Damascus, capital city of Syria

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Population: 2.5 million

Damascus, the capital of Syria, is one of the world’s oldest cities: many claim it is the oldest continually inhabited city in the world. During the Muslim Umayyad dynasty (661-750AD), Damascus became the capital of the whole Muslim world. The Umayyad caliphs of Damascus ruled over a territory reaching from Spain to India.

Beliefs in Damascus, Syria

Muslims in Damascus generally think that the Bible has been changed, that Jesus was not crucified, and that Christians believe in three gods (the Father, Jesus and Mary). Many of Damascus’ Muslims have never really met a true believer. There is a general misunderstanding of sin, and many Muslims think they are very righteous. Pray that spiritual blindness would be removed.

No Compromise in Damascus, Syria

While 5 per cent of Syria’s total population call themselves Christians, only a small number have an active dynamic relationship with Christ. Unfortunately, many ‘Christians’ are totally nominal, and often do more harm to the cause of Christ than good. The Muslim stereotype of a Christian is a polytheist who drinks a lot of alcohol, has loose morals, and eats pork (a disgusting and ritually unclean animal to Muslims). As a result, ‘becoming a Christian’ s seen as a compromise, shameful and sinful. Pray for wisdom for those who proclaim the Gospel, that it may be done in a way that it really sounds like good news.

There are few Syrian Christians who are actively seeking to proclaim Christ to Muslims. Some use an ‘argumentative’ approach which seldom works very well. Pray that Christians would proclaim the Gospel with gentleness and wisdom while manifesting Christ’s presence. May many come to true faith in the city where Paul was converted.

For more information, go to following non-Christian website:
http://almashriq.hiof.no/syria/900/910/919/damas/

Pray for the Muslims in Syria:

* Pray for the publishing and distribution of relevant evangelistic materials, and for the provision of finances to fund these materials.

* Pray for minority groups, such as the Alawites, Druze, Shiites, and Yazidis, to be reached with the Gospel.

* Syria has been in an economic slump for about six years. Pray for the poor, that God would provide for their needs, and also open doors for them to hear the Good News.

* There have been many reforms under the new President, Dr Bashar al-Assad. Pray that there would be further modernization and true religious freedom. (Currently, those who are born into Muslim families may not legally change their religion.)

* Many churches are afraid of Muslim-background believers and do not want them to come into their churches, fearing that they are spies or that they want to marry a Christian girl. This is a difficult problem which does not have simple answers. The Apostle Paul had a somewhat similar experience (Acts 9:10-16). Pray for Muslims who trust Christ to be able to find fellowship with others of similar background within their cultural context.

* There are few Muslim-background believers in Christ. Pray that each one could remain firmly in their cultural context, and would be used to win their friends and family.