Iran's Armenian Christian community held a ceremony at Sarkis Church in Tehran early Wednesday morning to celebrate the New Year 2014. During the ceremony, special prayers were said and candles were lit. This was also a chance for some to pose with the Santa! While Iran is officially designated the "Islamic Republic," among its more than 70 million people is a small but important Christian minority. Most of Iran's Christians are Armenians and Assyrians, who remain relatively free to follow their faith. The numbers of Protestants and evangelical Christians are said to be growing. For these people, life is often much more difficult. A number of Christian denominations still live in Iran today and include Assyrians, Armenians, Catholics, Protestants and Evangelical Christians. Although a minority religious group in Iran, Christians of Iran are free to practice their religion and perform their religious rituals.