Scripture for
meditation: Psalm 143:3-4, 9
For the enemy has persecuted my soul; He has crushed my
life to the ground; He has made me dwell in dark places, like those who have
long been dead. Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me; My heart is
appalled within me. Deliver me, O LORD, from my enemies; I take refuge in You.
Iranian Christians
Face Government Persecution
Posted by aquinas
on 2/21/12 • Categorized as Faith
Iranian Christians
Face Government Persecution
Posted by aquinas on 2/21/12 • Categorized as Faith
Iranian Christians remain cautious about the practice of
their faith as officials raided another house-church and arrested six to ten
members of the congregation Feb. 8. Church-houses are used for Christians to
secretly come together and worship God.
The identity of only one of those arrested Feb. 8, Mojtaba Hosseini, is known. Authorities arrested Hosseini in 2008, along with eight other Christian converts, on charges of being Christians, according to Mohabat News. “I guess they have been watching Hosseini since then,” an Iranian Christian said. Although Christianity along with Judaism and Zoroastrianism, is an officially recognized religion in Iran, Christian groups frequently face disadvantages. Religious institutions, including schools, hospitals and churches, need to be owned and managed by a Muslim, for example. Authorities have prohibited musical worship and Bible distribution at the Central Church of Tehran, the largest and most visible Assemblies of God church in the country. Last December, officials enforced a policy under which only invited guests could attend a Christmas service at the church, and in December 2009 the church succumbed to intense pressure by authorities to discontinue its Friday services, which had attracted the most converts to Christianity. Before the Iranian revolution, nearly four times as many Christians lived within the country. Now, however, Christians make up less than one percent of total population of Iran. Christians who stayed practiced their faith in their home. This practice arose because non-Christian Iranians often persecute Christians. Many of these atrocities are accounted in The Voice of the Martyrs, a website created to reveal the problems Iranian Christians face. “The church is exploding in terms of numbers, but it is coming with a price. The people are arrested, they’re harassed, they’re persecuted, in some cases they are beaten severely. It is not an easy pathway,” Todd Nettleton, a member of Voice of the Martyrs, said.
The identity of only one of those arrested Feb. 8, Mojtaba Hosseini, is known. Authorities arrested Hosseini in 2008, along with eight other Christian converts, on charges of being Christians, according to Mohabat News. “I guess they have been watching Hosseini since then,” an Iranian Christian said. Although Christianity along with Judaism and Zoroastrianism, is an officially recognized religion in Iran, Christian groups frequently face disadvantages. Religious institutions, including schools, hospitals and churches, need to be owned and managed by a Muslim, for example. Authorities have prohibited musical worship and Bible distribution at the Central Church of Tehran, the largest and most visible Assemblies of God church in the country. Last December, officials enforced a policy under which only invited guests could attend a Christmas service at the church, and in December 2009 the church succumbed to intense pressure by authorities to discontinue its Friday services, which had attracted the most converts to Christianity. Before the Iranian revolution, nearly four times as many Christians lived within the country. Now, however, Christians make up less than one percent of total population of Iran. Christians who stayed practiced their faith in their home. This practice arose because non-Christian Iranians often persecute Christians. Many of these atrocities are accounted in The Voice of the Martyrs, a website created to reveal the problems Iranian Christians face. “The church is exploding in terms of numbers, but it is coming with a price. The people are arrested, they’re harassed, they’re persecuted, in some cases they are beaten severely. It is not an easy pathway,” Todd Nettleton, a member of Voice of the Martyrs, said.
BY ANDREW MILEWSKI Faith Editor (http://aquinas.jlcclients.com/iranian-christians-face-government-persecution/)
Prayer: Prayer to
St. Michael, the Archangel
St. Michael the archangel, defend us in battle. Be our
protection against the wickedness and snare of the devil. May God rebuke him we
humbly pray, and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the divine power of
God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits, who prowl about the world,
seeking the ruin of souls. Amen
My thoughts; When
we live in the relative comfort of freedom, we really don’t stop to think about
the rest of the world. Today we see that just trying to be a practicing Christian
can have grave consequences in countries such as Iran. Let us never take our
religious freedom for granted, and let us pray fervently for that freedom to
reach around the world. Jesus Christ – set the captives free.
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