Vartan Avanesyan's reaction to the opening of the "Mary Maghrib" metro station
In response to the reopening of the Holy Mary metro station, priest Vartan Avansyan described it as a "propaganda move."
Rev. Vartan Avansian, a well-known Christian figure who has a history of living and serving in Iran, reacted to the naming of the metro station "Mary the Virgin" in Tehran, describing the move as a "propaganda move" and speaking about the numerous pressures faced by Christians in Iran.
In an interview with the Iran International news network, in response to the question, "What does it mean to name a metro station after "Holy Mary" while many Christian converts in Iran are in prison and the government has created many problems for them?", he said: "As a citizen who served as a priest in Iran for many years (i.e., I had this opportunity as an Armenian), I must say that what is presented as propaganda for domestic food and consumption and for supporters of the government is completely in opposition and contradiction with what is being done inside the country."
This move is actually for domestic consumption and shows that the government has been ignoring all the principles of human rights and us Christians for 46 years, and that a Persian-speaking person is a Christian. This Christianity that is spoken of here and the name of the Holy Mary is actually only for Armenians and the Armenian Orthodox Church.
"The pictures there and the verses written there do not correspond to the true Bible. So in fact, it is a propaganda feed and this is a habit that in these 46 years, the loud voice of true Christians and the voice of the true Gospel has been silenced, as it was said, everyone is deprived of having the Gospel. So this action is only because of the Armenian race who have been there for years. This propaganda and this abuse only has foreign food and propaganda consumption, while many loved ones are in prison and in persecution."
Pastor Vartan continued: "We can say this, in these days when everyone is in trouble and there is pressure from all sides, this action is just propaganda to say that Iran is a country of freedom, religions are free, Christians are free, and how much we respect them; but even that Christ, our Christ is not Christians, he is not the Christ that the Bible introduces. The Holy Bible does not confirm the hadiths written there, so it is just propaganda fodder for the further survival of what is on the verge of extinction."
In response to the question, “What is the Islamic Republic’s goal when it goes to the extent of imposing a religious symbol, albeit a non-Shiite one, on the ordinary lives of the people?”, Rev. Avansian added, “Again, their specialty is projection. If the budget that was spent on all this advertising was just for one station called the Virgin Mary, with all its artistic beauty, if they had thought about the people, the welfare of the people, the livelihood of the people, the needs of the people, even the Armenians and Christians, how much more useful would it have been?”
"What contribution does every loved one who goes up and down those stairs make to their spiritual life, livelihood, family, and survival? All of this is against the principles in which human rights show the needs of a human being. Therefore, its meaning and significance, unfortunately in these days when people are being squeezed from all sides, is neither a religious issue nor an observance of religious principles, but only has internal consumption for those around them, for those who use this propaganda loudspeaker to defend Iranians who are under such pressure. Hoping for the release of Christians in Iran as soon as possible."
