Macau Handover with Peace
HONG KONG — Under the theme of ‘Handover and Peace’ the Hong Kong Bible Society (HKBS) has been supporting churches in a Gospel saturation campaign across Macau. This small Portuguese colony is scheduled to be handed back to mainland China on December 20.
Fundraising
Organised activities, which included special theme seminars, evangelistic rallies and films, worship services, leadership training camps, a fundraising walk, and English classes were organised throughout the year.
However, the campaign came to a climax during the first week of August. Volunteer students and visitors from Hong Kong, Taiwan and as far as the USA joined with resident Christians in a street distribution of Scriptures. Dressed in their striking yellow T-shirts specially designed for the program, the volunteers distributed most of the 400,000 Selections and 300,000 bookmarks provided by the HKBS.
Macau is a peninsula off mainland China (Gwangdong) and two islands, originally rented by the Portuguese in 1577 and ceded to them in 1887. Since 1974 it has been considered a Chinese territory under Portuguese administration, and even after reverting to China, Macau will retain autonomy for a further 50 years.
Gambling
Gambling, tourism and light industry play a large part in the economy of this tiny country which has a population in excess of 445,000 inhabitants.
“The lack of public order and the high crime rate are larger problems in Macau than the fear of political change after the handover for the people of Macau,” said Eunice Poon, Associate General Secretary of the HKBS. Mrs Poon went to Macau in August to participate in the Gospel saturation campaign.
Two languages
The HKBS also provided 5,000 copies of a diglot New Testament in Chinese and Portuguese – still the official language of Macau, and these were made available to Christians and to those requesting a copy.
“Through the distribution of Scriptures, particularly the bookmarks and Selections, we want to tell the people of Macau that everyone needs peace in their hearts, regardless of their background or age. And this is especially true during this time of chaos and uncertainty,” said Mrs Poon.
“True peace from God can be a solution to such problems, and our hope is that as the land is being returned to China, the people will return to God,” she added. (WR 346/27 - 12.99)
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Bible House Staff Shelter Cyclone Victims
BANGALORE, India —Bible House in Cuttack City, in the
Indian state of Orissa, was turned into a temporary shelter for flood victims
following the ‘super-cyclone’ which laid waste the coastal region
of this eastern state on October 29.
Together with the state capital, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack City was one of the areas hit hardest by the storm, which brought winds of 150 mph (240kph) and a tidal wave 10ft high. On a visit to the city last week, Dr B K Pramanik, General Secretary of the Bible Society of India (BSI), found it largely submerged under floodwaters. Telecommunications with the outside world were completely cut off and the city remained without electricity.
Orissa is generally reckoned to be the poorest state in India and the cyclone was the second to hit the region in a fortnight. Estimates put the number of those killed at between 10,000 and 15,000, and millions of others have been left homeless. The cyclone itself was only part of the disaster. In its wake it brought the risk of disease from the thousands of corpses left rotting in the floodwaters, and a lack of drinking water and food for survivors.
Immediately after the cyclone, it proved impossible for staff in the BSI headquarters in Bangalore to contact the Orissa Auxiliary. Dr Pramanik decided to try to reach the staff in person, as part of a journey he was due to make to the Dimapur Auxiliary for the launch of the Rengma Bible.
“With much difficulty I reached Cuttack at 11pm,” he said. “I found that the city had turned into a ghost city: absolute darkness, no-one on the road and a major part of the city waterlogged. With a struggle I reached Bible House around midnight.”
The lack of electricity had added “immeasurable misery” to the survivors, who had no choice but to suffer silently. The city had to be seen to be believed. “With bodies and carcasses strewn all over, and organic debris decomposing, the city looked like a city of death,” he said.
Although the water level reached the front steps of Bible House, it rose no further. The Auxiliary Secretary, the Rev S K Sahu, and his wife turned the premises into a refuge for 150 people, most of them non-Christians, whom they fed and sheltered for four days.
During this time Mr Sahu had fallen in the darkness. He hurt his right hand and sprained his leg but did not break any bones. Among the Bible House staff, one had his house destroyed and the house of another was under four feet of water with much of its contents damaged or destroyed and part of the roof missing. Almost every member of staff had suffered loss or damage in some form – including Mr Sahu.
Dr Pramanik asked for the prayers of the UBS fellowship for colleagues in the Orissa Auxiliary. “Also pray that the Lord will open the hearts of some donors so that we can provide relief to our suffering colleagues,” he added. (WR 346/28 - 12.99)
Happy Christmas and a joyous New Year
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Joyeux Noël et Bonne Année
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Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo