Pastor Saeed Abedini says Franklin Graham did little to help him after his release from prison

Pastor Saeed Abedini has said that Franklin Graham has done very little to help him after he was released from prison in Iran and has accused the evangelist and other religious figures of exploiting him to raise funds for their own operations.

In a recent Facebook post, Abedini said that Graham and other evangelists tried to paint themselves as saviors of persecuted Christians, but they neglected him once the media attention died down.

"When all cameras and social media attention were gone in my life, all the famous pastors and lawyers were gone too, and just a week after my freedom, I saw myself so alone with my family while still news were talking about me," said the pastor.

He recounted that Graham failed to help him after he was released from prison even though the evangelist knew that he did not have any place to go. The pastor claimed that he was forced to call Graham to beg for money so that he could pay his rent.

The pastor said that he even asked Graham to help him find a job, but he claimed the evangelist offered him the "worse and lowest he could."

"Until today, still I couldn't find a job, and myself financially stable yet, all these that I have been witness stumbled me by knowing his relationship and financial situation and his shows on media as a close friend to me," he narrated.

He also accused Graham of spending too much money on private jets and suggested that the evangelist's lifestyle does not match the way he preaches about the persecuted church.

Abedini was released in January 2016 on the same day the U.S. government paid $400 million in cash to the Iranian government. In an op-ed published by Fox News in September, he criticized the government for making the payment while making him buy his own ticket to get back to the U.S. He revealed that he would not be able to get back home without Graham's help.

In a statement to The Christian Post, Graham's spokesman, Mark DeMoss, pointed out that the evangelist provided the pastor with transportation from Germany to America upon his release. He noted that Graham also provided financial assistance for Abedini and his wife and made various offers of employment for the pastor.

DeMoss said that Graham is no longer in communication with Abedini, and he does not intend to respond to his future comments. However, the evangelist still asks Christians to pray for the pastor and his wife.