Secret Baptisms Despite Mortal Danger

The church building looks like any other house in the neighborhood. That's exactly the point. In the strictly Muslim Republic of Chechnya, alongside official Russian law, Sharia is unofficially in force in many places, as is traditional customary law (Adat). Anyone who confesses faith in Jesus, or renounces Islam, risks their life. Yet Muslim parents now trust the local pastor with their children for camps and outings, a trust that has grown over years, in a society where suspicion is almost a survival instinct.

Since 2024, at least four people have been baptized. They attend worship services, take part in Bible courses, and meet in home groups.

Women in the region face particular hardship: the practice of "temporary wives" leaves many Chechen women abandoned in the end, with no right to remarry and often no means of support. This is exactly where the "Christian Society of Mercy" steps in. At Easter, workers brought food packages with oil, flour, and grain to these women, each package containing a copy of the Gospel. One female worker recalls how one of the women confided her painful story to her in tears, and during a shared prayer, took Jesus Christ into her heart.

The children's camp at the church and the food package left at the door of a single woman are, for the local workers, one and the same task: making Jesus Christ known. AVC walks alongside them in this work, quietly and steadily, just as the church itself continues to grow.