CHRISTIANITY IS SURGING IN IRAN

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As the conflict between Israel and Iran’s terrorist proxy group Hezbollah in Lebanon widens, reports continue to surface of a growing division between the Iranian people and the Islamist regime of Ali Khamenei. Even as anti-Israel and anti-America protests get most of the attention in Iran, a burgeoning Christian movement is occurring under the surface, an expert on Iranian Christians says.

In Iran, Christianity is intensely persecuted, except small historical Armenian and Assyrian communities. Conversion from Islam to Christianity is considered apostasy and can be punished with death. Still, some reports suggest that conversions to Christianity and support for democracy are on the rise, with as many as 80% of Iranian citizens anonymously supporting a democratic government. In addition, some outlets have reported that hundreds of mosques have closed due to the rising number of Iranians leaving Islam.

Hormoz Shariat is the president of Iran Alive Ministries. It broadcasts the gospel message via satellite TV programs in the Farsi language in predominantly Muslim countries like Iran, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. On Monday, he joined “Washington Watch with Tony Perkins” to discuss how an increasing number of Iranians do not support the Islamist regime’s attacks on Israel and are converting to Christianity.

“[Iranians] have experienced Islam and Islamic rule firsthand for over 40 years,” he noted. “And they’ve come to the conclusion, if the problem is not just the government, the problem is Islam itself. That’s why we see a high number of Iranian Muslims come to Christ because they have not just rejected the government, they have rejected Islam. There is such a gap … between the government and the people. So when the government puts on these rallies saying, ‘Death to Israel, death to America,’ the people of Iran say, ‘We love Israel, we love America.’ And that’s the trend.”

Shariat also pointed out that there were also many Iranian Americans who came out in support of Israel after the October 7 Hamas attack.

“We know that the media covered … the pro-Palestine, pro-Hamas demonstrations in America,” he noted. “You saw it everywhere. You saw it on campuses. You saw it on the street. You saw it in Washington, D.C. But you did not see all the Iranians who came on the streets even in America, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and San Diego, everywhere. Iranians came out pro-Israel. Not even one Iranian rally was pro-Palestine, and the media did not cover that. Iranians are pro-Israel.”

Shariat further described how his ministry has spread. “[W]e … have a 24/7 satellite broadcast going over the heads of the mullahs — they cannot stop the signal from the sky. We go into people’s homes, millions of homes. [A]n independent survey [found] that we have seven million viewers daily. So we go into people’s homes, tell them about God’s love, and guess what? They are ready. Iranians are rejecting Islam. They’re ready for the message of the gospel.”

According to Shariat, a spiritual awakening is currently occurring in Iran. “It’s a move of God, and God uses suffering, and Iranians have suffered for 40-some years. … So there is an openness among Iranians. … God has used [suffering] to open their minds, open their eyes towards Islam. They … have rejected Islam [but] not [out] of emotion and [not from making an] overnight decision.”

Shariat asked for continued prayers for his ministry and Christians in Iran.

MUSLIM TURNED RIGHTS ACTIVIST AYAAN HIRSI ALI NOW A CHRISTIAN

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Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a former Muslim and renowned critic of Islam, has revealed her conversion to Christianity, describing her journey from Islam to atheism and ultimately to Christianity.

On Nov. 11, 2024, activist and author Ayaan Hirsi Ali published an essay titled “Why I am Now a Christian.” Her declaration has understandably made waves. For 20 years, Ali has written, spoken, and acted as a committed atheist. Rejecting the Islamic teachings she was indoctrinated with during her teenage years, she has long argued for secularism as the needed lens for furthering humanity and countering the world’s evils so often perpetrated by religious dogma. Hence, her conversion to Christianity is not being well received by the media.

Ali grounds the explanation for her conversion on the usefulness of Christianity. I do not mean “useful” in a trite way, as one might find a spoon more helpful to eat soup than a fork. Ali sees the use of Christianity as fundamental on a societal and personal level. In this way, Ali grounds her turn to Christianity on the same principles that led her to reject God and organized religion. She now sees Christianity not as a foe to her cause but as a needed ally.

Hirsi Ali traces her initial disillusionment with Islam following the 9/11 terrorist attacks when she questioned the justifications for the attacks in the name of Islam. During her teenage years in Nairobi, Hirsi Ali says she was influenced by the Muslim Brotherhood, which instilled in her a strict interpretation of Islam.- This period was characterized by a strict adherence to religious practices and a deep-seated disdain for non-Muslims, particularly Jews. However, her later exposure to atheism through figures like Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins provided a stark contrast to her previous beliefs.

Hirsi Ali attributes her turn to Christianity to a broader concern for the challenges facing Western civilization. She cites threats from authoritarian regimes, global Islamism, and “woke” ideology as catalysts for seeking a unifying force. Christianity, in her view, offers a foundation of values and traditions that uphold human life, freedom, and dignity, and counters the divisiveness she associates with atheism.

Responding to her embrace of the Christian faith, conservative Christian philosopher Dr. Robert George wrote on Facebook: “Two decades ago, under the influence of the writings of Bertrand Russell, she became an atheist. Her thought was that atheism was smart and sophisticated — it was allegedly what really intelligent people believed (the ‘brights,’ as Daniel Dennett embarrassingly labeled himself and his fellow unbelievers). It was the way to a world of rationality and civil liberty. Hirsi Ali is not the first to have gone down that misguided path. She now sees that it is indeed misguided and that there is, if I may quote scripture, a more excellent way.

Hirsi Ali’s embrace of Christianity also stems from a personal quest for spiritual solace and meaning in life.

Hirsi Ali critiques atheism as leaving a “God hole,” which she believes has led to the rise of irrational ideologies and the erosion of Western values. She argues that Christianity provides a unifying story and foundational texts, similar to those in Islam, that can engage and mobilize people.

Christians should be thankful for Ali’s essay. It no doubt took plenty of courage to make, given her past commitments and social circle. The author of this article Adam Carrington, an associate professor of politics at Hillsdale College made the following comment. “We also should exercise cautious support of her. She mentions at the end of her essay that “I still have a great deal to learn about Christianity. I discover a little more at church each Sunday.” Judging by her essay, she still might need guidance in seeing the centrality of grace in Christianity and how that grace is most manifest in the person and work of the Son of God, made flesh. Sometimes, those truths take time to know and to feel. In some sense, we spend our entire lives trying to rest in God’s grace, not save ourselves as is the normal human inclination.

But we also should be thankful that Ali sees the political and social goods of Christianity, historically and today. In its witness, we see the dignity of humanity made in the image of its Creator. In its doctrine, we see the need for politics that protects the innocent, punishes the guilty, and guards the right. In Christianity, we also see the need for mercy, not just from God, but with each other as neighbors and citizens.

That such commitments to dignity, law, and mercy seem obvious to so many of us is not the insight of secular humanism. Ali has joined us in seeing its origins in the God revealed in the Bible.

GOD IS REACHING MUSLIMS BY DREAMS

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Report by Jack Wellman in Christian Crier (www.patheos.com): God is reaching Muslims by dreams.

In the last couple of years, dozens and dozens of men and women have reached out to us to ask what their dreams might mean. Recently, many of these have been Muslims who dreamt about Jesus, and now they want to know more about Him. In most Muslim countries you can lose your life for having a Bible or witnessing for Christ, so God is sending His Spirit and implants dreams in some to draw them to Himself.

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” John 6:44

It should be noted that some of this was fulfilled in the New Testament church where several people had visions that were sent by God, so it’s nothing new if someone who is not a believer has a dream about Jesus, and then comes to faith by means of it. And, from my experience, it is happening with increasing frequency. They have a dream or several dreams…some have had visions; then they contact someone to find out more about Jesus; and finally, they hear from Scripture about Christ. As we see in the New Testament church, it takes the Spirit of God, with the Word of God, given by a person of God, to birth a child of God.

Dreams and Visions

Over the last 2 years, we’ve received dozens and dozens of reports and received messages where Muslims have had dreams or visions of Jesus. Here are a couple of actual messages received this year, but I have changed their names to protect their identity for obvious reasons. One message came from Abdullah who lives in Iran, which is one of the most closed nations in the world, and perhaps one of the most hostile toward Christianity. Abdullah wrote:

“Greetings, I’m a Qurani Muslim, in Iran. I respect Christianity, I read the Old Testament for many years…however, I had a dream last night and it’s really strange, I dreamt of me in the desert alone and I was starving. A long walk alone and I found someone with plenty of food and drinks but I couldn’t reach him because he was surrounded by many people. But they let me pass and called me “lucky” I didn’t understand but they were pointing at my chest, when I take a look at what they were pointing at, I found a very huge cross tattoo in my chest. And I felt so happy and warm inside, and I had this feeling like I wasn’t Muslim in that dream So my question is, “can someone in Christianity feel like that in his sleep? And what does it mean?”

I am no interpreter of dreams. That is a God-given ability because “interpretations belong to God” (Genesis 40:8, 41:16; Daniel 2:28), but this man’s dream sounded like Jesus was calling Abdullah to Himself, with the cross on his chest, and a special feeling inside. Possibly the food and drinks were sources about the Bread of Life and the Living Water that made him into a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17), and why he didn’t feel like a Muslim in the dream. The tattooed cross on his chest…and over his heart, may represent that new birth (John 3:3-7), or God’s given him a new heart…not a heart of stone, but of flesh (Ezekiel 11:19, 36:26; Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 8:10). Again, I am no interpreter of dreams and don’t have that God-given gift, but some of the things in this dream seem to point to Jesus Christ.

Jesus is Calling

One of the most fascinating experiences in dealing with people who contact us is former atheists and Muslims who hated everything there is about Christianity, so how could God reach such people? It is apparent that sometimes it is by dreams. The Apostle Paul went from being the destroyer of the church to a missionary, planting churches, so God can change any human heart He desires (Proverbs 21:1). Even the most unlikely (in our eyes), God may use dreams when no human witness is available or bold enough to witness for Christ, and so we received a message from Muhammad (not his real name). He wrote: 

“My name is Muhammad. I live in Qatar. I wanted to know why I was having a dream about Jesus. He stood in a boat and waved to me to come to Him. I looked for dreams and visions on the Internet and found one. Then, I asked a man on a website (WCWTK) what this dream of Jesus means. He told me it could be from God and that he is calling me to Jesus. I wanted to believe but had fear, but after knowing why Jesus came, I wanted Him and He is my Savior now. He loves me so I do not practice Islam anymore. Now, I want Jesus alone. I know this dream was from Him, so thank you to your website, I know Jesus more and why He called me…and why the cross.” 

This man put his trust in Christ after contacting us several times, but even though we may have helped him discover Who Jesus is, it was God Who saved this man. Just like Saul who tried to destroy and kill Christians, he became a believer and was willing to risk his life for the church.

Conclusion

God is still using dreams and visions to reach those who cannot otherwise be reached. I’ve only included two examples of these dreams today, but these are very much like the rest of them. In fact, there are some things that show up in almost every one of these dreams…Jesus of course and a desire to know more about Him, the cross, and a feeling of peace, warmth, and love. God will move heaven and earth to ensure that anyone who is seeking Him, can find Him. Jesus is calling people from every tongue, tribe, nation, and people…and calling them to Himself to be a people who were not once a people, but now are the children of God (1 Pet 2:10). Like Abdullah respected Christianity, we need to respect other people’s religions and respect the people themselves. These are among those whom God is calling…a veritable multi-colored patchwork quilt. If God is calling someone to Christ, then nothing can stop this call…not hostile nations or people, not time or distances, and in some cases, not even a lack of a witness. God is God and He can do as He pleases, and nothing is too hard for the God-of-the-impossible.

STORY OF MUSLIM CONVERT

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(Morning Star News) – Muslim relatives of a Christian evangelist, Malingumu Bruhan on Feb. 6th beat and tied him up to be burned to death after he returned home for a funeral in eastern Uganda, he said.

Despite the fact Uganda is a majority Christian country that affords its citizens religious freedom, there have been some cases in recent years that mirror Bruhan’s ordeal. Despite being 84% Christian, certain pockets of Uganda — particularly the eastern region — are Muslim-dominated.

Malingumu Bruhan, 34, returned to Kaliro District for his grandfather’s funeral in Muhira village, Nawaikoke, and then accepted his uncles’ request to stay and visit, as they said they had not seen him for a long time.

“Subsequently, my uncle accused me of embarrassing the family by holding Christian evangelistic, open-air meetings and debates with Muslims,” Bruhan told Morning Star News. “He accused me of being an infidel by converting to Christianity, and that Allah will reward them in Jannah [garden paradise] if they kill me.”

“He told me that now is the right time for me to receive punishment from Allah, whereby I was going to be burned alive and the birds of the air will enjoy me as their meat,” Bruhan said. “Some men beat me as others gathered firewood, while another was sent for petrol because they wanted to use it to burn me alive.”

”As his uncle was waiting for the fuel, another convert from Islam who had accompanied Bruhan to the funeral came looking for him but was told he was nowhere in the vicinity”, he said. The friend saw Bruhan’s shoe, which had come off as his uncle and others dragged him off.

Malingumu Bruhan was attacked near Nawaikoke, Kaliro District, Uganda on Feb. 6, 2022

“My friend made several phone calls to friends after finding my shoe, they arrived and started searching for me,” he said. “They found me behind the house, tied and with firewood around me. They called the police, which scared the attackers, and they fled.”

Having sustained head injuries, Bruhan was taken to a clinic at Bulumba town, then later transferred to another area undisclosed for security reasons.

An evangelist well-known in Mbale, Iganga, Jinja and Kampala for his public debates with Muslims about Christianity and Islam, Bruhan has survived 11 murder attempts. “By God’s grace I overcame the Muslims’ planned attacks,” Bruhan said.

His Muslim relatives ostracized him in 2017 following his conversion, saying that as an apostate he had brought shame to the family.

“When I was chased, I went on foot, slept in the bush, and survived on wild fruits for two months,” Bruhan said. “I still trust God to heal me and for divine protection for my life. The church has been a comfort to me. Pray for me so that I recover from the head injuries and will be able to continue with the work of sharing Christ with the lost.”

The assault was the latest of many instances of persecution of Christians in Uganda that Morning Star News has documented.

We need to pray for our ex-Muslim brothers and sisters that come under intense persecution, particularly evangelists like Bruhan. You can keep up to date by connecting to Morning Star News and Voice of the Martyrs.