Rev. Saaed Abedini, an American citizen who lives in the U.S. with his wife and two children, has been arrested by Iranian officials while on a visit to his parents.

Abedini was pulled off a bus by Iranian government workers and thrown into the ultra-violent Evin Prison. While no formal charges have been leveled against the Pastor, officials with the Iranian Republican Guard say that Abedini “must answer for actions taken while still living in the country.”

Abedini was born in Iran, accepted Christ there and hosted many house churches and missions before moving to the United States.

The rest of Abedini’s Iranian family members are under house arrest because they converted from Islam to Christianity. Abedini’s family continued his campaign of house churches aimed at Muslims who found the truth of Jesus.

“It was just growing so fast. They see the underground churches as a threat and they see Christianity as a tool from the West to undermine them,” Rev. Abedini’s wife Naghmeh told Fox News. “They think if the country becomes more Christian, they are no longer under Islamic authority. That’s why it’s a threat.”

Under Islamic Law, which many Muslim groups want to instill on the world, a Muslim who converts to Christianity is in essence waging war on Islam.