Page 5 - Voice of the Persecuted Christians - Jan-Mar 2022 - 121

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LIVING THE BEST LIFE IN LEBANON
Pastor Jihad is a partner of Release International, leading a church in
the Lebanon which serves Christians who have suffered persecution. Here
he shares his personal testimony – particularly how the Lord prepared him for his present role. Hear him speak of how we are all called to live the ‘best and most satisfying life’ for Christ now.
REMEMBERING TO PRAY ‘Pray for us,’ writes the Apostle Paul toward the end of his letter to the Colossians, ‘that God may open to us a door for the word,
to declare the mystery of Christ – on account of which I am in prison.’ A few verses later in chapter 4, verse 18 Paul ends that letter with a simple, moving request: “Remember my chains”. When Christians suffer persecution for their faith in Christ we should be concerned; we should remember them. Hear
from Release International CEO Paul Robinson on why it is important to remember and to pray.
DEPENDING ON GOD Susanna Koh, wife of Malaysian pastor Raymond Koh, who was abducted off the street in what was described at the time as a military-style operation more than five years ago, talks about her family’s struggle to find out what has happened to Raymond. Responsibility for his kidnapping, which was captured on CCTV, has been laid at the door of the Malaysian Special Branch. Raymond has not been seen since and his whereabouts continue
to be unknown. Susanna describes the pressure she and her children have been under but also describes how her husband’s disappearance has motivated Christians in their service of Christ and the gospel.
Freedom for Iranian church leaders
Two Christians imprisoned in Iran for their church leadership roles were released a few days after a fire broke out at Tehran’s Evin prison (pictured) in October, but rights advocates were mystified about why they were freed.
Pastor Naser Navard Gol-Tapeh (pictured), who had spent two months in solitary confinement, was released from Evin
on October 17 after receiving a pardon from Supreme Leader Ali Khamanei, rights advocates said. The day after, Fariba Dalir, who had spent 38 days in solitary confinement after
her arrest in July 2021 for starting a house church, was also released from Evin.
She also was pardoned, though by whose authority remained unclear. Both pardons were unexpected and had previously been denied, according to religious freedom advocates.
‘We know that various bodies, the UK Government and the UN, were advocating for [Pastor Gol-Tapeh’s] release, and we know that Evin Prison is hosting protesters and running out of space, but we don’t know what made Khamanei do this out of the blue,’ said an expert on Iran for Middle East Concern (MEC).
Both had served more than a third of their sentences, and under Iranian law were eligible for early release.
Pastor Gol-Tapeh was arrested with three other Christians at an engagement party in Karaj, near Tehran, in June 2016. Dalir, a convert from Islam, was sentenced in November 2021 to five years in prison for ‘acting against national security by establishing and leading
an evangelical Christian church’. Her sentence was later reduced
to two years after the presiding judge realised he had made an administrative mistake in her case.
(Source: Morning Star News)
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