BURMA

Ronald Lalthanliana, a key figure in spiritual renewal across Burma for more than fifty years, passed away in late July at the age of 89. The son of the first native missionary to Matipur, an Indian state bordering Burma, Lalthanliana started a ten-person fellowship in 1955 that has planted churches which include more than 18,000 believers. Lalthanliana is remembered for living the gospel that he preached, having been imprisoned without trial for four years under false charges. During that time, he led forty inmates and four policemen to the Lord. He is survived by his wife, six children and over thirty grandchildren and great-grandchildren. (Christian Aid Mission)