April 14, 2009

The threatening environment facing Christians in Iran continues to worsen. That’s saying something, considering Christians there have faced incredibly hostile responses for a long time.

In 1994, Joseph Hovsepian was living with his family in Iran when his father, the Rev. Haik Hovsepian, was executed by the government for what was described as anti-government operations.

In reality, Haik Hovsepian was martyred for his Christian views in a country where Christianity continues to grow at a rate that alarms Islamic officials.

Joseph Hovsepian left Iran soon after his father’s death, finally settling in California. But while he has not actually set foot in his native country in almost 15 years, he remains in close contact with members of the Assemblies of God church he once attended, and with house church worshipers from across Iran.

“There is worry and spiritual warfare for every Christian living in Iran,” Joseph said. “It is part of the package and you can’t ignore that. Once you become a follower of Jesus that is one of the first boxes you have to make sure you pick ... or you’re going to be living a heathen Christian life.”

The good news is that churches continue to unite against forces that apply a constant pressure not to share Christ outside the church/home walls.

“The churches are very much united, because division is the last thing you need at times of tension and pressure and torture,” he said.

At the same time, the Iranian Parliament is considering a bill that would require the death penalty for apostates, those who leave the Islamic faith.

Paul Estabrooks, Minister-At-Large for Open Doors International, says the crackdown on Christians in Iran is happening because the church is growing so quickly. The ranks of Christians have swelled from about 100,000 a decade ago to 300,000 today.

“And that’s just the official number. But we know there are more,” said Estabrooks, who said the number is intentionally downsized to help insure the safety of those living in Iran.

“The government is aware that the house church movement has grown dramatically, especially among younger people. And this disturbs them,” Estabrooks said. “I’ve been to Iran twice and have found many people frustrated and ready to give up on Islam because they’ve become disillusioned. But they don’t know of a viable alternative, because of the mosque.”

Daily prayers and sermons in Iranian mosques typically paint Western Christians as wild, characterizing Christianity in the United States as what is seen on TV.

“They say, ‘You want to know what Christianity is? Watch American television. It’s the real fruit of Christianity, full of immorality and excessive everything,’ ” Estabrooks said.

Open Doors tracks the hatred and distrust of Christianity internationally, assigning rankings to the most dangerous spots for Christians to practice their faith. For the past seven years Iran ranked third behind No. 2 Saudi Arabia and No. 1 North Korea. In January, Iran moved into a tie for second with Saudi Arabia.