Yousef Nadarkhani has received the final verdict from the highest Iranian Court, according to sources close to the Pastor. He has been sentenced to death for the crime of converting from Islam to Christianity.Christians worldwide have been following his case for over two years as the 34 year old Pastor and father of two has been told repeatedly to recant his Christian faith or to face death. He has consistently maintained that he has no intentions of turning his back on his faith, regardless of the consequences. He can now be taken any time and killed without prior warning, or it could be dragged out for up to two years.
According to reports from the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), Iran may use the current international turmoil as an excuse to kill Nadarkhani, letting the world know that they answer to no-one.
The ACLJ recently launched a Twitter campaign to publicize Nadarkhani’s case, asking participants to dedicate a daily tweet to “Tweet for Youcef,” stating the number of days he has been imprisoned (currently 863) and ending the tweet with “ViaOfficialACLJ,” sending readers back to the organization’s website where they could learn more about his case.
Here is the real face of fundamentalist Islam, there is no mercy for those who would dare convert from Islam. No religious liberty here. The difference with this case is that this Pastor was actually charged and had a trial. More often than not, in countries like Iran, Christian converts are simply murdered or "disappear," never to be seen again.
This case draws attention to the plight of Christians in many parts of the world who are facing extreme persecution, places like Pakistan, Sudan, Nigeria, Egypt, China and many others. Most cases are unreported as attention is diverted to the political firestorm taking place in the Arab world. We are reminded of the words of the Apostle Paul in Colossians 4:18 - "Remember my chains."
If you are a Christian, please pray for Yousef Nadarkhani; his wife and children. Take a few moments, as well, to spread the word. He deserves to have his story heard by as many as possible. There are links to more detailed articles below.
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2 comments:
Just a minor correction - Youcef didn't convert from Islam. According to his own testimony, at least, he had been agnostic all of his life before becoming a Christian.
Thanks for pointing that out. To the Islamists, he was apparently considered Muslim because of his family background. From what I've read, his greatest crime was that of being responsible for others converting from Islam to Christianity.
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