{"id":39513,"date":"2021-11-23T14:18:01","date_gmt":"2021-11-23T05:18:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/?p=39513"},"modified":"2021-11-23T15:31:40","modified_gmt":"2021-11-23T06:31:40","slug":"vomk-report-180","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/2021\/11\/23\/vomk-report-180\/","title":{"rendered":"40,000 BIBLES DISTRIBUTED TO CHILDREN IN EASTERN UKRAINE CONFLICT ZONES"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”39508″ img_size=”full”][vc_custom_heading text=”When Vanya received his Action Bible New Testament, he burst into tears.
\n\u201cIt reminded him of his father,\u201d says Voice of the Martyrs Korea Representative Dr. Hyun Sook Foley.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:1.2em|text_align:left” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:700%20bold%20regular%3A700%3Anormal” el_class=”headline”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”2\/3″][vc_single_image image=”39504″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][vc_custom_heading text=”Eastern Ukraine, with the conflict zones of Lugansk and Donetsk indicated” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:13px|text_align:center|color:%230a0a0a|line_height:1.45em” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Vanya, a young boy<\/span>, lives in a village of\u00a0<\/span>about\u00a0<\/span>a thousand<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>people\u00a0<\/span>in the\u00a0<\/span>so-called \u201cgray zone\u201d<\/span>\u00a0of Eastern Ukraine<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>an area which formally belongs to Ukraine, but which is under the influence of Russian separatists.\u00a0<\/span>\u201cChildren in the gray zone\u00a0<\/span>hear explosions and mortar attacks<\/span>\u00a0nearly every day<\/span>, but they still attend school,\u201d says Representative Foley. She says it was at the school that Vanya received the<\/span>\u00a0Children\u2019s New Testament, at a gathering of\u00a0<\/span>about 30 children.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>When\u00a0<\/span>Vanya\u00a0<\/span>received the New Testament<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0he\u00a0<\/span>suddenly started crying because it reminded him of his father, who pastored a small local church<\/span>\u00a0before being<\/span>\u00a0detained and imprisoned after the war broke out<\/span>,\u201d says Representative Foley<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>\u201c<\/span>When\u00a0<\/span>the event organizers saw\u00a0<\/span>Vanya\u2019s reaction, they prayed with him that God would protect his father.\u00a0<\/span>Now t<\/span>hey now visit Vanya and his mother\u00a0<\/span>on a monthly basis<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>they\u00a0<\/span>support them financially and in prayer<\/span>, and they<\/span>\u00a0have begun\u00a0<\/span>searching\u00a0<\/span>for Vanya\u2019s father with the help of some international organizations<\/span>.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”39501″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][vc_custom_heading text=”Vanya, a boy living in a \u201cgray zone\u201d in Eastern Ukraine, cried when he received the New Testament because it reminded him of his father, a jailed and missing pastor.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:13px|text_align:center|color:%230a0a0a|line_height:1.45em” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”39495″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][vc_custom_heading text=”Children at a camp in a conflict zone in Eastern Ukraine receive Action Bible New Testaments. A total of 40,000 were distributed through a project conducted by a coalition of local Christians and ministries including Voice of the Martyrs Korea.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:13px|text_align:center|color:%230a0a0a|line_height:1.45em” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The\u00a0<\/span>Action Bible\u00a0<\/span>New Testament Vanya received was one of 40,000 distributed\u00a0<\/span>to children\u00a0<\/span>in\u00a0<\/span>conflict zones throughout Eastern Ukraine in\u00a0<\/span>a project funded and executed by a coalition of ministries including Voice of the Martyrs Korea,\u00a0<\/span>Voice of the Martyrs Canada, Mission Eurasia, and School Without Walls.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cThis\u00a0<\/span>region has been<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>beset by armed conflict, evan<\/span>g<\/span>elical p<\/span>e<\/span>rsecution, and<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>totalitarian politics since 2014,\u201d says Representative Foley.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>It was recently named by the European Evangelical Alliance (EEA) as the area of Europe where the church suffers the most,\u201d says Representative Foley.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0\u201c<\/span>Some people might say, \u2018<\/span>You should w<\/span>ait\u00a0<\/span>to distribute Bibles\u00a0<\/span>until\u00a0<\/span>the fighting subsides,\u2019 but for us and the other ministries in our coalition<\/span>\u00a0who are supporting the local Christians<\/span>, we\u00a0<\/span>know that a<\/span>ny time a major conflict threatens an area, that\u2019s when people turn to God and become open to the Bible. They\u2019re looking for hope. They still have to go to work and to the market and\u00a0<\/span>their kids still have to go\u00a0<\/span>to\u00a0<\/span>school.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]According to\u00a0<\/span>Representative Foley<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>distribution during armed conflicts requires\u00a0<\/span>local Christians who have knowledge about an area that outside groups don\u2019t have. \u201c<\/span>The hardest work is always done by local believers,\u201d says Representative Foley.\u00a0<\/span>\u201cIt was not a situation where they could just drive in trucks and hand out 40,000 Children\u2019s Bibles. They had to take\u00a0<\/span>great risk<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>overcome many\u00a0<\/span>difficult<\/span>ies\u00a0<\/span>to distribute these Action Bible New Testaments to children in each community. They had to<\/span>\u00a0cross<\/span>\u00a0borders\u00a0<\/span>and in most cases<\/span>\u00a0move\u00a0<\/span>in complete secrecy<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span>They worked with local believers in each place about how and when to move, where to distribute, and to whom. It\u2019s not a project that could have been done by missionaries or short-term mission teams<\/span>\u00a0with big budgets.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”39498″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][vc_custom_heading text=”Maxim, age 10, received one of the distributed Bibles at a children\u2019s camp while visiting his grandmother in the summertime. He took the Bible back home to one of the restricted zones in Eastern Ukraine, where he reads the stories with his family members, who were previously nominal Orthodox Christians.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:13px|text_align:center|color:%230a0a0a|line_height:1.45em” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text]Representative Foley says that even though distribution of the 40,000\u00a0<\/span>Action Bible New Testaments is now complete, the ministry work is still underway. \u201cEach Bible was given to a real child with real needs and real problems. Just as with Vanya\u2019s family, local Christians are working with our coalition to\u00a0<\/span>locate missing pastors, to help evangelical Christians who are suffering because of their faith, and to answer the questions of children who are excited to learn more about Jesus.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]S<\/span>he gives the example of 10-year<\/span>–<\/span>old Maxim, who came from a nominally Orthodox Christian family in an area controlled by separatists. \u201c<\/span>In the summer h<\/span>e\u00a0<\/span>is able to go visit his grandmother in a less restricted part of Ukraine. It was there at a summer camp that he received one of the Action Bible New Testaments. At the end of the summer when he returned home, he took the Bible with him, and now he reads it at home with his family. So<\/span>,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>the impact extends far beyond the children who received the Bibles originally.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Representative Foley says the ministry coalition\u00a0<\/span>estimate<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0that this project impacted more than 100,000 family members<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0<\/span>also<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>provided resources to approximately 700 Christian leaders from\u00a0<\/span>126 churches in Eastern Ukraine.\u00a0<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cChristians in closed countries<\/span>\u00a0know how to reach their neighbors far more effectively and safely than missionaries<\/span>\u00a0who come in from the outside and who often have to leave when conflict or Coronavirus comes<\/span>,\u201d says Representative Foley. \u201c<\/span>Local believers\u00a0<\/span>say to us, \u2018Give us the tools\u2019\u2014like these Action Bible New Testaments<\/span>\u2014\u2018<\/span>and we will complete the work.\u2019<\/span>\u00a0That has been the strategy of Voice of the Martyrs\u00a0<\/span>globally since the time of the Cold War, and it continues today, as we resource underground Christians in the more than 70 countries where Christians are persecuted or restricted.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Individuals interested in donating to\u00a0Voice of the Martyrs Korea to support the work of\u00a0underground believers\u00a0<\/span>can give at\u00a0<\/span>www.vomkorea.com\/en\/donation<\/a><\/span>\u00a0or via electronic transfer to:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. \uad6d\ubbfc\uc740\ud589<\/span>\u00a0(KB Bank)\u00a0463501-01-243303<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. \uc608\uae08\uc8fc<\/span>\u00a0(Account Holder): (<\/span>\uc0ac<\/span>)<\/span>\uc21c\uad50\uc790\uc758\uc18c\ub9ac<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][\/vc_section]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”39508″ img_size=”full”][vc_custom_heading text=”When Vanya received his Action Bible New Testament, he burst into tears. \u201cIt reminded him of his father,\u201d says Voice of the Martyrs Korea Representative Dr. Hyun …","protected":false},"author":659,"featured_media":39509,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[857,235,869,140],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39513","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-russian-special","category-special-column","category-china-special","category-vomk-report"],"translation":{"provider":"WPGlobus","version":"3.0.2","language":"en","enabled_languages":["ko","en","zh","ru"],"languages":{"ko":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"en":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"zh":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"ru":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39513","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/659"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39513"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39513\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39509"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39513"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39513"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39513"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}