Being a parent is a difficult task in every part of the world. The societal expectations of the community we live in have an impact on children’s social development. It is a known fact that the example of parents has a definite effect on the formation of a child’s worldview. This reality presents significant challenges to Christian parents in the Middle-East and North-Africa, who live in a Muslim society. In these territories, there is only one type of Christian Church —the Church of ex-Muslim Christians. There, members are treated with malice, and they can only come together secretly.

These Christians represent an insignificant minority in these countries, and even if in some places, like Morocco and Tunisia, the government is starting to tolerate their existence, in other areas, like Saudi Arabia, Oman or Lybia, there is no infant baptism at all.

The Christians in these countries try to lead their children towards God, not just in theory, but also by their acts.

A converted Christian woman told Open Doors that while she could not confess her faith officially. Nevertheless, her relatives and closest friends found out that she had become a follower of Jesus. As a result, her two adult daughters also converted to Christianity following the example of their mother.

A man, who is tasked with the coordination of the work of Open Doors’ work in the Arabian Peninsula, said the following:

“Christian parents living on the Arabian Peninsula have difficulty deciding if they want to share their faith with their children. They are afraid that their children at school accidentally start to sing a Christian song, or use expressions, that are used only in the Christian communities. If the teachers hear it, they can ask them about the faith of their parents.”

The gentleman added that the Muslim parents on the Arabian Peninsula do not talk to their children about their faith.

As Christian parents have to convey their faith secretly, they try to search for methods on the internet, but usually, they do not find any useful information. Parents are not raising up their children on their own. Grandparents, uncles, and aunts also meddle in the education of the children and impede the parents handing on their Christian beliefs to their offspring.

Source: Portas Abertas