(RNS) — On a recent night, a mother in California found herself lying awake at 3:00 a.m., her mind racing. Unable to sleep, she tossed and turned for the next three hours, anxiously ruminating on the same question that has haunted her for years.
“All the time, I just think about it: How can I help my son?” she told Religion News Service in a recent interview. “I cannot think about anything else.”
It’s a personal agony that has long plagued Ava — which is not her real name, as she requested anonymity to be able to speak freely about her story — who is a refugee from Iran living in the U.S. While much of her family has resettled here, her eldest adult son remains in exile in Indonesia. A local church has sponsored his entry into the U.S., but he, like virtually all refugees seeking entry into the country, is currently in limbo after President Donald Trump’s decision to essentially freeze the U.S. refugee program entirely.
That includes people fleeing religious persecution. In her most trying moments, Ava says, she turns to that which has long given her family strength, even as it prevents her from ever returning to Iran, where she could face potential death: the Christian faith.
“I can pray,” Ava said. “We pray every day. We pray about it every night. Every day. Every mor …