Arabic ministry in São Paulo: Beyond Borders workshops spark renewed interest

“My time in São Paulo was unlike anything I had experienced before,” says Pastor Moheb Nasr of his week as part of a Beyond Borders trip to Brazil. Beyond Borders is the refugee ministry of TeachBeyond that brings transformational education to those who are displaced. “I truly believe it was a divine invitation, an opportunity orchestrated by God. After 25 years of ministry across North Africa, Europe, and the Middle East, I did not expect Brazil to stand out in such a profound way.”

Pastor Moheb was born in Egypt, grew up in Brazil and for the last 6 years has lived in Canada. He is now the Missions and Marriage/Family pastor at Anchor Point Church, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

From March 1-8 Clessios Cordeiro, National Coordinator for Beyond Borders Brazil and Moheb met with APRISCO and Compassiva, 2 organizations that work with refugees. In recent years there has been a large influx to Brazil of Arabic speaking people, both Muslim and Christian. Moheb led 2 days of seminars for those interested in learning more about reaching out to these new immigrants. Between 50-60 people attended the event held at Bethel Seminary. “The 2-day event was a real encouragement to us,” said one of the participants. Moheb also led a workshop at APRISCO which was open to anyone interested.

Among the most recent wave of refugees are many who experienced persecution for their Christian faith. With an estimated 11.6 million Arabic speakers¹, Brazil has one of the largest concentrations in the world, yet there is only 1 Arabic speaking church in the largest city of São Paulo. “We realize we are being called to reconnect and evangelize (this large unreached group)” said the pastor of that 1 church.

Moheb reflects, “Culturally, I found the people of São Paulo to be surprisingly similar to Egyptians. There is a shared warmth, a deep sense of community and common values that made me feel at home despite the distance.

“Looking back, every meeting, every connection, and every opportunity felt divinely appointed,” Moheb said. It turns out that someone he met in Brazil, their pastor and Moheb had met back in 2012 in Cairo, Egypt. In fact, that pastor even had a picture of the 2 playing soccer at his church! “That moment was deeply joyful and humbling, a reminder of how God weaves connections across nations and years.

 “It was not just a trip,” he notes. “It was a powerful reminder that God is at work in ways beyond our understanding, bringing people together across cultures and continents for His purpose.”