April 18, 2007 – two Turkish Christians and a German missionary were tortured and killed inside a Bible Publishing house in Malatya, Turkey.
Summer 2008 – two young filmmakers from Texas set out to create Malatya, a documentary exploring how three Christian martyrs have shaken the nation’s roots. (one of our children, Joey Shaw, pastor of international missions at Austin Stone Community Church in Austin, TX, is the producer).
The three men were tied to their chairs, tortured with butcher knives and killed for worshiping Christ. The wives of the two Turkish men have followed the model of Jesus and publicly forgiven those guilty of their husbands’ deaths.
Turkey is a country of nearly 72 million, 99.8 percent of which is Muslim. This has left their surviving families and friends with little human support to lean on in a nationwide church of around 3,000 believers.
3000 believers – in a nation of 72 million!!!!
Even before the martyrdom, Turkish Christians faced persecution. They were unlawfully jailed, interrogated about their activities and even tortured. Attacks and attempted murders have increased since the Malatya martyrdom.
Find out more, watch the trailer, schedule a screening or buy the entire DVD at malatyafilms.com
One Comment
But I thought God had a wonderful plan for their lives??