Pray for: Egypt

For over 1,000 years, Egypt was a majority-Christian country, even after the Arab Muslim conquest in AD 640. Egypt gave to the Christian world some of its greatest theologians and the monastic movement. Egyptian Christians may be more clearly linked to the original Egyptian civilization that pre-dates the coming of Islam. Some efforts have been made to minimize Egypt’s great Christian heritage, to downplay the size of the Church and to marginalize its contribution to society. But the Church survives. Pray for recognition of its history and role within Egypt and for an even greater role in the future.

Muslim-background believers are increasing in number and include a number of high-profile, former Muslim religious leaders. Conversion is not illegal, but some are imprisoned for “despising Islam” or under false pretexts; others have fled for their lives. It is thus far impossible for Muslim converts to change their identity cards and register as Christians. The numbers are not certain, but are indisputably on an unprecedentedly high level. Egyptian religious authorities claim that up to one million Muslims in Egypt have become believers in recent years. This is most likely exaggerated fear-mongering, but brings to light the more modest but nonetheless notable thousands who have recently come to Christ from a Muslim background.