Afghan Mountain Faith

• Afghan Mountain Faith had me hooked on the first page. From the many heart-pounding God-sized stories to practical wisdom and insight, this refreshing read has something for everyone—laypeople and church planters alike. This book inspired me to expand my compassion for Afghanis everywhere.

  — Karen Bejjani, Co-Founder, iHOPE Ministries

• In 1953 some twelfth-grade students in one of the most prestigious high schools in Kabul told me they were incensed at the Encyclopedia Britannica, which had indicated that Afghanistan was 99 percent Muslim. “No!” they insisted. “Afghanistan is 100 percent Muslim!” They could not conceive of an Afghan who was anything else. Today there is a growing, if tentative, body of believers in Jesus Christ, living carefully as good citizens under the radar of most news organizations. This book is an exciting report on what is going on now in the religious life of this country. 

  — Robert L. Canfield, PhD , Professor of Anthropology Emeritus, Washington University at St. Louis

• Gripping, informative, thoughtful, and beautifully written, Adeney and Aalish peel back the layers of Afghanistan, holding each one up to the light of Jesus. Replete with moving and memorable stories, Afghan Mountain Faith is a gift to the Church and the people of Afghanistan, offering a pathway forward as their destinies intersect.

  — David Garrison, Author, A Wind in the House of Islam

• Growing up in India, I was introduced to the Afghani people through Tagore's Kabuliwallah. In recent years, as my work has taken me across Europe, North America, and Asia, I have met several of them and have heard stories of how these beautiful people are becoming followers of Jesus. Here in these pages, you will encounter some incredible accounts of the surprising ways in which God is working among Afghans. May Afghan Mountain Faith inspire you to get involved with refugees, immigrants, and other diaspora peoples around you. 

  — Sam George, PhD, Diaspora Commission Catalyst, Lausanne Movement Co-Editor, Refugee Diaspora

• “Where sin increased, grace increased all the more” (Rom 5:20). Since the Islamic revolution in Iran, hundreds of thousands of Iranians have come to Jesus Christ as their Lord. Now is the time for Afghans. God is taking away the veil from their eyes to come into His marvelous Light. Many are disillusioned and are open to the Good News. Afghan Mountain Faith is a very timely and comprehensive tool for any Christian who wants to share Christ’s Love with Afghans whom God has brought near them.

  — Mohamad Reza Roshanzamir, Co-Founder, Elam Ministries

• Afghanistan is a beautiful country with a rich culture and an incredibly difficult history. The recent resurgence of the Taliban has exacerbated the suffering of the Afghan people but has also resulted in the movement of many refugees from their homeland—among the most dangerous places in the world to follow Jesus—into countries blessed with religious freedom, where Afghans can consider the claims of Christianity for themselves, without governmental restrictions or interference. For Christians seeking to welcome, love and convey the hope of the gospel, Miriam Adeney and Rashid Aalish’s Afghan Mountain Faith is an indispensable resource.

  — Matthew Soerens, Vice President for Advocacy and Policy, World Relief

• This book is an absolute treasure! The authors give us more than beautiful glimpses of Afghans and Afghanistan, they awaken us to the beauty of the mystery of Christ and the often-paradoxical ways that Jesus is transforming lives in some of the most difficult and broken places of our world. I pray that many churches in the US and Europe would read this book and catch a vision of how to reach the thousands of Afghan refugees that God has brought into our neighborhoods with the Good News of Jesus.

  — Rev. Sasan Tavassoli, PhD, Senior Lecturer, PARS Theological Center

• A new gold mine has just been revealed. That’s my read of this unique book with its ten different veins—chapters—and two writer-voices encouraging us to explore more and pray more and serve more. Afghan Mountain Faith captured my attention with the singular combination of historical fact, spiritual context, and unflinching truth. The authors describe an apparently failed nation, but also explain how the world powers moved into the vacuum in their nefarious abuse of geography and culture to organize and exploit Afghanistan for their own benefit. The entire book comes alive as it interweaves the narrative fabric of personal stories. And I love the way it lands, with practical recommendations for churches, ministries and families around the world who receive Afghan (and other) refugees. Readers will be enriched.

  — William Taylor, PhD, Executive Director Emeritus, World Evangelical Alliance Mission Commission President, Taylor Global Consult

• Prolific writer and missiological anthropologist Miriam Adeney has teamed up with economist and political scientist Rashid Aalish to write a spell-binding, timely story of Afghanistan, including its history, culture, politics, and religion. Built on a strong theology of culture and hope in resurrection, renewal, and restoration, the authors provide riveting stories of Afghans finding new life amidst devastation and danger as followers of Jesus. Practical suggestions for supporting refugees and immigrants abound, and the kingdom vision of Revelation 7:9, of people from every language and culture worshiping together around the throne of God, animates this essential book.

  — Darrell Whiteman, PhD , CEO, Global Development

Authors

• Miriam Adeney
  Miriam Adeney

  Miriam grew up in Oregon and is still at home among the vast evergreen forests and blue lakes beside the unpredictable Pacific. Always active on school newspapers, Miriam earned an MA in journalism from Syracuse University, and continues to make writing a priority.  For Christianity Today, she has served as a writer, senior editorial consultant, and longtime Board member. That led to her writing the CT editorial titled “Think Globally, Love Globally” immediately following the World Trade Center disaster on September 11, 2001.  

  Bookending Miriam’s journalism degree are a BA and a PhD in anthropology (Wheaton College and Washington State University). For many years Miriam has served as a professor of applied anthropology and missiology at Seattle Pacific University. Simultaneously she has crossed the Canadian border regularly to teach at Regent College.  Miriam consults for Christians in wide range of cultures, from a pig-selling business in Sumatra to a toilet cleaning caste in Pakistan to researchers on childraising in Iran.

  She grew up in a home that loved the Word, the church, and God’s world. To those passions she added a quest to understand culturally-contextualized communication.  For four years during her twenties, Miriam directed publications for the Philippine InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. 

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• Rashid Aalish
  Rashid Aalish

  Rashid Aalish (PhD) is an Afghan believer who teaches and conducts research in a North American university. He has served as a consultant with several local and international organizations focusing on ways to help regions torn by conflict.

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