Republic of Ireland
Total area:
70,273 km2
Population:
4,761,865 (2016)
Literacy:
99%
Official languages:
Irish, English
GDP (PPP) per capita:
$69,231 (2016 est.)
Life expectancy:
80 years
Religions:
87% Catholic, 6% Atheist or Agnostic, 5% Protestant, 1% Muslim, 1% other religions
Prayer points
September - October 2021 World Prayer News - 8. Ireland - Friends International
International students are coming to Ireland from all over the world! It is a wonderful opportunity for local Christians to welcome and share Christ with these visitors. Christian Unions Ireland & Friends International are partnering together to reach international students and to encourage churches and CUs to do the same. Please pray that during their stay, students will meet local Christians, be invited to church and have a chance to hear and respond to the gospel.
(Friends International - September 2021) Reaching the unreached here
Please pray for WEC UK as they strategize how best to engage churches in reaching the 'unreached' in our own country. Pray that WEC would be able to communicate effectively and work with local churches so that they can be empowered and encouraged to bless the unreached people groups in their own neighbourhoods. Pray for the Holy Spirit to guide and direct these plans and to impress the need on people's hearts.
read more here: https://wec-uk.org/stories/neighbours-worldwide [1]
(WEC International - July 2021) WEC Camp Everywhere
Pray for the WEC Camp Online that will be happening for the youth children (9-17) in the UK from 2nd to 6th August. This year it is virtual again. Please pray for the organisation of this event. Especially pray for God to move in their hearts, and that young people would be impacted with the need for Christians to mission to those who have yet to hear about Jesus.
More details here https://www.weccamps.org/ [2]
(WEC International - July 2021) Students in Ireland
Christian Unions Ireland exists to give every student in Ireland an opportunity to respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ. 2020 been a trying year for many, and student ministry workers in Ireland are not exempt. Nevertheless, God’s faithfulness prevails, and we continue to see lives on campuses across our island being transformed for God’s glory. Please pray for Mission Weeks taking place in most CUs during February/March. Pray that the Lord would move mightily to draw people to Himself and Christian students would be brave in inviting their friends to outreach events. Pray for the ‘Uncover Mark’ seeker Bible studies that students across Ireland are doing with non-Christian friends. Pray against the frustration that comes from not being able to meet as normal, and that students will not get fatigued but keep spreading the gospel and being strengthened in God’s Word. Lastly, give thanks for the kindness, prayers and generosity of CUI supporters. Please continue to pray that our abundant Father would supply what we need financially as CUI to continue in the mission He has called us to.
(Christian Unions Ireland - January 2021) Students in Ireland
Pray for the ministry of Christian Unions Ireland (CUI). Pray that God would strengthen the team at CUI to continue reaching their goal: to give every student in Ireland an opportunity to hear and respond to the gospel. Praise God for the online evangelistic events that have drawn non-Christian students from across the island to hear the gospel, and the opportunities He has given to students to witness to non-believing family members whilst being quarantined at home. Pray that God would continue this vital work for His Kingdom and glory, so that more students across Ireland would come to know Him as Lord and King.
(Christian Unions Ireland - September 2020) Building on WEC in Ireland
After many years of recruiting across Ireland, and a short period of Betel ministry in the Dublin area, please pray for the establishing and growth of the work of WEC in the Republic of Ireland. We are looking to establish a legal identity, and integrate this new work with existing activities in Northern Ireland and the UK. We trust the Lord for fruit in the coming months. Pray for the Lord’s favour on all our activities and upon Tony and Joyce, a couple who have wide experience in Guinea-Bissau and Mozambique, and have now returned to settle in Ireland for their girls' schooling.
(WEC International in Ireland - January 2020) Trustees for WEC in Ireland
WEC International leadership are seeking to formally register WEC in the Republic of Ireland. We are needing to recruit individuals currently resident in the Republic, who know WEC well, and have experience of cross-cultural mission, and are passionate to see WEC more effectively recruiting Irish missionaries to reach the unreached, to serve on a new Board of Trustees who will be based in Ireland. If you have some spare time, and this could be you, please contact us.
(WEC International in Ireland - February 2019) Focus on the family
Although Ireland is a 'religious' country, there remains only a small amount of Christian programming on mainstream radio stations. However, recently two commercial radio stations in Ireland unexpectedly asked Focus on the Family in Ireland to produce some family-oriented programmes for airing on their frequencies. Pray that these short 5-minute talks about family-related issues such as 'drug-proofing your kids' and marriage, will have real impact to those listeners.
(Reach Beyond - January 2012) Increasing religious diversity
Until the early 1990s many Irish young people emigrated on finishing their education to find work in the UK and USA. The mid-1990s saw an economic boom, and as a result Ireland is now looking outside its shores for workers. More recently, immigrants and asylum seekers from Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe have exposed the Irish to people of very different customs and faiths. After the partition of Ireland in 1922 into north and south, the protestant population declined from 20% to 3%, through emigration. This left a very monochrome Catholic culture, where effectively to be Irish was to be Catholic. Over the last 30 years allegiance to the Catholic Church has been declining, although it is still very strong compared with other parts of Europe. Despite the minority status of evangelical believers, statistics provided by the Evangelical Alliance in Ireland revealed that the number of evangelical congregations in Ireland had grown from less than 150 in 1980 to over 400 in 2005.
(European Christian Mission - July 2010)