Donald Fareed
Encyclopedia
Donald Fareed is an Iran
ian born American Christian televangelist
and President of the non-profit organization Persian Ministries International, which was founded by him. Fareed is an ordained minister and founding pastor of the Bay Area Persian Churches of San Mateo
and Santa Clara
in California
. The ministry's objectives include evangelising and spreading Christianity
among the Iranian diaspora, especially in Iran
, Tajikistan
, Afghanistan
and Southern Iraq.
during the reign of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
, the last Shah
of Iran. His family was very dysfunctional and his parents divorced when he was a child. In his website, Fareed claims that he was very outspoken as a youth and as a result, got into trouble with the Savak
, which was the secret police apparatus of the Shah. He became disillusioned with Orthodox Islam
as a teenager and turned to Sufism
.
However, he soon got dissatified by what he perceived as the "superstitious and complicated nature of Sufism" and rejected Islam completely. He became interested in Christianity in 1990 after having a chance encounter with three Christian pastors and a dream in which a vision of Jesus Christ appeared to him. He converted to Christianity a year later. His conversion would influence most of his family members to embrace Christianity as well.
Fareed is a strong advocate of democracy
and western secular ideals. He has partnered with Sattar Deldar,a pro-democracy Muslim television broadcasting executive, to promote democracy and regime change in Iran since 2001. Fareed has teamed up with Appadana International, Deldar's secular Muslim satellite television station and other stations to broadcast programs about not only Christianity but also secularism, democracy and religious freedom.
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian born American Christian televangelist
Televangelism
Televangelism is the use of television to communicate the Christian faith. The word is a portmanteau of television and evangelism and was coined by Time magazine. A “televangelist” is a Christian minister who devotes a large portion of his ministry to television broadcasting...
and President of the non-profit organization Persian Ministries International, which was founded by him. Fareed is an ordained minister and founding pastor of the Bay Area Persian Churches of San Mateo
San Mateo, California
San Mateo is a city in San Mateo County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area. With a population of approximately 100,000 , it is one of the larger suburbs on the San Francisco Peninsula, located between Burlingame to the north, Foster City to the east, Belmont to the south,...
and Santa Clara
Santa Clara, California
Santa Clara , founded in 1777 and incorporated in 1852, is a city in Santa Clara County, in the U.S. state of California. The city is the site of the eighth of 21 California missions, Mission Santa Clara de Asís, and was named after the mission. The Mission and Mission Gardens are located on the...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. The ministry's objectives include evangelising and spreading Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
among the Iranian diaspora, especially in Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and Southern Iraq.
Background
Donald Fareed was born into a Shia Muslim family in IranIran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
during the reign of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
Mohammad Rezā Shāh Pahlavi, Shah of Iran, Shah of Persia , ruled Iran from 16 September 1941 until his overthrow by the Iranian Revolution on 11 February 1979...
, the last Shah
Shah
Shāh is the title of the ruler of certain Southwest Asian and Central Asian countries, especially Persia , and derives from the Persian word shah, meaning "king".-History:...
of Iran. His family was very dysfunctional and his parents divorced when he was a child. In his website, Fareed claims that he was very outspoken as a youth and as a result, got into trouble with the Savak
SAVAK
SAVAK was the secret police, domestic security and intelligence service established by Iran's Mohammad Reza Shah on the recommendation of the British Government and with the help of the United States' Central Intelligence Agency SAVAK (Persian: ساواک, short for سازمان اطلاعات و امنیت کشور...
, which was the secret police apparatus of the Shah. He became disillusioned with Orthodox Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
as a teenager and turned to Sufism
Sufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
.
However, he soon got dissatified by what he perceived as the "superstitious and complicated nature of Sufism" and rejected Islam completely. He became interested in Christianity in 1990 after having a chance encounter with three Christian pastors and a dream in which a vision of Jesus Christ appeared to him. He converted to Christianity a year later. His conversion would influence most of his family members to embrace Christianity as well.
Fareed is a strong advocate of democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
and western secular ideals. He has partnered with Sattar Deldar,a pro-democracy Muslim television broadcasting executive, to promote democracy and regime change in Iran since 2001. Fareed has teamed up with Appadana International, Deldar's secular Muslim satellite television station and other stations to broadcast programs about not only Christianity but also secularism, democracy and religious freedom.
See also
- List of former Muslims
- List of converts to Christianity
- Christianity in IranChristianity in IranChristianity in Iran has a long history, dating back to the early years of the faith. It has always been a minority religion, with the majority state religions — Zoroastrianism before the Islamic conquest, Sunni Islam in the Middle Ages and Shia Islam in modern times — though it had a much larger...
External links
- Persian Ministries website - Official website of Donald Fareed.