SAT-7 UK Advent Prayer Day 1
Iran
COUNTRY PROFILE
It is striking that Cyrus
the Great, the founder of
the first Persian Empire,
was the ruler who allowed
the Jews to return from
exile and who drafted a
declaration of religious
tolerance that was unprecedented in the
ancient world. In modern times, Iran signed
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
in 1948 and is also, in theory, committed
to religious freedom. The reality is very
different. In fact, Iran seeks to enforce its
interpretations of Shia Islam on almost all of
its population.
• Four decades since the Iranian revolution have
seen a move of God that has resulted in one of the
fastest growing churches in the world. Research
suggests that Iran has over one million Christians –
even though they must mostly meet in secret.
• Christians who are active in witness face arrest,
loss of employment, loss of their own or their
children’s education, imprisonment, internal exile
and crippling fines, as authorities seek to stem the
growth of the Iranian Church.
• Many converts have left Iran in order to be free
to practise their faith and there is a rapidly growing
diaspora Christian community.
DECEMBER 1
AUTHORITIES
The Iranian authorities clamp down hard on any
form of perceived dissent from the country’s Islamic
regime. In September, protests broke out in Iran
following the death of a young woman in police
custody, detained for allegedly not wearing the
hijab properly. Under the slogan “Women. Life.
Freedom”, young women courageously removed
and set fire to their headscarves, inspiring protests
in many parts of the country, as well as in the U.S.
and Europe. People of diverse religious, ethnic and
cultural backgrounds came together on the streets
in condemnation of police and regime brutality. At
the time of writing, over 200 people – including
a number of schoolgirls – had been killed in the
crackdown by the authorities against the protesters.
Pray for peace and justice for Iranians, and that
restrictions on freedoms there will be lifted.