Iran, Islam, and the Struggle for a Reclaimed Heritage

The Iranian people, historically known as Persians, possess one of the richest cultural heritages on earth. Their ancient civilization, language, poetry, art, and identity long predate the rise of militant Islamist rule. In light of that, modern Iranians have ample reason to be proud of their heritage and profoundly grieved at how the current Islamic regime has trampled it.

The present regime in Iran, dominated by Islamist clerics, has turned a once-admired culture into a worldwide byword for repression, fanaticism, and terror sponsorship. That transformation was not inevitable; it was the result of specific 20th‑century events, including foreign policy decisions. The overthrow of the Shah and the rise of the Ayatollahs in 1979 were not merely internal events, but were deeply shaped by the misjudgments of the Carter administration and the American foreign policy establishment. While ultimate moral responsibility lies with the Islamist revolutionaries, Western naiveté and weakness enabled them.

The hostage crisis that followed is illustrative. For 444 days Iranian militants held American hostages. President Carter pursued negotiations and "reasoned dialogue," but gained no real progress. Only when Ronald Reagan was about to take office---known for his willingness to use decisive force---did Iran suddenly release the hostages, literally as his presidency began. The Islamist rulers understood power and feared it. In that part of the world, particularly among hardline Islamists, strength is the only language that reliably restrains aggression.

Against that background, the current uprisings by the Iranian people against the regime are both understandable and courageous. Many Iranians do not want to be identified with the regime's ideology. They want a normal country, where they are not defined by jihadist ambitions or repressive theocracy. They are attempting to reclaim their nation from a minority that seized power decades ago.

Yet the reality is grim: the regime is brutal, ideologically driven, and well-armed. It has repeatedly shown itself willing to massacre its own citizens to maintain control. This is the nature of totalitarian religious fascism: having cloaked itself in claims of piety, it believes almost any violence is justified to preserve its rule.

Several points follow from this:

1. Moral Clarity about the Regime The world would unquestionably be better off without the current Islamist leadership in Iran. Their rule has been catastrophic for Iranians, destabilizing for the region, and dangerous for many others. Only a very small subset of Western ideologues, often on the far left, attempt to romanticize or excuse this regime. Such sympathy is tragically misguided; the same fanatics they praise would gladly kill them if they lived under their rule.
2. Recognition of Minority Power These events highlight how often a determined minority can seize control when the majority is unprepared or divided. In 1979, most Iranians did not truly desire the harsh theocracy they ended up with. But a fanatical, organized minority, combined with foreign mismanagement and the Shah's vulnerabilities, allowed the radicals to prevail. Historical parallels can be seen elsewhere, including in the events surrounding the crucifixion of Jesus: a relatively small but determined faction can drive outcomes that the broader population does not actually want.
3. The Need for External Wisdom and Strength Western policy toward Iran since the 1970s has too often been driven by wishful thinking, appeasement, and a failure to grasp the nature of Islamist totalitarianism. Leaders like Richard Nixon, whatever their other flaws, understood power politics, the importance of alliances, and the realities of the Middle East and broader geopolitics. Had the West possessed that kind of sober realism during the crucial years of Iranian upheaval, the current regime might never have consolidated power.
4. How Others Should Respond Now Those outside Iran should: beginitemize
5. Recognize the legitimacy of the Iranian people's desire to overthrow an oppressive regime.
6. Pray for their protection and for a crack in the regime's armor.
7. Support, where possible, secondary and tertiary forms of help: information, communication technologies, diplomatic pressure, economic tools, and other indirect forms of backing that may strengthen the people without triggering catastrophic retaliation.

There are limits to what can be done without large‑scale war, but there are also many ways to encourage and support those who are risking their lives to resist tyranny. endenumerate

For Christians, this situation calls for both realism and compassion. Realism recognizes that evil regimes do exist, that they often rule through fear and murder, and that they rarely yield power voluntarily. Compassion recognizes the suffering of ordinary Iranians, many of whom bear no love for the Islamist system and long for a day when their country can again be a source of cultural richness rather than repression.

At minimum, believers should pray that the regime's grip would be broken, that bloodshed would be limited, and that the people of Iran might one day live in greater freedom---and that, amid the turmoil, many would come to know the truth of the gospel that transcends every regime.