Richard Wurmbrand And Voice Of The Martyrs.

OUR FOUNDERS

Pastor Richard Wurmbrand March 24, 1909–February 17, 2001
Sabina (Oster) Wurmbrand July 10, 1913–August 11, 2000

Pastor Richard Wurmbrand (1909—2001) was an evangelical minister who endured 14 years of Communist imprisonment and torture in his homeland of Romania. He is widely recognized there as one of the country’s greatest Christian leaders, authors and educators.

In 1945, when the Communists seized Romania and attempted to take control of the churches, Pastor Wurmbrand began an effective, vigorous “underground” ministry to oppressed believers as well as to the Russian soldiers occupying his country. He was arrested in 1948, along with his wife, Sabina, who was imprisoned as a slave-laborer for three years on the Danube Canal. Pastor Wurmbrand spent three years in solitary confinement, seeing no one but his Communist torturers. He was then transferred to a group cell, where the torture continued for five more years.

His story was carried in newspapers throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia. Pastor Wurmbrand was warned in September 1966 that Romania’s Communist regime planned to assassinate him, but he would not be silenced.

As co-founders of The Voice of the Martyrs, Pastor Wurmbrand and his wife traveled throughout the world establishing a network of more than 30 offices that provide relief to families of imprisoned Christians in Islamic nations, Communist nations and other countries where Christians are persecuted because of their faith. His message has been, “Hate the evil systems, but love your persecutors. Love their souls, and try to win them for Christ.”

Pastor Wurmbrand wrote numerous books, which have been translated into more than 70 languages. He has been labeled at various times by Christian leaders as “The Voice of the Underground Church” and “The Iron Curtain Paul.”