Statutory Status of Christians. Statements from human rights organizations

22.07.2019

From time to time, waves of indignation at the savagery of morals in the DPRK pass through all the media and blogs on social networks: a high-level official was overthrown from the political Olympus, shot, finished off with a rocket, and then fed to dogs. Sometimes North Korean officials are executed in dozens, or entire work teams, in front of pregnant wives, zombified children, and even starving sparrows and caterpillars that miraculously escaped being eaten by people. The online people are indignant and demand new repressions against the leadership of the DPRK. Less often, with less detail of cannibalistic cruelty, the executions of Christians in Iran are told. Once a year, or even less often, the world's media reports that Christians will be executed in Iran, and they are executed solely because they are Christians.
I am not at all going to justify the regime of the North Korean communist monarchs - even if no one is shot there, I still don’t like it - but as for my beloved Iran, I can say with confidence that it is a lie and not true. Whenever they tell you that Christians are executed in Iran for their faith, then know that you are being blatantly deceived. There are no repressions of Christians there, as I have personally been able to verify many times.

1. The current Cathedral of Christ the All-Savior in Isfahan.

Of course I don't know real life Christians in Iran, I fully admit that they have problems and face difficulties in life on religious grounds. I am sure that it is not at all easy to be a religious minority in a country where 98% profess one religion. For example, any proselytism in Iran is strictly prohibited, the state protects its citizens and the conversion of Muslims to other religions is punishable by the criminal code. Therefore, any Christian mission is strictly prohibited. It is even difficult for us to imagine a similar situation in our country, where, in addition to the Orthodox, representatives of different religions, there are entire republics with a predominant non-Orthodox majority, where there is real freedom of religion and you can profess any religion or be an atheist, and where the religiosity of the people is very conditional. After all, when 85% of Russians register themselves as Orthodox, they thereby want to emphasize their belonging to the Slavic nation or culture, and not their religious beliefs. The same surveys show that 17-20% of the 85 do not believe not only in Christ, but in God, and even about Orthodoxy or Christianity they have very superficial ideas or have none at all. The situation is completely different in Iran, where the people are truly, as we say, “churched” and everyone, albeit to varying degrees, is an active participant in “church” life. In fact, the monolithic society is split into two unequal parts - 89% of the population are Shiite Muslims, 9% are Sunni Muslims. Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians are left with 2%. Representatives of these religions are officially protected by the state.
Again and again: I personally did not see any difficulties for Christians during the trip and did not encounter any rejection on religious grounds. Just because I didn’t see it doesn’t mean there aren’t any difficulties. But I am sure that there will be no executions of Christians according to religious reasons it can not be. If someone was executed, it was not because the lawbreakers were Christians, but they were executed solely for their faith in Christ.

I don’t know how many Christians live in Iran and how many active churches there are ( former ambassador Iran in Russia, Mr. Sajjadi claims that there are from 200 to 300 thousand, and there are about 600 Christian churches in the country), but I know for sure that they operate openly Christian schools, books, newspapers, magazines are published, there are three representatives of Christians (two Armenians and one Assyrian) in Parliament (Majlis), defending the interests and protecting their rights, and for Christians there are many freedoms that are difficult to imagine in relation to the Muslim population of the country.

2. Greek Orthodox church next to the former American embassy.

If anyone doesn’t know, Muslims revere Christ as a great prophet and honor the Virgin Mary. We were in Tehran on the Square of the Virgin Mary, and the rector of the Orthodox church in Tehran, Archimandrite Alexander (Zarkeshev), said that Muslim women sometimes went into the Orthodox church to pray to Hazrat Mariam (as the Mother of God is called there). By the way, Fr. Alexander says the following: “Having learned that I Orthodox priest, ordinary Iranians always express their sympathy, and are also emphatically polite and helpful. I feel calmer in a cassock in Tehran than, for example, in Moscow.”
I can confirm his words. I have never met any rejection of me as a Christian. At the hotel we went to the bathhouse. My companion Mikhail Tyurenkov and I had crosses hanging around our necks and none of the Muslims said a word to us or otherwise expressed their dissatisfaction with our presence.

I often hear the phrase “they should try it in the mosque.” Look, we tried it. In Isfahan, Michael read Christian prayer in the mosque.

I warn you right away that we did not do this out of a desire to offend the religious feelings of believers or out of hooligan motives; we did not try to convert anyone to our faith, but prayed to our common God the Creator. Therefore, I hope no laws were broken. We really liked the reaction of the local residents - our little flash mob only pleased them. They understood that Christians were standing in front of them and praying to the one God in their own language. I can’t even imagine such an action in Russia. Imagine, a Muslim will enter an Orthodox church and utter the absolutely Christian phrase “Allahu Akbar” (God is great). Can you imagine the outcry that will rise from our Orthodox Christians? Well, who is more tolerant - Muslim Iranians or Russian Orthodox Christians?

In the largest religious center of Iran, the city of Qom (analogous to our Trinity-Sergius Lavra; I will talk about Qom especially), in two Islamic institutes we were asked to send Orthodox books, asked what you need to read in order to learn more and better about Christianity and Orthodoxy. We were very sorry that Orthodox books were not translated into Farsi here (under Stalin they were translated, published and brought to Iran. This was done by the publishing house of the Moscow Patriarchate). One of the institutes asked me to give an interview for their university newspaper. They really wanted to tell the students about the visit of Russian Orthodox Christians. In the mausoleum of Righteous Fatima, the local clergy asked questions about our faith. In general, we had the impression that there was quite a lot of interest in the Russian faith; many asked us about Orthodoxy. This is not caused by a desire to change faith, but by ordinary Iranian curiosity and a thirst for new knowledge. They are generally very open people, despite many government prohibitions.

The largest Christian community in Iran is the Armenians. They are rich, influential and largely independent. After them we can name the Assyrians. There are even fewer Catholics and almost no Russian Orthodox. We visited several Christian communities in Tehran (we visited a Russian church, a large Armenian center and a separate Armenian church) and a large historical Armenian center in the city of Isfahan. I'll tell you about them especially.

4. St. Nicholas Church in Tehran.

We have a long-standing relationship with the Russian Church. The first Orthodox Russian priest arrived in Iran in 1597. After Peter the Great, the spiritual mission worked on a permanent basis. It is clear that the priests cared exclusively for Russians living in Iran. The first church (St. Alexander Nevsky) was built in 1886 at the residence of the Russian ambassador, and in 1895 the second church (St. Nicholas) was built on the territory of the Russian embassy. After 1917, the churches were closed and destroyed by the Soviet authorities, and the Russian diaspora was forced to build their own church. Since Russian emigrants for the most part did not accept Soviet power and were parishioners of the ROCOR, they decided to buy a plot next to the American embassy. Russian architect N.L. Markov made a design for the cathedral. Started second World War and partial occupation of Iran Soviet troops construction of the temple was postponed. Construction began in 1944, and on March 8, 1945, crosses were erected on the domes. The iconostasis was moved from the ruined embassy church.

5. The apse ceiling is covered with mirrors. Very beautiful.

A two-story house was built next to the temple, where the office and apartment of the priest were located.
In 1979, during the Islamic Revolution, the American embassy located across the street from the temple was destroyed, many diplomatic mission employees were killed, and the embassy itself was looted. But no one touched the Russian temple with a finger.

6. Login. The same large cross is on the door outside on the street side. Across the road, 20 meters away is the former American embassy. His fence was covered by a parked bus.

However, due to the breakdown of relations with the United States, ties with the ROCOR hierarchy located in America were severed. Due to the absence of a priest and the mass exodus of Russians, the temple was closed. It opened 16 years later under the omophorion of the Russian Patriarch. The first and so far only abbot was the then Abbot Alexander (Zarkeshev).
There is also a Christian cemetery in Tehran where many Russians are buried. For example, the personal photographer of Sultan Ahmad Shah (the last of the Qajar dynasty) was Orthodox. And in general, it is necessary to mention the connections of the last representatives of the Qajar dynasty with Russia. The last Shah had five Russian orders (including St. Andrew the First-Called and St. Alexander Nevsky). His father Mohammed Ali Shah had the same orders. It is curious that after Mohammed Ali Shah was overthrown, he went to Odessa and lived there on Gogol Street until the arrival of the Bolsheviks in 1920.

7. The bells are ringing.

Tehran Armenians.
Armenian works in Tehran Cultural Center. This is a huge area with its own football field, sports facilities, including an outdoor swimming pool, a business center and even its own cemetery. On the territory of the center, women walk without headscarves, swim in European swimsuits in the pool, drink wine, in a word, do everything that is prohibited for Muslims. The authorities know this, but do not interfere in any way with the work of the center. These are your traditions - live as you want, but behind the fence so as not to embarrass Muslims. We were in the center with a Muslim translator and driver. There was no embarrassment on their part or prohibitions from the authorities on visiting the center.

8. Armenian Genocide Memorial.

10. In the Armenian center.

11. Champagne is cooling. Final preparations for the wedding.

12. Armenian temples The biggest.

13. I may be mistaken, but I was told that the remains of A.S. are buried in this temple. Griboedova.

14. There is a church shop right on the street in front of the temple. Books are sold completely openly.

15. A very large Armenian center has been functioning since 1604 in one of the former capitals of Iran, Isfahan.

16. The Cathedral of St. Christ the All-Savior (built in 1664) is decorated with delightful paintings, and on one of the walls there is a painting of the Last Judgment.
Unfortunately, photography is strictly prohibited in the temple; I only managed to take one shot (the first one in this post) and Last Judgment They didn’t let me take a photo. I'm posting what I found on the Internet. Please note that there are many completely naked figures in the fresco. I remind you that the image of naked human body prohibited in Iran. These frescoes are hundreds of years old and no one has touched them.

17. Another someone else’s photo of the temple.

18. Painting on the outside of the temple.

19. Courtyard.

20. Goods from the shop.

Since 1647, a printing house has been operating in the center and Christian literature has also been published.
How great was the influence of the Armenians and how well their business developed can be judged by this fact: in 1660, local Armenians presented the Russian Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich with a throne of gold, on which there were 876 diamonds, 1233 emeralds and rubies, and all this was bordered by three rows of pearls . Now this throne is kept in the Armory Chamber of the Moscow Kremlin.
Now Armenians even have permission to openly sell wine, albeit in limited quantities. I don’t know where they get it from. In addition to this center, there are 4 or 5 more temples in Isfahan. Including St. George the Victorious. But we weren't there.

Yes, I forgot to mention that the gospel wise men came from Persia and brought Iranian gifts to Christ. And now you can buy icons for yourself or friends completely freely in many shopping centers.
21. This is a bazaar in Isfahan.

22. The picture is not sharp, but the icons are visible. Antique shop in Tehran.

23. Christmas is not prohibited. Of course, it is not celebrated as in Christian countries, but for the holiday, many shopping centers organize sales of Christmas goods.

.
II. Imam Khomeini and the revolution.
III. People.
a) Family values and traditions.
b) Attitude towards women.
IV. Tehran:
a) City;
b) Ropes.
V. Books and films.
VI. Religion:
a) Zoroastrianism;
b) Christians
c) Jews.
d) Islam.
VII. The Pearl of Iran Isfahan:
a) Imam Square and the city;
b) Mosques;
c) Palaces;
d) Market;
e) Birds.
VIII. Spiritual capital of Iran Qom:
a) Tomb of Righteous Fatima;
b) Library of the Righteous Marsha Najafi and Spiritual Institutes.
IX. A small miracle island in the Persian Gulf.

Islamic Republic of Iran(Persian. جمهوری اسلامی ایران ‎ - Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Irɒ́n), abbreviated - Iran(pers. ایران ‎ [ʔiˈɾɒn]), until 1935 also Persia- a state in Western Asia. The capital is the city of Tehran.

In the west it borders with Iraq, in the northwest - with Azerbaijan, Armenia, Turkey and the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, in the north - with Turkmenistan, in the east - with Afghanistan and Pakistan. Iran is washed from the north by the Caspian Sea, from the south by the Persian and Oman Gulfs of the Indian Ocean.

The history of Iran, according to written sources, spans almost five thousand years. The first state on its territory - Elam - arose in Khuzestan in the 3rd millennium BC. e. The Persian Empire under Darius I Achaemenid already extended from Greece and Cyrenaica to the Indus River. For many centuries, Zoroastrianism was the dominant religion. TO XVI century Islam becomes the state religion of Iran.

In 1979, the Islamic Revolution took place in Iran under the leadership of Ayatollah Khomeini, during which the monarchy was overthrown and an Islamic republic was proclaimed.

Iran has the fourth largest economy in terms of GDP (PPP) in Islamic world and the second largest in Western Asia (after Turkey). Iran is one of the most technologically developed countries in the region. Iran is located in the strategically important region of Eurasia and has large reserves of oil and natural gas.

In 2012, Iran became the leader of the Non-Aligned Movement, becoming in August for 3 years the chairman country of this movement, which is the second largest international structure after the UN.

Largest cities

Tehran
Mashhad
Keredzh
Tabriz
Shiraz
Esfahan
Ahwaz

Orthodoxy in Iran

The vast majority of Iranians profess Islam. 90% of the population are Shiites, 8% are Sunnis. Those who remain include the religious minorities of Baha'is, Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, Mandaeans, Sikhs, Hindus and others. Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians are officially recognized as minorities and enjoy privileges such as reserved seats in the Majlis. There are restrictions on the rights of Baha'is.

Iranian Christians(Persian مسیحیان ایران ‎ from Persian مسیحی ‎ “ Christian», « Christian") constitute 0.2-0.5% of the total number of believers, which equals about 169 thousand people. In 1975, Christians numbered about 1.5% of the total population. There are conflicting data regarding the dynamics of the number of Christians. Some sources claim that Christianity in Iran is flourishing, while others, on the contrary, claim that Christianity in Iran is in danger of extinction. Christianity is officially allowed in Iran, but it is prohibited from practicing it preaching activities. Thus, most Christians in Iran comprise the ethno-religious communities of Armenians and Assyrians.

Iranian Christians can be divided into two categories: ethnic and non-ethnic. Ethnic ones include Armenians and Assyrians, who have their own linguistic and cultural tradition. Iran's non-ethnic Christians are predominantly made up of Protestants who once converted from Islam to Christianity and are considered apostates by the authorities.

After the Islamic Revolution of 1979, ethnic Christians were granted basic religious rights: conducting services, maintaining religious schools, observance of holidays, etc. The Armenian community has two seats in parliament, and the Assyrian one. However, ethnic Christians are subject to various forms of repression by Iranian authorities. Christians are prohibited from conducting services in Persian, building new churches, and must regularly report to the government on their activities. Along with this, they are subject to more serious criminal penalties for crimes committed than Muslims.

As for Protestants, they are officially recognized by Tehran. Despite this, they are subject to much more severe repression and restrictions from the authorities, compared to the Armenians and Assyrians. This is due to the fact that they use the Persian language, and are also distinguished by their desire for proselytism. Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and many Iranian officials consider the newly minted Protestants to be apostates working under the cover of the West.

In 2005, as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came to power, persecution of Protestant converts and house churches intensified. All this is still happening under the pretext that evangelism is a dissident form of Christianity associated with the West and Zionism, whose activities are directed against the existing Islamic regime in Iran.

Story

The first Christians set foot on the soil of Iran (Persia) no later than the 2nd century, except for the legendary mission of the Apostle Thomas. In the list of bishops of the Syrian church in 224, the bishop of Daylam, the region south of the Caspian Sea, is already mentioned. By the 4th century they already had their own bishop in Ctesiphon. Initially, Christians were treated with suspicion, seeing them as agents of Rome, but after the schism of the 5th century, Persian Christians became known as Nestorians and were engaged in active missionary activities, converting entire tribes to their faith. The heyday of Persian Christianity was brought to an end by the Arab invasion of the 7th century.

Current state

Christianity is practiced by representatives of national minorities - Armenians, Georgians and Assyrians. Christians have a certain freedom of religion - they can produce and consume non-halal food, drink alcoholic beverages, they have their representatives in the Majlis (one representative each from the Chaldean and Assyrian Churches, two representatives from the Armenian Church).

Orthodoxy in Iran(Persian. کلیسای ارتدوکس شرقی در ایران ‎) is one of the country's Christian denominations. Eastern Christians in Iran belong to the Ancient Eastern Churches and Chalcedonian Orthodoxy. The Assyrian Church of the East, the Georgian Orthodox Church, the Armenian Apostolic Church, as well as parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church operate in Iran.

Data on the size of the Orthodox population of Iran are not accurate and vary.

The Armenian Apostolic Church in Iran has between 110,000 and 250,000 followers.
The Assyrian Church of the East in Iran has up to 11,000 followers.
Georgian Orthodox Church has about 60,000 followers in Iran.

Total number Christians of all denominations in Iran in 2006 numbered 109,415 people (0.15% of the country's population).

Russian Orthodox Church in Iran

The idea of creating a temple of the Russian Orthodox Church in Persia belongs to Peter the Great. It was first expressed in a message from the Russian emperor to the Persian Shah Soltan Hussein.

According to Abbot Alexander, before the start of the First World War the total number of Russians Orthodox churches in Persia there were more than 50. Currently, there are three churches in Iran - St. Nicholas Cathedral in Tehran, built in 1945 with the money of Russian emigrants, and the new St. Nicholas Church in the port city of Anzali, consecrated in 2008. In the Russian Orthodox cemetery in Tehran stands the Holy Trinity Church, built in 1908, the only pre-revolutionary Orthodox church that has survived to the present day. But religious services are held here extremely rarely. In the city of Bushehr - in the village of Russian specialists building nuclear power plants - there is a chapel of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God, located not in a church building.

The Tehran Russian Orthodox community does not exceed 100 people. It consists of descendants of Russian emigrants, Russian embassy workers sent to Iran and Russian businessmen. The church is visited by Ukrainians, Belarusians, Serbs, Greeks, Bulgarians, and Georgians who come to Tehran. Russian wives of Iranians also come here, although officially they all converted to Islam - this is required by the law of the country.

The history of the dialogue between the Moscow Patriarchate and the Shiite clergy dates back to 1995, when the Metropolitan of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, now Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' Kirill, first visited Iran. His visit was associated with the transition of St. Nicholas Cathedral in Tehran, which had been under the jurisdiction of the Russian Church Abroad since its founding in 1945, and then came under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate.

At the end of 2010, the Iranian authorities were offered a document on the relationship between the Church and society, translated into Farsi - “Fundamentals of the Social Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church.” At his presentation, which took place at the Department of Russian Studies at the University of Tehran, all Iranian representatives noted the similarity of the approaches of the Russian Orthodox Church and the Islamic leaders of Iran to many issues of our time.

According to the deputy chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, Bishop Mark of Yegorievsk, the authorities in Iran respect the representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate and do not in any way restrict the movement of the priest of the temple in Tehran. At the Orthodox church in Tehran there is a home for the elderly, who are cared for by parishioners. As the bishop noted, services are also held unhindered in Bushehr and Isfahan, where a Russian Orthodox priest from Tehran serves.

Oppression of Protestants in Iran

Unlike traditional Christian denominations, Iranian authorities are wary of Protestant denominations. Their activities are under constant surveillance by intelligence agencies. The authorities suspect them of active proselytism, subversive activities and connections with Western intelligence agencies. Most of the scandals involving the arrests of Christians in Iran are related specifically to Protestants, although there are only 10 thousand of them out of 200-300 thousand Iranian Christians.

The Saints

svmchch. John, Saverius, Isaac and Hypatius, bishops of Persia
mchch. Akindinus, Pigasius, Affonius, Elpidiphoros, Anempodistus and others like them
St. Maruf, Bishop of Mesopotamia
svmchch. Nirsus, bishop, and Joseph, his disciple, John, Saverius, Isaac and Hypatius, bishops of Persia; mchch. Azat the eunuch, Sasonius, Thekla, Anna and many other men and wives who suffered in Persida
microwave Zadok the Persian

Iran's population is 79.7 million, and about 450,000 Christians live here, that is, less than 1%. Islam is the state religion, and any ethnic Persian who converts to Christianity is considered an apostate with all the ensuing consequences. Members of the Armenian and Assyrian communities have the right to openly practice their faith, but are often treated as second-class citizens. The total number of people who converted from Islam to Christianity in Iran is about 250 thousand.

Arrested on July 5 at his home in Bandar-e-Anzali along with two believers of the Church of Iran community, the pastor was officially charged on August 3 with “insulting Allah” and “spreading corruption.” Both charges are punishable by death. Previously, between 2006 and 2011, Hagnejad was arrested three times.

In 2010, 32-year-old evangelical pastor Yusef Nadarkhani was sentenced to death for renouncing Islam and converting to Christianity. Nadarkhani was arrested in 2009. The pastor's detention was preceded by his appeal to the authorities, in which he challenged the law of Gilan province, according to which all schoolchildren, in particular his son, are required to study the Koran. According to investigators, the pastor held church services in his home, preached the Gospel and baptized other people who also converted to Christianity. He oversaw the activities of 400 house churches in Iran.

Quoting the words of Presidential Advisor Ali Younesi, who assured at the end of 2013 that no one in Iran should be persecuted because of their faith, neither Christians nor Jews, the Society for the Defense of Oppressed Peoples calls Pastor Matthias Hagnejad a “prisoner of October.” Christian churches are regularly subject to police checks and raids; in the first year of Hassan Rouhani’s presidency, at least 40 Christians were convicted for their faith, write the Society for the Defense of Oppressed Peoples and the Protestant portal.”

Pastor Benama Irani was sentenced to 6 years. In mid-September, he was charged with 18 more counts, including “war against God” and “corruption.” According to the Society for the Defense of Oppressed Peoples, the judge has the right to demand crucifixion as punishment for these crimes.

Since 2013, according to the Islamic Criminal Code, the death penalty for this crime has been prohibited in Iran. Despite this, 8 people were executed.

Revolutionary Court Iran has sentenced 18 Christians to prison, Christian Megaportal reports. They were accused of preaching the Gospel, anti-regime propaganda, and opening house churches. In total, Christians were sentenced to 24 years in prison, but due to a lack of transparency in judicial system country, it remains unknown to what term each defendant was sentenced individually.

Church pastor in Iran Matthias Haghnejad is accused of “enmity against God.” Iranian police arrested the pastor and his two friends at his home on July 5, 2014. During the arrest, several Bibles, religious literature and his computer were confiscated from the pastor's home. According to the organization Worldwide Christian Solidarity, on August 3, 2014, Judge Mohammed Yari gave the pastor a two-hour interrogation, after which the court pronounced a guilty verdict. According to Iranian law, such a crime is punishable by death.

Three men were sentenced to at least ten years in prison on charges of blasphemy, "organizing and establishing house churches" and "violating national security" They were charged under Article 500 of the Islamic Penal Code, which punishes threats to Iranian spiritual leaders. Iran's revolutionary court sentenced three pastors to 18 years in prison.

Iranian authorities raided the home church, detaining three Christians. During the interrogation, believers were asked to leave the country, writes Morning Star News. One of those persecuted by the authorities was Mehdi Resa Omidi, sentenced on October 6, 2013 to 80 lashes for participating in a Protestant meeting and possessing a satellite dish. Security agents also confiscated religious literature, laptops, and CDs.

“All these measures - pressure, confiscation of property, detentions and raids - are aimed at forcing converts to renounce and stop them from participating in Christian gatherings,” said CSW officer Kiri Kankwende. – It’s easier than exposing Christians imprisonment, because prison sentences may attract unwanted press attention."

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said recently in a speech in Qom that "house" churches are a form of hostility towards the Islamic republic. "The cruelty of Iran's autocratic leaders knows no bounds", - said Saba Farzan, executive director of the Berlin organization "Sphere foreign policy"(Foreign Policy Circle).

In 1975, Christians numbered about 1.5% of the total population. There are conflicting data regarding the dynamics of the number of Christians. Some sources claim that Christianity in Iran is booming, while others, on the contrary, claim that Christianity in Iran is in danger of extinction. Officially, Christianity is allowed in Iran, but they are prohibited from engaging in preaching activities. Thus, the majority of Iran's Christians are made up of the ethno-religious communities of Armenians and Assyrians.

Iranian Christians can be divided into two categories: ethnic and non-ethnic. Ethnic ones include Armenians and Assyrians, who have their own linguistic and cultural tradition. Non-ethnic Christians in Iran are predominantly made up of Protestants who once converted from Islam to Christianity and are considered apostates by the authorities.

Present tense

After the Islamic Revolution of 1979, ethnic Christians were granted basic religious rights: conducting services, maintaining religious schools, observing holidays, etc. The Armenian community has two seats in parliament, and the Assyrian one. However, ethnic Christians are subject to various forms of repression by Iranian authorities. Christians are prohibited from conducting services in Persian, building new churches, and must regularly report to the government on their activities. Along with this, they are subject to more severe criminal penalties for crimes committed than Muslims.

Catholicism

The number of Catholics in Iran is about 21,400 people (Latin rite - about 10,000 people, Armenian rite - about 8,000 people and Chaldean rite - about 3,400 people). The country is also home to Indian Catholics from Goa and Mangalore, who do not have their own church structures. Currently, there are 4 archdioceses and 2 dioceses of different Catholic churches in Iran.

Ancient Eastern churches

Today in Iran there is a separate diocese belonging to the Assyrian Church of the East, 4 dioceses of the Chaldean Catholic Church, 3 dioceses of the Armenian Apostolic Church

Oppression of Christians in Iran

Iranian Christians believe that an “Islamic dictatorship” has already been established in their country instead of democracy. The government prohibits Christians from worshiping in Persian, Iran's main language. The wave of arrests of Christians affected not only members of banned “house” groups, but also officially registered religious organizations. Iranian authorities accuse Christians of supporting the political opposition and being "aggressive missionaries." Iranian intelligence services suggest that Christian missions operating in Iran are engaged in subversive activities in favor of Western powers. Lawmakers are taking steps to legalize the death penalty for those who left Islam and those who tried to convert people to Christianity.

Unlike traditional faiths, Iranian authorities are wary of Protestant denominations. Their activities are under constant surveillance by intelligence agencies. The authorities suspect them of active proselytism, subversive activities and connections with Western intelligence agencies. Most of the scandals involving the arrests of Christians in Iran are related specifically to Protestants, although there are only 10 thousand of them out of 200-300 thousand Iranian Christians. According to the constitution, all Iranian citizens are equal before the law and are all equally protected by law. However, Iranian authorities often subject Christians to restrictions in such social spheres, such as education, employment and legal protection. Employment, both in the private and public sectors, is one area where there are many restrictions for Christians. Iranian employers always require applicants to indicate their religion. Christians have difficulty starting a business, as well as obtaining loans and credit. The Iranian Constitution stipulates that certain government positions can only be held by Muslims, including positions spiritual leader, president, judges, and ministers.

Regarding discrimination in the field of education, it should be mentioned that the Iranian constitution guarantees the opportunity to receive free secondary education to all citizens. However, Christians face many challenges when trying to educate their children. Christian students are either expelled or denied access to educational institutions, or they refuse to issue diplomas, despite completing their studies. The expulsion of Christian students from universities is considered by the Iranian authorities as punishment for religious and political activity, which runs counter to the regime's policies. Thus, the country's leadership limits the ability of religious minorities to move up the social ladder. This is stated in the latest report of the human rights organization International Campaign For Human Rights In Iran.

Christians and other religious minorities living in Iran also face discrimination in marriage matters. The Iranian penal code provides for harsher punishments for Christians for crimes they commit.

According to an information site for Christians in Iran, members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the village of Dereshk in the city of Salmast, located on the Iran-Turkey border, discovered a large number of Gospels in Persian, which were completely burned on the spot. Previously, in September 2010, Iranian security services burned gospels found in the western regions of the country in the same place.

Statements from human rights organizations

Statements by Iranian officials

On January 4, 2011, Tehran Mayor Morteza Tamadon announced that "the final blow against Christians is imminent" and called evangelical churches "deceitful, anomalous and corrupt sects."

Notes

Secret religious war in Iran
http://prischestvie.ru/Xrist_vne_Imperii.html GENERAL HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY]
CHRISTIANITY IN CENTRAL ASIA
THE NUMBER OF CHRISTIANS IS GROWING IN IRAN
Report:The Cost of Faith: Persecution of Christian Protestants and Converts in Iran (PDF).
Detail Archived December 19, 2012.
Georgian of Iran Ethnic People Profile
Annuario Pontificio, 2011
Iranian Christians are afraid of “Islamic dictatorship” as a consequence of Ahmadinejad’s victory - human rights activists (Russian) // Interfax. - June 19, 2009.
Anna Kovaleva.

The article was published in the second issue of the Iranian journal Dialogue, 1999 (pp. 120-140). Abridged translation by Ali Turgiev (quotes from the Koran - in the original translation by Yusuf Ali - verified with the translations of Sablukov, Krachkovsky and Osmanov).

Seyid Abd-ul-Majid Mirdamadi

CHRISTIANITY IN IRAN

Story

Contrary to popular belief, the good news of the coming coming of Jesus Christ was first revealed in the book of Jamasp-nama, and not in Jewish sources. The sage Jamasp, who is credited with the authorship, died before the birth of Moses; he was the son-in-law and successor of Zoroaster.

In the second chapter of the Gospel of Matthew, which tells about the worship of the baby Jesus by three kings from the east, they are called wise men or magicians, i.e. Zoroastrian priests. Magicians as a priestly caste are rarely talked about outside the Iranian context. The offerings to Jesus (gold and incense) are typologically similar to the items that were customary to give as gifts in ancient Iran. Moreover, in the oldest commentary on the Gospels, dating back to the 4th century, it is said about magicians: “They were people from the east, people from Iran, where magicians are not deceiving sorcerers, but learned men.” The Gospel story and the Jamasp-name complement each other, leaving no doubt about the authenticity of both documents.

Iranians' acquaintance with Christianity has a long history, and it was they who played a key role in its spread. When Jesus was born, Iran was ruled by the Ashkanids, and the country's territory included Mesopotamia, Babylon, Elam, Media, and Parthia. The spread of Christianity began under Ardavan III (12–40 AD). The Iranians were present when the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles, as directly stated in Acts (2:1-9).

Apostle Judas Thaddeus (St. Tatevos) founded a church and began preaching Christianity in Karakha, where he eventually suffered martyrdom. The temple erected over the tomb of this disciple of Christ is the oldest in Iran (1st century AD). Another apostle, Judas Thomas, reached southern India in his wanderings, preaching the divinely inspired religion of Christianity throughout the East. It is absolutely certain that Christianity spread eastward through the territory of Iran: the names of Christian preachers and priests are found in Pahlavi inscriptions on crosses and other epigraphic monuments. The center of public preaching of Christianity was the city of Edessa (now Urfa, Turkey), one of the ancient centers of Iranian civilization. The first was built in Urfa christian temple, and it was from this city that Christianity spread to Azerbaijan and the regions lying east of the Amu Darya.

Under the Ashkanids, there was no state religion in Iran. With the accession of the Sassanids, Zoroastrianism became the official religion of Iran, which was largely a reaction to international political situation. About a century and a half later, Christianity was proclaimed the state religion of the Roman Empire, a long-time political opponent Iran. In 399, Yazgard I allowed the Iranians to convert to Christianity. Thus, the profession of the Christian faith was legalized, and Christianity received the status official religion(as before - Zoroastrianism). After the death of Yazdgard I (420), Bahram V (Bahram Gur) came to power, and the two empires began bloody wars. During this period, Iranian Christians were disorganized and the community suffered heavy losses.

Suspicions of political disloyalty, which for many years were a reason for persecution of Christians, were removed after the proclamation of autocephaly of the Iranian Church. In 424, at a local council, the bishops of Iranian cities declared the complete administrative independence of the Iranian Church; its head, Catholicos Yeshu, received the status of Patriarch of Iran.

During the reign of Anushirvan (535-579), a 50-year peace was concluded between the empires. One of the articles of the signed peace treaty provided for greater freedom to practice Christianity in Iran. The key role that the Christian spiritual rulers were destined to play in the eradication of the Mazdakite heresy, undertaken by Anushirvan, indicates that their power reached the highest degree. The fact that the Christian issue was included in a separate article of the interstate agreement indicates previous restrictions. However, their obvious political motivation makes it irrelevant whether they were imposed by Zoroastrian priests or government officials. Another thing is important - the sanctions were never determined by the religious feelings and sentiments of the people, for Zoroaster’s mission was not to call people to Zoroastrianism. History does not know a single herald of a new faith who did not pursue political or economic goals by imposing restrictions on free thought on a state scale.

The transition of Iran to Muslim rule created new conditions in the region for representatives of various faiths. The Holy Qur'an says: Those who believe [in the Qur'an], and the Judaizers, and the Christians, and the Sabeans - all who believe in God and the Last Day and do good - will have their reward with their Lord: they will not be overcome by fear and will not experience sorrow ( 2:62). Islam treats other inspired religions with extraordinary respect, but even against this background, the prophetic mission of Jesus Christ and the high destiny of the Blessed Mary, one of the four most revered women among Muslims, are marked with special respect.

The Koran says that […] those who believe [in the Koran] are loved most of all by those who say: “We are Christians”  for among them there are priests and hermits, and they are devoid of pride (5:82). The names Isa (Jesus) and Masih (Christ) are mentioned with the greatest respect in holy book Muslims 61 times. Besides, holy prophet Islam says: “Persecuting those who profess divinely inspired religions is the same as persecuting me.” In the works of the spiritual rulers of Shiism and infallible imams, Jesus Christ is given a very honorable place. Examples include the 159th sermon of Imam Ali in the Nahj-ul-Balagha cycle, as well as the reasoning of Imam Sadiq and Imam Reza.

Since the Koran calls Zoroastrians, Jews, Christians and Sabeans “people of the Book,” the attitude towards them with the advent of Islam in Iran began to be determined by Islamic law. At the same time, special rights were reserved for Christians. During the Abbasid era, especially during the reign of the caliphs Harun and Mamun (766-833), who shrewdly encouraged dialogue between the two religions, Christianity in Iran entered into a period of prosperity.

To a greater or lesser extent, relations of mutual tolerance prevailed throughout the subsequent history of Iran. Christians have always occupied an important place in the scientific, social and political life country, whatever its Muslim government. Even in times Crusades, the beginning of which coincided with the reign of Sultan Muhammad from the Seljuk dynasty - who had limited military assistance Muslims of Syria and Lebanon - the rights of Christians in Iran were not limited.

The Mongol invasion of Iran and Mesopotamia was a tragedy that devastated Iran's cultural achievements. Although Christians found themselves in a better position than Muslims during the reigns of the Khans Abaqa (1265) and Arghun (1291), in general the attitude towards adherents of both religions was equally bad.

The Safavid era can be called a period of revival of Christianity. This period was marked by the arrival of missionaries and mass migrations of Christians from the Ottoman Empire to Iran. Similar forced relocations of persons of non-Muslim faith took place much earlier. For example, Christians and Jews found refuge in Iran both from political oppression and from persecution of fellow confessors caused by doctrinal differences. Under the Safavids, the size of the Armenian diaspora in Iran reached 170,000 people, among whom were several thousand Catholics. In Isfahan they conducted active work all major Catholic orders, including Carmelites, Augustinians, Jesuits and Dominicans. The Van Temple, which has become a historical landmark, was built during this period (1606).

With the fall of the Safavids, civil wars began, followed by wars with neighboring states (of particular note was the Afghan invasion). However, neither then nor subsequently (under the Afsharids, Zends, Qajars and Pahlavis) were Christians in Iran persecuted.

Missionaries occupy a special place in the socio-political history of Iran. If their impact on non-Christian Iranians can be assessed as positive, the true Christians of Iran (Nestorians and representatives of the Armenian Church) were more likely to suffer from the activity of missionaries. Humanitarian support, cultural and educational work, translation into Farsi scripture and literary monuments, as well as health care- this is the good that English, American, French, Russian, German and Italian missionaries gave Iran. On the other hand, religious propaganda (especially by Protestant missionaries) had only destructive consequences. If contemporaries viewed Protestants as troublemakers and their activity as a factor of destabilization, today we can state that the result of their missionary activity was intra-national inter-confessional confrontation.

The American mission not only did not succeed during the hundred years of its stay in Iran, but concentrated all its efforts on converting the Orthodox [Nestorian - A.T.] Assyrian community to Protestantism. As a result, the Assyrian Christians split into adherents of tradition and “renovationists,” hostile relations between them forced many to leave their homes and put an end to the peaceful coexistence of Christians in Iran. Unfortunately, the same mistake is now being made again in Central Asia. Obviously, for Western Christianity the consequences of this can only be negative.

Below we will briefly look Christian churches today's Iran, the diversity of which reflects both the modernizing activity of missionaries and schisms within the ancient churches.

According to the latest census, the population Islamic Republic Iran has a population of about 61 million, of which 99.56% are Muslim. Of the 300,000 people (less than 0.5% of the population) of religious minorities, approximately 215,000 are Christians.

Eastern churches

The Armenian Gregorian Church recognizes the establishment of the first three ecumenical councils - Nicaea, Constantinople and Ephesus - but not the Council of Chalcedon of 451. In the 5th century. Armenian (instead of Syriac) became the liturgical language of the church; its dogmas are fully consistent with Orthodoxy. Those who profess Gregorianism belong to one of two churches of equal size that have no dogmatic differences among themselves - Etchmiadzin, or northern (Armenian apostolic church), and Cilician, or southern (the so-called Catholicosate of Antelias, a city in Lebanon). Three historical dioceses of Armenian Gregorian Church in Iran are located in Tehran, Isfahan and Tabriz. Armenian community owns a number of cultural heritage monuments of Iran, in particular the temples in Karakhi and Van.

The Assyrian Church of the East (otherwise the Persian Church) follows the teachings of Nestorius, who was in 428-431. Patriarch of Constantinople. The spiritual head of the Nestorians spends two to three months in Iran every year.

The Russian Orthodox Church and the Greek Orthodox Church, which opened dioceses in Iran for their citizens in the past, remain active today. Until now, the Moscow Patriarchate appoints St. Nicholas in Tehran is a priest who is the spiritual leader for Russians (engineers, businessmen and their families) living in Iran and the Gulf countries.

Catholic churches

Story catholic church in Iran can be traced back to the 16th century, when some of the Nestorians converted to Catholicism, and the so-called. Chaldean Church; What distinguishes it from other Catholic churches is that services are conducted in the Assyrian language. The Armenian Catholic Church is four hundred years old; it was formed under the Safavids. The parishes of the Roman Catholic Church were first opened by foreigners (1630) in order to be able to perform religious ceremonies of your faith. Currently, all Catholics in Iran are united into three communities and are governed by an episcopal council of 13 priests.

Protestant churches

In Iran, there are three separate Presbyterian communities, each with its own places of worship, according to the number of languages in which prayers are recited (Assyrian, Armenian and Persian). Communities each have 6 representatives in the Council, which is supreme body administration of the Presbyterian Church.

Anglicans have been active in Iran since the 19th century, Seventh-day Adventists and Pentecostals since 1911 and 1958, respectively.

Statutory status of Christians

Islam protects freedom of religion and ritual, safety of visiting places of worship, and the honor of clergy. The rights of members of religious minorities are defined in five articles of the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, excerpts from which are given below.

Article 13: “Only Zoroastrians, Jews and Christians have the status of religious minorities, whose representatives are allowed to observe religious rites within the framework of the law. IN privacy and their upbringing can be guided by the requirements of their faith.”

Article 14: “The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran and all Muslims of Iran are obliged to adhere to the principles of respect for human rights fairly and impartially towards non-Muslims.”

Article 15: “The use of local and tribal dialects is permitted” in the church (which was not permitted in the period leading up to the victory of the Islamic Revolution).

Article 26: “People are given the freedom to establish religious, political and professional parties and associations... They must neither be prevented nor forced to join such organizations.”

Article 64 defines the representation of religious minorities in Parliament. Regardless of the number of parishioners, “Zoroastrians and Jews should have one representative each, Assyrian Christians and Chaldean Christians should have one common representative, and Armenians should have one representative each for the northern and southern churches.” (For reference: one Muslim MP represents on average 150,000 voters.)

Conclusion

Iran's 60 million Muslims have 57,855 mosques at their disposal, i.e. one mosque for 10 thousand people. For every 750 parishioners of the Armenian Gregorian Church, Iran's largest religious minority, there is one temple. In the whole country, the provision of a place for prayer is 16 times higher among non-Muslims than among Muslims (in relative terms).

Being well aware of the historical past of their fellow confessors and their position in today's world, representatives of religious minorities in Iran coexist peacefully with other citizens in an atmosphere of complete mutual understanding. They share joys and sorrows with the Muslims of Iran. And their contribution to the political and social restoration of the country must be recognized as outstanding.

Translation Ali Turgieva