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Before moving to Afghanistan, Cuthbert, 25, said he assumed he would have to be "extremely cautious" about his behavior, especially with regard to patriotic or faith issues. As he packed for the trip, he left out T-shirts with red, white, and blue slogans, thinking they wouldn't be appropriate in the aftermath of an American-led war.

When he went home for vacation a few months ago, the patriotic T-shirts came back with him—as gifts for Afghan friends who accept him as an American and as a Christian.

"We feel like we have a fantastic relationship with the people," Cuthbert said. "They have a real openness to people of other faiths, and the method we have here is to be who we are without apologies, but not in an obnoxious way." He quoted a passage from the book of Daniel about speaking "with wisdom and tact," and called that "an accurate description of how we see ourselves as guests in a foreign culture."

"I was surprised that I was able to speak openly about who I was without being persecuted or shunned by the community," Cuthbert said. "We have no overt evangelical strategy, and yet, at the same time, to be a Christian is to desire others to know. So to deny Christ, in my opinion, is to deny who you are and what you desire."

He said that after being isolated from the rest of the world by decades of war, Afghans are "very curious about the West, and with that comes a curiosity about religion. There's a real openness to discuss anything and everything."

While Cuthbert believes he has a divine mission to work in Kholm—an area that is 100 percent Muslim—he also thinks Afghans value his honesty about his different faith.

"I know that I cannot force someone to believe in Christ, but I also believe it is beneficial for anyone to have at least the opportunity to hear about faiths other than their own."

Cuthbert said the people of Kholm are getting "a chance to see whether the stereotypes they were taught about Christians are true, even in the same way that for me getting to interact with a Muslim is healthy." He said living in Afghanistan hasn't changed his belief system, but it has challenged his preconceptions about Muslims.

"I don't know if this is a reflection of their Islamic faith, but the Afghan people are extremely hospitable," he said.

Graham's critics have suggested that even discussing fundamental Christian beliefs in a Muslim society would be not only divisive, but also proof of a "hidden agenda" on the part of Samaritan's Purse.

But Cuthbert said he's simply being honest about who he is and letting individual Afghans decide if they want to know more about Christianity.

"The community knows who we are as Christians, and we have seen some people asking some very significant, faith-related questions," he said, calling that "a fantastic opportunity" based on the idea of freedom of religion, not coercion.

But some Muslims remain unconvinced. Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Washington, was dismissive when told of the reception Samaritan's Purse has received from people in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"No one ever said that missionaries on occasion don't do good work," he said. "Hey, if I was a hospital director and someone came and gave me supplies, I'd be happy, too. But that person isn't necessarily looking at the big picture."

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November 2003, Vol. 47, No. 11