Kaghazi in Bangladesh

Introduction / History

The Kaghazis are a small Muslim community living in southwestern Bangladesh. They speak Bengali.

What Are Their Lives Like?

They probably blend in well with others, being that they are Muslim and speak Bengali. It s possible that they were once involved with processing paper.

Family life is essential to the Kaghazis. They work together, depend on one another for work, and for emotional needs. Families are male-dominated. The eldest male has the most decision-making power, although older women also wield significant influence. The family usually arranges marriages to protect their interests.

What Are Their Beliefs?

The Kaghazis are Sunni Muslims who believe that the supreme God, Allah, spoke through his prophet, Mohammed, and taught mankind how to live a righteous life through the Koran and the Hadith. To live a righteous life, you must utter the Shahada (a statement of faith), pray five times a day facing Mecca, fast from sunup to sundown during the month of Ramadan, give alms to the poor, and make a pilgrimage to Mecca if you have the means. Muslims are prohibited from drinking alcohol, eating pork, gambling, stealing, slandering and making idols. They gather for corporate prayer on Friday afternoons at a mosque, their place of worship.

The two main holidays for Sunni Muslims are Eid al Fitr, the breaking of the monthly fast and Eid al Adha, the celebration of Abraham s willingness to sacrifice his son to Allah.

Sunni religious practices are staid and simple. They believe that Allah has pre-determined our fates; they minimize free will.

In most of the Muslim world, people depend on the spirit world for their daily needs since they regard Allah as too distant. Allah may determine their eternal salvation, but the spirits determine how well we live in our daily lives. For that reason, they must appease the spirits. They often use charms and amulets to help them with spiritual forces.

What Are Their Needs?

These people need to put their hope and identity in the King of kings and Lord of lords.

Prayer Points

Pray for workers to go to the Kaghazis people, and for their hearts to be ready to receive the only savior.
Pray for families of believers loving and serving others to grow reproducing churches.
Pray for a chain reaction of families reaching families that results in thousands of new believers who share their faith with others.
Pray for the expansion of grace and truth throughout their entire society as all believers learn to love one another.

Text Source:   Joshua Project