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When eventually Grace’s release came, she described it as a ‘dream’. Even up to the day before her release the guards had tried to get her to renounce her faith but the women refused in spite of being told that they would end up in a worse prison.
‘We understand now that we were strengthened by the prayers of others’
Mebrhit had been released earlier.
Physically she was healthy but After enduring intense persecution in their homeland mentally she struggled to cope with
Eritrean Christians are being helped by Release International’s partner. Here they share their moving and inspiring stories with our team
the effects of the abuse. For some
the toll of incarceration and torture continues long after their release. After she left prison Mebrhit suffered nightmares as a result of the trauma she had endured.
race’* was serving in the Eritrean military when she was arrested after attending a house church.
treatment was reserved for Christians only – intended to force them to
Among the 30 believers detained with her in the capital, Asmara, was ‘Mebrhit’*; but while the mothers and babies among the group stayed in the capital, Grace and Mebrhit were taken to Wi’a, one of the hottest places
in the country, where they were to spend the next 15 months in harsh detention.
‘It was only by God’s grace that we could stay strong,’ said Grace. When the women regained consciousness they were asked again if they would renounce their faith and when they declined would suffer a further beating.
locked away. ‘Joanna’*, who had been imprisoned for many years, told us: ‘When in prison, I experienced the
love of God in a special way. You see darkness in prison on your own but the word of God becomes real, like you see God, you experience the love of God in your heart.’
As well as suffering intense heat in the underground prison and being made to walk barefoot in the daytime as a punishment, prisoners were subjected to beatings in the night.
Thankfully the two women were able to stay strong spiritually by having fellowship together, praying and studying the pages of scripture they had been able to conceal.
renounce their faith before they lost Others hang on to the special consciousness. revelation God gave them while
Release International helps to fund trauma- healing workshops
wanted to be close to God. Every time she encountered Jesus ‘it was fresh’.
The women were eventually transferred to Me’etr prison in the remote northwest of Eritrea where Grace would spend eight years. ‘Me’etr is like a camp in the desert,’ she said. There was no torture and the women took the opportunity
to share the gospel whenever they could, usually while making meals. As a result many others from various languages and religious backgrounds, including Islam, came to faith.
PRAY
• That Christians in prison in Eritrea would stay strong in their faith and be released. Some have been behind bars for many years
• For healing for believers such as Mebrhit who continue to suffer the effects of trauma
• For freedom for the church in Eritrea
Grace described how the prison guards would take three of the women prisoners into the woods, then separate them a little way from each other so they would be beaten on their own yet still hear the cries of the other two. This particular
Although they had been focused solely on overcoming the suffering, Grace said: ‘We understand now that we were strengthened by the prayers of others.’
Grace added that she had experienced God’s presence in a special way while she was in prison. It seemed like
the more she suffered, the more she
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