What happens when a man who fled one of the world’s most oppressive regimes for religious freedom discovers that the country that saved him is now sending others like him back into danger? In this eye-opening episode, host Justin Yentes speaks with Pastor Ara Torosian, an Iranian-Armenian Christian who escaped persecution under Iran’s Islamic regime, found refuge in the United States, and now fights for fellow believers whose asylum protections have been suddenly and unjustly revoked. Together, they unravel a story where faith, integrity, and U.S. policy collide, with lives hanging in the balance.

Key Moments:

• Pastor Ara’s Origin Story: Growing up Armenian Christian in Iran, finding faith under oppression, and risking everything to lead an underground church.

• Arrest and Torture: Ara’s arrest for possessing Bibles, his refusal to betray fellow Christians, and the enduring trauma of his torture.

• Seeking Freedom: The journey to the United States through a refugee program and building a new faith community in Los Angeles.

• Faith and Comfort in America: The cultural shock of Western Christianity and the danger of taking freedom for granted.

• The Deportations Begin: How Iranian Christians were recently sent back to Iran under the current administration, despite legal asylum claims.

• Advocacy and Hunger Strike: Ara’s peaceful protest at the White House and his call for reform in America’s broken asylum system.

• The Call to Conscience: What faith, justice, and integrity require of those who claim to stand for religious freedom.

This episode challenges what you think you know about religious freedom, immigration, and American integrity. It’s for listeners who care about human rights, faith under pressure, and the moral cost of political decisions. Learn how one man’s courage can still make a difference and how you can, too. Listen now on Truth Be Found.

Show Notes:

Follow Justin and the pod: @truthbefoundpodcast

Link to Justin’s agency, AIA: https://azprivateinvestigator.com/

Follow Pastor Ara: @aratorosian

National Immigration Forum (advocates): https://forumtogether.org/

The Florence Project: https://firrp.org/

Women of Welcome: https://www.womenofwelcome.com/

World Relief: https://worldrelief.org/immigration-legal-services/

Start with Welcome by Bri Stensrud: https://www.amazon.com/Start-Welcome-Compassionate-Immigration-Conversation/dp/0310154251