Faith
Artsakh Christians Face Hardship After Exodus
Faith Facts
- More than 120,000 Christian Armenians from Artsakh were forced to flee their historic homeland during Azerbaijan’s 2023 military invasion.
- Civilians suffered extreme hardship and persecution during a 10-month blockade, including starvation and loss of basic necessities.
- The cultural and spiritual heritage of one of the world’s oldest Christian regions faces erasure as refugees rebuild in Armenia.
Devoted Christians like Marina Simonyan have endured the pain of violent conflict and the grief of losing their ancient homeland, Artsakh, a beacon of faith for centuries.
The September 2023 invasion led to a mass exodus, as Azerbaijani forces targeted civilians, forcing thousands to seek refuge in Armenia and abandon their churches and heritage.
“I was born in the 1990s, and when my parents were telling me what happened during the ’90s, I was skeptical. I was telling them, ‘Well, we are living in the 21st century, and it is highly unlikely that something like that will happen again,'” Simonyan shared, before acknowledging her mistake.
Simonyan described unimaginable atrocities suffered by Armenian families, including torture and brutal violence carried out by Azerbaijani soldiers against innocent civilians.
She pleaded for the preservation of Christian memory and international recognition of their suffering, as the global spotlight often fails to focus on their plight.
Leaders in exile lamented the most recent peace agreements, feeling that justice for Artsakh Christians remains unaddressed while their persecutors retain power.
Simonyan recounted life under the 10-month blockade, where families survived without food, heat, or medicine. Pregnant mothers faced deadly hardships walking miles for care, and some lost children due to malnutrition and deprivation.
“Despite all those struggles, we thought we would be strong until the end,” Simonyan testified. “During the blockade, I was telling them nothing worse could happen. But we saw that it could be worse.”
The September offensive struck as children were in school and families had no way to communicate, with towns bombarded and hospitals overwhelmed by the wounded and dead.
“We didn’t have any other choice. We had to leave our homeland,” Simonyan recalled. “Artsakh has always been Armenia. It never was Azerbaijanis. We had to leave our history of thousands of years, everything we had, our churches, our graveyards, our history, our memory, everything. We had to leave Artsakh.”
This tragic displacement serves as a solemn reminder to defend religious liberty and stand firm in faith, remembering those who have lost everything yet hold onto hope.
Stay informed and pray for persecuted believers around the globe.
Faith Facts
- Children under 18 in red states rose from 43.1 million in 2019 to 43.7 million in 2024.
- Blue states lost 600,000 children under 5, with California accounting for nearly half.
- Married couples with young children increased up to 5.7% in red states across regions.
A recent study reveals states supporting President Trump are gaining young children and families, while Harris-backing states see declines, largely due to soaring housing costs that hinder family formation.
This trend aligns with Biblical values prioritizing family, as affordable living in heartland states honors God’s design for generational blessings and fruitful homes.
From 2019 to 2024, young children aged 0-9 dropped 1.2% in Trump states but plummeted 4.7% in Democrat states, with adults 20-29 faring better in red areas too.
High-cost blue strongholds like California, New York, Hawaii and D.C. lost over 5% of kids under 6, where mortgages consume 32-36% of income.
Conversely, Trump-voting Alabama and Tennessee boosted under-6 populations with mortgages at 24-28% of income, fostering family growth central to America’s strength.
“Both red and blue states are watching the share of residents who are age 60 or older grow as boomers continue to age into retirement. But blue states are losing 20-somethings, and, relatedly, kids,” the report states.
Even some rural red states lagged, underscoring housing affordability’s role alongside pro-family policies in upholding Judeo-Christian principles of stewardship and prosperity.
“That’s 600,000 fewer kids under 5 in blue states in 2024 compared to 2019. And nearly half of this number was due to one state alone — California, which saw its total number of kids in this age group fall from 2.45 million in 2019 to 2.16 million five years later,” researcher Patrick T. Brown noted.
Embrace these truths to champion faith-driven policies that protect family and freedom—share this vital report with fellow patriots today!
Following reports of churches filling with young men after tragedies, researcher Dr. George Barna warns that America’s spiritual revival among Gen Z may be superficial.
His studies reveal a dire lack of biblical worldview, essential for true discipleship and national renewal rooted in Christian values.
Faith Facts
- Only 4% of Americans hold a biblical worldview, down from 6% in 2020 and 12% in 1994.
- Gen Z shows just 1% adherence, despite anecdotal church surges.
- Even among evangelicals, only 11% qualify, dropping from 21% in 2020.
People begin forming their worldview very early in life (at about 18 months), establish it before their teen years, then refine it throughout their 20s.
Revival and national spiritual renewal are possible, but neither will happen without commitment to worldview development.
Churches must urgently embrace biblical worldview training to foster genuine faith, protect family values, and preserve America’s God-given freedoms.
Faith Facts
- Collaboration with Faith, Art and Myth Association introduces Lewis’s legacy to combat modern confusion with core Christian doctrines.
- Mere Christianity unites believers across denominations through simple, honest exposition of eternal Gospel truths.
- The Screwtape Letters mirrors human frailty via satire, equipping saints for victory in unseen battles as in Ephesians 6.
Grupo Nelson launches updated editions of C.S. Lewis masterpieces Mere Christianity and The Screwtape Letters for Latin American audiences in February 2026.
These refreshed translations remove archaic language barriers, allowing new generations to embrace Lewis’s brilliant defense of Biblical essentials and spiritual warfare.
“In times of confusion, returning to Mere Christianity is like recovering our compass.”
“This masterpiece reminds us that eternal truths—when explained with Lewis’s honesty and brilliance—have the power to awaken consciences and transform lives today just as they did in the past.”
said Juan Tomás Widow, president of the Faith, Art and Myth Association.
“Beneath the brilliance of its satire, The Screwtape Letters offers one of Lewis’s deepest examinations of human psychology. It works like a mirror: it makes us laugh, but it also helps us recognize our own weaknesses and take the spiritual struggle seriously,” Widow added.
Lewis, Oxford and Cambridge professor, authored over 30 books blending theology and literature to glorify God and challenge souls.
Embrace these classics to fortify faith, protect families, and champion freedoms rooted in Christ’s unchanging truth.
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