Being a woman in the Middle East can be challenging at the best of times.
But what if you are a woman struggling with financial insecurity and raising children on your own? Nasrin, a SAT-7 PARS viewer from Iran, was one among the millions of women searching for hope in the midst of loneliness and despair.
‘Four years ago, I lost my husband in an accident and was left alone with three children. In the society in which I live, when you lose your husband it is like you too are considered dead. I felt worthless and alone,’ Nasrin said. ‘I was living without hope in darkness, facing poverty and many other difficulties.’
New vision
‘One night, when I was feeling hopeless and burdened by my situation, I had a dream that I was stuck at the bottom of a deep well in darkness. I was screaming if there was anyone out there to rescue me, and as I looked up, I saw a glowing man all in white, reaching out to me!
‘He said: ‘I am Jesus Christ, your Saviour.’ He carried me out of the well and then I saw myself alone at a church. When I woke up, I no longer felt depressed and miserable but very light and free. After that experience, I found a job and my life was totally transformed.’
Nasrin faces a whole new set of challenges. Churches are few and far between and only open to the culturally Christian minorities. A believer’s own family are often among the most challenging sources of opposition.
Life committed to the Lord
As Nasrin explains: ‘I’m unable to go to any church here and I’ve never seen or owned a Bible. But the Lord has taught me a lot and I have committed my whole life to him.’
Nasrin has been able to grow her faith through teaching and discussion programmes on SAT-7 PARS, which she watches regularly. Her children were dismissed from school due to her faith. ‘They have been called pigs and the school told us that they don’t teach pigs. I replied to them that for me, my kids are the children of the living God.’
In Sudan, a country often ranked among the world’s worst for gender equality, many women are deprived of their rights.
Gender discrimination in Sudan begins in childhood. The country has one of the highest rates of Female Genital Mutilation in the world – 87% of women have been cut. A quarter of Sudanese girls stop attending school early on in their secondary education. Girls can legally be married at ten years old.
More than a third of Sudanese girls are married by 18, and forced marriage is commonplace. Marital rape is not a crime. Heartbreakingly, 34% of Sudanese women believe that a husband can be justified in hitting or beating his wife.
These social norms tell women their gender makes them of lesser value, and this can be very damaging for their self-image. Many have no hope for anything better for their lives, simply because they are not aware that it is possible, or that they are worthy of it. SAT-7 ARABIC’s talk show, Woman and Mirror, aims to reverse this by showing viewers their true, priceless value.
‘In an ordinary mirror, a woman will only see her external reflection,’ says producer Hany Henein. ‘But in the mirror of the Bible, she’ll see her true self. We try to help women see themselves through the eyes of our Lord Jesus, who values and respects each and every one of them.’
