[DariushPetresku]

Urgent Action : Maryam Rostampour (f), aged 27, Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad (f), aged 30, Iranian Christians


MDE 13/030/2009 - UA 95/09

Two members of the Christian community in Iran, Maryam Rostampour and Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad were arrested on 5 March 2009 by members of the security forces in Tehran. In a telephone call on 28 March Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad said that they are both suffering from an infection and high fever and have not received adequate medical attention. They remain detained without charge at Evin Prison in a overcrowded cell with 27 other women. Maryam Rostampour and Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad may be prisoners of conscience, detained solely on account of their religious beliefs. Amnesty International is concerned for the women's health.

Maryam Rostampour and Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad have been participating in religious gatherings and handing out Bibles. On 5 March, one of the two women was summoned to appear at the office of the Ministry of Intelligence from where she was taken to the apartment they both shared. They were then both arrested on 5 March by members of the security forces and their personal belongings, computers, books, including Bibles, were confiscated from their home. Maryam Rostampour and Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad were interrogated and held in several police stations before appearing before Branch 2 of the Revolutionary Court in Tehran on 18 March. They were then taken to Evin Prison where they have remained since.

Maryam Rostampour and Marzieh Amirizadeh Esmaeilabad have not been afforded a lawyer. However they have been allowed to receive family visits once a week and to make a one-minute daily telephone call. The women's families were told that they would be released on a US$ 400,000 bail and that they are accused of “acting against state security” and “taking part in illegal gatherings. The families presented the title deeds of their homes. This however, has not yet been accepted by the judge handling the cases.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Although Christianity is a recognized religion in Iran, evangelical Christians, some of whom have converted from Islam, often face harassment by the authorities. Converts from Islam can risk arrest, attack or the death penalty. Conversion from Islam (apostasy) is considered as forbidden under Islamic Law, which requires apostates to be put to death if they refuse to reconvert to Islam. There is no specific provision in the Iranian Penal Code for apostasy, but judges are required to use their knowledge of Islamic Law to rule on cases where no specific legislation exists in the Penal Code.

A new version of the Iranian Penal Code is currently under consideration by the Majles (Parliament) and prescribes the death penalty for those considered to be apostates.

Article 23 of the Iranian Constitution states: “The investigation of individuals' beliefs is forbidden, and no one may be molested or taken to task simply for holding a certain belief.” Article 18 (1) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Iran is a state party, states: “Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right shall include freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching.”


http://www.isavelives.be/en/node/3401

[Liabmeasez]

Sadly, this is hardly out-of-the-ordinary in majority-Muslim countries. While in the US, there is much handwringing about the (phantom) menace of anti-Muslim discrimination, Christians are persecuted on a daily basis in such places, and it's pretty much ignored.

God will reward them for their suffering. I will pray for their earthly deliverance.

[wepoiyub]

12 Christian families to be judged these days in Afghanistan. They need our prayers.

[DariushPetresku]

12 Christian families to be judged these days in Afghanistan. They need our prayers.

I'm really confused and don't know what to do.....is this world real or is it a dream?

[Pasy]

Sadly, this is just the tip of the iceberg concerning the persecution of Christians in Muslim countries.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LK8-4SO63Q

[name="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1LK8-4SO63Q
"]YouTube - Muslims Behead four Christians[name]

[jeaccatty]

There are no end to "horror stories" no matter what religion is involved. I allowed the original post as it provided an opportunity to prayer, however, this thread should not devolve into a "moslem bashing" event. Also, please note that if you are going to cite a valid news story please include a source. Merely saying that 12 Christian families are going to be judged in Afghanistan without any verification or background is nothing but unsubstantiated gossip.

I'm as upset as anyone about the persecution of Christians - no matter at whose hands - but I also think that it is important to be "wise as serpents" not accepting every horror story that comes our way, so that we might also be "innocent as doves".

Fr David Moser

[Liabmeasez]

Father, bless:

In all charity, the simple fact of the matter is that persecution of Christians is taking place, and it is taking place within majority Muslim countries. It is taking place at the hands of Muslims, and it is taking place precisely because those being persecuted are Christians and not Muslims. The story that was cited at the outset of this thread wasn't gossip. It simply is.

If it is Muslim-bashing to state facts, I don't know how we can come to terms with the reality of the oppression Christians are faced with.

In Christ,
Evan

[wepoiyub]

Merely saying that 12 Christian families are going to be judged in Afghanistan without any verification or background is nothing but unsubstantiated gossip

I agree with you, father, and forgive me for the missing source; in fact, it was nothing more than a sms received from one of our bishops abroad; therefore, me for myself,I did not need any other evidence, because I trust him as a reliable source; but, of course, I have no written evidence, no other source to cite; however, being a request for prayer, I thought it may help

[popsicesHoupe]

In all charity, the simple fact of the matter is that persecution of Christians is taking place, and it is taking place within majority Muslim countries. It is taking place at the hands of Muslims, and it is taking place precisely because those being persecuted are Christians and not Muslims. The story that was cited at the outset of this thread wasn't gossip. It simply is.

If it is Muslim-bashing to state facts, I don't know how we can come to terms with the reality of the oppression Christians are faced with.

Evan,

I think the point is that focusing on the particular role or motivations of the instigators of oppression, really takes us beyond what the forum is here for. Yes, Muslim oppression of Christians is a reality. Atheist oppression of Christians is also a reality. I don't know that the particular identity or motives of the oppressors is something we need to explore fully before being able to pray. Else, we may start to focus with anger on the oppressor rather than with compassion on the oppressed, and so hinder our prayers.

I also think Fr David was not saying, necessarily, that the thread had devolved into "moslem bashing", but rather that the way the posts were beginning to trend indicated a danger of that, which he wanted to head off before it began (fires are always easier to put out before they get burning).

In Christ,
Michael

[Liabmeasez]

Evan,

I think the point is that focusing on the particular role or motivations of the instigators of oppression, really takes us beyond what the forum is here for. Yes, Muslim oppression of Christians is a reality. Atheist oppression of Christians is also a reality. I don't know that the particular identity or motives of the oppressors is something we need to explore fully before being able to pray. Else, we may start to focus with anger on the oppressor rather than with compassion on the oppressed, and so hinder our prayers.

I also think Fr David was not saying, necessarily, that the thread had devolved into "moslem bashing", but rather that the way the posts were beginning to trend indicated a danger of that, which he wanted to head off before it began (fires are always easier to put out before they get burning).

In Christ,
Michael

Michael,

This is fair. Perhaps the particular academic environment I am currently in, which is rigorously "politically correct" at the expense of objective truth, has made me overly sensitive to claims of Muslim-bashing. You are quite right that the identity of the oppressors is not relevant to our prayer intentions, and we must not only pray for the deliverance of the oppressed but the conversion of the hearts of the oppressors.

In Christ,
Evan

[Liabmeasez]

Let us continue to pray for those being persecuted in Christ's name. This is from WorldNetDaily.

After millions of prayers and numerous petitions from around the world, two Iranian women jailed for no other reason than being Christian were released from a Tehran prison today. Maryam Rustampoor, 27, and Marzieh Amirizadeh, 30, were imprisoned for 259 days - since March 5. They were repeatedly told to recant their faith and that they would be executed as "apostates," solely because they are Christians.
But now Open Doors USA has confirmed the women have been released from the notorious Evin prison with no bail, a rarity for Christians released from prison in Iran. [...]
Compass Direct News noted that the women may still face charges of proselytizing and "apostasy," or leaving Islam.
An Iranian source told Compass the Iranian government faced intense public pressure for imprisoning the women.
"It was from the international pressure, and also the government couldn't handle it anymore," said the source. "Already their detention was illegal. At the same time, the government wasn't ready to prosecute them for apostasy. They already have many headaches. They cannot handle everything."
According to Facebook groups that support the women, Rustampoor and Amirizadeh had been participating in religious gatherings and handing out Bibles prior to their detention. Iranian security officials searched their apartments in March, confiscated their Bibles and arrested them.
As WND reported, Rustampoor and Amirizadeh appeared before a court in Iran and were charged with "crimes of apostasy, and propagation of the Christian faith." In a display of raw courage, they told a government prosecutor that not only are they Christian, it is up to God, not a bureaucrat, to whom He talks.
According to Elam, a dramatic part of the hearing came when they refused to deny their Christian faith.
They explained that God had convicted them through the Holy Spirit.
"It is impossible for God to speak with humans," Haddad, a deputy prosecutor identified only by his surname, stated.
"Are you questioning whether God is Almighty?" Amirizadeh asked him.
To which Haddad then replied. "You are not worthy for God to speak to you."
"It is God, and not you, who determines if I am worthy," she said.
Haddad earlier had asked if the women were Christian.
"We love Jesus," they replied.
"You were Muslims and now you have become Christians," Haddad stated.
"We were born in Muslim families, but we were not Muslims," the women said.
The deputy prosecutor asked about their regrets, and they said, "We have no regrets."
"You should renounce your faith verbally and in written form," he warned.
They refused....


What courage. May God grant us this steadfastness in the face of evildoers, who know not what they do.

[Rategbee]

Glory to God!

"Iran has acquitted "on all charges" two young women who were detained fourteen months ago "for their Christian faith and activities" and abandoning Islam, Iranian church officials confirmed Sunday, May 23."

A blessed Pentecost for these two brave Christians.

More here.