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Release International is an international Christian ministry, based in the UK, which seeks to support Christians around the world who are persecuted for their faith.
The ministry is active in more than 25 countries, working through local Christian partners to provide both spiritual resources and practical support to victims of persecution. This includes prayerfully, pastorally and practically helping:
On its website Release International states that it subscribes to the Evangelical Alliance Statement of Faith.
Release International was established in 1968, originally as Christian Mission to the Communist World. It is one of a number of Christian organisations around the world that traces its origins and inspiration to Richard Wurmbrand, a Romanian pastor who spent a total of 14 years in Communist prisons, from the late 1940s to the mid-1960s.
Wurmbrand documented his prison sufferings in the international best-selling book, Tortured for Christ, which also called on Christians in the free West to respond to the needs of those who were suffering for their Christian faith.
The ministry changed its name to Release International in 1992.
In the UK Release International expresses its support for persecuted Christians around the world by:
Release International publishes a free quarterly magazine called Voice, which seeks to inform and to resource UK Christians to pray for those who are persecuted.
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The Christian Church is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States and Canada. The denomination started with the Restoration Movement during the Second Great Awakening, first existing during the 19th century as a loose association of churches working towards Christian unity, then slowly forming quasi-denominational structures through missionary societies, regional associations, and an international convention. In 1968, the Disciples of Christ officially adopted a denominational structure at which time a group of churches left to remain nondenominational.
Unitarianism is a nontrinitarian Christian theological movement that believes that the God in Christianity is one singular person, as opposed to a Trinity. Most other branches of Christianity define God as one being in three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Unitarian Christians believe that Jesus was inspired by God in his moral teachings and that he is a savior, but he is not God incarnate.
Mortification of the flesh is an act by which an individual or group seeks to mortify or deaden their sinful nature, as a part of the process of sanctification.
The Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) is an international nonprofit organization whose mission is to defend the human rights of persecuted Christians.
Richard Wurmbrand, also known as Nicolai Ionescu was a Romanian Evangelical Lutheran priest, and professor of Jewish descent. In 1948, having become a Christian ten years before, he publicly said Communism and Christianity were incompatible. Wurmbrand preached at bomb shelters and rescued Jews during World War II. As a result, he experienced imprisonment and torture by the then-Communist regime of Romania, which maintained a policy of state atheism.
The Alpha course is an evangelistic course which seeks to introduce the basics of the Christian faith through a series of talks and discussions. It is described by its organisers as "an opportunity to explore the meaning of life". Alpha courses are run in churches, homes, workplaces, prisons, universities and a wide variety of other locations. The course began in Britain and is run around the world by various Christian denominations.
Peace churches are Christian churches, groups or communities advocating Christian pacifism or Biblical nonresistance. The term historic peace churches refers specifically only to three church groups among pacifist churches:
Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship (UCCF) is a UK-based charity that was founded in 1928 as the Inter-Varsity Fellowship of Evangelical Unions. UCCF's dual aims are:
Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) is a human rights organisation which specialises in religious freedom and works on behalf of those persecuted for their Christian beliefs, persecuted for other religious belief or persecuted for lack of belief. Its current president is Jonathan Aitken, who succeeded Baroness Cox in 2006.
The New Apostolic Church (NAC) is a Christian church that split from the Catholic Apostolic Church during an 1863 schism in Hamburg, Germany.
Open Doors is a non-denominational mission supporting persecuted Christians in the world. They work with local partners to distribute Bibles and Christian literature, give discipleship training and provide practical support, such as emergency relief aid. Open Doors' stated aims are to raise awareness of global persecution, mobilising prayer, support and action among Christians from around the world. It is based in Ermelo, The Netherlands. Open Doors is also a member of the Forum of Bible Agencies International.
Apostasy in Christianity is the rejection of Christianity by someone who formerly was a Christian and/or who wishes to administratively be removed from a formal registry of church members. The term apostasy comes from the Greek word apostasia meaning "defection", "departure", "revolt", or "rebellion". It has been described as "a willful falling away from, or rebellion against, Christianity. Apostasy is the rejection of Christ by one who has been a Christian...." "Apostasy is a theological category describing those who have voluntarily and consciously abandoned their faith in the God of the covenant, who manifests himself most completely in Jesus Christ." "Apostasy is the antonym of conversion; it is deconversion."
Colin O'Brien Winter, was an English Anglican bishop, who served as Bishop of Damaraland, a diocese of the Church of the Province of Southern Africa coextensive with the territory of what is now Namibia during the apartheid era.
Fresh Expressions is an international, cross-denominational, creative movement of Christians working alongside existing congregations to cultivate new forms of church for those who have never been involved in church or who have left the church. The purpose of Fresh Expressions isn't to get people to attend a traditional or typical form of church on Sunday mornings. The purpose of Fresh Expressions is to connect with people, especially those who would never enter a church building, to form new faith communities in places where people are already gathering in contemporary culture. "Fresh Expressions are places where the people of God communicate the love of God in new and compelling ways."
"[A] Fresh Expression is a form of church for our changing culture established primarily for the benefit of people who are not yet members of any church" – FX Denominational Partners, 2006
Dum maerenti animo is an Apostolic Letter of Pope Pius XII to the faithful in Eastern Europe regarding their persecutions and the persecutions of the Church. "The whole family of Christianity stands in respectful admiration before you, and what you suffer in silence for so long. She prays for God’s mercy. She prays also for those who persecute you."
Christians are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words Christ and Christian derive from the Koine Greek title Christós (Χριστός), a translation of the Biblical Hebrew term mashiach (מָשִׁיחַ). While there are diverse interpretations of Christianity which sometimes conflict, they are united in believing that Jesus has a unique significance. The term Christian used as an adjective is descriptive of anything associated with Christianity or Christian churches, or in a proverbial sense "all that is noble, and good, and Christ-like." It does not have a meaning of 'of Christ' or 'related or pertaining to Christ'.
Bible League Canada, founded in 1948, is a charitable organization whose mission is to place Bibles into the hands of men, women and young people who want them. They do this through four strategic ministry programs including church planter training, adult Bible-based literacy programs, children's ministries, and supporting Christians persecuted for their faith. The organization seeks to bring the Christian message of Jesus Christ to people around the world because they believe that when people come into a relationship with Jesus through the Bible, lives are transformed from the inside out. The organization’s total revenue for fiscal year 2011 was $9.88 million. Of this amount, 56.59% is provided by Mission Thrift Stores. Bible League Canada is also a part of the Forum of Bible Agencies International.
The anti-religious campaign of Communist Romania was initiated by the People's Republic of Romania and continued by the Socialist Republic of Romania, which under the doctrine of Marxist–Leninist atheism took a hostile stance against religion and set its sights on the ultimate goal of an atheistic society, wherein religion would be recognized as the ideology of the bourgeoisie.
International Christian Concern (ICC) is an ecumenical, non-governmental, non-partisan Christian organization, located in Washington, DC, whose concern is the human rights of Christians and religious minorities. Its mission is to help religious minorities from all forms of persecution through assistance, advocacy, and awareness.
The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church is an observance within the Christian kalendar in which congregations pray for Christians who are persecuted for their faith. It falls on the first Sunday of November, within the liturgical period of Allhallowtide, which is dedicated to remembering the martyrs and saints of Christianity. The International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church is observed by many Christian denominations, with over 100,000 congregations honoring the holiday worldwide. Congregations focus on "praying for individuals, families, churches, or countries where Christians are facing hard situations." Additionally, many congregations donate funds from their collection of tithes and offerings on the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church to NGOs that support human rights of persecuted Christians, such as Voice of the Martyrs, International Christian Concern, and Open Doors.