Equadorian pastor Manuel Garin posted this image on Facebook describing it as “The Iconic Photo of the World Cup 2022”
and with some natural national pride explained its significance beyond a win on the field.
Ecuador’s national team surprised the whole world, beating the home team. Qatar’s national team, hosting the first Cup in an Arab country, lost this Sunday, and for the first time in 92 years, the local country lost in its inaugural match in the FIFA World Cup. However, what was a most pleasant surprise, was what happened outside the lines. During their victory, several of the players of the Ecuadorian national team, being Christians, publicly showed their Faith and devotion, kneeling together, praying and giving glory to God, without intimidation or reservations, before a principally Muslim audience.
Now, please understand why this is very significant, some might even say, dangerous:
All Christian churches officially registered in Qatar can only congregate at a specifically government-designated complex in the capital, Doha, called Mesaymee Complex. This resort is only open to expatriate Christians (foreign workers and tourists), but it is strictly forbidden for Qatari Muslims. Apart from this, no church can display religious signs in public such as crosses or mangers etc., outside their building. There are a few other expat churches outside the complex, but currently, they are not granted any legal permission to practice their Religion.
No Christian may publicly exhibit any Christian symbol or perform practices associated with the Faith in public, and sharing the Gospel openly can easily be interpreted as proselytism, which is considered a punishable crime has he gets 5 years in prison. (Of course, this doesn’t apply to Muslims who do proselytism).
Then there’s the small indigenous community of Qatari’s converted to Christianity. In Qatar, this is considered apostasy and, de jure (ie, according to law on the books), is punishable by death (although this is no longer carried out in practice, in fact). However, Qatari-converted Christians face extreme pressure from their Muslim family and community members at large. To give you an idea, here’s a quote from a Qatari citizen about what happens if a son of a Muslim tries to convert to Christianity (testimony recorded by OpenDoors):
“When do you want to convert to Christianity?” If he is 10 years old, his father will show him verses from the Quran. If he’s 15, his dad will take him to a mosque for lectures. “If he’s 20, a cousin will kill him or the family will hire someone else to kill him.”
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So, as you can see: This beautiful image of professing Ecuadorians, piling up to openly and without intimidation profess their Christian faith, in many ways, is a far greater victory than their victory on the field.
In this sense: we are all Ecuador. Well done!!!