Belarus
FAITH IN THE FACE OF OPPRESSION
Mission Eurasia works in Belarus and the other countries of Eurasia to train and equip young Christian leaders for effective ministry.
Belarus is the birthplace of Mission Eurasia’s founders, the Deyneka family. A former Soviet state, Belarus has remained largely dictatorial. Its only president—Aleksandr Lukashenko—is a Soviet holdover who continues consolidating his power. His 2020 re-election was disputed, but protests were violently suppressed. Belarus has been instrumental in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, allowing the use of Belarusian territory for transit.
Economically, Belarus struggles to establish an identity and footing due to state control, corruption, and dependence on Russia. In tandem with government-imposed price controls on food and medicine, public debt and inflation are projected to explode with the end of Russian energy subsidies in 2024. Orphaned children number in the tens of thousands with roughly 25,000 orphaned due to the 2008 economic crisis alone. Many were separated from their parents by the state. Orphanages cannot provide necessary care—even less so for children with disabilities. Some disabilities still stem from lingering effects of the Chernobyl disaster.
Religiously, Belarus is 60–70 percent Christian (primarily Belarusian Orthodox), with the remainder of the population being mostly non-religious. Only one to two percent are evangelical Christian. A 2002 religious law intensified government regulation of religious groups and activity. Required registration remains difficult to obtain and still does not offer protection from property and tax disputes or raids that result in evictions and closures. Harassment disproportionately affects non-Orthodox groups. All activity by unregistered groups and foreign missionaries is banned and met with fines and imprisonment for non-compliance.
By God’s grace, through the Deyneka family, Mission Eurasia was grandfathered in as a recognized religious entity due to official registration before the 2002 law took effect. Amid the strict religious landscape, our SWW program remains one of the most strategic and effective means of preserving and growing the church. In 2023, you supported our SWW ministry training for 93 future leaders enrolled in the program.
“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10
Help the Church in Belarus Grow, Despite Restrictions
Prayer Requests
- Please pray for the nation of Belarus, where oppression, corruption, and human rights abuses make life challenging for all Belarusians.
- Please pray for our Christian brothers and sisters who are living in a country where religious persecution is considered intense. Pray that they will be bold in their faith.
- Please pray that our SWW program would spread to more churches so that the gospel can take root in more communities throughout the nation.
- Please pray that our SWW students in Belarus will receive the training they need to serve as salt and light to those who do not yet know Christ.
MILANA’S STORY
“My name is Milana, and I am in 10th grade. I was raised in a Christian family. Before I was born, I was diagnosed with a serious disease that makes a child disabled for life. However, thanks to the prayers of my parents and their church, and my mom working very hard with me, everything turned out okay now. At the beginning of this year, I accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as my personal Savior.
“I am now a School Without Walls (SWW) student. While studying the Foundations of the Faith, the topic of fasting and prayer especially resonated with me. I thought about doing it on and off, but I had no understanding of how to do it right. I realized that not only physical abstinence from food is important but fasting with the right state of the heart, including absolute humility, to get closer to God. I also realized how often we underestimate prayer—because our personal relationship with God is built through prayer. I used to share the gospel with my friends, but now I realized that for the shared gospel to have real power, I need to be in a close relationship with God myself.
“I am sure that the SWW classes that began in our church will help people like me grow spiritually. They will also strengthen our faith in Christ to help us serve others because this is what Christ called us to do, and He showed us the example in His life by giving Himself for the sake of others.”
