Iran Sentences Five Christians to 50 Years in Prison for Prayer and Bible Sharing as Islamic Regime Intensifies Persecution
Five Christians in Iran have been sentenced to a combined 50 years in prison for the crimes of praying together and sharing Bibles, marking another escalation in the Islamic regime's systematic persecution of believers who refuse to abandon their faith.
The believers were convicted under charges related to acting against national security and promoting Christianity, accusations the Iranian government routinely uses to justify imprisonment of Christians engaging in basic religious practices including prayer, Bible study, and evangelism. Each of the five faces a decade in prison for activities that constitute fundamental religious expression protected under international human rights law.
Iranian authorities classify Christian gatherings, particularly house churches where converts from Islam worship, as threats to the Islamic Republic requiring criminal prosecution. The regime views evangelism and conversion from Islam to Christianity as acts of sedition deserving severe punishment including lengthy prison sentences, torture, and in some cases execution.
The five sentenced Christians join hundreds of other believers currently imprisoned in Iran for their faith, facing brutal conditions in facilities known for torture, denial of medical care, and systematic abuse designed to force renunciations of Christianity. Many imprisoned Christians report beatings, prolonged solitary confinement, and threats against their families as tactics to coerce apostasy.
Iranian persecution of Christians has intensified in recent years as the regime faces internal instability and views Christian growth, particularly among Muslim background believers, as a threat to Islamic authority.
House churches have proliferated despite government crackdowns, with estimates suggesting hundreds of thousands of Iranians have converted to Christianity in recent decades.
The sentences demonstrate Iran's refusal to recognize religious freedom for Christians, treating prayer and Bible distribution as criminal acts warranting imprisonment. International religious freedom advocates have repeatedly condemned Iran's persecution of Christians, though the regime continues systematic oppression with minimal international consequences.
THE CRUSADER'S OPINION
Fifty years. For praying and sharing Bibles.
Iran sentenced five Christians to a decade each for practicing their faith.
This is Islam applied consistently. Christianity is a crime. Conversion from Islam is sedition. Prayer is national security threat.
And the world barely notices because persecuting Christians doesn't generate the outrage that persecuting other groups does.
These five believers knew the risk. Prayed anyway. Shared Scripture anyway. Chose Christ over freedom.
While Western Christians debate comfortable theology, Iranian believers go to prison for a decade because they won't deny Jesus.
That's the difference between persecution and preferences.
Iran has hundreds of Christians in prison right now. Fifty years is just the latest sentence in ongoing genocide against believers who won't submit to Islamic supremacy.
TAKE ACTION
Advocate for Imprisoned Iranian Christians: International Christian Concern Website: https://www.persecution.org/countries/iran Phone: +1 (800) 422-5441 Email: icc@persecution.org
Pressure Iranian Government: Iranian Interests Section (Pakistan Embassy in US): +1 (202) 965-4990 Message: "Release the five Christians sentenced to 50 years for prayer and Bible sharing. Imprisoning believers for practicing their faith is persecution, not security."
Support Persecuted Iranian Believers: Voice of the Martyrs Website: https://www.persecution.com/globalprayerguide/iran Phone: +1 (918) 337-8015
Contact Your Government Representatives: Demand sanctions against Iran for religious persecution and prioritization of Christian prisoners in diplomatic negotiations.
Start a Conversation: Ask: "Five Christians got 50 years for praying together. Why does Western media ignore Christian persecution while highlighting other human rights violations?"
Pray for Iranian Christians: Pray specifically for the five sentenced believers, for their families, for imprisoned Christians throughout Iran, and for the house church movement facing systematic persecution.
