Christian Solidarity Worldwide
CSW is a Human Rights Organization that works to defend, uphold and promote the right to freedom of religion or belief in over 20 countries across Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Latin America. Through their advocacy, they challenge world leaders to fulfill their duty to protect religious freedom. CSW regularly provides decision-makers in the UK parliament, United Nations, European Union and US Congress with accurate reports on freedom of religion or belief around the world.
Part of the work CSW does includes
Connect & Encourage, a publication that provides information and
addresses of victims of violence, intimidation or harassment. These
people need encouragement and by sending cards and letters of
encouragement. Receiving a personal letter reminds each person who
gets it that someone, somewhere cares about their suffering.
I am so convinced that this is such a worthwhile, easy thing we can do to encourage, and witness to others that I am sharing it here, to my Womens' Circle at church and I'm going to expand our Card Ministry to include workshops for creating pretty cards to send to our brothers and sisters who are in such dire need of God's uplifting love through other people. Take a minute to watch this video interview with Dr Garcia Peneque https://youtu.be/V1fSw4meQJc.
"You cannot imagine the worth
of a letter. You cannot imagine the worth of some words of
encouragement."– Cuban prisoner, speaking to CSW
For someone who's suffering for their
faith, often the worst part is feeling alone. But the Connect &
Encourage booklet allows others to shine a light into their darkness
by writing to them. The booklet provides names and addresses of
people around the world who are harassed, imprisoned or tortured for
their beliefs. A church under attack in Cuba is the latest group of
people who would be greatly encouraged by your message of support.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
“I’m not convinced my card will
make a difference to the person who receives it.”
Yes, it really will!
Gloria from Cuba told us, “Sometimes
I ran out of the strength to pray myself. In the darkest moments,
when we felt totally hopeless, alone and desperate and we couldn’t
even pray for ourselves, it was alright because we knew there were
people all over holding us up in prayer, when we ourselves could
not.”
Imagine thinking you’re facing a
horrific situation all alone. Maybe your husband is a church leader
who was shot dead after he refused to stop preaching. That’s what
happened to Gloria’s husband. Or maybe you’ve been imprisoned
because of your faith – and then you get a card from a person on
the other side of the world who’s thinking about you. Your cards
could be a lifeline in someone’s darkest moments, just like they
were for Gloria.
“OK, that’s great, but it won’t
really help their situation, will it?”
Yes, it will!
We’ve seen many times that a
prisoner’s conditions improve once they start getting post from
abroad. They’ve received extra food, more exercise, and much-needed
medical care – as a direct result of your cards and letters. What’s
more, Pastor Truong in Vietnam was able to share his faith with his
prison guards after they asked him why he was getting so many cards!
If a prisoner receives lots of post
from abroad, the prison authorities know that people outside the
country have heard about this prisoner’s case, so they can’t get
away with mistreating the prisoner.
“But I don’t know what to write.”
We’ve made it easy for you! Here are
some guidelines:
- Just write a little bit about yourself – where you live, what the area is like, your family, your hobbies, and so on.
- Most of the people in Connect & Encourage are Christians, so you could write an encouraging Bible verse in the card, and some Christian greetings such as ‘God bless you’ and ‘May the Lord be with you’.
- Even if the person who gets your card can’t read English, receiving it will still encourage them by reminding them that they’re not forgotten.
- Writing relevant Bible references is useful for non-English speakers so they can look up the verses in their own language. Free online translator: https://www.babelfish.com/
- If you’re happy to receive a reply, it’s safe to include your name and address on the cards. Many people have developed rewarding relationships in this way, by writing to and hearing from people who suffer because of their faith.
You’ll find answers to a few more questions you may have, inside Connect & Encourage. Download it today and get it writing!
