Living as Secret Christians in Iran
“They were tearing us apart, one by one. Every time we heard the doorbell, we feared it was the police,” Fatehmeh remembers. “We still can’t forget the day when the police raided our house church, took some of us away, and forced the rest to sign a paper confessing we would never meet or engage in Christian activities again.”
Living as Christians in Iran means living in secret.
Fatemeh and her fellow believers constantly worry about getting arrested or being reported by neighbours who might hear them worshiping or notice their small gatherings. A Christian never knows if the person they approach will betray them and hand them over to the authorities.
“In Iran, the government sees our faith as a threat,” Fatemeh reflects. “We live under constant surveillance and face different kinds of pressure. It’s a daily battle to keep our faith in such hostile conditions. But God is good!”
Discovering Christ’s light
Fatemeh first heard the message of the gospel when she was 20 years old. Her initial years as a Christian were loaded with challenges, with no resources or places to learn more about Christ nor the ability to gather for worship and prayer due to security reasons.
“We had become Christians, but we still didn’t know how to live like one,” Fatemeh recalls. “God was reviving people in Iran and bringing them closer to Himself, but at the same time, Satan was trying to attack the church, hurting new believers with false teachings.”
Within the house church she attended, Fatemeh faced difficulties, with incorrect teachings from the Bible making the group afraid to even read the Word of God. “Maybe this was a result of not having official churches to attend, and of course, Satan was trying to make us renounce our faith and lose sight of our Saviour,” she says.
Learning to be faithful Christians was difficult without churches and discipleship resources.
The Christian walk was difficult. It wasn’t until Fatemah connected with Fayiz*, an Open Doors partner, that she began to find stability.
After 10 years of trying to hold on to little ways of staying connected to Christians, Fatemeh finally had the chance to join a conference outside of Iran, hosting other Christians from her country. “It felt like a new beginning!” she says. “I truly started to build a relationship with Jesus and began to understand who He really is!”
Imprisonment
However, the joy of finally finding a new community didn’t last long.
During one of the meetings, the police raided their house church. They took the leaders away, and forced the rest to sign a paper confessing that they would never meet or engage in Christian activities again.
When their pastor and church leaders were eventually released from prison, they had to flee the country. Soon after, Fatemeh witnessed a Christian family member facing trouble with the government and being forced to sell everything quickly to flee.
“They were tearing us apart, one by one,” she says. “Every time we heard the doorbell, we feared it was the police.”
With the immense pressure on them, Fatemeh and her extended family avoided visiting each other to prevent accusations of running a house church. For more than three years, Fatemeh lived in fear and isolation. The fear of arrest and imprisonment, based on the experiences of their leaders and other members, was a constant terror.
“After witnessing the arrest, we couldn’t keep Christian materials or even a Bible in our house,” she says. “We had to throw them away and if anyone was courageous enough to risk keeping a small Bible, they had to hide it very well and read it in secret,” Fatemeh explains.
"[My husband] wasn’t sure whether he should continue helping others or stay hidden...he said that sometimes he couldn’t stop himself from thinking of suicide, but Jesus was the only truth and righteous one in the midst of all lies and betrayals that helped him endure.”
“It has only been in the last couple of years that we began meeting regularly again and gathering some resources, secretly.”
The younger believers, teenagers and children, were also traumatized by these events. Fatemeh’s daughter, Shirin*, was deeply shaken, and Fatemah did her best to appear calm for her child.
Protests and more arrests
The 2021 protests in Iran calling for more freedom brought increased mistrust due to spies and hardline Muslims reporting people to the police. That year, Fatemeh’s husband was arrested because his sister was suspected of joining the protests. “I was afraid they might discover his Christian faith and use it against him,” Fatemeh says.
Fatemeh’s husband was imprisoned for several weeks, accused of false charges. “When he came out, he was changed. He wasn’t sure whether he should continue helping others or stay hidden…he said that sometimes he couldn’t stop himself from thinking of suicide, but Jesus was the only truth and righteous one in the midst of all lies and betrayals that helped him endure.”
During her husband’s imprisonment, Fatemeh had to throw away all Christian materials again, remembering how hard she worked to gather each one of them. She cut off contact with other Christians for their safety. Her daughter began to live in fear that her father would one day never come home.
Unfortunately, this situation is not unique to Fatemeh’s daughter. “I hear similar stories from many parents in different house churches,” Fatemeh says. “Christian children who share these challenges feel lonely.”
The lack of places of worship limits the believers’ access to resources, skilled teachers and pastors. Shirin’s only place of joy now is the children’s online meeting.
“Although online meetings have their own challenges from the bad internet connection and risk of surveillance, they are vital for us. We pray that God would make a new way for face-to-face meetings, especially for Shirin and other kids.”
Ongoing ministry
Despite the immense trials, Fatemeh remains passionate about serving others. Her small house church faces fear and lives under pressure, yet God uses these persecuted believers to show His love for the salvation of all. Fatemeh, who used to be a nurse in a children’s cancer ward, now visits hospitals to pray for the patients and their families, shares the gospel with them, and her church financially supports those who cannot afford the necessary treatment. “I don’t want to only speak about the love of Jesus,” she explains. “I want to love them the way Jesus loves me!”
Today, Fatemeh encourages young couples in her church to trust God more. “I share with them our experiences, how Jesus worked in our life in the midst of persecution and through the challenges, and He showed us how He works,” she notes. “We know that persecution might increase, but we are not alone! God and His people are with us.”
Today, Fatemah is working to encourage other Christians in Iran.
Through the support of Open Doors partners, Fatemeh finds strength and hope to continue serving in her country. The conferences and trainings held outside of Iran, along with the online Bible studies and prayer meetings, all empower Fatemeh to stay faithful, to grow and to pursue her ministry.
These gatherings provide a lifeline, offering not only spiritual nourishment but also a sense of community and solidarity. “In every meeting or session, I feel the presence of God and the support of my brothers and sisters in Christ,” she says. “It renews my spirit and gives me the courage to face each day.”
Yet Fatemeh, the mother, wife and servant of Jesus, still struggles today. She is deeply concerned about her daughter’s mental and emotional well-being. “Shirin lives in constant stress and anxiety,” she says. “Every time I return from a ministry visit or a training, I find her in tears, she is always afraid that I might not come back home. She even has nightmares, mostly about the police.” Even in their house church, Shirin constantly reminds everyone to stay silent, fearing another raid.
As a parent, Fatemeh hates to see her daughter live with this fear, and she constantly prays that God would heal her and give her the wisdom to help her daughter. “I am not afraid to lose my life for Jesus, but I wonder what will happen to my daughter without us,” she says. “May God protect the parents and give them wisdom as they raise kids in this country.”
Your prayers and support make all the difference, fueling the faith and resilience of Fatemeh, her family and all those who face unimaginable hardships in Iran today.
*All names and images used are representative only
