{"id":17314,"date":"2024-09-16T11:25:39","date_gmt":"2024-09-16T10:25:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.opendoorsuk.org\/?post_type=news&p=17314"},"modified":"2024-09-16T11:25:43","modified_gmt":"2024-09-16T10:25:43","slug":"burkina-faso-sore","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/wwl.opendoorsuk.org\/ireland\/blog\/news\/latest-news\/burkina-faso-sore\/","title":{"rendered":"After losing everything, Pastor Sor\u00e9 in Burkina Faso puts his trust in God alone"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Pastor Sor\u00e9 and his family are among two million displaced in Burkina Faso – and over 16 million displaced across the whole of sub-Saharan Africa because of violence and conflict<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It was the third Islamic militant attack on his village in Burkina Faso that made Pastor Sor\u00e9 take his family and flee as refugees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the first attack, all the men ran for the surrounding countryside \u2013 knowing they were most likely to be killed. \u201cThe terrorists took people\u2019s money and all the goods they could carry, then left,\u201d Pastor Sor\u00e9 remembers.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cWhen the terrorists come to churches and find Christians, they tell them that Christianity\u2019s time is over\u201d <\/p> Pastor Sor\u00e9<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

The second attack was much, much worse. After the men had run away, the extremists raped the women in their homes. But when the attackers returned a third time, they burned everything they could, forcing the entire village to flee for good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In less than a day, Pastor Sor\u00e9 and his family became refugees among the two million people displaced in Burkina Faso. Many are Christians, driven out of their homes by extremists. \u201cWhen the terrorists come to churches and find Christians, they tell them that Christianity\u2019s time is over, and they should turn to the Islamic religion,\u201d Pastor Sor\u00e9 says. \u201cSo, they warn Christians to stop conducting services. After warning, when they come back later and find you in the church, they kill you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n

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And it\u2019s not just Burkina Faso that has seen this surge in extremist violence. Countries across sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have seen an huge increase in violence from Islamic extremists groups, who are attacking and killing Christians, as well as driving them from their homes and communities. Open Doors\u2019 Arise Africa <\/em>campaign aims to stop the violence and start the healing for believers like Pastor Sor\u00e9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n