Record Baptisms in Iran Overshadowed by Church Closure as Presidential Election Looms

Good news amid crackdown on Farsi-language churches: Nearly 250 converts from 'largest baptism service on record ... since the fourth century.'

When authorities arrested Robert Asserian, a pastor at Central Assemblies of God Church in Tehran, they also posted a sign outside saying Iran’s largest Protestant church was "closed for repairs."

But “given that the building has no need of any repairs,” according to Elam Ministries, “it seems that the church has been closed by the authorities.”

And as Iran’s presidential elections begin tomorrow, Asserian and his Assemblies of God church aren’t the only victims of increasingly restrictive conditions. World Watch Monitor (WWM) reports that Iranian authorities are clamping down on religious minorities and anyone else they perceive as a threat. Read more