Lana Silk, "Iranian daughter of destiny."

 

     "That religion that costs a man nothing is usually worth nothing."

                                      *Charles Spurgeon

                                                                   

   Lana Silk is extremely passionate about Iran. God has given her a calling and a mission to reach all Iranians with the gospel. She is currently the CEO of a ministry called, "Transform Iran."

  "Transform Iran" is about reaching all of Iran with the power and love of Christ," Lana proclaims. "There are 88 million people in Iran. We believe Iran is on God's agenda, and He loves the people of Iran. He has given us the mission and mandate to bring his life-changing love to all Iranians."

   Lana's incredible story began more than four decades ago during the tumultuous beginnings of the Iranian Revolution. This is her story, her calling, and her mission.

  September 8, 1978. Tehran 

  Famously known today as "Black Friday," More than 64 protesters were shot and killed during a confrontation with the military in Jaleh Square. Dodging bullets and racing toward the hospital, Lana's mother, Maggie Yeghnazar was just about to give birth. The violent and bloody incident marked the beginning of the end for the Shah and the Pahlavi Dynasty, ushering in the Iranian Revolution.

   Reflecting back on that pivotal day, Lana felt that God was honoring her by being born on such a dramatic historical day. It would be a day that would shape the course of the rest of her life. As a young child, growing up in Iran, Lana was forced to wear the hijab while attending elementary school. She remembers that young girls coming to school in blue jeans were instructed to return home and come back wearing the proper clothing according to Islamic law. The schools were segregated because of the new Islamic Republic and one of the daily mandatory rules required of all school children was to daily chant, "Death to Israel and death to America."

 In 1988 the long, exhausting war between Iran and Iraq finally came to an end. It was at that time the persecution of Christians began. The government was now able to focus its attention back on the issues in Iran. Lana's parents, Lazarus and Maggie distinctly remember a life-changing dream that God gave both of them, in which He instructed them to leave Iran. It was a devastating experience for them. They loved their people and didn't want to leave their flock. Immediately they discussed the dream with their pastor, Haik Hovsepian. Haik persuaded them both to stay, that their Christian ministry was needed in Iran. Ironically that night however, God spoke to Pastor Haik in a dream and made it abundantly clear that it was His plan for them to leave.

  Giving away everything they owned, Lana and her parents reluctantly left Iran, not sure exactly where God was leading them. For the next several years, they met with many Iranians in the diaspora, who like them, had to leave their country because of the growing persecution. Traveling across Europe, the Yeghnazar family prayed and worshipped with many Iranians in exile, sensing that God had a special calling for them to revolutionize their homeland with the gospel.

 When Lana turned 15, she remembers the second pivotal event in her life that shaped her calling. She was about to be baptized as a committed follower of Jesus, when her younger sister ran up to her in tears screaming, "They've killed him!" Their best friend and Pastor, Haik Hovsepian had been brutally murdered by government security forces.

  The death of Haik Hovsepian was a major wake-up call in Lana's Christian walk. She remembers the shock of his death caused her to seriously evaluate what she was living for and why she was following Jesus. "God used this event in my life, " Lana recalls, "To remind me, and to give me an eternal perspective that, we are here for something much bigger than ourselves."

  In 1991, God once again spoke to Lana's parents about the direction of their ministry. He impressed the number 222 upon their minds. Through careful research, they came upon a text of scripture in 2 Timothy Chapter 2, verse 2, which says,

   "The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also."

  They immediately recognized this as a verse about discipleship and understood what the Lord was instructing them to do. Their mission was to train leaders who would then train others. The picture of God's calling had become very clear to them. Their passion was to train Iranian leaders for the underground church in Iran. They now realized why God had called them to leave Iran. He knew that the persecution would force the church to meet secretly underground. He had called them to teach and train Iranians to impact and lead the house church movement. Thus, The 222 Ministry was born, which would later become a worldwide ministry known as Transform Iran.

                                                                

  At this time, Lana was struggling with her part in the calling on her life. She had a burning passion in her heart for her homeland, for the people of Iran. Since living in the UK, she had earned college degrees in marketing, engineering, and fundraising. Lana wondered how her secular education could play a role in what God had planned for her life. Then one day, her prayers were answered. Lana's parents needed help in organizing a worldwide impact for their ministry. They asked her if she would use her skills and expertise in marketing, fundraising, and communication to oversee the outreach of the 222 Ministry. She happily agreed and once again, God had plans to move her to accomplish the next phase of her destiny.

  "You invest. You put down roots, but never assume that's where God will leave you," Lana tearfully remembers the day she left the UK to join her husband in America, while her parents kept her children. "Stretching your tent, expanding your ministry, God stretches us. It's uncomfortable, but you follow."

                                                                          

  Today, Lana is fulfilling the passionate but challenging call that God has on her life. She is the very busy CEO of "Transform Iran," a worldwide ministry whose mission is to preach the gospel to all Iranians, plant churches, and activate the body of Christ into nation-transforming missions. Her goal is to reach all of Iran with the gospel. At present, the ministry is just reaching the Farsi-speaking community with the gospel, but Lana has a vision for reaching the entire nation with the good news of Christ, where no churches are planted, and where Iranians speak different languages.

  Reflecting on the church in the West, Lana laments the reality that here in the West, we have a cheap grace, a cheap spirituality. "We have everything free. It doesn't cost us anything," she points out. "It's only when you are truly living for Christ, that it costs you something, and then your faith becomes precious." 

 There is a cost for following Jesus in Iran. If a Muslim changes his religion and converts to Christianity, it is considered apostasy and the result is either life in prison or execution. "The Ayatollahs force the people to believe in Islam. There's no choice," Lana explains, "This creates a hunger and thirst in them. In an environment where people are controlled, they are fighting and looking for water in a desert. We know that Jesus is the source of that life and they're finding him!"

  Lana is grateful for the pivotal events He has used to fulfill the calling on her life. One of her favorite quotes is by the famous British preacher, Charles Hadden Spurgeon, who once said, "That religion that costs a man nothing is usually worth nothing."

  The story, the calling, and the mission that God has placed on Lana's life has been very costly, but she is living out the dreams and the passions of her heart. From being a Sunday school teacher and worship leader in the UK to becoming the CEO of one of the largest ministries in the world is the fulfillment of a precious promise from the heart of God.

  "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."  (Jeremiah 29:11)

  The Lord has indeed prospered and given this Iranian daughter an incredible future and an incredible destiny!

                                                                         

  

 

PM Netanyahu to Iranian people, "Israel Stands With You."

 

"The people of Iran should know, that Israel stands with you. May we together know a future of prosperity and peace."

                                                                

  Within days of a major military operation by Israel resulting in the death of Hezbollah Chief Hassan Nasrallah, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a rare direct message to the people of Iran, expressing hopes for peace and prosperity for both countries.

  Netanyahu declared that "Iran's puppets were being eliminated," emphasizing that "There is nowhere in the Middle East Israel cannot reach and nowhere we will not go to protect our people."

 After explaining Israel's commitment to eliminating the proxy terrorists funded by the Islamic Republic, Netanyahu spoke more directly to the heart of all Iranians, exposing the regime's malicious treatment of their own people. "With every passing moment, this regime is bringing you, the noble Persian people, closer to the abyss. The vast majority of Iranians know," Netanyahu emphasized, "Their regime doesn't care a whit about them. If it cared about you, it would stop wasting billions of dollars on futile wars across the Middle East. It would start improving your lives."

 Netanyahu referred to the sanction relief monies given to the regime, beginning with Obama in 2015 and now more recently, The Biden Administration. The wealthy mullahs continue to finance terrorist proxy wars across the Middle East while neglecting their own people who are poverty-stricken and hopeless, struggling to survive in the midst of sky-rocketing inflation.

  "Imagine if all of the vast money the regime wasted on nuclear weapons and foreign wars, instead were invested in your children's education," Netanyahu pointed out, "In improving your health care, in building your nation's infrastructure, and all the other things that you need."

  As The Prime Minister reached the end of his personal message, He made sure to leave the Iranian people with the promise of a hopeful future. "When Iran is finally free, and that moment will come a lot sooner than people think," Netanyahu said optimistically, "Everything will be different. Our two ancient peoples, the Jewish and the Persian people, will finally be at peace. Our two countries, Israel and Iran, will be at peace."

  Netanyahu's face glowed with optimism as he stared confidently into the camera, "When that day comes, Iran will thrive as never before, Global investment, massive tourism, brilliant technological innovation. Doesn't that sound better than endless poverty, repression, and war?"

  Netanyahu concluded his speech with powerful encouraging words meant to instill hope in the desperate hearts of all Iranians.

  "Don't let a small group of fanatic theocrats crush your hopes and your dreams. You deserve better. Your children deserve better. The entire world deserves better. The people of Iran should know, that Israel stands with you. May we together know a future of prosperity and peace."

  It is a well-known fact, the hatred Iran has for Jewish people. But it is also a lesser-known fact, of the unique friendship that exists between the Jewish and Persian people. The Islamic Republic wants the destruction of the Jewish state, but the people of Iran don't share the convictions of their government. In April of 2023,  Israel reached out to Reza Pahlavi, the Crown Prince of Iran, and invited him to a historic meeting. The Crown Prince visited Israel a few months after the bloody uprising in Iran, when thousands of protesters marched in the streets, condemning the murder of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish woman who died after being beaten in custody for a Hijab violation.

                                                                          

 The purpose of Israel's invitation to Reza Pahlavi was to recognize and support  the Iranian's demand to overthrow the brutal regime and to establish a stronger friendship with the Crown Prince, identifying him as the central leader of the opposition. The main message that Netanyahu wanted to convey to the world as a result of their visit, is that Israel is in favor of a strong democratic Iran in the near future. During the visit, Pahlavi explained, "We have a strong Biblical relationship with Israel, long before it became a state."

  The relationship that Pahlavi referred to centers around Cyrus the Great, who is mentioned more than 30 times in the Bible. Cyrus reigned as king over Persia between 539-530 BC. It was under his rule that Jews were first allowed to return to Israel after 70 years of captivity. He actively assisted the Jews in rebuilding their temple in Jerusalem, by restoring their temple treasures which paid the expenses for the massive project. More than 150 fifty years before The Persian King lived, The God of the Bible, decreed that Cyrus would accomplish this great rebuilding project for his chosen people.

 "This is what the Lord says to his anointed," God declared, "To Cyrus, Whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him. I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor though you do not acknowledge me." (Isaiah 45:1)

  Last month, Reza Pahlavi gave a powerful speech at The Israeli-American Summit in Washington D.C, mandating a coordinated cooperation between Iran and Israel to overthrow the Islamic Republic. He declared, "Now is the time to do more than stand side by side. It is time to act hand in hand."

  The vile hatred and contempt that the Islamic Republic of Iran has against the Jewish people cannot sever the true friendship that exists between the Iranian people and the people of Israel. Both Netanyahu and Pahlavi have made that abundantly clear to the world. Their friendship goes back thousands of years ago when the God of the Bible orchestrated an amazing relationship between a great Persian King and a Jewish nation that was in exile. That same God is preserving that true friendship today in the midst of chaos and violence and the imminent threat of a third world war.

  While it is tempting for our hearts to be filled with anxiety about the powder keg in the Middle East getting ready to explode, Scripture comforts us with the truth that our sovereign God has "All wisdom and power and He controls the course of world events." (Daniel 2:20 NLT Translation.)

                                                                                         

"Jesus is worth the cost," Simin's testimony

 

 "They said if I return to Islam, I could have it all. But how could I forget what Jesus had done for me? The price was huge!"

                                             Simin

  Simin distinctly remembers when she first held a Bible in her hands. Her boyfriend, Moshen urged her to read it. He proclaimed that the message of the Bible was life-transforming. She explained to him that her life was so busy being a nurse, but he wouldn't take no for an answer. So Simin finally agreed and what she read stunned her!

  Being a woman in a man-centered Muslim culture, Simin understood the difficult societal challenges. What impressed her so much about the Bible was the way Jesus treated women. "The Bible became very attractive to me, because of its attitude toward marriage," Simin explained, "It was very different than the world of Islam. In the Bible, women have so much value."

   As she continued to read the Bible, one day, she watched a movie about Jesus on satellite TV and remembered the emotions she felt watching him carry the cross. It left such a dramatic impact on her that she knelt down and cried for hours.

  "Something broke inside me," Simin declared, "Something changed inside of me!" It was an experience that changed her life forever.

                                                                          

  Both Moshen and Simin had a deep desire to grow in their faith but were faced with another difficult challenge. They were afraid to attend any "above-ground churches" in Iran. The government kept meticulous records of everyone who attended and monitored the services, to make sure that Muslims were not evangelized. Pastors were forbidden to preach in Farsi and because of the strict guidelines, very few of these types of churches remained open. The only other option was the secret house church. New believers could be transparent about their faith, worship, pray, and sing within the walls of private homes with much more freedom. 

  Six months after her conversion to Christ, Simin attended her first house church meeting. She didn't know what to do during the service but remembered that there was tremendous joy among the other believers. "I didn't understand the reason for their joy, but during worship, I tasted the sweetness of God's presence."

  A few weeks later, the pastor married Moshen and Simin. The house church experience strengthened Simin's faith and gave her the boldness to begin sharing her faith. One day at work, there was 5-year-old child who was very ill after heart surgery. The doctor didn't give him much hope of living. Moshen and Simin prayed together, believing in the power of Jesus, and to their amazement, the next morning the little boy was completely healed! The doctors were shocked by his sudden recovery. The dramatic answer to prayer strengthened her faith and caused to her begin praying for every patient in the hospital.

                                                                        

  Growing stronger on her faith, Simin decided that it was finally time to tell her parents about becoming a Christian. They were shocked and told her that she had lost her mind. She realized that it was time to move to another city to escape the discrimination and persecution from her parents. However, the culture in the new city was much more conservative. Simin began receiving warning letters about not conforming to the Islamic dress code. The pressure also began mounting at the hospital where she worked. Her colleagues noticed that she didn't join them for Islamic prayers or fast during Ramadan. Simin realized what the consequences would be if they discovered that she was a Christian. Being forced to sign a commitment paper, she reluctantly began attending the prayer meetings and for the next few months, life became very stressful.

  When Moshen and Simin learned the shocking news of their pastor being arrested, they became very discouraged. What would happen to them? Would they be arrested next? Where would they go to fellowship now? They knew they had to avoid contact with the other members. Yet, God had other plans for them. They both decided to keep preaching the gospel, despite the danger and persecution. Soon their house was filled with hungry and thirsty ex-Muslims. They began conducting services, making sure all of the doors and windows were closed and that they controlled the volume of their voices during worship.

  However, being careful was not enough. Simin remembers the devastating morning when 12 security officers burst through their front door in 2019. They later found out that a family whose son had become a Christian through their witness reported their activities to the police. The entire house was searched, and boxes of Bibles and Christian CDs were confiscated. Simin's daughter was very sick with a digestive disease but the police refused to let them bring along her medicine.

  The interrogations were very stressful for Simin. They demanded to know the names of other believers and threatened her if she didn't return to Islam, that she would spend years in prison. The police warned her of the consequences of what would happen to her child. All she could do right now was to trust in Jesus.

 After 18 days of imprisonment, emotional torture, and interrogation, Mohsen and Simin were released on bail until their court date. A few days passed and they finally appeared before a judge charged with "propaganda against the regime" and accepting "Zionist Christianity. Mohsen was sentenced to a year of penal servitude and banned from the city where he lived. Simin was fined and later received a call from the hospital informing her that she was fired.

  Both Moshen and Simin were determined to serve Jesus and realized that the only alternative was to leave Iran. For the next seven months, they hid in a small, dirty room in a smuggler's house during the COVID-19 epidemic. When it was finally safe to travel, they crossed over the border to freedom in another country. Not once during their ordeal was Simin ever tempted to deny her faith. "God was with us, every step that we took," she recalls. During their 18-hour ride in a truck across the border, Simin's sick daughter received a touch of healing from God and slept peacefully the rest of the way.

  After the suffering and persecution, workers from Open Doors, a ministry to the persecuted church, contacted Moshen and Simin and gave them intense discipleship training. For the next year, they were taught how to begin an online ministry. Simin now teaches the Bible to women in Iran, preparing them to be leaders in house churches.

  "Islam and the regime in Iran have destroyed the identity of women and so many of them are broken," Simin laments, "But now I can give them hope by sharing with them online." 

  Looking back on their suffering and persecution, Simin says, "Jesus is worth the cost. In the journey of my life, I experienced persecution a lot, but I always witnessed God at work!"

  *Adapted from an online article by Open Doors/March 2024

                                                                                

Reza Pahlavi, "My vision for a free Iran."

 

  Reza Pahlavi was only 18 years old and living in the U.S. when his father, The Shah of Iran was forced into exile, relinquishing the monarchy. It was a devastating day in 1979 for Reza and the people of Iran. Forty-five years later, Reza is still fighting, and speaking out for his compatriots in Iran, and he has a bold, new vision for their freedom.

                                                                               

   The sixty-three-year-old Crown Prince of Iran has a positive vision for a new and free Iran. As President of The National Council of Iran, he envisions a future where Iranians are no longer under a religious dictatorship but will have a democratic/secular government that respects human rights and has free and fair elections.  "There will be a separation between religion and state," Pahlavi explains, and "Iran will either be a constitutional monarchy or a republic. That decision will be left up to the people of Iran."

  Pahlavi is an outspoken critic of the present regime, calling them the "Number one state sponsor of terrorism and instability in the Middle East, through proxy wars carried out by Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Hooties of Lebanon." 

  In a recent interview with CBN (Christian Broadcasting Network), Pahlavi pointed out that "The current regime is weaker than ever and the country is ripe for revolution. "He went on to explain that 73% of the population of Iran is desperate for a new form of government. The mullahs are weaker than ever before and have lost their legitimacy in the eyes of the Iranians."

   When asked if the fight was becoming too much for the Iranian people, Pahlavi didn't hesitate to answer but boldly declared, "We have to fight. Iranians have no choice. They have to fight for survival, for their sanity, and for humanity, no matter what it takes!" He went on to criticize the Western nations for having false expectations that Iran's behavior would change, calling that kind of thinking, "false and deluded."

 "You don't recognize the DNA of this regime," Pahlavi pointed out, "That needs to do all that it does in order to survive. They are not interested in the welfare of the Iranians, but only interested in exporting their ideology to dominate the whole world!"

  In April of 2023, Reza Pahlavi and his wife Yasmine, traveled to Israel to rebuild their historic relationship with the Jewish people. The government of Iran has nothing but hatred for the people of Israel, threatening to wipe them off of the map. However, the people of Iran have a very positive friendship with the Jewish people and the Crown Prince met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to re-emphasize that very important relationship. 

                                                                       

  Just a few days ago, Reza Pahlavi gave a very powerful speech at the Israeli-American Council Summit in Washington D.C. calling on Jews and Iranians to partner together in the fight against the Islamic Republic of Iran. Reza boldly declared:

   "It's time to say enough is enough. It is time to draw a red line. The only path to prevent more innocent victims and to bring peace for Israel, America, the Arab World, and my compatriots in Iran, is to send the Islamic Republic to the ash heap of history, once and for all."

  The audience replied with a standing ovation for the Crown Prince calling out the atrocities of Iran against their own people and the violent, unforgettable slaughter of the Jewish people by Hamas on October 7. After the rousing applause, Pahlavi continued by stating "The Iranians are fighting every day with no support from the outside world. They are not only fighting to free themselves but to free the Middle East and the world from the scourge of this evil regime."

  Pahlavi explained to the audience that the partnership that Iran and Israel currently have must go beyond social media posts, photo ops, and rallies. It must evolve into a coordinated and collaborated campaign to put maximum pressure on the Islamic Republic, to offer support for the people of Iran, so there can be a peaceful transition from a criminal dictatorship to a secular democracy.

   Reza Pahlavi has an optimistic outlook for the future of Iran but understands that freedom is not free and unfortunately will come with a cost of much blood and more violence. He ended his remarks at the summit with a reference to the original flag of Iran decorated with the lion and the sun. He gazed passionately into the eyes of the audience declaring, "When the Lion and the Sun rise again, the world will see a new dawn of peace."

                                                                        

  

"Tahirih, the first Persian woman to defy the Hijab Law in the history of Iran."

  If there is one important person in the history of Iran, that the "Woman, life, freedom" Movement can proudly claim as their forerunner, it's Tahirih. Tahirih embodied the courage to confront the traditional teachings of Shia Islamic theology. As a woman, she dared to question the religious norms of her day and bravely removed her veil publicly in defiance of the law.

                                                            

  Tahirih (pronounced Tah Hooray) Qurrat-al-'Ayn was born Fatemeh Baraghani in Qazvin, Iran, between 1814 and 1817. Her exact birthdate is unknown. Her father was a respected scholar of Islamic Law and her mother was a recognized woman of Persian nobility. Tahirih was born into a high-ranking family of immense wealth and power. 

  Although her father lamented that she was not the son he wanted, he ensured that she was well educated. As a young child, she memorized the Quran and could easily articulate the finest details of religious law. Tahirih was permitted to listen to her father teaching other young males on the condition that she hid behind the curtain. She was forced to listen behind the curtain because it was considered "unbecoming" for a woman's face to be seen in public. Rising above the shame of being a woman, Tahirih demonstrated her intelligence by outperforming all of her father's male students. She embraced poetry and theology and very early on in her teenage years, Tahirih challenged the accepted interpretation of the Quran, by interpreting it in her own esoteric way. She never accepted the "what is" and always questioned the "what could be."

  Tahirih was recognized for her exceptional beauty and intelligence. She had a driving thirst for knowledge. At the age of 14, she was the unfortunate victim of an arranged family marriage and was forced to marry her cousin, Muhammad. She gave birth to three children leaving her very unhappy and desperate for more out of life than just being a stay-at-home mother.

 Thirsty for knowledge, Tahirih began following the teachings of Shaykhism, as taught by Siyyid Kaziim. Shaykhism taught that the last divine leader to appear in the end times was the Twelfth Imam, known st the Mahdi. The Mahdi, who is currently in hiding, will reappear in the end as a promised messiah to conquer the world for Islam. Tahirih realized that by embracing these beliefs, it would put her at odds with her family and yet she dared to defy the accepted norms.

  In 1843, she separated from her husband and was determined to meet Siyyid Kazim, but by the time she arrived at his home, he was dead.  Granted permission from his widow, Tahirih set up headquarters at Kazim's home and began teaching his followers. She understood that hiding her radical new beliefs from her family was the only way she would survive. In a very short time, she gained a wide and popular following, especially among women. The male clergy hated her and forced her to leave town.

In 1844, through correspondence, Tahirih discovered a very popular teacher known as the Bab, who would later become the founder of the Bahai faith. She became one of his respected followers and quickly began teaching his new doctrine, known at that time as "Babism." Her new beliefs caused her to be exiled to Baghdad by the government. She was fiercely hated by the conservative establishment and they were known to throw stones at her in public when she debated the clerics.

 After she returned to her hometown of Qazvin, her father demanded that she stop teaching her heretical doctrine, but Tahirih refused. Eventually, she was disowned by her own family and they began spreading false rumors to discredit her reputation. When her uncle was murdered, she was falsely accused and was imprisoned at her own home under house arrest. Her father believed in her innocence but Tahirih's husband wanted her executed. During her trial, the real murderer confessed to the crime and Tahirih was finally exonerated.

                                                               

 In 1848, The Babi Faith held a major conference to explain the teachings of their movement. Tahirih attended and did the unthinkable. She declared that the Babi Faith needed to break free from Islam and in a show of defiance, she removed her veil. Tahirih did this in a room full of men. Many were outraged, screaming in horror, and one man cut his throat, quickly leaving the conference. The Bab publicly supported Tahirih's bravery, nicknaming her "Tahirih The Pure." 

 Tahirih continued to defy conservative beliefs, denouncing polygamy and refusing to wear her veil. The establishment was growing very afraid of her influence and the growing number of women leaving Islam. They denounced her as a heretic and demanded that she be executed. In 1852, Tahirih was arrested once again and sentenced to death. She spent her final days in prayer, meditation, and fasting.

  On execution night, she was taken to a garden in Tehran and strangled to death with her own veil. Her body was thrown into a well and stones were placed on top. Tahirih was just 35 years old. Her famous last words were, "You can kill me as soon as you like, but you cannot stop the emancipation of women."

  The "Woman, life, freedom" movement owes its uprising to a very courageous forerunner who stood up against the religious establishment of her day and defied their oppressive laws against women. Tahirih dared to question their authority and paid the ultimate price for standing up for her beliefs. The oppressive government of Tahirih's day hasn't changed. For more than four decades, the women of Iran have faced the same gender discrimination and violence that Tahirih faced. Yet they refuse to cower and remain silent. They have proudly taken the mantle of Tahirih upon themselves and refuse to back down. Her spirit lives on deep within their souls and nothing is going to stop them until the religious establishment crumbles underneath their feet!

 

"The Woman, life, freedom Uprising: Two years Later."

 

                                                                                 

  September 13, 2022, was a very exciting day for 22-year-old, Jina Mahsa Amini. She had just arrived with her brother in Tehran, anxious to visit her family. A few minutes after getting off the Tehran Metro she was greeted by the Morality Police and confronted for not wearing a proper Hijab. After a heated discussion, Jina was forced into a police van and ushered away to the Vozara detention Center. A few hours later, she was rushed to the hospital and pronounced brain dead, the result of severe blows to her head by a baton. Three days later, on September 16, Jina Mahsa Amini died in the ICU, igniting the largest uprising Iran has witnessed since the 1979 Revolution!

  For the next several months, security forces fired assault rifles, shotguns loaded with pellets, beat protesters with batons and used tear gas, resulting in the death of more than 500, including young children under the age of sixteen, and arresting tens of thousands. The "Woman, Life, Freedom" movement exploded in almost every city of Iran, consisting of men, women, and young children, expressing their outrage over the decades of oppression and gender-based violence. Two years since the death of Mahsa, the war on women has not diminished. The government has intensified its violent crackdown against women using surveillance cameras and carrying out floggings against hijab violators. 

  On January 6, 2024, Roya Heshmati received 74 lashes as a brutal punishment for not wearing her hijab. A few months later in July of this year, 31-year-old, Arezoo Badri was shot by security forces while driving away in her car and for refusing to pull over. Her license plate had been photographed and flagged as a hijab violator. She remains in the hospital paralyzed from the waist down.

                                                                      

   Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty's International Deputy Director, pointed out, that in the past two years, "Iranian authorities have been waging a propaganda campaign of denial and distortion to conceal evidence of their crimes and attempting to intimidate survivors and victims' families into silence." To further intensify their oppression of women, they launched a new campaign in April 2024, entitled the "Noor Plan." This plan calls for increasing security patrols on foot, motorbike, car, and police vans in public spaces to enforce compulsory veiling.

  In August of 2024, a disturbing video circulated on social media, showing multiple agents violently assaulting two 14-year-old girls after they removed their headscarves. One of the victims, Nafas Hajisharif described the violent encounter she had with the security forces.

  "They were pulling me by the hair, shouting at me and cursing. When they took me inside of the van, they threw me onto the floor. One female agent hit me, put her knee to my throat, and hit my head hard. My head was stuck between the seats, and they were kicking the side of my torso."

   This deadly assault against women is punishment for daring to claim their human rights of freedom of expression. Women are targets of an out-of-control dictatorship government in a male-dominated culture where they are treated like animals and second-class citizens.

   However, in the past two years, these brave and determined women have refused to comply with the Ayatollahs or Mullahs. They take to the streets without their veils giving the government the middle finger and saying no to the Islamic Republic's tactics of oppression. Risking violence, arrest, imprisonment, and torture, Iranian women continue to defy the law, standing firm for their rights and freedom. They have paid a great price for their defiance and courageously continue the great uprising of 2022. 

   Maryam, a young 16 year-old high school student, living in the Khuzestan Province of Iran, recently gave an interview to the Center for Human Rights In Iran, recalling the early days of the uprising, and why she continues to fight for her rights.

  "I was a student at middle school during the protests. When News of Mahsa's killing spread, we were all angry! Every day, the school staff came to work in fear of the students. We wrote, "Woman, life, freedom" on the doors and the walls, covered the washrooms with red paint, and drew protest signs."

  Maryam goes on to describe the consequences of their actions. "Nobody covered their hair in the classroom anymore. We would gather in the yard and sing protest songs. They would tell us to shut up, but we refused. They lowered our grades, summoned us to the office, or ordered our parents to come to the school and make pledges of obedience. But we weren't afraid! Whenever we could, we also wrote slogans and posted pictures of Mahsa on the walls outside the schools."

 Maryam finished her interview by describing their newfound courage and looking ahead to their future living in Iran.

                                                                                       

  "After what happened to Mahsa, public support for women increased. People's courage increased, and their clothing as well as their thoughts changed. Iran's future is unclear. We will defend our rights as long as we can, but liberation is not easy."

 The government believed that after the massive crackdown the "Woman, life, freedom" movement would somehow quietly go away. Nothing could be further from the truth. These brave Iranian women, like Maryam are not quietly going away into submission. They are fearlessly standing up to the Supreme Leader and with one loud voice proclaiming, "Woman, Life, Freedom!"

  Two years later, they haven't forgotten the unjust murder of Jina Mahsa Amini, or any other peaceful protester that has given their life for human rights and freedom. This dictatorship government has unleashed a "female monster" that refuses to back down or comply. The cracks in the foundation of this evil regime are growing larger and it's only just a matter of time before it crumbles. Bravo to the incredible women of Iran who put to shame the silent and hypocritical feminists of the world that refuse to raise their voices of support!

"I can breathe again," Maral's new life in Germany.

 

It is the passion of my life to be a voice and write the stories of my Iranian friends. Maral Rostami is one of those dear friends. I met her online in Shiraz, Iran in 2013 and offered to help her learn English. We became very close friends and she appreciated my support of Iranian women's struggle of living under a dictatorship government. I distinctly remember a very emotional video call on Skype in July 2015. Maral was extremely desperate to flee Iran with her ten-year-old child. Her ex-husband was stalking her and her father-in-law was threatening to take custody of her son because she refused to teach him the Quran. It was would be the last time that i saw Maral for several months. 

The following short story of Maral's daring escape from Iran is told in more detail in my book, "Finding Hope and a Future: Maral's Journey to Freedom," on Amazon.com

 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Then you will call upon me and and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."

                                                       (Jeremiah 29:11-13)

 I was sitting in the parking lot of Walmart on October 6, 2015, when I received a text message from Maral's sister, Farzane on What's App. I hadn't heard from Maral since our Skype call in July and was very concerned about her. I thought it was quite odd that her sister was messaging me. I quickly opened up the message and was shocked! Farzane explained in her message that Maral and her son Parham had to immediately leave Iran because the Police had arrived at her home while she was at university. Maral had noticed them parked at her home and she panicked, calling her brother. Within a few hours, her brother Mohammed had found a buyer for her car and used the money to smuggle Maral and Parham out of Iran to the border of Turkey.

 Upon hearing the news, I laid my cell phone down beside me in the car and quietly prayed for Maral, that God would protect her and lead her safely into another country. I knew the cyber police monitored Maral's Facebook page and was worried that they had discovered our friendship and found out that I was a human rights activist for Iranians. Then I remembered that Maral had shared with me that she belonged to an anti-government group that met together after classes at the university. Had the group recently been infiltrated and that's why the police were at her home? Farzane had mentioned that the police had confiscated her laptop and were patiently waiting for her to return home from university.

 For the next three months, Maral and Parham traveled with a refugee group on a grueling three-thousand mile journey to Germany, where they would become asylum seekers. The journey began on foot, crossing over the treacherous Zagros Mountains on foot. Once they reached the bottom, they were met by two pickup trucks that would transport them to the next location. One of the most challenging episodes on the journey for Maral and Parham was crossing the Aegean Sea on a leaking rubber raft, and arriving at a refugee camp on Samos Island in Greece. Struggling to adapt to the changing weather conditions, Maral was now suffering from a bad case of bronchitis. However, she didn't have time to rest and relax. She had to keep moving swiftly with the refugee group and avoid being seen by the police. If caught, they would all be deported back to Iran as illegal refugees.

 Suffering from lack of sleep, Maral and Parham finally arrived at their destination in Bad lburg, Germany on December 27, 2015. The long and difficult journey was now over and freedom never tasted so good! Iran was now far behind them and Maral and Parham were ready to begin a new life. I will never forget the day at work when I received a call from Maral on What's App. I was thrilled to hear her voice once again and even more thrilled when she told me that she had become a Christian. During our last Skype call in July, I shared with her a verse from the Bible that had made a powerful impact on her journey. The verse was from the book of Jeremiah, where God promised "hope and a future" for those who would seek his face and place their trust in Him. Maral also reminded me of another verse that I had shared with her from Matthew's gospel teaching on prayer where Jesus said, "Keep on asking and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking and you will find. Keep on knocking and the door will be opened." 

  "Those Bible verses gave me hope," Maral explained. "It made the difficult journey much easier and I remembered them from our Skype call."

  Maral told me several times that she hated religion, but just believed in God. I responded that Christianity was not a religion but a love relationship with God through Christ. The seeds of God's Word had taken root in her heart and God had caused the seeds to grow through many trials and tribulations. Shortly after her arrival, Maral joined a nearby Lutheran Church, where she confessed Jesus as her Lord and Savior and was baptized.

 In January 2017, I met with Maral on Skype from her new home in Germany, and for the next three months, she explained in detail her incredible escape from Iran and the difficult journey with the group of refugees. One of the most exciting events of her new life in Germany, besides becoming a Christian, was when the elder at the church gave her a very special birthday present, a brand-new bicycle! Maral was thrilled and immediately took her new bike for a ride around the refugee camp. The exhilarating feeling of not having to wear a hijab and riding a bicycle was the thrill of her life. Women riding bicycles publicly in Iran is forbidden, but right now Maral could fearlessly pedal her bike around the camp without fear of being arrested by the Morality Police.

  "I can breathe again," Maral rejoiced with a huge smile on her face as she concluded her story with me on Skype.

  Next year, I will publish a sequel to our first book, detailing the struggles and triumphs of being an Iranian refugee in Germany. Since her new life, Maral has successfully graduated from university and is working as a dental assistant in her new apartment in Bad lburg. God has answered my prayers and kept His promise to Maral. She has been blessed with a brand new life and a new beginning. Maral and Parham both found hope and a future just as God had promised them!