Free Republic

Iran claims to allow the country’s Christian minority to practice its faith in peace. The reality for many Iranian Christians, however, is plagued by whippings, arrests, imprisonment, surveillance and harassment, according to a February report from the religious freedom NGO Article 18. One shocking finding of the Article 18 40-page study, titled "Faceless Victims: Rights Violations Against Christians in Iran," states, "By the end of 2023, at least 17 of the Christians arrested during the summer had received prison sentences of between three months and five years, or non-custodial punishments such as fines, flogging, and in one case the community-service...

Reps. Randy Hultgren (R., Ill.) and James McGovern (D., Mass.) want answers from the Trump administration about the reasons behind a Department of Homeland Security decision to deny refugee status in the United States for dozens of Iranian Christians and other Iranian religious minorities. The congressman, co-chairs of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, on Tuesday said they are disappointed that DHS has denied asylum to a large percentage of a group of roughly 100 Iranians fleeing religious persecution in Iran. Roughly 76 to 80 members of the group, which is largely Christian but also includes Zoroastrians, Andeans, and at...

Hundreds of thousands of Christians are worshiping secretly in a rapidly accelerating house church movement in Iran, as a London-based theological center is aiding the movement by training the next generation of its spiritual leaders. The Iranian government labels Christianity as a threat to the nation's Islamic identity and imprisons over 100 Christians for worshiping Christ. Such crackdowns on faith, however, have not prevented Iranian house churches from blossoming into a movement too big for the Iranian religious police to contain. Some estimates, such as one provided by Open Doors USA, record as many as 450,000 practicing Christians in Iran,...

At least eight people remained missing Saturday, August 15, after Iranian security forces raided a gathering of new Christian converts in the city of Karaj as part of a wider crackdown on house churches in Iran, well-informed Christians told BosNewsLife. As many as 15 plain-clothes officers invaded the house church in Karaj, 50 kilometers (31 miles) west of Tehran, during an August 7 worship service. Not all names of those detained during the service were immediately available or shared for security reasons but Mohabat News, an agency of Christians and activists, said believers Esmayeel Fallahi, Nematollah Yousefi, Shahin Bashiri, Mona...

One of the few Iranian churches still serving Christians who are not from minority ethnic groups—and are therefore more likely to be converts from Islam—reportedly has told these Farsi-speaking believers that they are no longer welcome. The announcement at St. Peter Church in Tehran, reported by the independent Iranian Christian news agency Mohabat News, is the latest in a stepped-up campaign by the regime aimed at curbing the growth of Christianity in Iran, especially among former Muslims. Mohabat News said churches in Iran are coming under pressure to stop all activities in Farsi, including sermons. Critics say that despite the...

Iranian police, termed “Iran’s Gestapo” by a Christian news site, has arrested between 100 and 400 Christians and thrown them into prisons. Firouz Khandjani, a council member of the 'Church of Iran' house church movement, told the Christian BosNewsLife website, "We have learned that at least 100, but perhaps as many as 400 people, have been detained over the last 10 days.” He said massive arrests of men and women included the break-up of church services held by evangelical Christians in three cities, including Tehran. "We know that many have been forced to say they will no longer attend church...

There is mounting concern about reported massive arrests of Christians in Iran. Massive arrests of evangelical Protestant Christians, including many former Muslims, are reported in Iran, with men and women being dragged to prisons across the Islamic nation. "We have learned that at least 100, but perhaps as many as 400 people, have been detained over the last 10 days," ... Speaking from an undisclosed location, he told BosNewsLife late Saturday, October 13, that forces of the feared intelligence service, who he called "Iran's Gestapo", broke up worship services in Esfehan, Shiraz and Tehran areas. "They are of several movements....

Growth of Christianity in Iran Explosive Faith issues/Open Doors The number of Muslims coming to Christ from Islam – often called Muslim Background Believers (MBBs) or Secret Believers – is growing faster and faster in Iran. In fact, according to Open Doors’ Middle East workers, the growth is “explosive.” They even speak of a revival inside Iran, especially among young people. Forty years ago an estimated 200 Muslim Background Believers were living in Iran. Today the estimation is 370,000 MBBs. According to Open Doors, the house church movement has triggered many secret meetings. The growth is happening in all regions,...