I’ve visited many places speaking about Myanmar and what we’re doing there and so I thought I’d share with you the top 3 questions I get asked.
1 – Where is Myanmar?
Myanmar is bordered by Tibet and the People’s Republic of China on the north, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, and India on the northwest, with the Andaman Sea to the south, and the Bay of Bengal to the southwest. See a map and learn more about The Country.
2 – How do you pronounce the name of the country?
It’s correctly pronounced myan-mar (only 2 syllables and the stress is on the underline) where myan is like the first 2 syllables in piano when said quickly.
Incorrect pronunciations are MEE AN MAR or MY AN MAR (where ‘MY‘ is like my hat, my house).
3 – Are the Christian churches persecuted?
Short answer is no. At this time the churches are reporting to us that they are experiencing “the most freedom in the history of the country”. There are restrictions of the purchase of land for building a church and many church related activities require the approval of local authorities, but the same is required by any other group wanting to have a gathering. Many reports have been appearing in the media, both secular and Christian, about churches being closed down and pastors being imprisoned however we’re being told by our contacts in Myanmar that these reports are either misrepresenting the situation or not providing the full story, choosing to omit details of law-breaking which may have led to short detention.
