In parts of Far East Russia there are those who have never heard the name of Jesus.
Alexander Balagansky, a missionary sponsored by the Slavic Gospel Association (SGA), in the Buryatia region, is involved in the difficult and sometimes dangerous challenge of reaching them. Villages and communities there are isolated, often cut off and inaccessible due to extreme weather conditions. However, strange as it may seem, the extreme weather can become the missionary’s friend and associate in pioneering gospel ministry!
Buryatia has a million residents, one third of whom live in its capital, Ulan-Ude, a modern city. Outside the city, however, traditional rites are still alive in local villages. This includes ‘nomadic worshipping of nature’s spirits’ and daily prayer ‘to [the] mountains and the deities that dwell at their peaks,’ according to Euronews.com.
