Baylor grads still detained in Afghanistan
___By John Hall
___Staff Writer
___WACO--While large numbers of volunteers from around the nation gather in New York City and Washington, D.C., to pick up the rubble of decimated buildings, two Baylor University graduates detained in Afghanistan for more than six weeks continue the fight for their release.
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DAYNA CURRY (left) and Heather Mercer remain in captivity in Afghanistan.
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___Dayna Curry, 29, and Heather Mercer, 24, are part of a group of Shelter Now International aid workers arrested by the Taliban government Aug. 3 on charges of preaching Christianity. The Taliban, which controls 90 percent of Afghanistan, also arrested four Germans and two Australians for preaching Christianity and 16 Afghans for converting to Christianity.
___The sentence for preaching Christianity is seven to 10 days in jail and expulsion from the country for foreigners, according to Taliban law. The 16 nationals face death.
___Although American diplomats and the women's parents had visited them on several occasions, the two women are now alone following the evacuation of all international visitors to Afghanistan, except for a few aid organizations, Sept. 13.
___The Americans' parents last visited their children Sept. 12, when they brought warmer clothes for their daughters and informed them of the apparent terrorist attacks in the United States.
___Despite not being with the girls, their parents and U.S. diplomats have continued to work toward their release. On Sept. 17, Mercer's father, John, begged Taliban officials to allow him to take the place of his daughter in prison. The officials rejected the offer. A
group of 12 U.S. veterans also has volunteered to take the place of the girls.
___The women's pastor, Jimmy Seibert of Antioch Community Church--a non-denominational church in Waco that began as a church start of Highland Baptist Church--said he is worried the pair may be used as hostages as tensions between Afghanistan and the United States continue to increase. Because of the lack of representation in Afghanistan, Seibert called for all Americans to pray for the detainees.
___"We want the United States people to know that it is prayer that will see them through," he said. "Jesus put it this way, 'Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door shall be opened.' We want to keep on asking, keep on seeking and keep on knocking until we see them home and see them face-to-face so we can rejoice together with them.
___"We really can pray, and it really does matter," he urged. "It really does contribute to them getting delivered. In fact, because there's no practical advocacy, you really do need a guardian angel to come and show them the way out."
___The women knew the perils involved with Christians working in the nation before they went, Seibert acknowledged, but the duo followed a call they felt from God to help the Afghan people.
___"They put their lives in the hands of God before they left, and they will continue to do that even with the rumors that go on week to week," he said. "There's always concern, but there's trust that the Lord will see them through."
___A Pakistani lawyer who is familiar with "Shariah," a legal code based on the tenets of Islam, and speaks the language of the Taliban court has been chosen to represent the women. However, he has not yet obtained a visa to enter the country, according to Associated Press reports.
___Seibert said Curry had been in Afghanistan for more than two years and signed on to stay another year. He also said Mercer had worked in Afghanistan for more than five years. Curry did administrative work, and Mercer worked with children in Kabul, he said.
___Antioch Assistant Pastor Danny Mulkey is in Pakistan to serve as a link between the church and the State Department, Seibert said. He said the church would continue to keep a staff member in the area until the situation is resolved.
___Antioch also has conducted a 24-hour prayer vigil since learning of the women's imprisonment. The church has established an Afghan Crisis Fund to help the two detainees and their families with expenses.
___For more information about the fund or ways to help, call Antioch Community Church at (254) 754-0386.
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