Pastor Ara Torosian delivered a speech to his congregation in Los Angeles on a Sunday in June, saying that if immigration officials detain you, “first, call your lawyer, and second, call your pastor.”
It took very little time. By the end of the month, two families contacted Torosian to inform him that they were being held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement—one through their attorney, the other through a spouse.
“There are hundreds of Iranian Christians from different churches that are in danger of deportation,” Torosian stated. And there’s a serious risk if they return to Iran. A great number of them will be incarcerated.
The Iranian members of his church came to the United States to avoid religious persecution back home, and Torosian has been fighting for their release from ICE custody. Iranian authorities frequently target members of minority religion communities, particularly Christians who converted from Islam, according to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom.
The software, formerly known as CBP One, which let migrants to make appointments for asylum at authorized ports of entry during the Biden administration, was used by one of the families in his church to enter the United States. This year, the Trump government disabled the app’s functionality and instructed all users to self-deport if they entered the nation using it.
Over the weekend, one couple and their child were released from custody, but they were put in an ankle monitor alternative to detention, Torosian told NPR. A number of the others are still being held in different detention centers.
People can petition for asylum or refugee status for a variety of reasons, including religious persecution. Those escaping religious persecution, many of whom viewed the United States as a beacon of religious freedom, have suffered as a result of the Trump administration’s reform of the country’s asylum and refugee policies.
In contrast to the administration’s first term, which provided assistance for certain Christian refugees despite tightening immigration laws generally, the halt on the majority of refugee admissions and the restrictions on certain asylum claims represent a change.
The president continues to support Christians around the world, according to the White House.
“President Trump has a humanitarian heart and is particularly concerned about Christians who are persecuted for their faith worldwide. “Anyone who fears religious persecution can apply for asylum to stay in the United States,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson stated. “The Trump administration is also working to undo the damage by the Biden administration, who admitted countless poorly vetted migrants into the United States through temporary programs.”
Since the beginning of the administration, 13,000 people have been granted refuge, Jackson continued. According to data from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, the Biden administration authorized about 18,000 asylum cases through immigration courts during a same time frame.
A White House Religious Liberty Commission was established by an executive order signed by Trump in May with the goal of advancing “America’s founding principle of religious freedom.”
In his words before signing, “We’re bringing religion back to our country and it’s a big deal.”
Fleeing persecution
However, difficulties faced by specific families, particularly those who initially entered the nation through temporary programs, are hidden by the larger numbers of asylum approvals.
Last month, an Afghan Christian in Oklahoma said that he had been waiting over half a year for a response to his asylum application. The man recounted being afraid for his life after the Taliban took power in 2021, but he would not reveal his identity for fear of being persecuted because of his immigrant status.
He and his family fled to Brazil three years later, and then they made their way to the U.S.-Mexico border by boat and foot. They used the CBP One app to enter the United States.
He still fears deportation and possible persecution in Afghanistan, despite his desire to feel safer in the United States.
“My family and I, we can’t sleep,” he replied. “All the time, we are scared.”
Religion frequently plays a significant role in persecution around the world, according to Matthew Soerens, vice president of advocacy and strategy for World Relief, a Christian humanitarian organization and refugee resettlement agency.
“Everyone wants to stay home when they can, but often it reaches a point where people feel that they have no choice but to leave home,” he stated. “And that is a tragedy, but it’s even more tragic when then they have nowhere to go.”
According to a report by World Relief and other Christian and immigration organizations, by the end of last year, over 10 million Christian immigrants in the United States were at risk of deportation, either because they lacked legal status or because their protections, like temporary protected status, could be revoked.
According to the survey, 8% of all Christians in the United States—including Catholics and Evangelicals—are either personally in danger of being deported or live with someone who is.
According to the Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, Christian denominations accounted for the largest group of refugees arriving in fiscal year 2024, however it is challenging to estimate the number of refugees granted status due to religious persecution.
“Last year at least, and in most of the last several years, the majority of refugees we resettled happened to be Christians,” Soerens stated. “More than half of them come from countries where Christians face persecution.”
According to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom in 2025, Christians in Middle Eastern and African nations are subjected to violence because of their faith.
Trump’s immigration policies affect Christian immigrants
Advocates for Christian refugees and asylum-seekers have voiced concerns about the loss of temporary protected status for Afghan migrants, in addition to changes to refugee and asylum policies. According to a watch list by Open Doors, a ministry that aids persecuted Christians, the nation is among the most hazardous nations for Christians.
Refugee resettlement organizations have filed a lawsuit against the administration for stopping refugee admissions and resettlement, among other changes to the nation’s asylum and refugee policies. Despite the legal issues, a tiny number of refugees were recently permitted entry into the United States.
Some people who thought there would be some exceptions to Trump’s plans for mass deportations have also been discouraged by the Trump administration’s tougher stance on immigration, “because they had understood that he was going to champion the cause of persecuted Christians,” according to Soerens of World Relief.
More nuance can be seen in polling data. According to a Public Religion Research Institute poll, white Christians are among the categories most inclined to support Trump’s immigration policies, despite several Christian organizations protesting against his handling of both legal and illegal immigration.
Small windows of opportunity have existed. The government imposed a new travel ban in June, but it also included some exclusions, such as granting visas to immigrants who are members of ethnic and religious minorities who are persecuted in Iran.
However, groups are demanding more extensive safeguards. As their temporary protected status and other legal protections expire, a group of religious leaders sent a letter and circulated petitions urging the Trump administration to keep hundreds of Afghan Christians from being deported.
This month, Torosian, the Los Angeles pastor, flew to Washington, D.C., to meet with Republican members of Congress and pray in silence outside the White House in an effort to push for exceptions to Trump’s deportation plans.
He claimed to have received hundreds of messages on social media from Iranian and other Christians who were afraid of being deported before his trip.
“I arrived here as a refugee. Thus, their suffering is currently my suffering. Torosian stated that he fled Iran, partly due to religious persecution, and added, “If they are in prison, in detention, I am in prison.” “I will not rest until they come back home.”
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