Morocco is the only kingdom in North Africa. Mohammed VI, who became king in 1999, is the highest political, military and religious authority. He is called: "The Commander of the Faithful" Consistently, he tries to improve the social and economic situation of the population. He encourages cooperation and collaboration between of all kinds of people and various organisations without distinction of race or religion, as long as they work for the good of the community in general.
In spite of his efforts a large proportion of the population is very poor, as often rich and powerful persons work for their own advantage and are inconsiderate of the rights and needs of their compatriots. Here some examples:
Promises Promises
A woman lives in a shanty town with her family. Unfortunately she is the only one who is able to work. She works at cleaning houses, helping with preparations for celebrations and the cleaning up afterwards, making bread dough for bakeries, ironing in factories and other odd jobs. Often she does not have any work for several days. The people employing her sometimes do not pay her in the evening, but ask her to come back another day, promising her that she will be paid later.
Another man has long hours of work and low pay. He and many of his co-workers wait for weeks for their promised salaries. They need to borrow money to support their families or even borrow for special expenses such as the beginning of the school year, the added food needs during Ramadan and the feast of the slaughtering of a sheep during the Aid El-Kabir. They must accept the unjust treatment, because their employer can send them away whenever he likes.
Another very skilled person easily finds people who will employ him. However, employers with villas and big cars tell him repeatedly that they do not have the money to pay him and he must come back several times before receiving his salary.
Flag of Morocco
Map of Morocco
An additional concern for people without regular jobs is that they do not have any health insurance, any pension or unemployment benefits. Some hope for political solutions to these problems but the ultimate solutions to injustice are in the hands of the Lord.
Prayer Requests
- Pray that the king may continue to lead his country in a wise and godly way. Some authorities have persecuted Moroccan believers, many have been threatened and some jailed. Many more Moroccans need to discover the forgiveness and new life which is found in the Messiah.
- Authorities and employers need to consider God’s wisdom in dealing with employees: "Pay the hired man his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and counting on it. ..." (Deut. 24:15 and Col. 4:1). The employees need to discover God’s plan for their lives and do their jobs faithfully and well (Col. 3:22-25).
Video: Sights and Sounds of Morocco (3:55)
Dirham from Filippo Chiesa on Vimeo. Filmed on Canon EOS 5D MK II.
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Are you aware of the unprecedented number of Christian missionaries who have been booted out of Morocco this past year? This includes people who have run orphanages, who have been the sole "parents" of many children who have known no other family, who were denied visa renewal.
It is a concerted effort by influential Muslim leaders to strangle the inroads Christians have in that country.
Here are some articles on the subject:
http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country/morocco/
http://www.persecution.org/?s=morocco&x=0&y=0
http://www.persecution.net/morocco.htm
http://www.christianpersecution.info/index.php?view=7715
to name a few
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