they fled from the Mongols, and this is why they entered to Anatolia. Ottoman tradition says Ertugrul’s tribe arrived in the frontier zone between the weakened Seljuk polity and the weakening Byzantine Empire. 

Summary about their daily life

In particular, the nomads and other followers lived in a tribally organised group and they enjoyed pastures and cultivable lands between Eskishehir  and what is now Bilecik, at a place now called Sögut. Like any nomads, they lived from animal husbandry, so they basically pursued a nomadic lifestyle. Their tents/yurts were set up where they had found a suitable pasture for their animals. So this part is depicted in a completely fair way in the series as well. They traveled to the highlands in the summer and to the low lands during winter. But migration was a growing problem for these people as states began to form everywhere around them, so they could move only into a limited direction. So they felt compelled to settle down, but of course, this did not happen overnight. 

Their daily lives were filled with grazing and caring for their animals, which was usually done by young children in many cases. It was common, and still is, for children in nomadic tribes to take care the animals. Among the men there were warriors, as we saw in the series, and there were those who were doing other work in the camp, like blacksmith. But it was the job of the men to sell some animals, sell their products to make money. The women usually spent their days with caring the children, cleaning the yurts, making food for their family and for the animals also, moreover they sew the clothes for the family. Since they had a close contact with their animals and, making cheese and yogurt from the milk of their livestock was a main job for these women. Some sources suggests that making rugs was also a main part of the life of these tribes. And of course it was the women who made the ingretdients erect for the rugs and it were these women, who made the rugs. 

But there is some more about these women... There are more and more evidences that suggest that the Türk nomadic women also understood swordsmanship. It's logical, since they needed it. They lived under constant threat (of the other tribes and of course of the Mongols) and their husbands were often away from  home with the animals. They had to be able to defend themselves. Archaeologists have found the remains of two ancient women warriors, whose skeletal remains indicate that they were well practiced in archery and horseback riding. True that these remains were found in Mongolia, but most probably all of these nomad folks lived the same way back then. One of the anthropologists "discovered the remains of the two women warriors and in particular, she (the anthropologist) looked at bone marks from muscle attachments, as larger marks indicate that the muscles were heavily used; for instance, during archery. Markers of repetitive movement on the thumb were also indicative of archery. She also looked for trauma patterns in the spine that are common in people who ride horses"[1]. So all in all, in my opinion, this lifestyle may have been similar with the nomadic Türks. I'm not saying there was female warriors in the battles, but I mean they really had to know how to save themselves and their family, their tribe, when their husbands were away. So they surely know how to fight at least in a basic level. Then, over time, as these nomads settled down, women no longer had to fight, so it changed forever. 

What they wore?

In this early period when they barely enter to Anatolia the people most probably wore the same dresses as the ones in Central Asia. It is characteristic of the peoples of Central Asia that women dressed the same as men. The reason for this was the riding and wepon use, as I already mentioned. Even if they were muslims, the nomadic and semi-nomadic women weren’t veiled. The top-wear was a T-shaped kaftan like coat, which was buttoned in the middle and cut out on both sides and on the back at the waist, so they could easily rode a horse while wearing it. There was a difference in the female and male kaftans. The female ones were richly decorated, and not just the edges were decorated with furs or metal fittings as it was in the case of male kaftan, but there were some pearls sew on them, there were nice embroidery also on them. This kaftan-like coat also covered the knees and it was fastened with a belt at the waist. Again, there were some minor difference between the female and male belts. The female belts were richly decorated, with nice metal forms. The caftan was worn over a loose and tight-fitting pants. Both men and women wore low-legged boots and they thick stockings underneath. The boots were usually made of leather, but they also wore felt boots. Basically they used very colorful textiles but - again - the women chlothes were made by more vibrant and colorful textiles than the men chlothes. They used some herbs, plants and flowers to to produce different colors.

Basically the outerwear was the same whether it was worn by a noble person or by a simple one. The only difference was in the decoration. We cannot find luxurious materials in the poorer ones; they wore homemade clothes made of thicker linen, wool, or cloth.   

Of course these people also wore some jewels, which was mostly for the women. They wore earrings, bracelets and rings, necklace wasn't that usual. Women put into their braids various ornaments, like beads or silver/gold patterns. Their necklaces and bracelets were made of twisted wires and were connected at their ends by a loop and a hook. Presumably they also used beads, but this was not worn as a  pearl-necklace, but sewn one by one on their clothes. Some bracelets also have real gemstones in it, so do the rings. Their rings were simple, but the color and type of stones placed in them were different.

The horse tools were not jewels, but they were important part of these people's life. And there was a difference between the horse tools of men and women, because the ones belonged to women were more ornate. Saddles with hooves made of silver plates or decorated with bone carvings were also made for women. 

Among the Türk men of Asia, it was fashionable to cut the hair at the forehead, but at the back they grew it and it was braided and fastened with hoops. Hairdressing also had a rank-marking role; the nobles less often cut their hair and wore it adorned with beads. The women wore their hair in long braids but also decorated similar to men.

Used sources:  Colin Imber - The Ottoman Empire, 1300-1650;  Bichurin - Collection of information on peoples in Central Asia in ancient times;  Faruk Sümer - Oğuzlar;  Bosworth - The Ghaznavids;  Hódmezei Őrzők page; Peirce -   The imperial harem; [1]: https://www.livescience.com/mongolia-warrior-women-mulan.html

*    *     *

Legutóbbi, Ertugrulról szóló posztomban említettem, hogy valószínűleg a Kayı törzs bégje volt, a Kayık pedig az Oghuz törzsbe tartoztak. Na de mégis kik voltak ezek az emberek? Honnan származtak? Hogyan élték mindennapi életüket? Milyen öltözéket viseltek? A nők valóban tudták, hogyan kell harcolni?

Az Oghuz népek eredete

Az Oghuz népek őshazája az Altaj-hegységben lehetett, Közép-Ázsiában, ahol már a történelem előtti időkben is ezek a népek éltek. Nagyon sokat vándoroltak, így például a 8. század során az Altaj-hegységen túl nyomultak, át a Szibériai sztyeppéken és letelepedtek a Kaszpi-tenger és Aral-tó közötti vidéken. Emellett a mai Oroszország területére és Nyugat-Kínába is behatoltak. A 11. században Kashgar-i Mahmud a Karachuk-hegységet nevezte a Oghuz türkök földjének. Ez a hegység az Aral-tótól keletre van és napjainkban Tien Sanként ismert.

A Tien Santól a Kaszpi-tengerig tartó régió neve így "Oghuz sztyeppe földek" volt, hiszen ezen régióban éltek, kereskedtek az Oghuz türkök. Itt kerültek kapcsolatba a déli szomszédjukkal, az Abassid Arab kalifátussal, akiktől végül felvették az iszlám vallást, elhagyva korábbi hitüket. A déli szomszédok arab történészei úgy írják, hogy az Oghuz népeknél királyok és törzsfők uralkodnak a népek felett. Ezen a területen jött végül létre a Seljuk Birodalom is, és ugyanúgy az Oghuz sztyeppe földeken keresztül terjeszkedtek a türkök Nyugat-Ázsia és Kelet-Európa irányába a 9. és 12. század között.

A Kayı törzs egyike volt a 24 Oghuz törzsnek, és népüket egyenesen Oghuz kántól vezették le, aki minden Oghuzok ősatyja volt. A Kayı törzs nevének jelentése egyesek szerint "erős", mások szerint "hatalmas".

A 13. századra már Anatóliában is rengetek nomád, belső-ázsiai eredetű nép élt. A Kayık is feltehetőleg ekkor érkeztek Anatóliába, vagy közvetlen megelőzve az 1240-1250-es években zajló mongol támadásokat vagy közvetlenül utánuk érkezve. Lehetséges, hogy a mongolok elől menekülve jutottak Anatóliába ezek a népek. Az Oszmán legendák szerint Ertugrul és népe ekkor érkezett tehát a gyengülő Seljuk és Bizánci Birodalom határmenti övezetébe.

Összefoglalás mindennapi életükről

Összefoglalva ezek a nomádok és a velük érkező népcsoportok törzsi szerveződésben éltek és pásztorkodással foglalkoztak a Sögut környéki fantasztikus és élhető legelőkön. Ez a terület Bilecik (Eskisehir) közelében van. Mint bármely más nomádok, állattartásból éltek, így jurtáikat mindig éppen ott húzták fel, ahol megfelelő legelőt találtak állataik számára. Ezt a részt jól láthattuk a sorozatokban is. Nyaranta a magasföldekre húzódtak, télen pedig az alföldekre vándoroltak. Ez a migráció egyre növekvő problémát okozott számukra, hiszen körülöttük egyre több és egyre szilárdabb állam és város jött létre, jól körülhatárolt területtel, így csak korlátozott irányba tudtak vándorolni. Ilyen körülmények között kényszert éreztek a letelepedésre, ami azonban egy lassú folyamat eredményeként zajlott végül le.

Mindennapi életüknek legjelentősebb részét az állatokkal való foglalkozás tette ki, melyet nagyrészt a gyerekek végeztek. Ez nagyon gyakori volt, és mai napig az a nomád törzseknél, hogy a gyerekek vigyáznak az állatokra. A férfiak között voltak akik harcosként éltek - ahogy a sorozatban is láthattuk - mások a táborban dolgoztak például kovácsként. Azonban a férfiak feladata volt az is, hogy az állatokkal kereskedjenek, eladják a tábor termékeit, ezzel pénzt szerezve családjuknak. A nők napját a gyermeknevelés, a jurták tisztán és épen tartása, a főzés, az állatok ellátása tette ki, ám ezen felül már a család ruháit is ők készítették el. Mivel nagyon szoros kapcsolatban éltek állataikkal, a tejtermékek készítése, mint a sajt, joghurt, kifejezetten jelentős munkát adott ezeknek az asszonyoknak. Sőt! Emellett, néhány forrás arra is utal, hogy ezek a népek igen minősége szőnyegeket készítettek, ami természetesen megint csak a nők feladata volt, az alapanyag előállításától kezdve az elkészítésig.

Azonban van itt még más is... Egyre több bizonyíték mutat arra, hogy a türk nomád asszonyok értettek a fegyverforgatáshoz. Ez elég logikus, hiszen szükségük volt rá. Állandó fenyegetettségben éltek, hol a szomszédos törzsektől, hol pedig a mongoloktól kellett tartaniuk. Férjeik pedig gyakorta távol voltak az állatokkal, esetleg háborúztak, a törzset pedig az asszonyokra hagyták ilyenkor. Ezeknek a nőknek meg kellett tudni védeni magukat. Arheológusok néhány ősi harcos maradványainak vizsgálatával új felfedezést tettek. A sírokat a mai Mongólia területén tárták fel, és a női maradványokon olyan elváltozásokat találtak, amelyek egyértelműen utalnak a fegyverhasználatra és lovaglásra. Igaz, hogy ezek a maradványok korábbi időszakból származnak, és keletebbről kerültek elő, mint az Oghuz népek őshazája, ám alapvetően hasonló körülmények között élt minden Belső-ázsiai népcsoport. Az egyik kutató olyan elváltozást talált a csontok és izmok csatlakozási helyén, amely az izmok extrém használatáról tanúskodik, kiterjedve a hüvelykujjra is. Ez egyértelműen jelzi, hogy ezek a nők íjászkodtak és nem csak alkalmanként, hanem rendszeresen. Emellett a gerincen is találtak elváltozásokat, amelyek pedig a rendszeres lovagláshoz köthetőek. Össszességében tehát véleményem szerint mivel ezek a népek hasonló életmódot folytattak, hasonló környezetben, logikus, hogy a nőknek is érteni kellett a fegyverforgatáshoz. Természetesen nem azt mondom, hogy férfiak és nők vállt vállnak vetve harcoltak a csatákban, csupán azt, hogy a férfiak távollétében a nők feleltek a táborért, ehhez pedig legalább alapszinten érteniük kellett a fegyverforgatáshoz. Idővel természetesen ez a hagyomány kikopott, hiszen a letelepedett életmód már nem tette ezt szükségessé.

Mit viseltek ezek az emberek?

Ebben a korai periódusban, mikor a türkök még épphogy elérték Anatóliát, feltehetőleg hasonlóan ruhászkodtak, mint belső-ázsiai rokonaik. Erre az öltözködési stílusra különösen jellemző, hogy a férfi és női viseletek igen hasonlóak voltak. Ennek oka a hasonló életmódban volt keresendő, mint például a rendszeres lovaglás. Hiába voltak muszlimok, a nők nem éltek elfátyolozva. A legfelsőbb ruházat egy T-alakú kaftán szerű kabát volt, amely középen gombozott volt és fel volt vágva oldalt és hátul is, hogy könnyedén tudjanak benne lóra szállni. A férfi és női kaftánok közötti fő különbség a díszítettségben volt. A nők kaftánján nem csak a széleken jellemző prém vagy fémvered kapott helyet, amely a férfiakén is jellemző volt, hanem gyakran gyöngyökkel volt díszítve de hímzés is előfordult. Ez a kaft-n szerű kabát nagyjából a térdekig ért és a deréknál övvel volt összetartva. Az övcsatok a nők esetében valamivel finomabb, díszesebb munkák voltak. A kaftán alatt egy laza, bő nadrág volt, melyet a csizmába tűrve hordtak. A csizmák egyébként ugyanolyanok voltak a férfiak és nők esetében is, általában bőrből készültek de előfordult nemezből készített verzió is. A csizma alatt gyapjú zoknit hordtak. Alapvetően színes textileket használtak, azonban - megint csak - különbség volt a férfiak és nőké közt. A férfiaké egyszerűbb volt, míg a női ruhák esetében gyakoribbak voltak az élénk színek is. Ezek elkészítéséhez növényeket, virágokat használtak, hogy minél több féle színt tudjanak előállítani.

A felsőruházat alapvetően megegyezett akkor is, ha nemes ember hordta őket és akkor is, ha egy egyszerű közember. Az egyetlen különbség az anyagok minőségében és díszítettségében mutatkozott. A közemberek esetében nem voltak megfigyelhetőek luxus darabok, ők általában otthon készített vastagabb gyapjút és szövetet viseltek.

Természetesen ékszereket is viseltek, ami azonban inkább a nőkre volt jellemző. A leggyakoribb kiegészítők a fülbevalók, karperecek és gyűrűk voltak, a nyaklánc ritkábbnak számított. A nők emellett hajkorongokat is használtak, melye arany/ezüst vagy bronz korongok voltak a fonataikba fűzve. A karperecek és nyakláncok hasonló módon készültek mint napjainkban, csavart drótból álltak, mely a végén kapoccsal volt rögzíthető. Ezek mellett gyöngyöket is használtak, melyek azonban nem ékszerként voltak viselve, mint például egy gyöngy-nyakék, hanem egyesével voltak felvarrva a ruházatra. A karperecekben és gyűrűkben gyakorta jelentek meg drágakövek, melyek minősége a rangtól függött. A gyűrűk alapvetően egyszerűek voltak, azonban a kövek színe és formája széles körben változott.

Mint említettem a lovaglás szerves részét képezte életüknek, így a lószerszámok is nagyon jelentősek voltak. A nőké sokkal díszesebb volt, mint a férfiaké. Emellett előkerültek ezüst veretes nyergek, kantárok is, amelyekbe gyakran minták voltak vésve.

A türk férfiak között jellemző volt, hogy a hajat a homloknál rövidre vágták, hátul azonban hosszúra hagyták és fonatokban hordták. A fonatokat karikákkal és díszekkel rögzítették. A gazdagabbak még ritkábban vágták le hajukat és még részletesebben díszítették fonataikat. A nők, a férfiakhoz hasonlóan fonatban hordták hosszú hajukat, melyet gyakran, gazdagon díszítettek.

Felhasznált források: Colin Imber - The Ottoman Empire, 1300-1650;  Bichurin - Collection of information on peoples in Central Asia in ancient times;  Faruk Sümer - Oğuzlar;  Bosworth - The Ghaznavids;  Hódmezei Őrzők page; Peirce -   The imperial harem; https://www.livescience.com/mongolia-warrior-women-mulan.html

[faithfulnews]

Problems multiply in Afghanistan; God’s work continues

Afghanistan (MNN) --The coronavirus is but one of the problems emerging on every front in Afghanistan. Another is an attack claimed by the Islamic State that killed 25 earlier this week at a Sikh temple. “Even if there is peace with the Taliban, the Islamic State is still active in Afghanistan and they are still willing to carry out these kinds of attacks,” Voice of the Martyrs USA spokesman Todd Nettleton says, citing a February peace deal between the U.S. and Taliban representatives. Politics add another layer of complexity. Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah both claim to be Afghanistan’s president, even though Ghani was deemed the election winner in February. U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo announced the end of $1 billion in aid payments to Afghanistan on Monday, with another $1 billion cut scheduled for 2021. Afghanistan may seem hopeless, but, “God is at work,” Nettleton says.

“Twenty years ago, we talked about just a handful of Christian believers in the whole country, and today we talk about believers in every single province.”

What is God doing in Afghanistan?

As described by Operation World, Afghanistan is one of the world’s least-reached nations. Various empires have fought for control of this strategic land for thousands of years, and more than 70 distinct people groups call it “home.”

(Photo courtesy VOM USA)

Islamic rulers keep a tight rein on religion in Afghanistan, stifling any non-Muslim activities.  Government and terrorist oppression make Gospel work extremely difficult.  VOM USA describes what Afghan believers face in its Global Prayer Guide:

Beatings, torture, and kidnappings are routine for Christians in Afghanistan. Waves of Christians have emigrated to neighboring countries in order to worship openly. Still, Afghan house churches continue to grow. A small number of Christians are martyred every year in Afghanistan, but this occurs largely without public knowledge. A small number of believers are also in prison, but imprisonment is not common. Christian converts from Islam are often killed by family members or radicals before any legal process takes place.

Gospel work may be difficult, but it is not fruitless.  In this VOM Radio interview, author John Weaver – who lived many years inside Afghanistan – discusses how God is moving in this war-torn nation. Read more Afghanistan headlines here.

How can I help?

Praise God for the spiritual harvest in this troubled nation.  And, keep praying for Afghanistan.  This Prayercast video offers several points to get you started.

(Graphic courtesy of VOM USA)

“We pray for peace for the Afghan people who have been through so much war and so much violence and loss of life for decades,” Nettleton says. “They want peace. They want a safe country to raise their children in.” Click here to send tangible help through VOM. “One very specific way to pray, as you think about new believers, is the first time they tell somebody, ‘hey, I'm not a Muslim anymore! I'm a follower of Jesus Christ.’ That conversation literally could be life-ending for them,” Nettleton says. Pray the conversation “is not a ‘Hey, return to Islam or I'm going to kill you’,” type of discussion, he asks. Instead, pray the discussion “may allow them to plant more seeds for the Gospel.”     Header image obtained via Wikimedia Commons.

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[faithfulnews]

Miracles along the road

Central Asia (JFP) -- Jesus Film Project® team members were racked by guilt for events that happened a year earlier. They had arranged for a film showing outside a Central Asian village. Upon arrival near the community, an area they knew to be dangerous because of religious radicals, they sensed something was not right. With no moon, all the team members could see were faint silhouettes of buildings and trees. They felt an unsettling and eerie foreboding but began playing music through the speakers to attract people from the nearby community to the film showing. Nobody came, which almost never happens. Suddenly, they heard the sound of rustling bushes and the cracking of branches breaking under the feet of 12 radicals rushing toward them.

Waving machetes, they screamed, “We are going to kill you and every infidel with you!”

The three team members fled for their lives, running as fast as they could to their Jeep. With hearts pounding and fumbling to get the Jeep started, they sped away.

(Photo courtesy Jesus Film Project)

A year later, through prayer, they recognized that those people still needed to hear the Gospel, so they asked the Lord what they should do. In agreement, they felt God urging them to go back, although the risk was great. The members loaded the “JESUS” film and equipment back into their Jeep, along with three boxes of Bibles, and headed for the village, several hours away. On the road, they came to a police checkpoint – a potentially dangerous stop in the road considering the load of Bibles. The officer asked where they were going. Trying to be noncommittal, they said, “We are headed south.” To their surprise, he said “Well so am I. Can you give me a ride?” There was no way they could refuse the officer's request. Insisting on climbing into the back of the Jeep, the officer sat on a box full of Bibles. They feared if the officer looked into the box, they could be arrested or possibly killed. So they prayed and drove on. Soon, the team approached another police checkpoint. Popping his head out from the back of the Jeep, the first police officer told the other officers, “I'm with them. You don't need to search the vehicle.” The police waved them through. This happened at three more police checkpoints, and all three times he got them through. At his request, they drove the officer to his home, where he invited them in for tea. Once there, he asked what they were planning.

“We've come to show a film about the Great Prophet Isa (Jesus).”

(Photo courtesy Jesus Film Project)

In gratitude for their kindness, the officer asked, “What do you need?” This was the same village where radicals chased them out a year earlier, nearly killing them with machetes. “We need permission,” they answered. “Oh, that's no problem. My brother is the mayor. Where do you want to show this film?” They asked, “Could we use the town square?” (This is where they had tried unsuccessfully before.) The policeman replied: “Sure, but you know we have some radical elements here. So I'm going to have my police guard you as you show the film.” The team prayed and set up their equipment. Once again, as they had a year earlier, they played music as darkness fell to draw the people. This time a crowd gathered, sat down and watched “JESUS,” hearing the Word of God in their heart language.

For the first time in their lives, they learned who Jesus really was.

The Holy Spirit ministered to their hearts. Jesus was not just a great prophet, but the Son of God who demonstrated power and authority over sickness and death, was raised from the dead, and offered all who believed in Him eternal life. That night 167 people came to Christ! These new believers need the support of trained church leaders, but training programs are lacking. And due to the threat of extreme violence, any evangelism must be carried out with sensitivity and wisdom. Please pray for the safety, growth and spiritual maturity of those in underground house churches. Ask God for a miraculous explosion of religious freedom and that believers would be bold in sharing their faith with family and friends.   This story originally appeared on the Jesus Film Project blog.     Header image is a stock photo courtesy of Oziel Gómez via Unsplash.

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[faithfulnews]

How to reach Deaf Muslims for Christ

International (MNN) -- Many reports on Mission Network News describe how God is moving in the Muslim world. Today, a Deaf believer describes how God's Spirit is stirring Deaf Muslim hearts. A believer we’ll call “Zed” was born Deaf to Muslim parents in Central Asia. Through an interpreter, Zed describes how coming to Christ created both friction and Gospel opportunity in his Deaf community at college. “The Deaf world, as you might know, is so small,” he begins. “Word got around rather quickly that I was saved. So, many of these Deaf Muslims were coming to me and [asking], ‘Why did you convert to Christianity?’” Read Zed’s full testimony here.

Turn the other cheek

When Zed became a believer, he shared his testimony with members of his Deaf community and patiently answered their questions. Unfortunately, many people returned Zed’s kindness with evasion; some even turned hostile, he says.

“One of my friends... he straight up told me he wanted to kill me.”

When Zed learned of his friend’s anger, he extended forgiveness and love. “My friend was like, ‘No, you have this seething rage towards me. You have to have it’,” Zed says.

(Photo by Felix Koutchinski on Unsplash)

Zed’s friend wasn’t the only one to respond with fury. When he told his mother about his conversion, she was “really enraged,” Zed says. Zed’s mother was “sitting at the dinner table [and] shoved it away,” he recalls. She then “asked if I was going to reject them [because I am] a Christian. And I said, ‘No, the Bible never says that!’” As described here, Zed came to Christ after reading John 8:1-11 in a Bible his friend gave him.  There were no Scripture portions in his sign language at that time, so reading God’s Word in English was Zed’s only option. Learn why sign languages are not a gestural version of spoken languages. Now, God is using Zed to reach Muslims for Christ. “I'm not just reaching out to Deaf Muslims, I'm reaching out to hearing Muslims as well,” Zed says. “It's whatever God calls me to. And, what He calls us to is to spread the Gospel.”

Next steps

As you read Zed’s story, ask the Lord for direction. Seek opportunities to reach Muslims – whether Deaf or hearing – for Christ. “If you're willing to ask them about their faith, be willing to listen,” Zed advises.

“As your relationship with that individual grows, that's when you start to pray for the Holy Spirit to change their heart and mind.”

Furthermore, “we have to really respect [the] passion that they have for their prayer and their fasting,” Zed adds. “We need not to tell them, ‘Oh, it's just false teaching.’ We need not deflate their faith -- that is the most primary thing.”     Header image is a representative photo of a group of Deaf Muslims. (Photo by Albert Gonzalez Farran / UNAMID)

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[pastdaily]

September 13, 1983 – Sandbags For Beirut – Candles For Seoul – Past Daily – September 13, 1983 - A world in conflict. In Beirut, Marines were given authority to call for air support in case artillery attacks from Lebanese rebel groups. Earlier in the day, President Reagan extended the Marines authority to defend themselves by allowing them to call for airstrikes against any...