All articles in category Mali
By Keith and Janet Baker
September 2004
Mali
Missionary Spotlight-Visit to Mali
Monday 19 January Arrived at Bamako at 06.45. It was warm and breezy. In the terminal it was chaos, but we were rescued by the only English speaker, an American. We had a long wait for a bus to Mopti. It was old and the air got ever hotter as we sat choking with fumes from a running engine while drivers argued about money. At last we set out — at 09.55. Welcome to Africa! The uncomfortable ride was compensated by views of goats, dust, old cars, mopeds, motor cycles, and ladies with large loads on their heads. We were fascinated by ovens...
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By Gosia and Ibrahim Ag Mohamed
September 2004
Mali
Missionary Spotlight – Northern Mali’s young church
The church in northern Mali consists of first generation Christians who need grounding in new attitudes to sin and morality. For example, in Islam stealing is no great sin provided nobody catches you! In Christ, people discover genuine honesty. Many Christians are under pressure from family and friends to return to Islam. Being part of the family group is important, so a new Christian usually finds himself rejected. He is refused food and lodging, and may be ostracised. He is treated like a dog. Most believers in Mali are young men still dependent on their families. But what if their biological family wants nothing to...
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By Gosia and Ibrahim Ag Mohamed
September 2004
Mali
Missionary Spotlight – Even the water is dry
Mali — a former French colony not yet reached by the twenty-first century — is four times the size of the UK, with a population of 12 million. Two-thirds of it is Sahara desert. However, it has an intriguing and glorious past — embracing the ancient Malian and Songhay empires as well as Timbuktu and the Tuaregs. Today, southern Mali and capital city Bamako have Christian churches of many kinds, which coexist with animism and Islam (mixed with animism). Northern Mali had to wait more than 1,900 years for the gospel. The Christian and Missionary Alliance (CMA) started work in 1923, but found...
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