Turkish Church Asks for Prayer

04/18/2020 Turkey (International Christian Concern) – Today marks the annual day of prayer where the Turkish church, as well as those interested in Turkey, routinely gather and pray for the local community. Christianity in Turkey has suffered many challenges over the centuries. Although it was the location of much of the New Testament and the early Christian church was born in Turkey, severe persecution has left the Christian population nearly decimated.

Today, many of the Christian community have expressed their feeling that their country is yet again on the brink of severe persecution. Christians exist in a state of ambiguity which effectively strip them of a guaranteed legal personality and prevent them from fully exercising their rights. Many of these problems stem from the Ottoman-era genocide which occurred over a century ago, and which is annually commemorated next week.

Turkey has expressed no interest in acknowledging these wrongs, often instead targeting those who speak publically to the issue. Religious freedom in Turkey has slowly deteriorated under the ruling government, whose use of nationalist Islam and emphasis on the Turkish identity effectively cultivates the idea that Christians are a foreign threat and second-class citizens.