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There are about 30,000 Western
Cham people living in Vietnam, very near the border with Cambodia.
Once a great people, the Cham in Vietnam were the poorest of the
poor. They were were left behind by the Cham who went to
Cambodia when the Champa
Kingdom fell to the Vietnamese 500 years ago.
Today the Cham are mostly poor
farmers and fisherman living in tiny villages in mud and bamboo
homes. The Cham in Vietnam are Sunni Muslims, although some
reports say they are Hindus (Wikipedia). They share
their area in harmony with Malay people probably because of the
Islam religion of the Malays. The connection is so close that
Cham people are considered eligible for citizenship in Malaysia if
they ever go there.
Mosques are common and most Cham
can recite at least some parts of the Koran. The Cham follow a
strict code of honesty and integrity based on ancient ancestral
practices. Much of the lives of the Cham are bound by their
culture and society, there is little inter-marriage with other
groups. The
The Cham have some contact with
the world outside through trading their products and living along
well traveled roads and rivers. Many Cham speak Vietnamese.
Pray for Vietnamese Christians to come into relationsips that will
create opportunity to share Christ with the Cham. There are no
known outreaches, and few if any believers among the Cham in
Vietnam, no bibles.
Pray for a the Lord of the Harvest
to send workers to the Cham. Pray for an awakening and a
hunger to know God. Pray for divine appointments between the
Cham and Christians along their way. Pray for a strong Cham
church that can evangelize the villages.
Population: 30,000 ---
Language: Cham. Vietnamese --- Religion: Sunni Islam
Christians: None --- Resources: None --- Other
Countries: Cambodia,
Thailand
Resource Links:
Joshua Project
Photo in the Public Domain, (Wikipedia) |
