CHRISTIANS IN IRAN: The Ayatollahs fear home churches
CHRISTIANS IN IRAN: The Ayatollahs fear home churches
By Marco Tosatti
http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/inquiries-and-interviews/detail/articolo/iran-iran-iran-24046/
April 14, 2013
ROME - The phenomenon of Christians worshipping at home concerns the regime and the number of arrests for converting from Islam to Christianity has increased
The government of Tehran is launching a new offensive against the so-called home churches, small groups of Christians who meet in private houses to celebrate their faith because they cannon join the Churches officially recognised (and controlled) by the State, Iranian Christian news agency Mohabat reports. Khorasan, a government journal has published a long statement by Bahman Amiri Moghaddam, chief of police for the Khorasa-Ravi province, in which he says security forces "had taken care of a group of people that had formed a network of home churches in Mashhad and will prosecute all people involved."
The names of the people arrested have not been published. According to the chief of police, their activity involves "promoting superstitions and corrupt beliefs during their evening meetings. They bewitch young people and lure them towards their faith with their polite ways." Mohabat reports that the aim of the news is to provoke but also to create alarm start a sort of witch hunt in response to a phenomenon which is clearly causing concern among leaders.
Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org
By Marco Tosatti
http://vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/inquiries-and-interviews/detail/articolo/iran-iran-iran-24046/
April 14, 2013
ROME - The phenomenon of Christians worshipping at home concerns the regime and the number of arrests for converting from Islam to Christianity has increasedThe government of Tehran is launching a new offensive against the so-called home churches, small groups of Christians who meet in private houses to celebrate their faith because they cannon join the Churches officially recognised (and controlled) by the State, Iranian Christian news agency Mohabat reports. Khorasan, a government journal has published a long statement by Bahman Amiri Moghaddam, chief of police for the Khorasa-Ravi province, in which he says security forces "had taken care of a group of people that had formed a network of home churches in Mashhad and will prosecute all people involved."
The names of the people arrested have not been published. According to the chief of police, their activity involves "promoting superstitions and corrupt beliefs during their evening meetings. They bewitch young people and lure them towards their faith with their polite ways." Mohabat reports that the aim of the news is to provoke but also to create alarm start a sort of witch hunt in response to a phenomenon which is clearly causing concern among leaders.
Read the full story at www.VirtueOnline.org
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