International Council of Iranian Christians (ICIC)
RESS RELEASE, January 1998
P.O. Box 25607
Colorado Springs, Colorado 80936 USA
(719) 596-0010
(719) 574-1141
"... In the last days ... I shall restore the fortunes of Elam, declares the Lord." Jeremiah 49:39
|
The International Council of Iranian Christians (ICIC) was formally established in November 1997 when about thirty ministers and Christian leaders gathered in San Bernardino, California. They represented various churches, organizations and groups who minister among Iranians. ICIC's formation however, began in 1986 when efforts were launched to create councils both inside and outside of Iran to promote cooperation among churches and Christian organizations serving Iranians. Those efforts, led by the martyred Bishop Haik Hovsepian-Mehr, resulted in the formation of the Council of Protestant Ministers in Iran in late 1986. After several attempts at creating a council outside of Iran, a number of Iranian Christian ministers and those serving in the Persian-speaking world gathered together in Frankfurt, Germany in July 1996. This meeting sparked a heightened interest in establishing a council outside of Iran similar to the one established in Iran almost a decade before. Two organizational meetings followed in August and November 1996 in Costa Mesa, California and Colorado Springs, Colorado. A board of directors was elected at the third meeting held in Los Angeles in November 1997. There, they planned a number of programs for 1998 aimed at achieving greater cooperation among the Iranian churches and ministries and promoting the work of evangelism and Christian discipleship among Iranians. ICIC will deal with issues such as church growth, cooperation across denominations, and the arrival of persecuted Iranian Christians in the West. ICIC's current membership includes twenty ministries in Canada, Germany, Japan, Sweden, and the U.S. The Iranian diaspora is over 3.5 million worldwide of which, 1.3 million reside in the U.S. However, presently less than 0.5 percent of this number are committed Christians and the work of evangelism among Iranians needs to be greatly expanded. ICIC's board of directors will meet in February to make long and short term plans for the long awaited council. For more information, please contact: International Council of Iranian Christians
|
Please send Your comments/questions to icic@farsinet.com
 |  |
|---|
.....