Iranian church uniting under pressure

The recent violent protests in Iran have only made the church there more united, says one Iranian Christian.

Joseph Hovsepian, whose father Bishop Haik Hovsepian was martyred in Iran in 1994, now lives in the US but remains in contact with friends and family in Iran.

He told Open Doors that Christians there support calls for a complete recount of the disputed presidential election but are too afraid to join in the protests.

"We should not forget that the danger for Christians protesting in Iran is double," said Hovsepian. "If this is how brutally the Iranian government cracks down on its own Muslim protestors who shout 'Alaho Akbar' (God is great), just imagine how much worse it could be for Christians protesting and calling Jesus for help!”

He said the regime was planning a “very hard and merciless” response to the protests within the coming week, while many of the protest leaders have reportedly been arrested.

“People live in fear. The danger could be more for Christians. They have already been persecuted for years.”

Hovsepian remains optimistic, however, that the widespread demonstrations have changed the face of Iran forever.

"I believe the regime cannot be the same anymore. It will certainly change as a result of these protests. I personally hope it will shape towards a better and freer Iran,” he said.

That means change for the church too. Christians, Hovsepian says, are gathering together and praying “that the Lord would make something good come out of this”, especially with regards to the many young people curious to know about a religion other than the Islam that has been imposed on them until now.

“We have seen in the history of the world that during crises and pressures people unite and forget the small difference of opinions. So that is happening to the church in Iran,” he says.

“They see a window of opportunity to share the Gospel with the new generation which is very tired of the dictatorship and the forcing of the Islamic religion on people.

“There is definitely a mixture of excitement, hope and tension. Their hope is in God."

Hovsepian says he has been “very encouraged” to see Christians in the West remembering Iran in their prayers.

"My family and I have been in a very unique, emotional period of time. We wake up and sleep with the news from Iran,” he goes on.

“But we regularly remind ourselves that God is in control. This is what my father would always say when we were worried about him.

Knowing the fact that God sees all of this and is in control definitely helps me, especially during crises."

Seeing video footage of the murder of 26-year-old student Neda Agah-Soltan has brought back difficult memories for Hovsepian of his father’s brutal murder.

His first reaction to her murder was anger and hatred, but now he feels forgiveness for the perpetrators.

“We go back on the road of daily forgiveness. We continue to pray as many did for us [his family] during my father’s martyrdom,” said Hovsepian, who together with his brother Andre directed the award-winning documentary, A Cry From Iran, on the life and death of their father.

Iranian church leader and founder of Elam ministries Sam Yeghnazar has, meanwhile, produced a free prayer guide, Iran 30, to help Christians in the West pray for the church and society in Iran.

“Drugs are an issue, as is depression,” said Yeghnazar, adding that Iranian Christians are “crying out to God against all violence and for deliverance and healing
for the whole nation”.

He said: “They ask the Christians globally to join them in prayer.”

On the web:
To order Iran 30, go to www.elam.com
A Cry From Iran can be ordered from www.acryfromiran.com