Iranian-American pastor Saeed Abedini said that he witnessed Christians converting to Islam while under pressure in prison.
Christian Today reports that Abedini, who was released from prison in Iran in a prisoner swap in January, said he saw other Christians who began their imprisonment with strong faith, succumb to persecution and give in to Islam.
Abedini himself was persecuted for his Christian faith while in prison
supposedly for “undermining national security.” He had been in Iran to
do mission work.
In a recent Facebook post, Abedini said that many "religious and
political prisoners who started out with very strong faith, thoughts and
actions while going through so many changes in their country and world"
eventually gave into pressure to convert to Islam.
"I saw some Christian[s] who were put in prison because they would not
deny their faith and they kept doing their ministry. But unfortunately, I
saw some of these heroes of the faith weaken through the difficulties
and hardships of prison," he said. "I heard one of the Christians prayed
Namaz Islamic prayer to make his situation easier."
In an interview
with Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren shortly after his release, Abedini
reveals that he was beaten in prison and was forced to watch others
being tortured or even executed.
“We do not know how strong our faith really is until it is tested,” he
said. He urged his Facebook followers to remain committed to their
faith, even during trials.
"Jesus has a reason for telling us to finish what we have started with
Him and keep going forward in our Biblical values. Our reward is waiting
at the end of our journey," he said.
No comments:
Post a Comment