From an article in a British Christian newspaper, Evangelical Times www.evangelical-times.org
| The air strikes by Israel and the United States against Iran have shocked the world and sparked brutal retaliation across the Middle East. The bid to weaken or overturn Tehran’s hardline Islamic regime has reopened an urgent question for churches across the globe: might this moment, however tragic, offer an unexpected opening for religious liberty in Iran — or will it only deepen persecution? Iran is already one of the most difficult places on earth to follow Christ. According to Open Doors UK & Ireland, Iranian believers — especially converts from Islam — live under constant suspicion and risk arrest simply for meeting in house churches. The nation has consistently ranked among the worst offenders against religious freedom. In times of political crisis and unrest, suspicion against Christians intensifies. They may be accused of espionage or foreign interference, and security forces often use vague ‘national security’ charges to justify arrests. Partners on the ground with Open Doors and similar ministries have issued urgent prayer requests. They ask churches around the globe to pray for wisdom for leaders, comfort for suffering families, and protection for believers caught in the crossfire of politics and violence. Their requests reveal an acute awareness that churches in Iran already live under the shadow of oppression. As Iranian Christians themselves have said in confidential testimony shared with partners abroad, they do long for change — not simply of the political leaders, but of a whole system where conversion from Islam to Christianity is treated as a crime. Many view the nationwide unrest that preceded the recent strikes as a popular cry for dignity and freedom, in which Christians participate alongside other Iranians, hoping for a future where all can worship without fear. Yet it would be a mistake for Western Christians to assume that regime change automatically produces religious liberty. History teaches that political upheaval alone does not guarantee freedom of conscience. Christian communities within Iran and across the Middle East have seen countless regimes, boundary lines, and governments come and go — and many still met suppression when the next strongman took power. Christians in Iran are painfully aware of that reality. British-Iranian pastor Pooyan Mehrshahi, of Providence Baptist Chapel in Cheltenham, is himself rooted in the lived experience of this struggle for the gospel in Iran. He has written and spoken many times before, urging believers here to pray first and foremost for their Iranian brothers and sisters in Christ. His testimony is not one of celebration at headlines of war, nor simple hope in regime change — but a sober call for churches to intercede for real people whose daily reality is danger, loss, and uncertainty. Christians are right to pray for peace, justice, and religious liberty in Iran. We should pray that the shaken foundations of a country deeply wounded by decades of repression might, with God’s help, yield a society where believers can worship openly, serve their neighbours without fear, and share the gospel without penalty. At the same time, we must pray with humility, recognising that war does not automatically bend the arc of history toward freedom. Real change — the kind that secures real religious liberty — comes when the hearts of rulers and citizens alike are transformed by the power of Christ. In these perilous days, let churches not be swept up solely in geopolitical debate, but let us stand steadfastly in prayer — for protection, for peace and for the courage of Iran’s faithful, that their witness may endure amid the storms. |