A Possible Situation Of Exploitation

[beatitude]

The family I used to live with in the Holy Land are in trouble. About a year and a half ago a foreigner introducing himself as a pastor offered to pay for their eldest daughter's education overseas and to let her live with him and his wife. The daughter was desperate to go travelling, and the family was worried about how to afford college for all four of their children, so they said yes. Once she left the country it became increasingly difficult to contact her and her parents became very worried. Now we are hearing some alarming things. She has a Catholic mother and a Greek Orthodox father, and was raised attending both churches. The pastor turns out to be head of a virulently anti-Orthodox/anti-Catholic church. The daughter has converted to that way of life and is being paraded around giving speeches about her escape from her previous life. She is making all sorts of accusations against her family and her society, such as that they would kill her for her conversion. Her parents are heartbroken. She is quite a vulnerable young woman and it seems as though some brainwashing has gone on here - I am wondering if the lack of contact was because the pastor wouldn't give her Internet access - but as she is legally an adult, we don't really know what we can do. She never gives speeches without this pastor at her side and it seems as though it is only possible for people to talk to her through him. Please pray.

Edited April 28, 2014 by beatitude