Despite Vast Islamic Persecution, Youth Birth 'Awakening' in Iran - JESSILYN JUSTICE CHARISMA NEWS

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks live on television after casting his ballot in the Iranian presidential election in Tehran.REUTERS/Caren Firouz/File Photo

Despite Vast Islamic Persecution, Youth Birth 'Awakening' in Iran

JESSILYN JUSTICE

Dec, 3, 2016 charisma news

Iranian youth have sparked an "awakening" among their countrymen, with hundreds being baptized recently. 

"The youth have become restless and have looked toward an alternative to the regime and Islam," CCM Ministries founder and CEO Mani Erfan tells Fox News. "The youth find Western culture and the Christian church very appealing.

"It's become a counter-culture. A counter-revolution to the [1979 Iranian] Revolution." 

ELAM Ministries estimates more than 200 Iranians and Afghans have been baptized since August.  

"News from Iran dominates our headlines, but behind the scenes God is building His church," according to the ELAM website. "Thirty years of Islamic revolution have made Iranians the most open Muslim people in the world to Christ. And it is only the gospel that can bring peace to Iranians and the whole Middle East." 

Shia Islam governs Iran, according to Open Doors USA, creating a devastating hostile environment for the country's 450,000 Christians.  

"Christianity is also considered a condemnable Western influence, an imminent threat to the Islamic identity of the Republic. Especially as their numbers are growing and, allegedly, even children of political and spiritual leaders are leaving Islam for Christianity," Open Doors reports. 

Jessilyn Justice is the assistant news editor for Charisma. Born and raised in a pastor's family in Alabama, she went to Lee University and the Washington Journalism Center. She's passionate about the church, jogging, news and cupcakes not necessarily in that order. Tell her what you think of this story on Twitter @jessilynjustice.

Joel Rosenberg: “Iran provokes the world as Obama does nothing.” Who said this? You might be surprised.

“Iran provokes the world as Obama does nothing.” Who said this? You might be surprised. by joelcrosenberg  Dec. 23, 2015

>> One week until THE FIRST HOSTAGE releases. You can pre-order it here.

"Iran is following through on the nuclear deal it struck with a U.S.-led coalition in an utterly predictable way: It is racing to fulfill those parts of the accord that will allow it to collect $100 billion in frozen funds and end sanctions on its oil exports and banking system, while expanding its belligerent and illegal activities in other areas — and daring the West to respond. Unfortunately, the Obama administration’s response to these provocations has also been familiar. It is doing its best to downplay them — and thereby encouraging Tehran to press for still-greater advantage."

Who said this? You might be surprised. It wasn't Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It wasn't one of the GOP presidential candidates. Nor was it the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal or a conservative foreign policy analyst.

These are actually the opening lines of a Washington Post editorial published on December 20. The liberal editors of the Post go on to blast the Obama administration's "fecklessness" in willfully "ignoring" Iran's blatant violations of the nuclear accord.

Consider the rest of the editorial:

We’ve pointed out how the regime of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has unjustly sentenced Post correspondent Jason Rezaian to prison and arrested two businessmen with U.S. citizenship or residence since signing the nuclear accord. There have been no penalties for those outrageous violations of human rights. Now a United Nations panel has determined that Iran test-fired a nuclear-capable missile on Oct. 10 with a range of at least 600 miles, in violation of a U.N. resolution that prohibits such launches. Moreover, it appears likely that a second missile launch occurred on Nov. 21, also in violation of Security Council Resolution 1929.

The U.S. response? "We are now actively considering the appropriate consequences to that launch in October," State Department official Stephen Mull testified at a Senate committee hearing Thursday. In other words, there have so far been none — other than a speech by the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations blaming the Security Council for the lack of action. As for the second missile launch, the administration claims to be investigating it, though it likely has in its possession the intelligence necessary to make a judgment.

It’s not hard to guess the reasons for this fecklessness. President Obama is reluctant to do anything that might derail the nuclear deal before Iran carries out its commitments, including uninstalling thousands of centrifuges and diluting or removing tons of enriched uranium. The same logic prompted him to tolerate Iran’s malign interventions in Syria, Yemen and elsewhere, along with the arrest of Mr. Rezaian, while the pact was under negotiation.

U.S. officials argue that Iran’s nonnuclear violations make it all the more important that the nuclear deal be implemented. But that ignores the clear connections between the missile launches and Tehran’s ambitions to become a nuclear power. The only practical military purpose of the missiles the regime is testing is to carry atomic warheads. And while missile launches are not prohibited by the nuclear pact itself, the separate resolution banning them remains in effect until the deal is implemented, after which a new resolution takes effect that calls on Iran not to develop such missiles for eight years.

By flouting the U.N. resolutions, Iran is clearly testing the will of the United States and its allies to enforce the overall regime limiting its nuclear ambitions. If there is no serious response, it will press the boundaries in other areas — such as the inspection regime. It will take maximum advantage of Mr. Obama’s fear of undoing a legacy achievement, unless and until its bluff is called. That’s why the administration would be wise to take firm action now in response to the missile tests rather than trying to sweep them under the carpet.

I don't often say this, but it's true: the editors of the Washington Post are correct in their observations and analysis. The White House and State Department are ignoring the Iranian regime's willful disregard of the nuclear accord.

What the Post editors don't say -- but should -- is that this refusal to require Iran to keep the agreement is making a dangerous situation far more dangerous. Why? Because Iran's leaders are not just driven by Radical Islam. They are driven by Apocalyptic Islam. They believe the End of Days has come. They believe their savior or messiah known as the "Mahdi" or the "Twelfth Imam" is coming at any moment to establish a global Islamic kingdom or caliphate. And they believe they must develop a nuclear weapons arsenal to help pave the way for a world without Jews and Christians. Western leaders ignore the threat of Apocalyptic Islam at their peril, and ours.

I once wrote a trilogy of novels about such a nightmare scenario. This is far more frightening...because it's true.

-------------------

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——————-

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joelcrosenberg | December 23, 2015 at 9:29 am | Categories: Uncategorized | URL:http://wp.me/piWZ7-3Ac

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Netanyahu: Don't Compromise with Iran

By Julie Stahl and Chris Mitchell

CBN News Middle East Bureau

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

JERUSALEM, Israel -- With conflicting reports over whether or not the P5+1 are nearing a deal with Iran over its nuclear program, social media became the sparring ground for preventing Iran from becoming a threshold nuclear power.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and the other P5+1 nations met in Oman to try to hammer out a deal with Iran on its nuclear program before the November 24 deadline. But on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned negotiators not to allow Iran to become a nuclear threshold state.

In a message on his Facebook page, Netanyahu said his office sent a letter to the P5+1 nations (U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Russia and China) pointing out that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei publically called for the destruction of Israel even as he's negotiating a nuclear deal.

"The leader of this country that is depicted by some as moderate, the Islamic State of Iran, has said in the last 48 hours: one, that he calls for the annihilation of Israel -- his words, not mine; two, he gives nine ways and reasons of how and why Israel should be annihilated -- his words, not mine," Netanyahu said.

On his Twitter page, Khamenei called Israel a "barbaric, wolflike [sic] and infanticidal [sic] regime" for which there is "no cure but to be annihilated." He provided a nine-step plan for confronting and destroying the Jewish state, including arming the Palestinians.

Meanwhile, reports say Iran is preparing to expand its plutonium program and may have five times the advanced centrifuges as previously thought. That would shorten the time for Iran to achieve breakout and become a nuclear power.

"There is no moderation in Iran. It is unrepentant, unreformed, it calls for Israel's eradication, it promotes international terrorism, and as the IAEA report just said, it continues to deceive the international community about its nuclear weapons program," Netanyahu continued.

Some fear with U.S. midterm elections behind him, President Obama could push through a disastrous deal with Iran. He has already hinted at bypassing Congress and didn't deny reports of a "secret letter" he'd sent to Khamenei.

But Netanyahu cautioned negotiators against facilitating Iran's nuclear weapons program.

"This terrorist regime in Iran must not be allowed to become a nuclear threshold power. And I call on the P5+1 countries -- don't rush into a deal that would let Iran rush to the bomb," he said.

Netanyahu has warned against a nuclear Iran for years, advocating economic sanctions rather than a military strike. On Monday, he again said "the alternative to a bad deal is not war."

"It means giving existing sanctions and even stronger sanctions more time to work to achieve the goal of fully dismantling Iran's military nuclear capabilities," Netanyahu said at the Jewish Federations of North America's General Assembly in Jerusalem. "To remove sanctions before that goal is reached is to remove any hope of a genuine diplomatic solution."

"That is why avoiding a bad deal and maintaining strong pressure on Iran should be the policy of all responsible governments. So too, all responsible governments should help President Obama in his effort to degrade and defeat ISIS," Netanyahu said.

It's not clear if the P5+1 will heed his warning or if it will fall on deaf ears.

Iran: Time to Destroy Israel

Sunday, November 09, 2014 |  Israel Today Staff

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Iran

Just days after US President Barack Obama reportedly sent a letter to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei extolling America’s and Iran’s shared objectives in the Middle East, the Iranian leader on Saturday again called openly for the destruction of Israel.

“This barbaric, wolflike & infanticidal regime of #Israel which spares no crime has no cure but to be annihilated,” Khamenei wrote on his official Twitter account. “The only means to confront a barbaric regime like #Israel is arming [the Palestinians],” he continued.

Former US presidential candidate Mitt Romney said he was astonished to learn that the Obama White House had even considered the possibility of working together with such a regime.

“I was frankly stunned that the president of the United States would write a letter of that nature and in effect, legitimize a nation and a leadership which is violating international norms and is threatening the world,” Romney told the inaugural conference of the Israeli American Council.

The secret letter that Obama is said to have sent Khamenei reportedly offered an American-Iranian partnership in combatting the Islamic State (formerly known as ISIS), so long as Tehran agreed to a comprehensive deal regarding its defiant nuclear program by the end of the month.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araqchi, said in remarks cited by Reuters over the weekend that his government was taking seriously the November 24 deadline, and was keen to conclude an agreement with world powers.

But it would appear Iran’s new willingness to negotiate has less to do with accepting global concerns, and more to do with Washington’s increasing flexibility regarding the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program.

“Iran and the US have come to terms that despite more than three decades of mistrust, it is now in their national interest to constructively negotiate and reach an agreement,” Ali Khoram, an adviser to Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, told Asharq Al-Awsat. “Both sides seem to have recognized each other’s concerns and are ready for maximum flexibility.”

Araqchi likewise clarified that the agreement Iran is looking to reach will not bring and end to its enrichment of uranium or its nuclear program as a whole. “Iran’s [uranium] enrichment will continue. This issue has been agreed upon by both sides,” he told Iran’s Press TV, referring to more recent talks between Iran and the six world powers known as the P5+1.

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