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October 10th, 2011
11:35 AM ET
Lawyer: Iranian Supreme Leader to weigh in on pastor’s executionBy Dan Merica, CNN Washington (CNN) –- The possible hanging of an Iranian pastor, who may face execution for refusing to recant his Christian beliefs, reached the highest levels of the Iranian government over the weekend with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei being asked for his opinion on the possible death sentence. Mohammad Dadkhah, attorney for Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, told CNN that Nadarkhani was still alive and that the court has asked the highest religious leader in Iran for his input. Though Khamenei has the ultimate authority in Iranian affairs, the move is unusual for a case that was supposed to be decided Monday. Nadarkhani, the leader of a network of house churches in Iran, was first convicted of apostasy in November 2010, a charge he subsequently appealed all the way to the Iranian Supreme Court. In an appeals trial last month at a lower court in Gilan province, Nadarkhani refused to recant his beliefs.
After the trial, however, reports by the semi-official Fars News Agency on September 30 indicated that the charges against Nadarkhani have since changed and the pastor is now charged with rape and extortion. "This issue has nothing to do with his abandoning his religion," reported Fars. "He is a Zionist and has committed security-related crimes," Gholomali Rezvanii said in the Fars News report. Renvanii is the deputy governor of Gilan province, where Nadarkhani was tried and convicted. In a 2010 Iranian Supreme Court brief obtained by CNN, the charge of apostasy is the only charge listed. "He [Nadarkhani] has stated that he is a Christian and no longer Muslim," states the brief. "During many sessions in court with the presence of his attorney and a judge, he has been sentenced to execution by hanging according to article 8 of Tahrir – olvasileh." The case has drawn international attention, with governments from around the world, including the United States, Britain and France, issuing statements on the fate of the pastor. Nadarkhani "has done nothing more than maintain his devout faith, which is a universal right for people," a White House spokesman said in a statement. "That the Iranian authorities would try to force him to renounce that faith violates the religious values they claim to defend, crosses all bounds of decency and breaches Iran's own international obligations." |
  About this blog
The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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Nowhere in the Quran has it said to kill people.
It is not up to us to judge anyone.
“We shall not misinterpret the holy Quran” (Ayatollah Muhammad Rosa Khani”)
I delight in, cause I discovered just what I was looking for. You have ended my four day lengthy hunt! God Bless you man. Have a nice day. Bye
Jesus said he was the only way to heaven. All others that tell you something else are liars. He hung on a cross and had a spear pushed in him. He rose from the dead. Some of you need to think about what happens to you when you stop breathing.
Christians,Muslims,Jews worship the same god.
Muslims, the descendants of Ishmael, have traditionally been intolerant towards others. They think that they own god, rather than god owns all of us.
This is what god says of Ishmael:
“He will be a wild donkey of a man,
His hand will be against everyone,
And everyone’s hand will be against him;
As god says, he will pick up quarell against every one. It is the plan of god.
As for you vmaxncor, dont make a fool of yourself by blaming god. If you are a non believer, some day he will catch up with you.
Mental disorder means religion period.
Belief in Hashem is NOT mental illness. Don't you realize there's a part of the brain that spiritual beliefs come from?
religion is a form of mental disorder
...
I think you misspelled something there.
What about the liberty of religion? this is the human right, include the islam, the christian, and others... The Iran government need to know they are not only in the world, they are not much power of the all world and the simple thing...he is not the only christian in Iran. It's no sense, they are cant, kill anyone using the religion our personal faith!I
"Our god is better than your god, and we'll kill you if you don't agree". Religion is by 1000000000000000000000000 fold the absolute worst plague ever brought on humanity. Everything else put together looks like a bee sting compared to the death, destruction, and terror that religion and belief in a mystical deity have wrought on this planet.
I think you're confuse about religions and the peoples who hijacked their religions to commit unlawful acts that are forbidden by their religious teachings. Try blame the people.
Have you considered the good that religion brings? If you point out a few crazy people to make a point that religion is bad, you should do the same with marriage since some husbands beat their wives...etc. Your logic is in a box.
You need to see the world with a little less bias and a lot less extremism.
Christians,Muslims,Jews worship the same god.
Muslims, the descendants of Ishmael, have traditionally been intolerant towards others. They think that they own god, rather than god owns all of us.
This is what god says of Ishmael:
“He will be a wild donkey of a man,
His hand will be against everyone,
And everyone’s hand will be against him;
As god says, he will pick up quarell against every one. It is the plan of god.
As for you vmaxncor, dont make a fool of yourself by blaming god. If you are a non believer, some day he will catch up with you.