Richard Wurmbrand

Richard Wurmbrand (24 March 1909 – 17 February 2001), also known as Nicolai Ionescu, was a Romanian Evangelical Lutheran priest, and professor of Jewish descent. In 1948, having become a Christian ten years before, he publicly said Communism and Christianity were incompatible. Wurmbrand preached at bomb shelters and rescued Jews during World War II. He experienced imprisonment and torture by the Communist regime of Romania, which maintained a policy of state atheism.

After serving a total of fourteen years, he was ransomed for $10,000. His colleagues in Romania urged him to leave the country and work for religious freedom from a location less personally dangerous. After spending time in Norway and England, he and his wife Sabina, who had also been imprisoned, emigrated to the United States. They dedicated the rest of their lives to publicizing and helping Christians who are persecuted for their beliefs. Wurmbrand founded Voice of the Martyrs, a Christian human rights NGO, to aid the persecuted Church.

He wrote more than 18 books, the most widely known being Tortured for Christ and Answer to Moscow's (Atheist) Bible. Variations of his works have been translated into more than 38 languages.