Religious persecution is on the rise around the world according to data from the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, the U.S. State Department, Freedom House, and Open Doors among others. Former Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom David Saperstein says that, “enemies of religious freedom have grown alarmingly strong worldwide. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now.” …

In the early morning hours of Christmas 2010, Iranian government forces arrested scores of Christian home-church leaders in surprise raids around the country. Among those arrested was a newly married couple, Yousef and Rozhin*. Incarcerated in separate locations, Yousef and Rozhin were repeatedly told by their captors that the other had denounced their faith. In fact, both remained steadfast in …