A lesson from Christian converts in Iran

While Americans debate the faults of “Christian nationalism” inside the safety of their speech-protected, religiously free homes, colleges, and neighborhoods, Christian converts in Iran are regularly arrested, tortured, and killed for rejecting Islam.

Iran’s Christian population was hit particularly hard this summer, under siege from Islamic detractors who have bulldozed the Evangelical Church of Mashhad, shuttered the 15-year-old St. Peter Evangelical Church, and blacklisted all Christian satellite broadcasters. 

Christian ministries working covertly in Iran see God working in the midst of it. “We are happy because God’s kingdom is expanding and advancing,” said Iran Alive Ministry founder Hormoz Shariat. “According to Islamic law, I am officially a criminal … and that’s an honor.” 

As Iranian converts embrace their new faith despite rejection from their families and the risk of imprisonment for gatherings, some American Christians openly admit that they’ve stopped attending church primarily because their conservative congregants voted for Trump.

“My faith completely unraveled” because of “MAGA-magnified hypocrisies,” said one commenter in response to a post about Gen Z leaving church.

“My church is now the water, the trees, the birds,” said another. 

The cavalier attitude these self-identified Christians have toward the bride of Christ would likely puzzle Iranian Christian converts like Ghorban Dordi Tourani, who ran a house church and was eventually murdered for it.

“I am willing to give my life that belongs to you, for the sake of you and your church,” said Tourani, speaking of God.

Converts in Iran endanger themselves to meet in secret locations so they can gather to worship. Matthew 18:20 says that God is “among them” in their gatherings, meaning God’s special, covenantal presence— unavailable elsewhere.

Like the Holy of Holies—the innermost sacred room of the temple in the Old Testament—we all have access to God in this way when we meet together in His name. It’s a privilege that many American Christians pridefully dismiss as optional. 

It’s no wonder there’s a steep decline in the number of Americans who identify as Christian—from 78% to 62% since 2007, according to Pew Research. When we scatter, we wither—and persecuted Christians know they cannot afford to wither when they’ve staked everything on their faith in Jesus.

Convert Sarah Fooladi said gathering for church “was always full of fear and trembling,” but she still felt the need to do it.

The persecuted church understands that you cannot be a Christian in isolation. To gather and hear the Word preached, receive the sacraments, and experience the grace and goodness that is the body of Christ is both a command and a blessing. Where Bibles are scarce and faith is forbidden, gathering is a means of strength and sustainment.

As American Christianity declines, Iran Alive is committed to “transforming Iran into a Christian nation”—despite the fact that the country is currently 99% Muslim. If the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church, the blood spilled this summer may yet bloom into a flourishing spring: At least 33 ministers serving with Iran Alive were killed, with another 14 imprisoned or on death row.

Even as Iranians know they face persecution and prison, they are turning to Jesus in record numbers. He comes to them in dreams and visions, through miracles and healings, in supernatural ways not seen as often in the West.

Homa said Jesus visited her in a dream, and she recognized Him from stories she was told as a little girl. “It was Him,” she told Open Doors in relaying the story of her conversion to Christianity in 2024.

An Iranian man calling himself Darius (for identity protection) converted to Christianity from Islam this year after a vivid dream, saying, “When I woke up, I knew that Jesus had called me.”

In Iran, we now see one of the fastest-growing evangelical populations in the world despite increased hostility. Though conversion numbers are hard to pin down due to secrecy and repression, Iran Alive reported 5,849 professions of faith through their programs alone in 2026. Some estimates say the Christian population in Iran has doubled in the last 40 years, with recent conversions causing an uptick.

And yet, the average American Christian is barely aware of what’s going on in Iran—or Nigeria, or any other persecuted nation. We’re still arguing about the meaning of the word “evangelical” and whether to use preferred pronouns. We’re calculating how little we can get away with tithing and debating whether megachurch Christmas shows really need strobe lights.

CNN talking heads spew angst over “militant masculinity” inside of “evangelical patriarchy” as the American church overlooks the struggles of our brothers and sisters laying down their lives for the faith overseas.

Clearly, God doesn’t need American Christians to grow His global church. But it’s time we recognize the extraordinary blessing of our freedom and use it to stand with, pray for, and learn from our persecuted brothers and sisters.