Hope for the Afflicted: A Framework for Sharing Good News with Asylum Seekers and Refugees
Ebook
There is a humanitarian disaster unfolding before our eyes, a global tragedy that affects men, women, and children. We are referring to the largest humanitarian crisis of our generation, which has shaped our world and produced over 100 million people forcibly displaced globally.
Amid such a challenging scenario, the global church is called to consider some unavoidable questions, such as: How can Christians respond to the current migration crisis? What are some resources available to Christians to help them transform this tragic reality? What are some strategic approaches for bringing hope to asylum seekers and refugees?
In this book, Jairo de Oliveira deals with these and many other related questions based on his interactions with the Fur, a Muslim people group from Darfur, Sudan, living as asylum seekers and refugees in Jordan, in the Middle East. After providing a thorough historical background and cultural analysis of Fur, the author commends a contextualization model and fruitful practices that emerged from his study of the people.
Hope for the Afflicted serves as a manual and practical guide for those who feel called to engage the current migration crisis by proclaiming the hope of the gospel and discipling asylum seekers and refugees worldwide.
“Jairo de Oliveira’s work provides a sensitive and moving portrait of the plight of Fur people from Sudan living as asylum seekers and refugees in Jordan. De Oliveira’s motivation is not simply to inform. His desire to communicate the life-changing news of Jesus the Savior is evident in the approach to evangelism and discipleship he proposes. I hope it will be widely read with the result that others will take up the author’s challenge to communicate the gospel appropriately to the Fur people and others.”
—Alistair I. Wilson, professor in mission and New Testament, Edinburgh Theological Seminary
“Hope for the Afflicted is a groundbreaking effort to look at mission strategy and outreach to one of the most neglected and needy Muslim refugee groups worldwide. This book allows us to hear the voices of the Fur people, what they have suffered, and the tenuous circumstance of being refugees in a second land that discriminates against them. I highly recommend this book as an example of how ethnography and contextualization to unreached peoples should be done.”
—David G. Cashin, professor of intercultural studies, Columbia International University
“In his meticulous study, Jairo de Oliveira points out that suffering, migration, Islamic peoples, and UPGs all converge over and again. Unfortunately, the body of Christ is usually unprepared to respond in a way that mixes compassion with disciple making and church planting. This well-written book offers one such way and is therefore well worthy of our prayerful consideration.”
—Dick Brogden, co-founder, Live Dead Movement
“What every reader encounters while in the mind of brother Jairo de Oliveira is the enriching experience of both a researcher and a practitioner. What every reader takes away from his book is an integrity to every principle, counsel, and conviction as each has been personally practiced by his own hand and heart. That is the kind of scholarship we need more of in the church. That is the scholarship you find in these pages.”
—Jami L. Staples, founder and CEO, The Truth Collective
“We live in the age of the refugee, surrounded by massive numbers of peoples on the move—peoples with a diverse array of needs, hurts, concerns, fears, and hopes. No one ministry method is effective at reaching everyone. Jairo de Oliveira has provided the church a glimpse into one of the neediest refugee populations. Hope for the Afflicted offers cutting-edge study and specific ministry guidance for those serving among asylum seekers and refugees.”
—J. D. Payne, professor of Christian ministry, Samford University
“Through profound research, Jairo de Oliveira inspires us to explore the context of a specific ethnic group to embrace these realities with empathy, love, compassion, and tenderness. The methodology and the content applied in this research stands as a practical guide for mission agencies and local churches to contextualize the word of God in the majority world. I strongly recommend it.”
—Jeferson Chagas, founder and president, Hikmah International Ministries
“This accessible and engaging study opens a window into the Fur people of the Darfur region of Sudan, whose experience of persecution and suffering has few parallels in the modern day. Through a multidisciplinary approach combining text-based research and direct interviews, Jairo de Oliveira gives a voice to the voiceless community of Fur refugees who have found temporary safety in Amman, Jordan.”
—Peter Riddell, senior research fellow, Australian College of Theology
“Based on an insightful ethnography of Fur asylum seekers and refugees from Sudan currently located in Jordan, Hope for the Afflicted exemplifies a fascinating intersection of clear definitions, careful methodology, and perceptive recommendations for a contextualized approach to ministry that significantly contributes to the field of missiology. I will be recommending this book to my students and colleagues in missiology!”
—Robin Harris, president, Evangelical Missiological Society
“Here is a brilliant example of Global South Christianity—a Christian worker engagement by a Latin American (Brazilian) among Africans (Sudanese) in Asia (Jordan). It offers an insightful missiological and diasporic analysis of forcibly displaced people that is relevant to all migrants and dispersed communities around the world. A timely addition to the growing literature on missions to migrants and refugees. I recommend this book and hope more Christians everywhere will get more involved in serving displaced peoples globally.”
—Sam George, director, Global Diaspora Institute, Wheaton College BGC
“Jairo de Oliveira wrote a book that represents a significant contribution to Christian work among refugees. Hope for the Afflicted examines the war in Darfur, Sudan, and the Fur People’s culture, one of the most prominent people from the region. This is a useful book for anyone working cross-culturally and willing to respond to the current global migration crisis. As a Sudanese, I highly recommend this book. I believe it will enrich the lives of the readers.”
—Yassir Eric, director, European Institute for Migration, Integration, and Islam
- Title: Hope for the Afflicted: A Framework for Sharing Good News with Asylum Seekers and Refugees
- Authors: Jairo de Oliveira, Edward L. Smither, Warren Larson
- Publisher: Wipf and Stock
- Print Publication Date: 2023
- Logos Release Date: 2023
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Ebook
- ISBNs: 9781666773644, 9781666773620, 166677362X, 9781666773637, 1666773638, 1666773646
- Resource ID: LLS:9781666773644
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2023-12-22T20:18:18Z
Jairo de Oliveira is an ordained minister from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and a member of Arsenal Hill Presbyterian Church in Columbia, South Carolina. De Oliveira is a lifelong learner and holds a PhD in intercultural studies from Columbia International University. He is based in the Middle East, where he works with refugees from different nations. Jairo has written seventeen books and is the author of Changing Stories, published by Wipf & Stock.