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“C’est vrai, Roshelle?” Lilly asked me, showing me a news story on her phone about hurricane Milton, set to make landfall later that evening.
“Oui...it’s true”
She was concerned. She knew that only days earlier my hometown in Georgia had been devastated by Hurricane Helene.
I put down my fork and raised my arms, “WELCOME TO AMERICA!!!
“Oh la la! C’est dangereux ici!” she declared.
Today, Lilly was giving me a lesson in French pronunciation at her kitchen table while eating lunch. I said something wrong, and she started laughing so hard she nearly spit out her potato. “My English…and your French…so bad! Makes me so happy!”
The article in my French textbook was entitled “Qui Est Monsieur Brown?” It was about an American businessman who exports fine arts from New York to Morocco. He is getting ready to meet his female agent in Paris. Lilly used her phone translator, “What kind of book is this? He is a thief!” We speculated that Monsieur Brown was an elusive arts thief, having a sordid affair with his Parisian agent. After all, why did he leave Mrs. Brown at home? And we began laughing like 13-year-old girls who just can’t settle down.
In the short time I’ve known Lilly, we’ve formed a special bond. Her English and my French are both basic, but the language barrier doesn’t hinder us. We have a lot in common, and we’re both pastors’ wives. But while Chris and I serve in a comfortable American church, Lilly’s husband has been imprisoned for sharing his faith.
Lilly and Asafu are Kabyle, a Berber ethnic minority from the mountainous region of Northern Algeria. The Kabyle are proud people with a rich heritage and culture. Despite the foundations of the early church in North Africa (Saint Augustine was ethnically Berber), over 95% of Kabyle today follow Islam. However, there has been a growing movement of Christian conversion in Algeria.
My neighbor Tasa is also a Kabyle Christian and one of my dearest friends. She’s my informal language helper (fluent in four languages), my cultural informant, and my free-thinking friend who loves a glass of wine and philosophical conversations. Tasa converted from Islam after her fiancé shared the Gospel with her. One day she was praying fervently asking that if all this was real, would Jesus please just make himself known. And there was Jesus, standing in her bedroom in shining clothes, as Tasa bowed prostrate on the floor! … Eventually, Tasa and her husband won the green card lottery and immigrated to Philadelphia, where I would meet her seven years later, living on my block.
But unlike Tasa, Lilly and Asafu did not come to the USA with green cards. They are seeking asylum from religious persecution. After converting twenty years ago, Asafu became a pastor of a church. He is a key leader in the Christian movement in North Africa. Within recent years, tens of thousands of Kabyle people converted from Islam to Christianity, and the government became increasingly resistant (1). They systematically closed all the churches, including Asafu’s. Christians can now only practice their faith “underground,” and living as a follower of Christ is very difficult. As of today, 52 Christians remain imprisoned, several of whom Asafu and Lilly know personally.
Most Americans don’t know much about refugees and asylum seekers in the USA. A refugee is a person who is forced to flee their country due to war, conflict, or persecution. But the only difference between a refugee and an asylum seeker (asylee) is where you apply. Refugees apply internationally; asylum seekers apply on our soil.
When refugees and asylum seekers arrive in the USA, many come with only a suitcase and the clothes on their backs. Refugees receive the protection of our government and the help of an agency through the resettlement process. They also receive financial benefits like SNAP and Medicaid. Asylum seekers, on the other hand, have no governmental recognition and are disqualified from receiving financial assistance in most states until they are legally granted asylum. It takes many months after arrival to submit their asylum application, requiring them to relieve every moment of trauma on paper. They must prove to our government that their lives are in danger if they return home. After their papers are submitted, the person must wait five more months to apply for a work permit. Then they may wait for several years to hear whether asylum has been granted or denied. According to a New York Times article, there is a backlog of over two million pending asylum cases and only 659 immigration judges - so it takes a while (2). If denied, they may face deportation. But by this point, the USA is home, and they have built a life. As you can imagine, the whole process is an emotional roller coaster that can compound a person’s trauma.
People sharply criticize immigrants for working “under the table.” And it’s a justifiable criticism for those who hold contempt for our laws and take advantage of the system - which certainly happens. But I wager that most asylum seekers, like Asafu and Lilly, want to do everything the legal way but it’s nearly impossible. To live for a year or more with zero income could mean hunger and homelessness. In these early weeks, they have been reliant on the generosity of Christians, churches, and local food banks.
Lilly looked sadly around the dingy basement apartment. It is a tiny, mouse-infested space, and her three kids are sleeping in the living room. She used her phone translator, “Pray for me, sister. I have so much stress. I hate asking for help and burdening people. In my country, I had a beautiful house and a very respectable job.”
I put my hand on hers. “This is temporary.”
“I know,” she replied. “Jesus provides.”
A few days later, I was helping Lilly write her resume in English. I learned that she graduated magna cum laude with an MBA and has many years’ experience working in a top position at a reputable company.
“So, you’re a business woman….femme d'affaires?” I asked. Lilly smiled at my surprise. She put her nose in the air haughtily and pretended to be throwing back her imaginary feather boa, and said, “You see! I am Mrs. Brown! Very rich… and very important!”
“Oh, yes! Mrs. Brown! But you are in disguise in my country!” I laughed.
Prayer and humor are Lilly’s weapons against discouragement. These first months in the USA have been emotional, as they process the heavy loss of leaving everything behind. But she and Asafu are full of joy and gratitude, even in this challenging season. They are eager to enjoy Christian community again and attend a local church. On Tuesdays, Asafu also joins our church for prayer. Our church is very international, and we have some very charismatic people, prone to bowing on the floor or erupting in a joyous acapella song. He says it reminds him of the Kabyle church.
Asafu tells us that the Christian movement in Algeria isn’t due to anyone’s special gift in worship or preaching; it has all been because of prayer. Prayer fuels the fire of the Holy Spirit. And though the Algerian government has closed all the church buildings, Christianity continues to spread, especially among diaspora in the USA, Canada, and France.
America is called “The Land of Dreams.” And in a city where there are thousands of Kabyle people, our friends dream of planting a church where other North African Christians can worship freely in their heart language and share their faith, without fear of persecution. They asked if they could use our church as a gathering space to pray with other Kabyle Christians in our area. God willingly, this may become the first Kabyle church in North America! So, we lift our hearts up to our Heavenly Father and ask him to move. And we ask him to protect and strengthen our brothers and sisters in Algeria, especially those in prison.
May His will be done on earth as it is in heaven!
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness, because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.” -Matthew 5:10
Footnotes:
(1): Religious Freedom Report; Algeria Religious Freedom landscape report, 2022.
***Names changed for privacy. "Asafu" means "flame" in Kabyle.
For more ways to pray for persecuted churches around the world, see this article:
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