August 22, 2002

Dear Praying Friends--

The report from the Central Sulawesi Christian community of Tentena is that the attack expected late last week was averted by the deployment of several hundred Indonesian Military soldiers. This is again an answer to the prayers of so many around the world!!! In less than nine months two major attacks against the Christians in the village of Tentena have been stopped. I know the Christians there would extend a special thanks to all of you who prayed for them in these dark hours of terror. During the days of the most recent attack there was also an earthquake of 6.2 that hit that region. Things were shaken from heaven and earth.

The danger is still real and the situation is very tense. There were reports of 1,500 jihad militia near Tentena. The military has been in this region before and did not remove the "outsiders". The jihad militia have not been removed in the past. Please pray for justice and impartiality.

John Lindner, of Christian Aid Mission, wrote the following about Pastor Rinaldy Damanik and the situation in Tentena. John Lindner is a wonderful advocate for the saints of Indonesia. I have the greatest admiration for his work and his heart for the suffering church world-wide.

"Frustrated in their attempts to wipe out Christian villages and attack Tentena, the Laskar Jihad has been waging an extensive smear campaign against one of Tentena's outstanding Christian leaders. Pastor Rinaldy Damanik was one of the drafters of the Malino Accord last December. He repeatedly has been a key voice in quelling cries for revenge from enraged Christians. He has also been critical of Indonesian authorities for not making "foreigners" (those who are not native to the region such as the Laskar Jihad) leave the area as stipulated in the Malino Accord.

So the Laskar Jihad has falsely accused him of promoting violence and branded him an "extremist." Jihad leaders have even fabricated outrageous lies saying he has 50 of his own "foreigners" in Tentena and was actually the one who provoked recent acts of terror against Christian villages, burning them to the ground and killing a number of people! As a climax to this smear campaign the Chief of Police in Central Sulawesi has issued an order to capture and arrest Pastor Damanik.

So believers are urged to maintain their prayer vigil for Christians in Indonesia. Pray for the safety of Pastor Damanik and other Christian leaders who face a hate wave generated by militant Muslims. Pray that Christians provoked by past attacks and fearing fresh ones will not play into the hands of the Jihad terrorists by retaliating. Pray that Indonesian authorities will have their eyes unveiled and would seriously tackle the problem of terrorism within their own borders."

We need to continue to pray for the safety of the saints in Central Sulawesi. Our prayers need to call upon the Father for truth to be revealed and for fairness on the part of the police and military. Villages have been burned, looted, and all the people driven from their homes. These people have lost everything and are now in refugee centers. They need restored hope in their futures. Please remember that there has been three years of attacks and the weariness over the victims is emotionally draining.

We must keep looking up--where does our help come from? (Psalms 121)

Carl Cady, U.S. Director for International Friends of Compassion