Tunisia makes its mark by staying out of the international news ... until recently
Nestled between Algeria and Libya on the southern Mediterranean coast, security and unity are the hallmarks of this country of 10 million. Having had only two presidents in the past 50 years, Tunisia is marked by political stability and prosperity. It is also a country of mixed cultural values. Islam and secularism both shape the minds and values of most Tunisians. Thanks to a strong and effective police force, peace and security reign, and millions of European tourists are welcomed each year. Islamists from neighbouring countries have made recent efforts to cause disruptions but have thankfully been thwarted.
Reaching Out
It is relatively easy to talk with Tunisians about the Gospel, though many do not show interest in spiritual things. Some who have experienced healing and deliverance in the name of Christ acknowledge that Jesus has changed their lives, yet still do not commit their lives to him. Others profess faith and then do not commit themselves. There are shining examples of committed individual disciples, but few truly indigenous house churches.
National Church
There is a small national church, with a handful of recognised local leaders. The church is composed mostly of well educated people who are more westernised than the majority of the population. The vast majority of believers and Christian workers live in the capital of Tunis (population 2 million). There are few believers, few workers, and very few gatherings of believers outside the capital city. In recent times a few believers have established residency in least four new cities and provincial capitals which previously had little or no Christian presence. With so few believers in these regions, the role of media, and especially Arabic satellite TV programming is still important in reaching vast parts of the country.
Fear Factor
Though direct persecution and arrests by the police are rare, many believers do live in fear of ostracism by their friends and families. The fear of persecution rather than the persecution itself is a major issue for most believers.
Map of Tunisia
Tunisia Map
Prayer points:
* Pray for unity and trust among local believers.
* Pray for healthy marriages and strong families. Some young adult believers sometimes have difficulty finding mates.
* Pray for those who have experienced Christ in healings, dreams and deliverance to really commit their lives to him (Ephesians 5:11-20).
* Pray for effective discipleship of believers and ‘near’ believers (Mt. 28:20a). May the power of God and the truth of Christ to come to dominate and transform the lives of all believers (Colossians 1:28).
* Pray for more effective co-ordination and followup of media contacts (satellite, and radio broadcasts are done daily).
* Pray for wisdom for government leaders, especially in protecting the country from radical islamists (Romans 13:1-5).
* Pray for the undereducated and unemployed who are easily exploited and marginalised (Luke 6:20-21 and James 2:5).
* Pray for God to work in the new cities and towns that now have a resident witness for the first time in many years.
More prayers for Tunisia can be found on the www.Pray4Tunisia.com site!
Background on Tunisia (World Factbook)
Rivalry between French and Italian interests in Tunisia culminated in a French invasion in 1881 and the creation of a protectorate. Agitation for independence in the decades following World War I was finally successful in getting the French to recognize Tunisia as an independent state in 1956. The country's first president, Habib BOURGUIBA, established a strict one-party state. He dominated the country for 31 years, repressing Islamic fundamentalism and establishing rights for women unmatched by any other Arab nation. Tunisia has long taken a moderate, non-aligned stance in its foreign relations. Domestically, it has sought to defuse rising pressure for a more open political society. In what became known as the Jasmine Revolution, a sudden and explosive wave of street protests ousted the authoritarian president, Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, who had ruled with an iron hand for 23 years. On January 14, 2011 Mr. Ben Ali left the country, after trying unsuccessfully to placate the demonstrators with promises of elections. According to government figures issued later, 78 protesters died and 94 were injured during the demonstrations.
Economy of Tunisia
Tunisia has a diverse economy, with important agricultural, mining, energy, tourism, and manufacturing sectors. Progressive social policies have helped raise living conditions in Tunisia relative to the region. Real growth slowed to a 15-year low of 1.9% in 2002 because of agricultural drought and lackluster tourism. Increased rain helped in 2003-05. However, a recession in agriculture, weak expansion in the tourism and textile sectors, and increasing import costs due to rising world energy prices cut growth. Tunisia is gradually removing barriers to trade with the EU.
Statistics for Tunisia
Population: 10,629,186 (July 2011 est.) World rank #78
Life Expectancy at Birth: 75.01 years. World rank #91
Ethnic Groups: Arab 98%, European 1%, Jewish and other 1%
Religions: Muslim 98%, Christian 1%, Jewish and other 1%
Languages: Arabic (official and one of the languages of commerce), French (commerce)
Literacy: 74.3% - male: 83.4%, female: 65.3%
School life expectancy: 15 years
"Travel to Tunisia" - Video
A professional video from a travel site, but gives a great idea of the life and style of Tunisia
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In my church in Argentina, there are two apostles, that want to serve the nations. How can we help serve?
Dear friend:
you can serve by prayer! And givging! And going!
TUNISIA:
* thank God that Church growth in Tunisia recently increased
* thank God that Tunisian MBBss may number 1000+
* pray that Tunisian youth-msot spiritualily indifferent-will come to Jesus
* pray that Tunisia's religious and ogvernment officals will come to Jesus
* pray that TUnisian Christians will have a vision to impact Tunisia for Christ
* pray for church-planting in each strategtic Tunisian city and town
* pray for more workers for Tunisia, especially for the expolited and underpriviliged
* pray for Tunisia's Berbers and Bedouin to come to Christ
Keep dreaming. Tunisia is very very Islamic. There are a few europeans who are there and are christians. That's it. I am from the region and this is fresh news. Dont worry, within 10 years, the Islamic populatin will be about 2 billions and growing. Christianity? most of those who are supposed to be Christians are agnostics. The illogic and nonsense idea that someone is both the chicken and the egg is taken out of fairy tales. non-sense. The order of the creation in the bible is not correct - a friend of mine left christianity because of this. I knwo someone else who left because the church forces people to give alms every sunday. Forces? wow. Dont be arrogant and look into Islam. Dont worry books will not eat you, you can approach them. Rememeber "there is no compulsion in religion" said our dear Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). He never forced anyone into Islam unlike the christian motto "Convert or die" which is still going on today. wars wars wars is all they love.
I'm no expert in Islam or Tunisia. I have some knowledge of Christian Faith. Very sad to read about the friend who was forced to give alms. I have heard of this before. I believe this doing things, feeling forced to do so, can be more to do with the people in the religion being controlling than the faith. In my experience of the Christian faith, people give because they are moved by their love of the Messiah.
It is a sad truth about the wars. There have been horrific campaigns in name of religion. But many followers of the Christian faith think that was more about people grabbing power than correctly following the way of the Messiah.
Knowledge and reading are excellent. There is so much to be learned, whether it be science, history, philosophy or religion. True; there is mystery in the Christian faith which can seem illogical, but I guess that is a characteristic of faith Science and knowledge are good but some things are beyond explanation.. So as a believer, I would say it is fine to have dreams and revelations.
I
Dear Wawa,
As a follower of Jesus who once lived in Tunisia for and worshiped among them, I assure you there are Christians in Tunisia who have expierenced the life-changing love of God. The depth of their faith is astounding; they stand in persecution. They flagger, but they do not fail. They are blessed. It is an honor to know them.
"God blesses you when people mock you and persecute you and lie about you and say all sorts of evil things against you because you are my followers." Matthew 5:11
This article is full of bull. I am from that region and Islam is strongly rooted in that country. What you people do not know about Muslims is that we will listen to anything, be nice to you, but in no way can we manipulated spiritually. Allah turn the hearts - no individuals. You want to talk about miracles? I will tell you a hundred stories I and others have lived. I will tell you stories where Allah has tested me till the last second of my test and I did not give in to the levil of others. Islam is quite strong. There is no need for intermediary. Our relationship with Allah is direct. When we confess, it is to Allah as no man has the right to tell whether I will or will not be forgiven. Only Allah is the judge. No intermediary, no priests.
I feel there are some things in common with both faiths.
It is not people that change hearts. People can try to manipulate things but can not really change others. Religious leaders, teachers, priests can show us the way and they can pray for us but not change us.
Testing does frequently happen in faith. It can be interesting to see the results as character and goodness grows in the believer.
Similar to Islam, Christian believers can also directly relate to God, finding it an honour and a blessing to confess and submit to Him.
The big difference is that we actually believe Jesus is Messiah, so when we submit to Him, we are submitting to God. And yes, we do believe that he makes it possible for us to be forgiven.
If there are 1,000 Christians in Tunisia, that means that statistically to know just ONE of them you'd have to know 10,000 Tunisians (because there are 10,000,000 Tunisians).
This explains why some have posted claims that they know the region and don't think there are Christians.
Nonetheless, if anyone considers the vast amount of Tunisian dialect Christian media that exists, it will be tough to deny that the church not only exists but is growing quickly.
Here's an example of some of that media. Note: This dialect is ONLY spoken in Tunisia! http://vimeo.com/tunisie
Furthermore, most Tunisians now know about the Tunisian church because it's been in magazines and newspapers (and of course been on satellite TV).
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