Protestantism in Afghanistan is the largest Christian movement in the country. According to the Pew Research Center in 2010, 30 thousand Protestants lived in Afghanistan, which made up 0.1% of the population of this country [1] [2] .
By ethnicity, more than half of Afghan Protestants are foreigners who permanently live in the country, primarily Americans , Germans and British . (At the same time, military personnel of the international security assistance forces are not included in the total number of Protestants). The number of Protestants among Koreans , Chinese, and Filipinos is growing. Among the local population, the largest Protestant communities exist among the Pashtuns , Tajiks , Hazaras and Persians . Protestants are also among the representatives of the Bragui people, Uzbeks , Punjabis and Sikhs .
Some of the Afghan Protestants are the so-called "isolated radio believers," supporting their faith only through radio broadcasts [3] .
Content
Historical Review
The oldest report on the existence of Christianity in the territory of modern Afghanistan is contained in the book "The book of the laws of the countries" written by Bardesan or his student in the beginning. III c. [4] Already in the 5th century, the episcopal chair of the Nestorian Church of the East was established in Herat ; in VII in the same city the episcopal department of the Jacobite West Syrian church was created. At the end of the Middle Ages, a Nestorian bishop was in Kabul . Apparently, Afghan Christianity was destroyed during the time of Tamerlane . In modern times, the Armenian Catholic Church arose in Kabul, which lasted until 1898.
The Christian presence was resumed in the 20th century, with the arrival of Western diplomats and technical specialists. Due to contacts with them, some local residents became Christians. In 1952, the International Christian Church , the former interdenominational evangelical community, appeared in Kabul. In 1959, American President Dwight Eisenhower , during a visit to Afghanistan, asked King Zahir Shah for permission to build a Protestant temple for the community in Kabul. In 1970, with the financial support of Christians around the world, the first Protestant temple was erected in the capital, but it was demolished in 1973 [5] . Adventists began serving in the country in the 1960s. Since 1966, the International Afghan Mission (since 1978 the International Assistance Mission ), affiliated with Protestants, has been operating in Afghanistan. In 1972, Pentecostal missionaries from the Assemblies of God began serving in the country. Since 1976, open public worship of Christians has been prohibited.
According to some reports, by 1970 the number of Protestants in Afghanistan reached 1.6 thousand believers (including foreigners) [6] . In 2000, the number of Protestants and believers of independent churches was 5 thousand. [7]
Current status
Due to the underground position of the Protestants, there is almost no reliable data on their ministry in the country. However, Operation Peace provides information on 2 Anglican and 240 Protestant communities in the country in 2000 [8] . Of the indicated number, 124 communities in dogma and practice were Pentecostal . The number of Pentecostals was estimated at 2 thousand people (2000) [9] . In the country, the Assemblies of God are engaged in missionary work [10] . Parishioners of the Anglican communities were 100 people [8] . According to 2011 data, three Adventists lived in Afghanistan, but there was not a single organized Adventist community [11] .
After the coalition forces entered Afghanistan in 2001 and the overthrow of the Taliban regime, many refugees returned to Christianity in the West. The number of Protestants has grown markedly; in the hope of democratic change, protestant missions began to penetrate into Afghanistan. However, the Protestant missionary impulse was largely chilled after taking South Korean missionaries hostage in 2007 and executing two of them. Attacks on missionaries continue; in 2010, 10 members of the International Assistance Mission were shot in Badakhshan Province on charges of proselytism. Initially, the Taliban took responsibility for the attack [12] .
Despite the persecution, the number of Afghans who converted to Christianity is increasing in the country. A storm of indignation in the Afghan Islamic community was caused by photo and video shots published by the local Noorin TV channel in 2010, which captured the ceremony of the baptism of men and women in the underground community of Kabul [13] .
Notes
- ↑ Global Christianity . The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life (December 19, 2011). Date of treatment May 13, 2013. Archived May 22, 2013.
- ↑ Christian Population as Percentages of Total Population by Country . Pew Research Center (January 2011). Date of treatment March 15, 2014. Archived January 7, 2012.
- ↑ David B. Barrett, George Thomas Kurian, Todd M. Johnson. Afghanistan // World Christian Encyclopedia: A Comparative Survey of Churches and Religions in The Modern World / David B. Barrett (Editor), George T. Kurian (Editor), Todd M. Johnson (Editor). - New York : Oxford University Press , 2001. - T. 1. - P. 47. - 876 p. - ISBN 0-19-510318-1 .
- ↑ G.A. Koshelenko. Afghanistan // Orthodox Encyclopedia . - M .: Church Scientific Center "Orthodox Encyclopedia" , 2002. - T. IV. - S. 79-81. - 752 s. - 39,000 copies. - ISBN 5-89572-009-9 .
- ↑ Floyd McClung. How to sleep trought a Revolution // Living on the Devil's Doorstep: A Family's Trail of Compassion from Kabul to Amsterdam . - corrected. - Ywam Publishing, 1988 .-- P. 93-98. - 196 p. - (International Adventure Series). - ISBN 9780927545457 .
- ↑ Melton JG Afghanistan // Religions of the World, Second Edition A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices / J. Gordon Melton , Martin Baumann . - 2nd. - Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO , 2010 .-- P. 20-24. - 3200 p. - ISBN 978-1-59884-203-6 .
- ↑ Melton JG Afghanistan // Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices / J. Gordon Melton , Martin Baumann . - Oxford, England: ABC-CLIO , 2002 .-- P. 4-7. - 1510 p. - ISBN 1-57607-223-1 .
- ↑ 1 2 Patrick Johnstone, Jason Mandryk. Afghanistan // Operation World 2001 . - London: Paternoster Publishing, 2001 .-- 798 p. - (Operation World Series). - ISBN 1-8507-8357-8 .
- ↑ Afghanistan // New International Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements, The / Stanley M. Burgess, Eduard M. Van Der Maas. - Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan; Exp Rev edition, 2002 .-- S. 3 .-- 1328 p. - ISBN 0310224810 .
- ↑ Dan Van Veen. Afghanistan - a nation on the brink of death. . . or life . The General Council of the Assemblies of God (February 20, 2002). Date of treatment July 31, 2015.
- ↑ Afghanistan . Adventist Atlas (2011). Date of treatment July 31, 2015.
- ↑ Rod Nordland. Gunmen Kill Medical Aid Workers in Afghanistan . The New York Times (August 7, 2010). Date of treatment July 31, 2015.
- ↑ Rod Nordland. Afghanistan Suspends Two Aid Groups . The New York Times (May 31, 2010). Date of treatment July 31, 2015.
Links
See also
- Hostage-taking in Afghanistan (2007)
- Christianity in Afghanistan
- Catholicism in Afghanistan
- Orthodoxy in Afghanistan
- Religion in Afghanistan