Saving Persecuted Christians: Inside the Nazarene Fund's Global Rescue Missions- with David Jacobs

https://thenazarenefund.org/

The extraordinary work of The Nazarene Fund unfolds across the world's darkest corners, where religious persecution transforms ordinary believers into targets. This eye-opening conversation with David Jacobs reveals the organization's decade-long mission to rescue, rebuild, and restore lives shattered by extremism.

Founded in 2015 as ISIS swept through Iraq marking Christian homes with the Arabic symbol "Nun" (for Nazarene) before systematic executions, The Nazarene Fund has evolved into a global operation saving thousands from religious persecution. David Barton and Tim Barton, who serve on the organization's board, explain how they've expanded beyond Christian rescues to help Yazidis, moderate Muslims, and women targeted by regimes like the Taliban.

The scale of their impact is breathtaking. During Afghanistan's fall, The Nazarene Fund evacuated over 9,500 people by aircraft—interpreters who had supported American troops, judges, legislators, and activists suddenly marked for death. Today, many have successfully rebuilt their lives in countries like Brazil and the United States, including one interpreter's son who just graduated from high school as a star soccer player.

Perhaps most heartbreaking is their ongoing search for approximately 2,800 Yazidi women still missing after ISIS kidnappings. The Nazarene Fund continues finding 6-12 annually, rescuing women who were abducted as children and subjected to years of sexual slavery. Their work extends to disrupting organ harvesting operations in Nigeria and Turkey, where Christians are killed for organs that fetch up to $250,000 per victim on black markets.

Unlike many humanitarian organizations, The Nazarene Fund operates through local partners rather than American teams, working with Kurdish Muslims and others who oppose extremism to conduct dangerous rescue missions. Every donated dollar goes directly to operations—"downrange" as they call it—with administrative costs covered through separate fundraising efforts.

For those wanting to make a tangible difference in the lives of persecuted religious minorities worldwide, supporting The Nazarene Fund offers an opportunity to truly save lives. Visit TheNazareneFund.org to learn more about their mission and how you can help transform the mark of death into a symbol of hope for those most vulnerable.

Support the show