US based mission organisation Mission Eurasia is aiming to pass out 600,000 Scripture resources, including some 100,000 special edition Russian-language New Testaments, during this summer’s World Cup in Russia.
As many as a million people are expected to descend on Moscow for the 21st FIFA World Cup which kicks off on 14th June. It’s the first time the event will be held in Russia during its 90 year history.
Mission Eurasia says that given a 2016 law limiting evangelism to officially recognised churches, the Scriptures will be handed out by young Russian believers at hundreds of churches across the country which will be hosting big-screen live broadcasts of the soccer tournament.
The special edition Russian language New Testaments, among the Scripture resources being handed out, come with an introduction to Christianity, a QR code connecting to a New Life app that was developed by ShareWord Global, and 70 pages of discipleship materials.
Pavel Tokarchuk, Mission Eurasia’s Russian director, said in a statement that while the country “has its problems and may suffer from a low international standing”, people in Russia “still have a great deal of national pride” and there was “no better time to be able to share the source of real hope with them – a relationship with Jesus”.
Mr Tokarchuk said Mission Eurasia had heard from hundreds of churches who “want to use this moment for the Kingdom”. “They are ready to use different ways to serve people and to bring the good news to them.”
Mission Eurasia believe that the current crackdown on religious activity in Russia could be a catalyst for the church to grow.
“The church in Russia survived Communist persecution when they were driven underground,” said Sergey Rakhuba, president of Mission Eurasia. “And that’s what we see in other parts of the world as well.”
Thirty-two teams will compete in the World Cup with the final scheduled for 15th July in Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium.
