When I started my university degree in the mid-1990s, I joined a small church predominantly attended by students and others connected with the university. One member of the church was an Iranian PhD student, resident in the city with his American wife and young sons. I never learnt anything about his background or how he became a Christian, but one of my strongest recollections of the mid-week prayer meetings is that we were frequently in prayer for him as he made one of his regular trips back to Iran, Farsi Bibles hidden Brother Andrew-style in his suitcase, ready to deliver to the house churches he visited.
The university Christian Union put a strong focus on missions, so I also absorbed there a desire to see how God is working in different countries and gathering His people to Himself from every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation. This culminated in me deciding to spend the first two years of my working life after graduation teaching English in China. There, I experienced for myself what it is like to live as a Christian in a “closed” country, and I attended a secret house church, which met in a different home each week.
In 2011, Farzad (whose story will be told here, not his real name) and his family began to attend my home church, having previously been members of another church in the same city. Farzad brought with him a small group of Iranian believers and seekers, sat with them at the back of the church, and quietly interpreted the service. Over the following months, the church gradually became aware that our new Iranian friends had come to stay. Before long, Farzad had been given use of the church minibus on Sunday mornings to go and round up as many Iranian refugees as it could carry, and the church had invested in simultaneous translation equipment to suit the needs of a larger group.
At first, the Iranians remained relatively few and most were young men. As time went on, the group grew larger and more diverse. More women and sometimes whole families, complete with young children, joined. Many came alone, having left children and spouses by necessity, and were in great need of friendship and fellowship. They certainly made a mark on the congregation. The church leadership often found itself involved in supporting asylum applications, either through writing letters or attending court hearings, and many other church members gave their time to this. The Iranians themselves made a huge contribution in filling up volunteer rotas, moving furniture and generally making themselves helpful where they could. Often, they were not with us for very long. Sometimes those who seemed to have become most settled in the church had to move once they received their leave to remain, because they knew someone elsewhere who could help them to get work, or because they had family or close friends in another part of the country and wanted to join them.
I wonder how many UK congregations recognize this as an all too familiar story. Statistics on attendance are not readily available, but there is plenty of anecdotal evidence that churches across the country have received new life as well as new challenges from an influx of Iranian asylum seekers. Yet we can remain largely ignorant of the situations they are fleeing, or of the circumstances that have drawn them to salvation in Christ. For many of us, it may not be possible to become personally involved in close friendships, or to assist with asylum cases, and frequently in British culture, we do not like to ask too many questions! However, it is important for us to understand the stories of these people who have now joined our churches and our communities.
The purpose of this book is not just to satisfy curiosity. I hope to increase understanding and awareness among Christians in the UK, who find their churches filling up with Iranian asylum seekers. I aim to make believers aware of some of the cultural norms and assumptions that have shaped the experiences of Iranian refugees, and of the variety of backgrounds that have brought them to the point where they have sought their home in the UK. While it is important to respect the privacy of the individuals who have chosen to share their stories, I believe that for some, the opportunity to be heard has been greatly valued. There can be a relief in telling one’s story. We all like to be listened to.
These stories represent a range of different experiences of Iranian believers. Some gave their lives to Christ while still at home in Iran. For others, seeds were sown in their hearts, but it was not until some time later, once they had left and fled the country, that they came to full understanding and assurance of salvation. For yet others, it was not until they had arrived in the UK that they first encountered Christians or heard the gospel message. The important thing that connects all these stories is that all have trusted in Jesus Christ alone for their salvation.
Names have been changed throughout this book. There is often concern for the safety of family members and Christian friends left behind in Iran, or simply a desire to maintain personal privacy as these new believers seek to establish their new lives. For the same reasons, locations and the names of churches in which they have settled are also undisclosed.
I would like to thank everyone who has shared their story for inclusion in this book. For many of them, it has involved reliving unpleasant or traumatic experiences, or opening up about things they had not previously shared. This book contains a selection of the stories that have been shared with me, covering a range of different experiences that Iranian asylum seekers typically encounter. I do not seek here to present these stories as purely factual – just news reports of what happened – instead, I have tried to present them in the believers’ own words, as their own testimonies of how their lives have been transformed by Christ.
My prayer for you reading this book is that it will open your eyes to the many and varied histories of Iranian believers; that whatever your role in the church, as pastors, leaders, or members, you would be able to better understand and support those who have made their homes amongst us.
Persian Voices 