Iran

Christians in Iran and the suppression of religious freedom 

The Islamic Republic of Iran borders Pakistan and Afghanistan to the east, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan and Armenia to the north and Turkey and Iraq to the west. A regional superpower. 98.4 percent of the people in Iran are Muslims, of which 90.4 percent are Shia Muslims, the official state religion. Sunni Muslims are primarily found among minority groups such as Kurds, Turkmen and Baluchis. 

Christians in Iran  

Minorities of Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews and other religions. Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism are officially recognized in the constitution as minority religions and have reserved seats in parliament - Christians have two seats. 

The recognized Christians are primarily Armenian Orthodox, followed by the Assyrian Church. There are also small Catholic congregations and new and active Protestant groups. Bahài is an unrecognized minority religion and is perceived as heretical. They are pressured and threatened in the same way as co-religionists from Islam. Young people are denied university education, among other things. 

Pushed out of Iran 

The Shia Muslim regime in Iran is trying to stop the growth of conversions from Islam. Arrests, surveillance and pressure are used. Many are forced out of the country. Some leaders are sentenced to long prison terms. The pressure applies to both members and leaders of both house churches and churches that accept converts, but which were originally churches for the approved ethnic minorities. 

 

The Stefanus Alliance Partners on work in Iran: 

PARS Theological center helps churches 

Iran has one of the strongest Christian revivals in the world today. Pars Theological Center helps underground churches in Iran, which is largely a church that lives in hiding. For many, the only way to worship is by driving around Tehran. 

The church in Iran is in desperate need of well-trained pastors and teachers who can teach the new believers the basics of Christianity. The internet and satellite TV offer new opportunities to reach those behind our barriers in time. 

Pars Theological Center articulates its vision as follows: "To strengthen the theological foundation of the Iranian Church both inside and outside Iran by providing systematic and comprehensive theological education, providing theological resources and networking (fellowship, discussions and collaboration) for Iranian church leaders and theologians". 

The core of the activity is threefold: Theological education, leadership development and spiritual nurturing. The platforms for this are TV and the internet, as well as conferences and mentoring. 

Stefanus Alliance's partner is Pars Theological Center. This is an organization that is entirely Iranian; run by Iranians who see it as their calling to train leaders for the church in Iran. Their vision is "a grounded Persian church, led by leaders who learn from Christ, live like Christ and make disciples for Christ". 

 

ARTICLE 18 

Article18 is a non-profit organisation based in London, dedicated to the protection and promotion of religious freedom in Iran and advocating on behalf of its persecuted Christians.