All articles in category Somalia
By Nicole James
Article
March 2018
Africa > Eastern Africa > Somalia > World Mission
Bold, Somali believers
Nicole James reports from Sweden In the Scandinavian country where they are growing up, many young Somalis encounter Jesus through their classmates and friends, according to long-term OM worker Bertil, who facilitates a global network of Somali believers. ‘We see some young people who are really coming up strong in the Lord’, he declared. Her story Manaar*, a 21-year-old Somali woman, first heard about Jesus from a classmate. Wanting to know more, she read the Bible, comparing it with the Qur’an. ‘In the Qur’an there is no love. In the Bible there is the love of Christ’, she concluded. When Manaar became a believer, word quickly...
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By MERF
Article
June 2014
Somalia
Somali witness
For many centuries, the vast majority of Somalis have professed Islam. Like other East African Muslims, most have little knowledge of the Arabic language and therefore little understanding of their religion. They tend to follow different forms of folk Islam that include elements of ancestral pagan religions. In the Horn of Africa, the cause of Christian missions among Somali peoples was not helped by the presence of colonial powers (Italian, French and British). Also, in the second half of the twentieth century, with generous financing by oil wealth, a modern Islamic missionary movement prospered. It was led by Egyptian and Saudi Muslims, who succeeded in...
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By Barnabas Fund
Article
February 2011
Somalia
World Mission – Somalia’s agony
Somalia’s agony The Christian minority suffers grievously in Somalia, and many have been killed for their faith. The country is highly unstable and racked by violence. Lack of an effective government in most of the country has led to famine, war and relentless brutality. The growing influence of extremely conservative forms of Islam enables Islamist militias to thrive. These groups impose a strict interpretation of Islam on the communities under their control and are seeking to establish an Islamic state under the rule of sharia law. Somalia is almost 100 per cent Muslim; Christians account for a tiny proportion of the population,...
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By ReachAcross
Article
February 2011
Somalia
World Mission – The Somali people
The Somali people There are probably between eight and nine million Somalis in Somalia and Somaliland, while many others live in the neighbouring countries of Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya. Somali refugees are found in the Arabian Peninsula, the Gulf, Western Europe, North America and New Zealand. Some Somalis are semi-nomadic pastoralists, who take care of their camels, cattle, goats and sheep. Others are urbanised. Ever since the beginning of this century, the Somali people have continuously extended their territory. Today, they are settled all around the Horn of Africa. Somalis are Muslims who, along with their expansion, also spread Islam. About...
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By Brother Warsameh
Article
February 2011
Somalia
World Mission – My faith in Jesus Christ the Messiah
My faith in Jesus Christ the Messiah I was born to a very religious Somali family, in a small village in western Somalia. I am a Somali. I grew up in Mogadishu where I worked and finished high school. My father was a well-known religious leader and also a well-respected tribal leader. He memorised the entire Qur’an in Arabic, even though he could not speak Arabic very well. The Qur’an is roughly the size of the Christian New Testament. My father trained Muslim religious teachers for the propagation of Islam. In his pursuit of spreading Islam he enjoyed the moral and material support...
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