- Home
- Speakers
- Paul Hattaway
- Unreached Peoples: The Tajik People Of Central Asia
Unreached Peoples: The Tajik People of Central Asia
Paul Hattaway
Paul Hattaway (birth year unknown–present). Born in New Zealand, Paul Hattaway is a Christian missionary, author, and founder of Asia Harvest, a ministry dedicated to equipping Asian churches to reach unreached people groups. Leaving home at 16, he faced homelessness in Australia, sleeping on a public bathroom roof, until a factory worker’s witness led him to faith. In 1988, he arrived in Hong Kong with $50, a backpack, and a call to serve China, smuggling hundreds of Bibles across the border. Founding Asia Harvest in the early 1990s, he has supported over 1,500 indigenous missionaries, provided over 20 million Bibles in 140 Asian languages, and aided persecuted believers through funds like the Asian Workers’ Fund and Persecution & Relief Fund. His preaching, rooted in personal testimonies of God’s provision, inspires global audiences at conferences and churches. Hattaway authored books like An Asian Harvest (2017), The Heavenly Man (2002, about Brother Yun), and Operation China (2000), documenting revival and unreached tribes. Married, though family details are private, he operates from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with offices in Australia, the UK, Germany, and Malaysia. He said, “God’s call is not to comfort but to obedience, no matter the cost.”
Download
Topic
Sermon Summary
This sermon focuses on the history, culture, and people of the Tajik community in Central Asia, highlighting their resilience, unique heritage, and warm hospitality. It explores their ancient roots, cultural expressions through poetry, music, and art, as well as the diversity within the Tajik population across different countries. The sermon emphasizes the importance of friendship, hospitality, and unity among the Tajik people despite their varied political, religious, and economic circumstances.
Sermon Transcription
Oh Tajik people, oh people of grief, tears in their eyes like orphans, anger on their lips like captives. Alexander the Great, Arabs, Genghis Khan, the Soviet Union. Great empires bent on conquest have made Central Asia their crossroads. As outcasts, as strangers in a forgotten corner of the earth, they wept alone. The Tajiks of Central Asia can trace their culture back to the fourth century before Christ. They are the oldest surviving people group in Central Asia. With this history comes a richness of culture demonstrated in their poetry, music, painting, and especially the warmth of the people. Today you are welcome. He who is a friend should be in touch. His actions should show it. A friend is the key to the treasure of hope. Tajik women are known for their colorful dresses. Men wear the traditional toki hat and in some cases a heavy quilted coat called a chapan. It's impossible to visit a Tajik home without being invited to share tea and conversation. And your visit is likely to be an excuse for a generous meal of ash, a national dish prepared in every home. Interestingly, Tajiks are not related to the many Turkic peoples in Central Asia, the Uzbeks, Kazakhs, the Kyrgyz, but are related to the peoples of Iran. Likewise, the Tajik language is a dialect of modern Persian. Large numbers of Tajiks are spread throughout Central Asia, including Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and even into Western China. There are about 11 million Tajiks in Central Asia. Though they are joined by language and culture, their political, religious, and economic lives can be very different. For more information, visit www.fema.gov
Unreached Peoples: The Tajik People of Central Asia
- Bio
- Summary
- Transcript
- Download
Paul Hattaway (birth year unknown–present). Born in New Zealand, Paul Hattaway is a Christian missionary, author, and founder of Asia Harvest, a ministry dedicated to equipping Asian churches to reach unreached people groups. Leaving home at 16, he faced homelessness in Australia, sleeping on a public bathroom roof, until a factory worker’s witness led him to faith. In 1988, he arrived in Hong Kong with $50, a backpack, and a call to serve China, smuggling hundreds of Bibles across the border. Founding Asia Harvest in the early 1990s, he has supported over 1,500 indigenous missionaries, provided over 20 million Bibles in 140 Asian languages, and aided persecuted believers through funds like the Asian Workers’ Fund and Persecution & Relief Fund. His preaching, rooted in personal testimonies of God’s provision, inspires global audiences at conferences and churches. Hattaway authored books like An Asian Harvest (2017), The Heavenly Man (2002, about Brother Yun), and Operation China (2000), documenting revival and unreached tribes. Married, though family details are private, he operates from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with offices in Australia, the UK, Germany, and Malaysia. He said, “God’s call is not to comfort but to obedience, no matter the cost.”