World Mission builds school for Mru people in Bangladesh

By July 21, 2022

Bangladesh (MNN) — In rural Bangladesh, human traffickers have started preying on the isolated Mru people. While the parents work out in the hills during the day, children disappear from the villages.

Local World Mission partners visited the Mru, Greg Kelley says. “We asked them, ‘What do you need? What would be helpful?’ And they said, ‘We want to have some kind of a training, a school, for our children, where they could be safe so we could go and work during the day.’”

Mru beliefs

The Mru have no written language. In fact, orality is built into their belief system. According to traditional belief, the great spirit gave all peoples languages and written rules for how to live. But an evil animal interfered, eating the rules intended for the Mru.

Officially, most of the Mru people have been categorized as Buddhists. However, many Mru beliefs and practices lack Buddhist influence.

Churches

Kelley says many among the Mru have embraced Jesus. “They were so thankful for what we did by helping their children that the parents now are coming to know Jesus. We’ve heard just recently, in the last couple of months, three new church plants have started.”

“They’re getting the Treasure in their language, they’re listening to it with their ears, hearing the Gospel.”

The Treasure is World Mission’s solar-powered audio Bible.

Kelley says the Mru churches are created and led by Mru people, not outsiders. Ask God to strengthen them. “The first-generation church that was planted, disciples come out of that. They are sharing Jesus with others who are planning other churches. So it’s just a beautiful thing God is doing right now.”

 

 

The header photo shows a Mru boy. (Photo courtesy of Astrothomas, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)


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