Belgium: The Red Devils

By: Guadalupe Muñoa Ocampo

The Red Devils easily led their Euro Cup group with no defeats, earning themselves a direct ticket to the 2022 World Cup. They arrived in Qatar in high spirits, motivated to excel by their recent incredible performance. Even with a golden generation of stars, they haven’t managed to bring home a World Cup title yet; in fact, the last time they claimed a gold medal was at the 1920 Antwerp Olympic Games. Belgium travels to Qatar looking to fight for the World Cup with star player Kevin De Bruyne’s help. They were a part of Group F alongside Canada, Morocco, and Croatia — a group in which there are no world champions.

Belgium has beautiful plains, coasts, hills, and forests, also boasting an important cultural legacy, with magnificent castles and imposing monumental buildings; main cities like Brussels, Bruges, Antwerp, and Ghent are all preserved medieval style. A highly industrialized country, its economy is very diverse, with transportation, manufacturing, metals, diamonds, technology, etc. Characterized by its export capacity, Belgium is a place where goods are always in transit, especially in Antwerp, which is the largest port in Europe. Its official languages are Dutch, French and German. Folklore and local celebrations play important roles in their culture: among them are parades like the procession of giants and dragons and the Binche carnival. Belgian gastronomy stands out for its typical dishes, including steamed clams with fried potatoes, rabbit with rum sauce, and chocolate.

Belgium is a country with religious freedom; so much so, that the government allocates funding support to main religions like Roman Catholicism, which makes up 54% of the population. In recent years, the number of believers has decreased in the nation. Evangelical Protestant and other Christians make up 6% of the country, Muslims make up 7%, 31% conform to “no religion”, and others make up 2% of the population.

Let’s pray that God would send workers to take the gospel to these people who still do not know Jesus Christ, and to bring a revival of the Holy Spirit to those who have recently withdrawn from the Evangelical Church. Let us give thanks for the support that the government gives to the religious denominations, and may God continue to provide what is necessary for the expansion of His gospel, guiding the authorities of this country.