Barry Moore Decries Unjust Imprisonment And Persecution Of Christian Pastors In Nicaragua

4 months ago

During remarks on the House floor last week, Rep. Barry Moore (R-AL) spoke about the persecution of Christian missionaries in Nicaragua.

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00:00I ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend

00:05their remarks and to submit extraneous materials on the subject of this special order.

00:11Without objection.

00:12American citizens from Alabama and Texas and their Nicaraguan partners have made it their

00:17mission to spread the hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ with the Nicaraguan people for

00:22nearly 30 years.

00:23Evangelists of the Mountain Gateway Ministries have worked across the country leading on

00:26disaster recovery and feeding and clothing and planting churches with the support of

00:31the assistance of the Nicaraguan government.

00:34In January, however, the Attorney General of Nicaragua began pursuing charges against

00:38three U.S. citizens associated with Mountain Gateway and 11 Mountain Gateway Nicaraguan

00:43pastors on trumped up charges of money laundering and organized crime.

00:49In addition to being barred from meeting with their legal representation and their families,

00:54the lawyers on their case were denied access to the case files and to other relevant documentation

01:00against the pastors.

01:04During the sham trial, the government was unable to produce evidence of the alleged

01:08illicit activity.

01:09Despite this, the 11 pastors have been sentenced to up to 15 years in prison and they combined

01:15$1 billion in fines.

01:17These pastors were working to bless the people of Nicaragua and now they have been thrown

01:21in prison and all their property has been seized.

01:25These sentences leave families without income, children without mothers and fathers, simply

01:30for sharing the good news of Jesus.

01:32I am deeply concerned that these citizens and the pastors were targeted for sharing

01:36their faith.

01:38Matthew 5 says, blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness, say, for theirs

01:43is the kingdom of heaven.

01:45I recently introduced a resolution, House Resolution 1019, condemning the Nicaraguan

01:50government of unjust imprisonment of these people and I hope my colleagues will join

01:55in support.

01:56I am praying for a swift resolution to this situation so these pastors can be safely returned

02:01to their families and continue sharing the gospel.

02:04I am grateful to the members of Congress who joined me for this special order to highlight

02:09this issue and call the Nicaraguan government to release the imprisoned pastors immediately.

02:14I now will yield five minutes to the gentleman from Alabama, one of my first co-sponsors

02:19to H. Resolution 1019, Mr. Aderholt.

02:25Mr. Speaker, I arise today on behalf of these Nicaraguan pastors, ministry leaders of Mountain

02:36Gateway who were unable to speak for themselves.

02:39I want to say thank my colleague from Alabama for taking this time of special order to discuss

02:49this issue, to bring it to the attention of the American people and really to the world.

02:54He has been a great champion on this and there's many members of our delegation in Alabama

03:02and really across the country that are very concerned about what we have heard going on

03:08in Nicaragua and the situation down there.

03:11Unfortunately, so many of the American people are very unaware of what the situation is.

03:17We're just a few hundred miles south of our border here in the United States of America.

03:24These leaders that has been already mentioned, but it should be repeated, these leaders have

03:30been convicted by the Nicaraguan government on sham charges.

03:34They now face up to 15 years in prison and $80 million in fines each.

03:43The rest came after these courageous pastors led a series of revivals that was authorized

03:49by the Nicaraguan government and they were rounded up, they're in prison shortly after

03:55mass outpouring of faith in the capital city.

04:00Mr. Speaker, it is an act of religious persecution that put these men and women in prison.

04:09These pastors, these leaders, these spiritual leaders, these ministry leaders, and it is

04:16human right violations that have kept them in prison.

04:20And again, I am so thankful that we live in a country where we do not have to worry about

04:27going to prison.

04:28I think so many Americans take it for granted that all the many freedoms that we have in

04:34this country.

04:35One of those main freedoms that we have is that we get to worship freely.

04:41And we can worship freely, whether it be at an outdoor revival, whether it be in a large

04:47event, small event, or just being at home reading our Bible.

04:51We don't have to worry about being sentenced to 15 years in prison.

04:57And just as myself, as a young boy who accepted Christ in my own life, I can now be in Congress

05:05and I can be a citizen here in this United States and not worry about the threat of prison

05:10being hung over my head.

05:12And whether it's to go to an outdoor revival program that was, such as happened in Nicaragua,

05:20or whether it's to simply go to a small church service, or whether it is to go to just simply

05:26be at home with some other Christians sitting around reading or praying the Bible together.

05:32So on this time of when we're reflecting on what is going on here, I just want to encourage

05:39the American people to reach out to their members of Congress and to encourage them

05:46to do what they can to stand with those of us who are trying to call attention to this

05:53very serious issue.

05:54And this not only goes on in Nicaragua, but also goes on in many other parts of the world

05:59as well.

06:00And today, we certainly want to call attention to those pastors and ministry leaders from

06:06Mountain Gateway who are unable to speak for themselves and be a voice here in the United

06:11States House of Representatives.

06:13And we ask for their release, and I would call on the Nicaraguan government to take

06:18action to address these indisputable violations and to free these men and women so that they

06:26can be returned to their homes and with their families.

06:29And with that, I yield back.

06:35Mr. Speaker, at this point, I'll yield one minute to my friend, Mr. Palmer from Alabama.

06:44Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I thank the gentleman from Alabama.

06:47I rise today to urge my colleagues to support passage of House Resolution 1019, introduced

06:53by my colleague from Alabama, Mr. Moore, in response to the Nicaraguan government's unjust

06:59imprisonment of 11 pastors associated with Mountain Gateway, a missionary group based

07:04here in the United States.

07:06This wrongful imprisonment is not the first time Nicaragua has persecuted good Samaritans

07:11trying to help their impoverished nation.

07:14In recent years, Nicaragua has arrested Catholic missionaries as well as members of the Red

07:19Cross.

07:20As a United States Congress, we have a vested interest in both upholding of international

07:25religious freedom and the safety and security of American citizens currently targeted.

07:30I join my colleagues to call on the Nicaraguan government to rescind these unjust charges

07:34immediately and release the pastors.

07:38To the pastors and persecuted Christians everywhere, I encourage you with this passage from Isaiah

07:434110.

07:44Fear not, for I am with you.

07:46Be not dismayed, for I am your God.

07:49I will strengthen you.

07:50I will help you.

07:51I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

07:55Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I yield back.

07:56Thank you, Mr. Palmer, I appreciate that.

08:00And you know, previously our colleagues across Iowa were talking about hope and mental health

08:05in America.

08:07I think in Nicaragua, these ministries, certainly these missionaries, were impacting people's

08:11lives and bringing them hope.

08:13And so it's just a shame what's happened to them.

08:14And at this point, I'd like to yield five minutes to my friend from Wyoming, Ms. Hageman.

08:20Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

08:22And I thank my colleague for yielding time and for his leadership on this important issue.

08:29Since its founding in 2006, Mountain Gateway Ministries has been changing people's lives

08:34through the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the feeding and clothing of those

08:39in need, and the provision of water, food, equipment, and recovery assistance during

08:44and after natural disasters.

08:47These noble and selfless efforts have had far-reaching impacts on the lives of so many

08:52families and individuals, extending far beyond the borders of any individual nation.

08:58In 2013, Mountain Gateway Ministries began their important work in Nicaragua, spreading

09:03the Lord's Word to hundreds of thousands of people.

09:07The ministry has started and supported multiple churches across the country, provided countless

09:13aid and helping hands through hurricane and other humanitarian relief projects, and has

09:18even gone as far as to run a fair trade coffee farm with the goal of providing a source of

09:23stable income for local residents in nearby rural communities.

09:28Over the course of ten years, they have operated with the cooperation and approval of the Nicaraguan

09:34authorities.

09:35Unfortunately, this all changed after the ministry held a series of evangelistic services

09:42in 2023, which nearly one million people attended.

09:47Shortly after those services ended, the Nicaraguan government rapidly changed its position and

09:52began a relentless campaign of wrongful persecution.

09:58In December 2023, under the guise of false money laundering claims and with little to

10:03no notice, the Nicaraguan government canceled the ministry's legal status, arrested several

10:09Nicaraguan pastors and ministry partners, threatened the arrest of U.S. citizens involved

10:15with the ministry, seized the ministry's properties, and froze its bank accounts.

10:22After spending months in a Nicaraguan prison with no access to legal counsel, no visits

10:27from their relatives, and being unable to hear the allegations against them, the trials

10:32against those arrested commenced.

10:35During the trial, the presiding judge arbitrarily elevated the charges against these individuals

10:40to aggravated money laundering claims.

10:45All the Nicaraguan defendants were found guilty of the elevated charges and sentenced

10:49to severe punishments, including over 10 years in prison and fines amounting to tens of millions

10:55of dollars.

10:56These instances of wrongful targeting and persecution have, unfortunately, become routine

11:02actions by the Nicaraguan government.

11:05The same government has taken similar steps against the Catholic Church, the International

11:10Committee of the Red Cross, and many other religious groups, charities, and civic organizations.

11:18What is currently unfolding in Nicaragua with the members of the Mountain Gateway Ministry

11:23is a travesty and injustice on the greatest scale.

11:28From the time of their arrest to the handing down of their sentences, the treatment of

11:32these individuals and the ministry is in complete contradiction to the most fundamental freedoms

11:39and beliefs that we hold here in America, including the freedom of religion, presumption

11:45of innocence, and the guarantee of due process and equal treatment under the law.

11:50I commend Mountain Gateway founder John Britton Hancock and his family, who are constituents

11:55of mine in Wyoming, for bringing this to my attention and for their tireless efforts to

12:00advocate for the just treatment and release of these individuals.

12:05I urge President Biden, the State Department, and all of my colleagues to call on the Nicaraguan

12:10government to take prompt action to address these violations of religious freedom and

12:15abandonment of justice and due process.

12:18Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I yield back.

12:23Mr. Speaker, thank you for your time.

12:26I appreciate Ms. Hageman speaking tonight on that, and certainly we want to encourage

12:30everybody to get on this resolution, House Resolution 1019, to help free these folks

12:34and bring attention to this issue, and with that, sir, I will yield back.

12:37Thank you.

12:41Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 9th, 2023, the Chair recognizes the gentleman

12:46from Virginia.

Barry Moore Decries Unjust Imprisonment And Persecution Of Christian Pastors In Nicaragua

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