Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Why Russia?

Russia
The world's largest country by land area, Russia ranks sixth in terms of population. It occupies much of E Europe and all of N Asia, extending for c.5,000 mi (8,000 km) from the Baltic Sea in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east and for 1,500 to 2,500 mi (2,400-4,000 km) from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Black Sea, the Caucasus, the Altai and Sayan mts., and the Amur and Ussuri rivers in the south. The Urals form the conventional geographic boundary between the European and Siberian parts of Russia. Russia's dominant relief features are (from west to east) the East European plain, the Urals, the West Siberian lowland, and the central Siberian plateau.The majority of Russia's population has no religious affiliation due to the antireligious ideology of the Soviet Union. The Russian Orthodox Church, headquartered in Moscow, has about 60 million adherents; the numbers have grown rapidly since the end of Soviet rule. There are also large communities of Old Believers, a group that broke with the Orthodox Church in the 17th cent. Other religions include other Christian churches, various sects of Islam, Lamaist Buddhism, Judaism, and tribal religions. Partly in reaction to proselytizing by Protestant evangelicals, Mormons, and others, a 1997 Russian law granted superior status to the Russian Orthodox Church (and other older Russian religions). Schooling through the 8th grade is compulsory. There are over 500 institutions of higher learning with over 28 million students, and about 3,000 learned or scientific institutions.

Kursk, Russia
The largest tank battle during World War 2 took place around the city of Kursk, Russia. When the smoke had cleared, the Russians were victorious against the advancing German forces. Many who died went into a Christless eternity, because there was no one there to tell them of the Savior`s love. Today, nearly two million souls in the Kursk Region need to hear the good news, and have church families that will love them and help them grow. Come with us in August to Kursk, Russia...to share the Gospel and help start new churches!

No comments:

Post a Comment