The military policy of the west, our policies on asylum seekers and Islamophobia are all adding to the pressure on Christian communities in the Middle East, supporters of the BibleLands Charity were reminded at a recent conference held at Lambeth Palace.

Archbishop Rowan Williams, Archbishop Paul Sayah, Maronite Archbishop of Haifa and the Holy Land and Patriarchal Vicar in Jerusalem and Bishop Angaelos, Bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the UK all spoke at he conference entitled BibleLands: The Christian Presence.

I was lucky enough to attend in my small (one day a week) role as a Communications Officer for the Archbishop’s Council  (Special Projects) with a remit for looking at publicising Christian festivals. The conference was held on April 16th, six weeks after my return from a week long study tour of Israel and Palestine.

Archbishop Rowan Williams gave an overview of the history of Christian Presence in the Middle East and said that Christians as early as the Eighth Century had been “brokers of cultural goods.” He said this role continued through the Ottoman Empire and into the 20th century despite persecution and genocide.

He reminded us that the Arab world has always been pluralist and not exclusively Muslim as many people, including Western Christians, believe. He said Christian Zionism was the most acute symptom of Western ignorance of the Middle East.

Describing the current situation he said: “There is an urgent need for people in the UK to wake up to the fact that Christians in the Middle East are living through a time of change more dramatic and more costly than anything that has been seen for a thousand years and more. 

"Apart from the tragic situation of Christian refugees from Iraq, there is a quiet but numerically huge exodus of Christians - especially but not exclusively educated Christians - from the whole region.  The remaining Christian communities are left exposed to violence or extremism in many countries, and the societies they live in are deprived of some of their most creative and resourceful citizens."

The Archbishop pinpointed three causes of the pressure on Christian Communities in the Middle East that is leading to migration.
 
The first was the decline of Arab Nationalism after a peak in the 40s and 50s. This left a vacuum filled partly by Islamic Extremism. The second factor was the creation of the state of Israel and the third most recent factor was the military policy of the west. As the West is seen as Christian, recent wars have cemented the sense that Christianity is a foreign and aggressive religion causing more pain and distrust for the Christian communities of the Middle East, he explained.

Archbishop Paul Sayah agreed that as the West is perceived as Christian, what is done to Islam here has a backlash in the Middle East. His examples included the publication of the Danish Cartoons, the “War on terror” and the rise of Islamophobia and he urged for prophetic gestures towards Islamic people. 

“It is the responsibility of the West to promote the evolution of Islam. The way Islam changes will be determined by the way the way West deals with it,” he concluded.

Bishop Angaelos outlined the strengths of the Coptic Church and reminded the conference that the church in the Middle East has much to give. He said the church was continuously persecuted but was flourishing with 30,000 Sunday School teachers in Cairo alone, a strong youth ministry and an engagement with websites and multi-media for mission.

On my recent visit to Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Nazareth I met many Christian representatives of NGOs and churches who are keen to welcome Christians from the West.

I found my week in the Holy Lands stimulating, challenging and hugely moving on many different levels and came away encouraged to pray, to encourage pilgrimage and to support projects (that was 3 Ps from a Lutheran Pastor in Bethlehem)

If you are thinking of organising a pilgrimage to the Holy Lands please do give me a ring on 0121 426 0438.

Jessica Foster
Diocese of Birmingham