Posted on 05/18/2005 10:15:12 AM PDT by NYer
Tehran (AsiaNews/Compass) – Hamid Pourmand, a Protestant clergyman who was born a Muslim, was moved from Tehran’s Evin Prison in an armoured car two days ago, May 16, to his home town of Bandar-i Bushehr (southern Iran), where an Islamic court will hear charges of proselytising and apostasy against him. He could get the death penalty and be hanged.
Some of Pourmand’s relatives were allowed to briefly see him before his departure, but the prisoner was not permitted to speak with them. Witnesses say however that, gazing at them silently, he mouthed the words, “Please, pray for me.”
Reverend Pourmand, who converted to Christianity in 1980, is a member of the Assemblies of God. At the time of his conversion he was a colonel in the Iranian army.
On February 16, he was found guilty of keeping his conversion a secret from his superiors.
Under Iran’s Islamic law, non Muslims are not allowed to be in the army as officers.
Following the sentence he was thrown out of the army, lost his salary and pension and his family lost their home.
Now he is charged with proselytising and apostasy. The judges accuse him of being part of “an underground church for many years, a church through which many people have betrayed Islam and joined Christianity”.
In November 2004, the European Union formally complained against the Iranian authorities for Pourmand’s treatment calling his arrest and trial a “violation of religious freedom”.
Send lawyers, guns and money.
Will you pray for this man and can you explain why the rest of us must?
Warmest Regards,
Cornpone
If you'd like to be on this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.
Prayers for our brother and his family.
This is horrible. Why doesn't Newsweek consider telling the world just how Muslims treat Christians in places like Iran?
I wonder how Muslims in this country feel about a Christian possibly being executed over his conversion to Christianity??
Prayers for the Pastor and his family.
Just remember: Liberals would love to make Christian proselytising illegal too.
I am so thankful for the freedom we have - that we can worship our Lord without fear. I pray that generations to come are blessed with this same freedom.
I pray whatever the outcome with this poor man and his family that the Lord's Will be done and that He is glorified in all things.
We'll never hear in the MSM how Muslims in this country feel about it, because the whole thing is a non-issue to the MSM. After all, it's just a Christian being killed. It's not like we can blame Islam for this, they just have a different culture which we must tolerate and praise. [/sarcasm OFF]
So, they are offended if we dis the Koran, but this poor guy will die for his conversion to our Lord, mmmmm makes sense to me. */scarasm off
Thank you for the pings.
God bless this man and his family.
Surely the authorities will arrest his wife if he is found guilty.
Yeah, didn't they complain about the Iranian born British woman too. And she was tortured to death.
Prayers
In other news, Christians throughout Europe and America rioted over his mistreatment. Dozens were killed, and mosques by the hundreds were burned....
So, is CAIR holding a news conference on this?
I thought not.
Perhaps the Islamic "judges" are working part time in Canuckistan:
Man Convicted of “Hate Speech” for Flyer Warning of Harm from Sodomy
***Sound of crickets chriping***
I think they are busy passing out free Qurans still.
Psssst, I hear they are softer, more absorbent and bouncier than the old ones.
I can just see Mr. Whipple now, in the black uniform of an Iranian Ayatollah:
"INFIDEL! Do NOT SQUEEZE the Q'uran!"
The government of Saudi Arabia
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