Afghans Vancouver

Vancouver, British Columbia

Afghans

Pray for Afghans in Vancouver

Those who have left Islam to follow Jesus experience strong community pressure to return to Islam in order to be accepted in the community. Pray for courage and perseverance for them.

Pray for a Vancouver church which is in the process of sponsoring an Afghan believer and his family to come here. He has been stateless in Indonesia for 6 years – and preaching the gospel boldly to Afghan refugees there – seeing many come to Jesus.

Pray for Christian Afghans who are reaching out to Muslim Afghans. Pray that they will be encouraged and supported by other believers, and that their approaches would be welcomed and fruitful.

More Prayer Items

Pray that churches would work together to respond to the latest wave of Afghan refugees.
Pray for Christian Afghans who are reaching out to Muslim Afghans. Pray that they will be encouraged and supported by other believers, and that their approaches would be welcomed and fruitful.
Pray for a Vancouver church which is in the process of sponsoring an Afghan believer and his family to come here. He has been stateless in Indonesia for 6 years – and preaching the gospel boldly to Afghan refugees there – seeing many come to Jesus.
Those who have left Islam to follow Jesus experience strong community pressure to return to Islam in order to be accepted in the community. Pray for courage and perseverance for them.
Afghans have not had the opportunity to explore the Bible. Pray that many will choose to join Discovery Bible Studies. Bibles are available in Afghani dialects.

Quick Facts

Place of Origin: Afghanistan is located in Central Asia. It is surrounded by five countries, Iran (West), Pakistan (East), Turkmenistan (North), Uzbekistan (North), Tajikistan (North).
Religion: Islam (99.7%), other religions include: Christians, Sikhs, Hindus and Bahai.
Population: 38.04 million
(Primary) Languages: Dari and Pashto
(Secondary) Languages: , Uzbek, Turkmen, Balochi, Pashayi
Other Information:

As foreign troops withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021, and the Taliban took control of the nation, Canada saw a fresh influx of Afghan refugees. The federal commitment is to resettle 40,000 Afghans to Canada, which means B.C. is preparing to welcome thousands of families and individuals over the coming months and years. BC to date has welcomed about 1255 Afghans, primarily settling in Metro Vancouver, with some on Vancouver Island and the Okanagan. This number will likely increase over the coming months. #WelcomeAfghans: Key figures - Canada.ca
In response to this most recent influx, a new $2-million fund will help the Province of BC boost local services and supports for families resettling in British Columbia due to the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan. The Refugee Readiness Fund is a one-time investment to ensure that B.C. communities are ready to welcome and respond to the needs of refugees from Afghanistan who are resettling in the province. https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2021MUNI0064-002098
Afghan ‘tribal’ identity is evident in Canada as well as in their homeland—they prefer to interact with their own people/language group over other Afghan immigrants of differing ethnicities/languages.
A significant subset of Afghan refugees in BC are from the Dari-speaking Hazara ethnic group, who fled Taliban persecution in Afghanistan.
Afghans have a great sense & tradition of hospitality.
Afghans have a strong sense of national pride of who they are & the fact that they have never been conquered for long.
The mayor of Burnaby recently claimed that the city is the most diverse people-group-wise in all of Canada.

When did Afghan Muslims first come to Canada?

Afghan immigration to Canada began in 1978. The Saur Revolution and subsequent Soviet invasion in 1979 were the initial push factors for Afghans that led to a wave of immigrants arriving in the early 1980s. Many have settled in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. Due to ongoing political turbulence Afghan Muslim migration to Canada continues.

Where do Afghan Muslims live in the Lower Mainland?

Burnaby (Edmonds area), New Westminster, Coquitlam, Surrey, and the Fraser Valley have established communities. These gateway cities are the most likely to welcome the latest influx of Afghan refugees.

Population Estimate in Metro Vancouver: 15,000~

What are Afghan Muslim lives like?

Most Afghan Muslims in Metro Vancouver are survivors of trauma; almost every single Afghan here is a refugee, comes from a family of refugees, or is connected to refugees.
As a result of this trauma, there is a higher incidence of PTSD and other forms of stress and mental turmoil in this population than the typical demographic in Metro Vancouver.
Education opportunities for Afghans (particularly girls and women) have been chronically disrupted by unrest. 50% of Afghans 15-24 are illiterate. This has a direct impact on their ability to integrate into the Canadian educational and economic systems. https://borgenproject.org/top-10-facts-about-education-in-afghanistan/
Afghans who don’t conform to the social and religious standards of their community, choosing instead a more western lifestyle, may experience judgment, rejection, and social exclusion.
Most Afghans remain isolated within their own cultural groups, largely because they have not been befriended by any Canadians. Some may be suspicious of organized church initiatives, but most are open to sincere cross-cultural friendship.
The Afghan community has developed a resource to support Afghan newcomers. BC_Resources_For_Afghans_Sept2021.pdf (bcrefugeehub.ca)

What do Afghan Muslims believe?

The majority of Afghans identify with Islam. Most follow Sunni Islam, with a significant minority following Shia and Ismaili-Shia Islam.
Many are nominal in their faith and practice. They may not attend mosque, observe the fast during Ramadan, or wear religious clothing such as hijabs, but still identify as Muslim.
A small group of Afghan-Sikhs have been welcomed as refugees because they were facing persecution by the Taliban.
Basic Muslim beliefs page - Islam: Basic Beliefs | URI

Gallery

Prayer Items

Pray for Afghans disillusioned with Islam to find salvation, freedom, and hope in Jesus.
Lord, due to Islamic radicalism, some Afghans are distancing themselves from serious commitment to Islam. Raise up long-term laborers to disciple them and direct them to the Messiah.
Lord, raise up Afghans believers in the city. May they establish loving communities of faith in Christ who reach other North Africans.
Lord, most Afghans face challenges finding work. Encourage your followers to help meet the needs of Afghan Muslims.
Lord, may Afghans in Montreal find freedom in Jesus as their Lord and Savior.
There are few known Afghan followers of Jesus in Montreal
There are a few believers, churches, & at least 3 mission organizations focusing outreach to Afghans in Montreal. Pray for that to increase and multiply.
Pray the Lord will raise up laborers among Montreal Afghans to evangelize, disciple believers, & start churches.
Pray that current workers among Montreal Afghans be connected to existing Afghan believers
Pray for Christians to show Afghans the power of Christ’s love, & empower Montreal Christians to be instruments of peace.
Don’t spend so much “tea drinking” time (although very important to aid in establishing friendships) without ever getting to a gospel worldview conversation
Pray for supernatural protection, courage, and perseverance for Afghan believers in Montreal.
Pray for Taliban fighters in Afghanistan to have transformative encounters with Jesus.
Pray for food and medical care for millions in urgent physical need in Afghanistan
Networking and collaborating with existing Montreal Afghan believers, churches, & organizations (and emerging ones) will be wise.
Pray for more Montreal believers to live among Afghans in their own buildings/communities (the Move-In approach)
Pray for more Montreal believers to work among Afghans (perhaps in labor jobs)
Avoid aggressive, confrontational, one-time evangelism approaches that have no intention of following up with individual Afghans
Pray for Montreal evangelical involvement among Afghans: it will likely require developing a discreet yet strategically intentional presence among Afghans via social media, as they are very active and connected online, especially back to Afghanistan via the Internet
Pray for Christians to avoid spending so much “tea drinking” time (although very important to aid in establishing friendships) without ever getting to gospel worldview conversations.
Praise God with us for the work of The Jesus Network and one of its missionaries, Obed, who has been working tirelessly the past few years to help complete the refugee/immigration processes to get multiple Afghan families into the GTA and out of Afghanistan. Pray that this work will continue and flourish, that Afghans come to a place that provides them safety, refuge, and exposure to the good news of Jesus and Jesus Himself in a caring, nurturing environment among followers of Jesus.
Pray the Lord will raise up laborers among Greater Toronto Area (GTA) Afghans to evangelize, disciple believers, & start churches.
Pray that current missional workers among GTA Afghans become connected to existing Afghan believers.
Pray for Christians to show Afghans the power of Christ’s love, & empower GTA Christians to be instruments of peace toward Afghans.
Pray for GTA evangelical involvement among Afghans: it will likely require developing a discreet yet strategically intentional presence among Afghans via social media, as they are very active and connected online, especially back to Afghanistan via the Internet.
There are few known open Afghan followers of Jesus in GTA from a Muslim, Sikh, or Hindu background, and there are only a few known churches (possibly four) in GTA with Afghans as the primary members/attendees. There are a few believers, churches, & at least three mission organizations focusing attention & outreach efforts on Afghans in GTA. Networking and collaborating with such existing believers, churches, & organizations (and emerging ones) will be wise.
Pray for more GTA believers to live among GTA’s Afghans in their own buildings/communities (the Move-In approach).
Pray for more GTA believers to work among Afghans (perhaps in labor jobs).
Pray that Christians avoid engaging only in aggressive, confrontational, one-time evangelism approaches that have no intention of following up with individual Afghans for discipleship & continuing friendship.
Rejoice with us that there are is a new church in Abbotsford with 100+ Hazaras, Tajiks, and Pashtun Afghans in it!
Afghans have not had the opportunity to explore the Bible. Pray that many will choose to join Discovery Bible Studies. Bibles are available in Afghani dialects.
Those who have left Islam to follow Jesus experience strong community pressure to return to Islam in order to be accepted in the community. Pray for courage and perseverance for them.
Pray for a Vancouver church which is in the process of sponsoring an Afghan believer and his family to come here. He has been stateless in Indonesia for 6 years – and preaching the gospel boldly to Afghan refugees there – seeing many come to Jesus.
Pray for Christian Afghans who are reaching out to Muslim Afghans. Pray that they will be encouraged and supported by other believers, and that their approaches would be welcomed and fruitful.
Pray that churches would work together to respond to the latest wave of Afghan refugees.
Pray for a Vancouver church that is actively engaging with over 100 Afghan refugees.
Pray that believers in Metro Vancouver would be hospitable towards Afghans, recognizing that deeper relationships create space to share stories and God’s love.