Genealogy of Religion

Over at The Atlantic, Elizabeth Weingarten reports on Iranian Jews in America.  I was surprised to learn there is still a community of Persian Jews in Iran and that so long as they are silent on the issue of Israel, they are free to do as they please.  Iran truly is a fascinating country with a deep history, religious and otherwise.  It is the birthplace of monotheism and Zoroastrians are still relatively free to practice their ancient religion.  I also read recently that many Iranian Muslims participate in seasonal festivals that are Zoroastrian in origin.   Iranian authorities are much less tolerant of the Bahai religion — it recently sentenced 7 Bahai leaders to 20 years in prison for the usual assortment of paranoid allegations — treason, spying, etc.