Russia (MNN) — There’s encouraging news to share about a South Korean missionary detained in Russia — and many are calling it an answer to prayer.

Ms. Park Tae-Yeon, 69, has been held by Russian authorities since January 15. Earlier this week, Mission Network News reported on her arrest and an online petition calling for her release. That story was picked up by South Korean media, and quickly reached people who could help.

(Photo courtesy of VOM Korea)

Eric Foley with The Voice of the Martyrs Korea says those headlines mattered.

“We really believe it is [an] answer to prayer. The Voice of the Martyrs Korea has confirmed that Ms. Park met for 40 minutes with a representative from the Korean consulate on the afternoon of February 3.”

Park is also in a better living situation now. “We can confirm that today, Ms. Park was moved from the detention center to house arrest after submitting a pledge not to leave Russia until the end of the investigation,” Foley says.

Park was targeted at the same time as Child Evangelism Fellowship in a months-long investigation by Russian officials. The charges against her remain unchanged, which means the hard work is still ahead.

Foley says the situation highlights a broader pattern.

Russian flag (Photo courtesy of Dimmis Vart/Unsplash)

“This is an example of the increasing restrictions on religious liberty, especially for evangelicals in Russia. So let’s make sure we’re praying for both of those situations — one, the release of Ms. Park, but also that this is really the tip of a very big iceberg.”

The Voice of the Martyrs Korea continues to collect signatures for a petition calling for Park’s immediate release. The ministry will deliver the petition to the Russian embassy shortly after the Lunar New Year.

Access the petition here.

Please pray for Park’s encouragement, protection, and full release. Pray also for Christian ministries in Russia, asking God to guard believers and keep the Gospel moving forward despite growing pressure.

Header photo of Ms. Park Tae-Yeon, courtesy of VOM Korea.

Joanna Mangione of SOAR spoke to us about their recent trip to Russia for Stuff a Stocking. The team arrived in Ryazan just hours before the new year.

“We rung in the year with the church there. Actually, the tradition is that the church prays that last hour into midnight. So we got to do that with the church.”

That week, the team helped their church contact in Ryazan run a day camp for children in the church and the local community.

(Photo and header photo courtesy of SOAR International)

“It was a three-day long camp program that we did alongside the church [with] crafts and games and Bible stories and Bible lessons and English lessons. And it was basically a whole day program for the kids for three days in honor of the Christmas season.”

Over the next few days, they began distributing the stockings. These stockings contain necessities like gloves and shampoo, as well as toys and a Bible. In total, the team was able to distribute the gifts to four different children’s homes and a bedridden home in Ryazan. On January 7^th, they celebrated Christmas with the church according to the Orthodox calendar.

After Ryazan, they were off to St. Petersburg.

A surprise in St. Petersburg

Mangione says, “The church there is doing some amazing work with rehabilitating men and women. And we’ve known them for quite some time– have been doing this project with them for many, many years, and just last summer helped them with their summer camp. So it was really fun to get to see them again.”

Here, they participated in eight distributions. Many of these locations were children’s homes and transition homes, but Mangione says their outreach is growing beyond that.

“We went to even a few detention centers. We went to a sports school for kids who are brought into that opportunity. And then, we were incredibly surprised to get to actually get to do a small distribution inside a police station which even surprised our Russian brothers and sisters.

“We arrived and initially, we were under the impression it was a detention center. And when we arrived we realized it was the police station and we would be doing the distribution and the Gospel presentation for the children of policemen.”

Mangione says they were quite surprised and a little wary. But because they had been invited in, they went on with the distribution.

“It was actually a wonderful time. It was a couple of families who came into a room that they set aside and we were able to present the Gospel. We gave them their gifts, handed out Bibles. Both the parents and the children were there.”

(Photo courtesy of SOAR International)

The team praises God for his protection during this unexpected visit.

As it turns out, the policewoman who invited them to this particular distribution has been making a way for Stuff a Stocking to grow in this area.

“She loves the project so much that she has been the one to help open the doors into some of these transit homes and detention centers that we might, just on our own, might not have gotten into without her influence and invitation, and paving the way there for us.”

And so, Mangione says, “God definitely worked this January and is working in Russia and through that policewoman. We are so blessed that we got the opportunity to work with the church together in getting to bring gifts and getting to bring the Bible, and getting to bring the Gospel to the kids, and the adults for that matter, that we got to meet while there.”

It’s never a bad time to give to the Stuff A Stocking project, or to start sewing stockings for next year. For more information, click here.

Also, stay tuned for a look at SOAR International’s next project, Baskets of Hope. This project centers around Easter, the largest religious holiday in Russia.

Several unjust rulings have been made against Christians since the start of 2010. The homes of numerous Christians as well as churches have been raided, and many Christians have been fined for sharing their faith, holding religious services, and illegally distributing Christian literature, according to Forum 18 News.

Within the last three months, however, pressure has increased to the point of unlawful imprisonment.

"In the last several months, 10 Christians have been sentenced to administrative detention for their Christian activities–that can mean something as simple as holding a Bible study in their home," says Carl Moeller, president of Open Doors USA. "This is four times the amount of detentions that we saw last year."

It's unclear as to exactly why the crackdown has gotten so much worse so quickly. Moeller confirms, however, that the Uzbek government favors uniformity, not diversity. A rise in numbers of any group could be considered social and political dissension.

It has also been indicated that the government may be concerned that Christianity will lead to terrorism. Forum 18 reports one instance in which the Uzbek government delivered a verdict fining two Christians for distributing Christian literature on the street "without appropriate documentation." The verdict notes that these charges were made during an "Anti-Terror" operation.

"Christianity, as a minority religion in these places, is seen as a disruptive influence. And some may associate disruption with the concepts of terrorism as that region may define them," explains Moeller. "Of course, we know that that's not the case. Christians are not working for any political overthrow of a government, or a way of life, or anything like that."

Moeller says the situation in Kyrgyzstan with immigrant Uzbeks (some of them Christians) fleeing back to Uzbekistan has likely ramped up hostile feelings toward Christians. Regardless of any logical reasoning behind this upswing, however, Moeller says conditions have seldom been worse. "Our contacts in the region tell us that since the fall of the Soviet Union, things have rarely been tighter and more restrictive on the churches there."

Beyond putting the integrity and wellbeing of believers on the line, the Uzbek government has also caused uninterrupted evangelism to be difficult. "This has a chilling effect on the capacity of individuals to share their faith, to open Bible studies up to neighbors, and to allow people to come to their churches with honest questions," confirms Moeller.

Despite the present danger, evangelical Christians are still reaching out and living the Gospel. Uzbek Christians ask for your prayers as they travel this difficult road. Pray for boldness, for safety, and for relief from such heavy persecution. Pray that this crackdown would strengthen the church and not weaken it.

You can also be an advocate for Uzbek Christians by contacting your local representatives about the issue and urging them to respond to the injustice. Click here for a list of U.S. representatives.

In 2007, Wusiman was sentenced for "revealing state secrets" and "illegal proselytizing." ChinaAid Association says the sentence was a result of Wusiman's Christian leadership in house churches among the Uyghur people in Xinjiang, China. Government officials originally planned to give Wusiman a 10-15 year sentence, but thanks to media coverage, it was only two years.

Wusiman is now back with his family, aged and fragile, but in good spirits. Alimujiang Yimiti, who was accused of the same things as Wusiman in the same court case, is still in custody.

Alimujiang has been arbitrarily detained at Kashi Municipal Center since January 12, 2008 even though no concrete sentence was made against him, and forged documents were used in court.

On October 27, 2009, Alimujiang was read his verdict and sentence. Alimujiang, his wife and his lawyer are still waiting for a printed document explaining an exact verdict. In the meantime, they have been told that the punishment will be severe.

ChinaAid says that Alimujiang is highly respected in the prison. Pray that he would continue to have opportunities to spread the Gospel and share the love of Christ even while imprisoned. Pray also that Alimujiang would be released and that justice would finally be brought to the situation.

ChinaAid supports families like these through their Family of Prisoners fund. If you would like to get involved, click here.

China Aid Association reports the five were arrested with a group of 28 people at a Christian camp. The government raided the camp on July 13 confiscating projectors, televisions, computers, computer tables, musical instruments, audio equipment, furniture and other items. They also took students' cell phones and Bibles. The Bibles were listed as evidence for the charges on the administrative detention notices.

According to an eyewitness, police told the Christian leaders that it is forbidden for those under 18 to believe in Christianity, and even people older than 18 cannot organize for religious activities without permission. 

According to China Aid's report, the group was beaten and not given food or water for two days. Upon hearing what happened, their church members rushed bread and water to them, finding that many of them were suffering from hunger and dehydration. 

The church has also requested that their property be returned. However, the police have
responded saying, "No way. We'll keep more than 90 percent."

Pray for the students who are still in shock from their experience. Pray also for Mr. Wang
Chang-Yin who was sentenced to 15 days and Mr. Qiu Jia-Cun who was sentenced to 10 days; are both still in administrative detention. Pray that they will be released on schedule.