Window in Crown Terrace Baptist Church, Aberdeen

“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”

During the time I have been working on the tapestry of the Beatitudes, Panel 8 based on the words above, several times I have met with two Iranian Christians for baptismal preparation classes. Each told their story of having been targeted as Christians and being forced to flee the land they call home. Prison, beating, threats to family, ostracism, loss of their career and livelihood (one had his own business) – persecution is not mere inconvenience, or ridicule, or indifference, usually the worst we might expect in Scotland. These men are describing the real thing, the actual bottom line cost and consequence of following Jesus for each of these men and their families. There are tears in the telling of those stories – and in the hearing of them..

Using translation software they told their story, confessed their faith, spoke of what Jesus means to them, how they have found hope and love amongst Christians across Europe. I guess I never expected working a tapestry to take on such deep existential significance as in hearing first hand accounts of exactly what Jesus was speaking about.

And what’s more, in the ninth Beatitude panel, which isn’t started yet, Jesus is much more explicit about what it means to be a Christian in a hostile environment.

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

That phrase, “Because of me”. The ring of truth and experience is unmistakable in their love and devotion to Jesus, and their confession of faith in Jesus Christ as Lord.

In the light of such experience of persecution, shared in prayer and fellowship, their recent baptismal confession brought moments of solemn joy, and of faith deepened and intensified by love to all of us who witnessed their baptism, and rejoiced with them as brothers in the Body of Christ.