Did She Do It?

This is Part 2 in a three-part series of blog posts about the case of Eva Abdallah, accused of blasphemy last year in Tanzania. Click here to read Part 1.

Then the word came in a short email from our worker: “And…yes, Eva says she did urinate on the Quran. Thought you should know that.”

Accused of blasphemy, then acquitted of the crime: how could it be that Eva Abdallah in Tanzania would choose to so deeply offend her Muslim countrymen?

Here’s how Eva tells the story:

Eva Abdallah shows some of the letters sent to encourage her while she was in prison.

It was on the 5^th of January 2012, when I was outside our house reading the Bible that six women came around me and started to abuse Christianity and the Bible. I decided to go inside our house and shut the windows so I couldn’t hear them. But they came close to the window to continue to abuse Christianity and the Bible. I prayed to God and said, “Lord I know this is something unusual, and I pray that you will reveal yourself in this trial that is coming."

When they saw me, they said, “Jesus is not God.” And they kept repeating that, so, I was obliged to tell them that according to my faith, I strongly believe that Jesus is God because of what he did for me.

They brought part of a Quran, and told me if I urinated on it, because of its power, I would turn into a crazy woman, or grow hair all over my body.

I knew Muslims would consider it blasphemy, but they dared me, and I wanted my God to be glorified before them. I wanted to prove to them that my God is able and more powerful compared to their god like … with Elijah where he prayed to God to come consume the sacrifice with all the gods of Baal. I wanted to prove to them that my God is more able than theirs.

So I did it to show nothing would happen, they could not compete with my God… He would protect me.

God did protect Eva. While the whole town went crazy with anger over the news of what she’d done, God blinded the eyes of those searching for her so she could make it safely to the police station, where she was arrested.

She would face the justice system, but at least she wouldn’t be killed in the street.

Read Dory's answer to the question, Does VOM condone what Eva did?

Dory P. has worked with VOM for six years. She grew up in Ecuador, met her husband while working with another mission organization, and now lives in Oklahoma. Between Dory, her husband and two-year-old son, they share five passports. Dory helps tell the stories of the persecuted through VOM's newsletter, and her husband serves with VOM's international department.

Comments

[S.F.]

That's quite a story! It's good to be able toget to the bottom of this...I must admit some confusion on my part after first hearing of her story from VOM, then reading contradictory reports from other Christian news sources. This is quite an interesting situation. I can understand what Eva thought, but at the same time, I think people have a tendency to want to defend God; He is the Lion of Judah...He doesn't need us to stand up for Him or prove that He is who He says He is. Truth, when argued and defended, loses some of it's authenticity, simply because if it is really truth, it needs no defense. It will simply ring true. You will accept or you won't. It is simply the truth, it is simply reality. You can meet a man who argues that the sun is blue; but if you take the time to stop and try to convince him that the sun is really not blue, your argument, in a sense, loses some of its position because it has to be argued. So, while I can understand Eva's impulse and her motives, and while there is Biblical grounds for this kind of thing at some points, at other points God has instructed and impressed people otherwise....My conclusion? We simply need to be listening to the Spirit and obey what He says. While it seems doubtful to me that it was the Lord who told Eva to do this (even in her story, she admits that "they dared me....I wanted to prove to them..."), I can't judge for sure. Thank you, VOM, for this thought-provoking story. Looking forward to part III tomorrow!

[Vishuddhajna Jade]

You better believe Jesus condones that! What happened to the idol Dagon when the Ark was brought into the temple? He was humiliated by the Angel of the Lord! So also will God bring to nothing the idols of the masses through the Angel of the Lord that resides in every believer's heart...Jesus was with her, and her testimony of faithful demonstration of God's power over the gods of the nations shows her zeal for the glory and honor of the Lord. We need more people like her--willing to make personal and interpersonal sacrifices for the Lord. She will be blessed. :)