Muslim Convert Preaches Politics, Predicts Democracy in Iran
Former Iranian Shiite Muslim Donald Fareed, now an evangelical Christian pastor and head of Persian Ministries International, has preached a radical religious and political message to millions of Muslims over satellite television in the face of religious persecution. He predicts that Iran, not Iraq, will undergo regime change and become the first democracy in the Middle East, and urges America to support the Iranian pro-democracy movement.
San Jose, CA (PRWEB) December 30, 2004 -- Donald Fareed, a former Iranian
Shiite Muslim and founder of the San Jose-based Persian Ministries International
(PMI) (www.PersianMinistries.org), today announced his prediction
that Iran, not Iraq, will undergo regime change to become the first democracy in
the Middle East within just a few years.
In the face of political and
religious persecution that includes the torture and martyrdom of associates, and
being blacklisted by the Iranian government, Fareed, now a U.S. citizen and
evangelical Christian pastor, has preached a radical, combined message of
religion and politics. For years, his non-profit organization Persian Ministries
International (PMI) has had a weekly series of television programs through which
he reaches up to 30 million Farsi-speaking Muslim viewers not only with the
message of the Christian gospel, but also with the message of democracy,
encouraging them to press the fundamentalist Iranian regime for religious
freedom and referendum using Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s principles of civil
disobedience and non-violent, passive resistance.
Fareed’s programs
broadcast into the heart of the "10-40 window" around the Persian Gulf in Iran,
Afghanistan, Tajikistan and the Southern part of Iraq where nearly 90 million
Farsi-speaking Muslims live. His unique, combined spiritual and political
message has attracted many to hear the Christian gospel in the context of what
is relevant to their struggles with Islam, particularly the fundamentalist
version.
"The situation in Iraq has led many Americans to believe that
having democracy in the Middle East is impossible," says Fareed. "But Iran is
ready for democracy, and America needs to know that." In claiming Iran is ripe
for regime change, Fareed points to its predominantly pro-West, secular
population, which is fed up with Islamic fundamentalism. He also points to 70
percent of Iran's population, which consists of young intellectuals under age 30
and women who have suffered under fundamentalist Islamic law, with whom his
message is especially resonating.
Recently, Iran has undergone many
internal changes. The constitution is being re-written by pro- democracy groups,
people are protesting for regime change through civil disobedience, and there is
a huge movement for referendum. PMI is also planting home churches inside Iran,
where one of the largest house church movements in the Islamic world is growing
among students, according to a December 4 issue of Voice of the
Martyrs.
"With the positive response we are getting, and growth of home
churches in Iran, we are making significant strides in the Muslim world. I
believe we will have one million Muslim converts in Iran by the end of 2007, and
that Iran will be a model of democracy in the Middle East in just a few years,"
Fareed says confidently.
Fareed is also convinced that the defeat of
Islamic fundamentalism as a premise for government in Iran will greatly
contribute to the defeat of Islamic fundamentalism everywhere, but insists that
time is of the essence. "The majority of Iranians are pro-democracy, and claim
their only hope is President Bush. As Americans, we need to encourage our
government to actively support the Iranians," urges Fareed. "If America supports
the pro-democracy movement in Iran, it will lead to the downfall of the current
Iranian regime, and that will send shockwaves throughout the entire Muslim
world. It will be a huge wakeup call that Islam, particularly the fundamentalist
version, isn't working," he says enthusiastically.
Although Fareed has
been involved in the evangelism of Muslims since he converted to Christianity 14
years ago, he only felt compelled to add a political agenda to his message after
the martyrdom by the Iranian government of a close associate, the Bishop of the
Assemblies of God Church in Iran. Fear of meeting the same fate as a Muslim
apostate kept him from preaching politics actively for years, but a later
diagnosis with an incurable muscular disease made him realize he had nothing to
lose.
Facing certain death, Fareed did not hesitate to confront the
Islamic government of Iran with their atrocities, encourage Iranians to push for
religious freedom and referendum, and talk about his religious conversion from
Islam to Christianity. As a result of his courageous broadcasts, millions of
Muslims around the world have heard the Christian gospel, and thousands have
converted to Christianity, and the pro-democracy movement in Iran has been
encouraged.
Preaching against the Islamic-controlled Iranian government
put Fareed in a precarious position, however. His first convert in Iran was
caught by the Iranian secret service and tortured. Once released, there were two
attempts on his life, forcing him to flee the country. Soon the Iranian
government blacklisted Fareed, and Iran National TV aired his photograph,
accusing him of "anti-Islamic activities with the intent to topple the
government of Iran." "Due to several incidents at one point, I told my board of
directors, 'I think my time is up,'" recalls Fareed.
Iran has made
tremendous political strides within a short time, and Fareed’s health has
improved as well, yet he continues to deal with the inherent risk of his
activities as well as chronic pain.
Each day brings new battles. Fareed
found himself in the middle of a media controversy a few weeks ago after being
invited to preach a message entitled, "Why I Am Not a Muslim" at the Sunnyvale
Nazarene Church in Sunnyvale, CA. Some community members considered the message
"offensive," and AP News picked up the story, as did the network affiliates in
the San Francisco Bay area.
About Persian Ministries International
(PMI)
Persian Ministries International (PMI) is an evangelistic non-profit
Christian organization with a vision of reaching over 100 million
Persian-speaking Muslims for Christ worldwide, and encouraging Muslims around
the world to press their governments for religious freedom and democracy. PMI is
also encouraging Muslim-Christian dialog, working to bring the Church to an
awareness of the needs and opportunities for ministering to Muslim people in the
U.S. and around the world, and challenging and equipping the Church to love
Muslims and reach them for Jesus Christ. For more information, please visit
www.Persian Ministries.org.
# # #
Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2004/12/prweb191496.htm