Wife of American pastor detained in Iran wants Obama's attention

TheBlaze

By Billy Hallowell

Naghmeh Abedini, wife of imprisoned Pastor Saeed Abedini, an American citizen who has been trapped in the brutal Iranian prison system for more than a year, is planning to stage a peaceful protest outside the White House on March 8 — an effort that could also end up landing her behind bars.

Abedini, no stranger to criticizing the Obama administration’s handling of her husband’s plight, plans to pray outside the White House for his release, while using the opportunity to urge President Barack Obama to take more decisive action in resolving the matter.

As The Christian Post noted, it is illegal to hold stationary protests in front of the White House, though protesters are allowed to carry signs.

Immobile prayer, then, could mean legal trouble for those who choose to partake.

In a post on her Facebook page, Abedini said that her devotion to her husband is driving the decision to risk arrest.

“As a law-abiding Christian who has never gotten in trouble with the law (not even a speeding ticket) and who has always prayed for our government and presidents regardless of where they stood politically or if their values agreed or did not agree with mine, I struggled with the idea of being arrested in front of the [W]hite [H]ouse on March 8,” she wrote.

Abedini continued: “I knew in my heart that this decision did not come out of rebellion against my government or hatred or disobedience, but it came out of love for my husband and the persecuted Christians. That it came out of love for those who are in chains because of their faith in Jesus.”

Abedini, who recently told TheBlaze that her husband might not survive the severe conditions he faces in Iranian prison, wrote that “the law of love overcomes every other law” and asked for her supporters’ prayers.

Many Christians across America are supporting the call for the pastor’s freedom. A petition has been set up to push leaders to reinstate tough sanctions against Iran until his release. Last week, pastors joined together to encourage people to pray outside the White House every week until the administration takes steps to free him.

Rev. Pat Mahoney, director of the Christian Defense Coalition, told CBN News last week that Obama has made phone calls to numerous public figures in the past, noting that the president phoned basketball player Jason Collins after he came out as gay and Georgetown University student Sandra Fluke who advocated for free contraceptives — but has yet to call Abedini to discuss her husband’s plight.

Abedini told TheBlaze last month that she believes Obama has “shown in his heart that he doesn’t care” about her husband’s continued detainment in Iran — and confirmed that, to date, no high-ranking U.S. officials have contacted her to speak about Saeed’s plight.

“I’ve recently heard him make great speeches on Nelson Mandela and people who have been in prison, because of what they believe in and the change they brought to this world … and here’s an American citizen standing up for his faith and rotting in an Iranian prison and yet there’s silence,” she said. “And silence, for me, speaks volumes.”