January 2023 Persecution Magazine

“If we had stayed with my
family...my children would
never see their father
again...This is unfortunately
a common occurrence in
our culture.”
- LEYLA
When a Muslim-background believer is discovered by their family, they often have to make life or death decisions.
leave their religion and become a Christian, which means
that he “lost” the right to be her husband and the father to
her children.
In the eyes of her family, he was contaminated.
Despite the risk, he went to the home where no one spoke
to him or ate at the same table with him, as it was haram according
to Islam. Murat wanted his wife and children home,
so he met with his father-in-law to tell him how he came to
know Christ and how his life was changed. He declared he
would not give up on Christ, but he would also not give up
on his family.
Leyla expresses what happened between her father and her
husband, “Thank God, the Lord heard my pleas. My father
agreed to this on one condition: my husband would never
take me and my children to church. My father said to my
husband, ‘If I hear such a thing, I will sacrifice you with one
bullet.’ Even that was a great miracle for us because I knew
my father very well. I knew I would never come home again.”
Murat accepted his father-in-law’s request, but he knew
they could no longer live in peace where they were living.
“If we had stayed with my family, we would never have been
able to get together. My children would never see their father
again, and they would brand my children as ‘children of
the infidel,’” said Leyla. “If I had stayed with my family, they
would have married me to someone else after I divorced
my husband. This is unfortunately a common occurrence
in our culture. This was going to be a very difficult
and heavy situation for me.”
Before they were released from Leyla’s father, he
warned his grandchildren, “If your father takes you
to the church among the infidels again, you will inform
me immediately. I’ll come and get you, and
you’ll never see your father again.”
Leyla’s father threatened to kill his son-in-law without
caring about his daughter’s future or feelings. He
believes he is justified simply because his faith allows
him to do so. And as long as Murat was breathing, he
would never be safe from his father-in-law’s threat.
One of their children, who is afraid of what her grandfather
said, cried and begged on the way home, saying,
“Please let’s not go to church, mom.”
Word spread throughout Leyla’s radical Islamic
family, and the pressure to stay in the Islamic faith
mounted. “My family is constantly video calling me
to check where I am. And when they don’t call, my
sister sends my nephews to our house,” Leyla said.
“Since we cannot go to church on Sunday, we wanted
to attend our meeting online, but we cannot do
that because my family is constantly following us.”
Leyla and Murat considered moving to another city
to be safe, but moving would not protect them from
danger. Wherever they go throughout Turkey, Leyla’s
family has the power to find them.
They made the decision, despite the danger, to move
out of the country. Leyla and Murat desire to raise
their children with the love of Christ. They plan to
move somewhere where the language and culture
are different. This move will be painful, and their
lives will never be the same again, but it’s worth it for
the chance to publicly practice their faith and attend
church without fear.
The Rise of Persecution
Incidents in Turkey
ICC heard about Leyla and her family’s story
after they had stepped into their new life.
But telling these stories is important because
Turkey adamantly denies that any such stories
exist within the country. By raising awareness
and telling compelling stories, we are helping
counteract the false narrative that all is well
for Christians in Turkey, keeping the pressure
on the country and its leadership to make
real changes.
Turkey is taking advantage of the
international climate at all levels. Their
persecution is outward, not inward. They
spread persecution in Libya, Syria, Iraq, and
all neighboring countries. They monopolize
terrorist groups and harass Christians in
Iran. Turkey stays a big player in this game—
and its influence goes beyond its border.
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his cronies are
more emboldened than ever to persecute
Christians.
22 Persecution | JANUARY 2023
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