Midweek Memo: EU Borders Opening Up to Vaccinated Visitors

Representatives from the 27 member states of the European Union approved a recommendation made by the European Council to start allowing vaccinated visitors from outside the bloc into the EU. Commission spokesman Christian Wigand told reporters on Wednesday that while an agreement has been made, the EU Council must still formally adopt it. With the summer tourist season quickly approaching, leaders are eager to find safe ways to welcome vaccinated people in.

The EU’s external borders closed in March 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic and member states have been constantly updating a list of countries from which visitors could visit for the past year. As the plan takes shape for vaccinated visitors to enter, the EU is also making an emergency plan to close borders, should the pandemic worsen due to travel or increased variants.

This is great news for Pioneers and other workers who have been waiting a whole year to arrive on the continent. Many missionaries, teachers, and other religious workers have been in a year-long holding pattern and now they can begin to plan for their departure to the field. Additionally, increased vaccinations and open borders will allow for summertime camps, which are an important resource for sharing the love of Christ throughout Europe. Pray for both long-term and short-term missions in Europe this summer. Pray that after a year of isolation, Europeans will be eager to gather and hungry to know their Creator and Savior.

Midweek Memo: Sarajevo Under Siege from Covid-19

Springtime in the city of Sarajevo has seen an average of 10-13 deaths per day due to the Covid-19 virus. In a city of 344,000, healthcare workers and residents alike feel under attack. The population hasn’t witnessed a loss of life like this since it was under siege during the Bosnian War in the 1990s when 11,000 people died in Sarajevo alone. City cemeteries now have trouble keeping up with daily burials of those who have succumbed to Covid-19.

This is the deadliest period of the pandemic so far in Sarajevo, which is the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, a country that became an independent republic after the Bosnian War in 1995. The nation’s constitution requires a three-member Presidency to represent each major ethnic group in the region: Eastern Orthodox Serbs, Bosnian Muslims and Catholic Croats. While the limitation of power for each ethnic group is intended to keep peace amongst them, many say it has made it difficult for the country to pursue aggressive measures in fighting Covid. The complicated structure has made it difficult to obtain vaccines and ventilators and residents have taken their frustrations to the streets in protest, even as their Balkan neighbors Serbia and Croatia have rolled out effective vaccine programs.

Pray for the residents, healthcare workers, and government officials in Sarajevo, as they long for an end to the pandemic. Pray for the Christian church, that it would be a bright light in dark times. Pray for the local Christians and the Pioneers there to boldly share the love and security of Jesus Christ in the midst of so much suffering and uncertainty.

Midweek Memo: Church Leaders in Ireland Decry the Criminalization of Corporate Worship

Since the Covid-19 pandemic began in March 2020, churches in Dublin, Ireland have only been allowed to gather for worship fourteen times. Corporate worship has been banned—but not criminalized—across the country for months, as a matter of public health regulation. That changed on April 16, though, when the Irish Health Ministry signed a new law into effect, making meeting for church a criminal offense.

A statement of the Church leaders of The Dublin Gospel Partnership says, “While we appreciate the unprecedented difficulties government has faced, and thank God for the desire to promote peace and protect life, the introduction of this statutory instrument…has criminalised religious freedoms that the government is obliged to protect.” The statement concludes, “For the good of this nation and for the glory of God, we call again for freedom to worship the risen Lord Jesus Christ - our hope in life and death, and the only Lord of all.”

Pray for Pioneers workers throughout Ireland and their co-laborers, as they seek to honor the Lord, their communities, and their faith families under this new law.

Midweek Memo: Third Covid Wave Devastating Europe

A third wave of Coronavirus is taking a devastating toll on Europe. The massive increase in cases seems to be the result of the variant known as B.1.1.7. The variant was first detected in the United Kingdom. Two months ago the World Health Organization warned that it would likely become the dominant strain in Europe and cause a huge uptick in cases, hospitalizations, and deaths, as early studies suggest it is more contagious and possibly deadlier than previous virus strains.

A variety of tables and charts reveal that Europe is indeed at the heart of the world’s toughest fight against Coronavirus at this time. Measurements of Covid-19 cases per capita, new cases, or where hospitalization rates are becoming unmanageable include countries such as Estonia, Hungary, Czech Republic, Serbia, Montenegro, Poland, Bulgaria, France, Sweden, Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, and Italy. 

Pray for Europeans to cry out to God and find him during this trial. Pray for missionaries to be wise, bold, and ready to share the truth of Jesus Christ. Pray for national leaders to make wise decisions for their people. Pray for the God of all comfort to draw near to those who are suffering and mourning. May this Easter weekend be one of resurrection and revival across the continent.