People Group Highlight: Saudi Arabia

One of the places that has been on my heart ever since going to the mosque is Saudi Arabia. Here is some information about this country.

There are 44 people groups in the country of Saudi Arabia. 27 of them are considered unreached peoples.

Of the total population of 25,635,000, 86.5% are unreached, meaning there are less than 2% of the population that are Evangelical Christians, and less than 5% that are Christian Adherents.

2.2% of the population is considered to be in the Nominal Church category, meaning there are very few if any known believers, but more than 5% Christian Adherents.

7.5% of the population are in an area where there are more than 2% Evangelicals, and 3.7% are where there are more than 10% believers. However, most of these people groups are expats, from the US, Europe and some African countries.

Saudi Arabia borders Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Yemen

The Arab people groups within Saudi Arabia are considered to be 100% Muslim. There is a small presence of Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity (mostly Roman Catholicism) among the expatriates living in Saudi Arabia.

On a persecution of Christians scale ranging from 1 being extreme persecution to 50 being very low persecution, Saudi Arabia ranks as a 2

Saudi Arabia once had a large Christian population. They were expelled when Islam gained control 1,300 years ago. It is now one of the least evangelized nations on earth. No Christian workers are permitted and all Christian “propaganda” banned. No Christian is permitted to set foot in Islam’s holiest city, Mecca.

Billions of dollars are spent every year to propagate Islam around the world – aid to countries considered sympathetic, building mosques, sending missionaries, literature, radio, etc. The Saudi government denies Christians the liberty to share their faith, yet demands this liberty for Muslims living elsewhere. Some of the world’s largest printing presses are in Saudi and churn out 28 million Qur’ans annually for worldwide distribution.

Christian expatriates live under strict surveillance. Secret gatherings are hunted down with diligence and leaders are sometimes subjected to humiliating beatings, imprisonment, expulsion, and even execution. This is particularly so for Asian Christians who have often been the most effective witnesses and whose governments have the least international clout. There are perhaps only 50,000 practicing believers, although many more would join them were the risks not so great. Pray for encouragement and strength for the believing community. There are few opportunities to meaningfully interact with Saudis, and very few expatriates speak Arabic.

Please pray with me for the peoples of Saudi Arabia.