The Middle East has always been a hot zone of religious and political conflicts, but more specifically, Iran. Iran is an Islamic state where Islam is practiced in politics. The 1979 Constitution breaks free from the foundations of Islamic law. The population of Iran varies depending on resources, but is around seventy million people. The country is made up of 90% Shia Muslims and 8% Sunni Muslims.1 The rest of the country is made up of very small religious minorities. Minority religions have very little influence in the country and are easily rejected by the government and the majority of Shiite Muslims. I will explain the system of government at the national level and then how religions mix within it. The main ideas on which attention will be focused are: the legal basis and relationship between religion, official religion, religious influence in government, government system and what religious conflicts there are in Iran today. Government under the 1979 Constitution The Islamic Republic of Iran was founded in 1979 after the overthrow of the previous monarchy. Today, Iran remains the only Muslim country to be ruled by the clergy. 2 Ayotollah Ruhollah Khomeini established a government with a separation of powers, but ultimate power was given to the Supreme Leader (a religious scholar) or otherwise called the Faqih. The Supreme Leader is not an official elected by majority but chosen by the Assembly of Experts made up of eighty-six Islamic scholars elected by the people. These scholars are all priests who serve for eight years.3 The Iranian government is a theocratic republic, which means that the government is governed in the name of God. This means that Shia Islam is not just half the paper, but has a wide range of backgrounds. Since the background is so diverse, it is difficult to suppress a company like we see in the country today. People are constantly held back by the injustice of the law and leaders. Secularization is nowhere to be found in Iran. Islamic law and its enforcers are what create the problems in Iranian society. Unlike the society presented by the United States, government and religion converge and work together. The Iranian government uses Islamic law in its theocracy to govern the Iranian people. Even though people are still discriminated against, it has slowly shown progress. In modern times, religious persecution does not occur as often as it did immediately after the Constitution was written. Minorities today still have to obey the harsh law presented, but they can see a little more light through the window.