Gujarat State, India

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Population: 50 million, 89.4% Hindu, 8.9% Muslim (4.3 million people), 1.2% Jain, 0.5% Christian

In India, Gujarat is a word that is filled with huge emotion and meaning. Gujarat is a birth ground for communal tension and ethnic hatred, yet it has had a significant role in India’s history.

One Christian in Gujarat recently wrote, “We have seen that Gujarat has had a tremendous impact on the entire country of India. Every invader over the history of this country has entered through this state. The most ancient Indian civilization was located here. The first Islamic entry point was through here. The first European settlement was here. The first British colony was here. Mahatma Gandhi is from here. The author of the constitution is from here. A powerful Hindu fundamentalist group was born here. What happens here tends to spread throughout the rest of the nation. It has been a launching pad for most everything significant in the country’s history.”

Historical Aspects of Gujarat State, India

From the seventh to the tenth centuries, Islamic traders and indigenous Gujarati peoples lived in relative harmony. Gujaratis were impressed by Muslim piety and sufi teachings, which emphasize the mystic aspects of Islam. As a result, many Hindus gave up their religion to follow the Islamic faith. So, unlike many other parts of the Muslim world where Islam spread after political conquest, countless Gujarati Hindus embraced Islam peacefully, amid complete religious freedom. As Islamic doctrine spread, many saw the need to replace Hindu idol worship with “true Islam”. In the 14th century, however, the invasion of the Turks led to the destruction of numerous Hindu temples, contributing to an open, festering wound that has never healed.

Recently in Gujarat State, India

Since the mid-1990s, Hindu persecution of Muslims and Christians has increased dramatically in Gujarat. Early in 2002, a railway train of Hindus was attacked, allegedly by Muslim extremists. Fifty-seven people died. In retaliation, over 1,000 Muslims who had no link to the crime were tortured and burned to death during looting and rioting (some claim thousands more were killed).

God is at work in Gujarat, and there are missionaries at work in the state. For security reasons, many of these missionary activities cannot be made known to the wider Christian community. Despite these secret missionary efforts, the vast majority of people in Gujarat have never had an opportunity to understand the true meaning of the Gospel. What role will Gujarat play in God’s kingdom? Will the Church reach out with God’s love to the 4.3 million Muslims throughout Gujarat?

Lift up your heads, Oh gates, And lift them up, Oh ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in! (Psalm 24:9)

Prayer Focus for Gujarat State, India

* Pray for the Church in Gujarat to respond to God’s call to be light in the darkness of hatred and communal tension and to be vessels of peace, mercy, and truth in their communities (Galations. 5:22).

* Pray for the labourers in Gujarat, for God’s protection, wisdom, anointing, and encouragement with grace. New workers are also needed to address physical, social, emotional, and spiritual needs (1 Timothy 6:18).

* Pray for the cities of Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad, Baroda, Surat, Rajkot, Junagadh, Bhavnagar, and Jamnagar. May God’s kingdom come in Gujarat.