The Dungan people of Central Asia
Population: 110,000 (1999 census)
The Dungans are a people group of about 110,000 people in the three Central Asian countries Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. They call themselves Huizu because they are descendants of the Hui, the largest Muslim group in China. Between 1867 and 1881 several thousand Hui fled China over the Tian Shan mountains to Central Asia after the failure of Muslim uprisings.
“Azdine” (not his real name) became one of the first Dungan believers in the mid-1990s. He discovered Christ through a Russian school friend. For a whole year, Azdine could not return home because of his conversion. His parents also suffered because their community considered their son a traitor to the Muslim faith. Years afterwards, his mother said, “My hair turned grey during that year!” However, Azdine remained steadfast and the opposition eventually died down.
Several years later Azdine moved to a city to continue his studies. He grew in faith, served the Lord and met his future wife. Azdine’s sister became a believer as well; however, she did not reveal her faith to her parents. She joined Azdine in the city to pursue her studies and attended church together with her brother and his family.
Azdine’s young wife died of an infection a few weeks after she gave birth to their first child. Azdine’s mother arrived to take care of the child and raised her in a Muslim way (including the use of magical amulets). Azdine’s sister continued to hide her faith and eventually stopped attending church. In 2002 she married a Muslim. Afterwards Azdine went to Europe to find work. He is now married again, yet hardly earns enough money to provide for his wife and new daughter. It appears that he has at least temporarily lost his faith, but there is still hope for him. God is full of compassion.
About 50 Dungan believers are known in Central Asia. It seems that there is now a group of believers meeting in Azdine’s home village despite problems and difficulties. No other Dungan church or home fellowship group is known. The Dungans do not yet have the habit of praying or worshipping in their native tongue, and the Gospel of Mark is the only portion of the Bible currently available in their language. Dungan believers and the foreign Christians living in the area have suffered many hardships, including beatings, arthritis, brain tumours, and marriage problems. Several Dungan believers have even turned away from the faith. The fear of relatives seems to be hugely important.
May there be an exceedingly large harvest among the Dungans. “Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold” (Mark 4:8). Nothing is too difficult for our God.
“Azdine” (not his real name) became one of the first Dungan believers in the mid-1990s. He discovered Christ through a Russian school friend. For a whole year, Azdine could not return home because of his conversion. His parents also suffered because their community considered their son a traitor to the Muslim faith. Years afterwards, his mother said, “My hair turned grey during that year!” However, Azdine remained steadfast and the opposition eventually died down.
Several years later Azdine moved to a city to continue his studies. He grew in faith, served the Lord and met his future wife. Azdine’s sister became a believer as well; however, she did not reveal her faith to her parents. She joined Azdine in the city to pursue her studies and attended church together with her brother and his family.
Azdine’s young wife died of an infection a few weeks after she gave birth to their first child. Azdine’s mother arrived to take care of the child and raised her in a Muslim way (including the use of magical amulets). Azdine’s sister continued to hide her faith and eventually stopped attending church. In 2002 she married a Muslim. Afterwards Azdine went to Europe to find work. He is now married again, yet hardly earns enough money to provide for his wife and new daughter. It appears that he has at least temporarily lost his faith, but there is still hope for him. God is full of compassion.
About 50 Dungan believers are known in Central Asia. It seems that there is now a group of believers meeting in Azdine’s home village despite problems and difficulties. No other Dungan church or home fellowship group is known. The Dungans do not yet have the habit of praying or worshipping in their native tongue, and the Gospel of Mark is the only portion of the Bible currently available in their language. Dungan believers and the foreign Christians living in the area have suffered many hardships, including beatings, arthritis, brain tumours, and marriage problems. Several Dungan believers have even turned away from the faith. The fear of relatives seems to be hugely important.
May there be an exceedingly large harvest among the Dungans. “Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold” (Mark 4:8). Nothing is too difficult for our God.
Prayer points
* Pray for unity, strong friendships and mutual encouragement among the Dungan believers.
* Pray that the Dungan believers boldly proclaim their faith in Jesus (2 Tim 1:7 and Acts 4:29).
* Pray for Bible translations in the Dungan language (Psalm 67:3).
* Pray for additional workers who are willing to learn the language and to identify and suffer with the people.
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