by Joshua Danziger
I like to imagine Jesus smiling. Perhaps he witnessed a genuine act of kindness or witnessed faith blossom in others. Perhaps he helped a sinner seek forgiveness or embraced fellowship with friends and followers. Or, perhaps Jesus would not smile today because he couldn’t bring himself to joy with the ongoing oppression of his people.
The Middle East was the birthplace of Christ and has reflected this sanctity for millennia with large Christian populations, ongoing biblical exegesis, and strong pilgrimage culture. Jesus walked the streets of Bethlehem. Paul regained his sight in Damascus. Peter famously preached and was first called a “Christian” in Antioch. Christian ascetics established cave communities in the hills of Syria. Monks penned sacred manuscripts and established early monasteries in Cairo.
Today, the modern communities living out these early Christian legacies are at threat of extinction. With them, Christian continuity throughout the region risks ending.
For Life or For Death
Within weeks the two-thousand-year-old Christian Community of Mosul had almost disappeared.
The city’s mosques broadcasted announcements on loudspeakers: “We offer [Christians] three choices: Islam; the dhimma contract – involving payment… if they refuse this they will have nothing but the sword.” Christians who did not agree to the ultimatum were told to leave. So, they did.
As the Islamic State, also known as ISIS, captured Mosul in 2014, minority communities prepared for exodus lest they yield their traditions to the radical Islamist yoke. ISIS had made its intentions clear with the broadcasted announcements of the Christian ultimatum and by marking Christian homes and properties with the Arabic letter “N” signifying “Nazarene” (meaning Christian). Within a week, almost the entire Christian population of Mosul fled. As they reached the city’s border, their belongings were taken by ISIS. Once they vacated their homes the group seized their property as a religious endowment to the Muslim community. The once thriving community vanished as ISIS destroyed Churches including the 1,400-year-old St. Elijah Monastery.
Though instability in Iraq predates the US-led invasion to upend Saddam Hussein’s regime in 2003, that year was a watershed moment for Christian life in the country. Prior, the Christian population in the country numbered 1.5 million. Following years of war between Sunni and Shia governments and militant groups, Christians exited the country resulting in a population decline to just 150,000 Christians today. Though Christians were not the only group to leave the country in large numbers, they are disproportionately overrepresented among Iraqi emigrants. The 90% decrease in population is a direct cause of both national instability and the intentional persecution of the Christian minority by Islamic extremist groups such as ISIS.
Even before the country was predominantly controlled by extremist groups, discrimination was formalized into law under a considerably more moderate Islamic government. Under the US Occupation of Iraq, the new dictator-free state drafted a constitution intended to reflect Western democratic values. Yet, its treatment of Islam came at the expense of religious minorities. The constitution requires “no law may be enacted that contradicts the established provision of Islam,” which if enforced under Sharia code by a conservative government may disregard Christian rights. In direct contradiction, the constitution also “guarantees the full religious rights to freedom of religious belief and practice to all individuals,” an impossible task if non-muslims contradict an Islamic provision. In practice, Christians experience fewer rights than Muslims even under the authority of the state especially in the administration of law.
The treatment of Christians is under the authority of extremist groups that have historically enacted forced conversions, required the payment of the Jizya tax, and destroyed cultural and religious sites. Beyond ISIS’s capture of Mosul, this is most evident in Iraq on the larger Nineveh Plain which ISIS captured and cleansed. The Nineveh Plain is the location of the biblical city of Nineveh which Jonah fled. The region swelled with Christians seeking safety following the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in 2003. Yet Christian presence had always distinctly marked the region as modern Christians, the descendants of early Christians from the same region, continue to speak the same Aramaic as Jesus and his disciples. Emboldened by the capture of Mosul, ISIS fighters turned next to capture the Plain. In the process, they looted Christian villages while 30,000+ Christians fled to safety elsewhere. They feared the same ultimatum proposed to the Christians of Mosul. Yet, since the Plain was liberated from ISIS in 2018 Christians returned to their villages to find destruction. Some returned to their ancestral homeland. Yet, most joined the over one million other Iraqi Christians and never looked back.
Since the 6th century, the central Syrian Monastery of St. Elian served as a Syriac Christian center for communal life and practice. The monastery housed a fifth-century tomb to which Christians made pilgrimage to heal bodily ailments. In 2015, the Islamic State (ISIS) captured the region and released pictures of the destroyed monastery, quickly bulldozing 1500 years of history. As ISIS swept across the Civil War embroiled country, it treated Christians with the same discriminatory standards as in Iraq. In Raqqa, a central Syrian ISIS stronghold, Christians were given an identical ultimatum to those in Mosul—convert, agree to second-class status under strict Sharia law, or face war. Like in Iraq, many Christians fled.
The Syrian Civil War was not started by Christians, yet risks eliminating their presence in Syria. Originally a conflict between the Assad Regime and rebel groups, the war quickly spiraled into a number of warring factions with unique interests, from the regime to the Western-backed Kurds and rebel groups to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah to the Islamist factions of ISIS and an Al Qaeda spinoff.
In the complicated Civil War, Christians faced persecution largely by Islamist groups, yet often emigrated abroad due to the larger disorder of war. Beyond ISIS, the Al-Qaida-linked Tahrir al-Sham group targeted Christians and other minorities with extrajudicial killings, physical harassment, kidnappings, and unlawful detainment. With much of the same violent strategy yet with more resources, ISIS has also used incredible violence to oppress Christians directly. A UN Commission of Inquiry found ISIS killed hundreds of civilians through public executions, crucifixions, and beheadings on charges such as apostasy and blasphemy. Individuals who have disrespected the Prophet Muhhamed or who have not complied with strict dress requirements have suffered public flogging or imprisonment. ISIS violence resulted in the forced migration of entire Christian communities. Christians reported leaving due to violence or threats of violence, yet also to persecution for their political beliefs. In Syria’s civil war, many Christians backed the Assad Regime making them a prime target for Islamist attacks.
Prior to the civil war, Christian populations in Syria peaked at 1.8 million. Today, there could be as few as 500,000 Christians left in the country. The international community has taken note of Islamist treatment of Christians. Parliamentary bodies in the UK, EU, and US State Department have classified the treatment of Christians by ISIS as a genocide as defined by the UN as the “intent to destroy, in whole or in part.” With the ethnic cleansing of Christian populations by intense violence, there is evidence the definition may apply. Regardless, the exodus of Christians from the country as a result of the larger war and the direct persecution marks a significant backward step for one of the world’s oldest Christian communities.
Confused Governments
The situation for Christians is far from uniform throughout the region, particularly for the large populations of Christians in Egypt and Lebanon.
Lebanon in particular has a complicated relationship between the Christian minority and the Muslim majority. Although the country has the largest proportion of Christians in the Middle East, its population of just under two million Christians is five times smaller than that of Egypt. Thus, Christians constitute about one-third of Lebanon’s population, down from 52% in the 1932 census.
With a historically powerful community, Christians hold onto dissipating levers of power in Lebanon. The signing of the National Pact in 1943 structured the Lebanese government strategically to avoid sectarian religious violence and persecution. The Pact mandated that the president of Lebanon must be a Maronite Christian, the prime minister must be a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the parliament must be Shia Muslim. Later reforms resulted in an agreement that 50% of the parliament would always be Christian while similar numbers must also hold throughout lower levels of the government in bureaucratic positions. As the proportion of Christians has decreased, sectarian power agreements have helped Christians maintain outsize power in government compared to their population. Yet, their outsize power has not been a tool to prevent the demographic challenges of emigration and birth rates.
A number of conflicts have embroiled Lebanon over the last fifty years, from civil wars to wars with neighboring countries. Throughout these conflicts, Lebanese Christians have been incredibly successful in immigrating to the West as their religious identities help them integrate more smoothly than other religious groups. Large established diasporic communities are a pull factor for many Lebanese Christians who seek economic opportunities abroad while hoping to maintain their cultural identity. Christians have also been successful in leaving Lebanon for the West because they had more financial means to do so. In recent years, economic disaster in Beirut has exacerbated the desire for Lebanese to head elsewhere. Prices have risen, inflation is rampant, and the poverty rate has skyrocketed. For Christians seeking a better life, now is the time to move abroad.
The other reason for decreasing Christian proportions is lower birth rates as on average Christian Lebanese have fewer children than their Muslim counterparts. A 2009 Study found that the country’s Christian women had an average of 2.7 children while their Muslims had 3.3 children. These rates compounded over almost a century since the 1932 census result in serious increases in Muslim percentages in the country.
With much news about the Iranian proxy Hezbollah controlling much of the political and military power in Lebanon, a decrease in Christian autonomy and power could follow. Yet, many Christians in the country still feel powerful and relevant. Martin Accad, the Dean of the Near East School of Theology in Beirut, described that “Christians feel quite strong” and “confident” as they are emboldened by their continued strength in government and maintenance of the Presidency. Unlike in Syria and Iraq, the decreasing Christian percentages are not necessarily due to religious persecution. Instead, there are economic push factors for emigration and lower birth rates. Demography is destiny. If people leave and fewer are born, percentages decline.
The Egyptian Christian story is a different case entirely. At about 10% of the country’s population, the large Coptic Christian community has been at serious odds with the government and Muslim actors over recent decades. Particularly, a number of attacks attempting to intimidate the Christian community have claimed the lives of Hundreds of Copts. On New Year’s Day 2011, a car bomb exploded outside an Alexandria church claiming 23 lives. In October 2011, 24 Christians were killed by the Egyptian Army during a peaceful protest against Church demolition. In August 2013, mobs of attackers supported by the Muslim Brotherhood burned or damaged 37 churches across Egypt. In December 2016, a car bomb detonated outside a Coptic Cathedral in Cairo killing 25. On Palm Sunday 2017, bombings in Tanta’s St. George Church and Alexandria’s St. Mark’s Cathedral killed more than 45 Copts. Later that year, gunmen opened fire at a convoy of Copts traveling to the Monastery of St. Samuel the Confessor. 33 people were killed. Though many of these attacks were performed by foreign actors such as ISIS, they confirm a host of sorry truths about the plight of Christians in Egypt.
In the last century, the percentage of Christians in the larger Egyptian population has fallen from 18% to 10% as Egypt has gone through several political changes, wars, and internal uprisings. Unlike in Lebanon, the role of Christians is not enshrined in the political system. Before a 2016 reform, Christians faced intense legal challenges in receiving permits to build churches. Even following the attempted reform, church construction and renovation could be held up for significant portions of time by local governments. Many claimed Christian communities were held to higher standards in property disputes than Muslim communities. Yet, in recent years, the Egyptian government has refocused its efforts to encourage religious pluralism, best exemplified by the Cabinet’s approval of 293 churches in early 2024. The approval symbolizes a more positive tone the presidential administration is attempting to strike with the Coptic population. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi became the first President to attend a Coptic Mass, an act which was received enthusiastically by the Christian community.
Nonetheless, the enforcement of Egyptian law often results in the violation of Christian rights. Article 98 F of the Penal Code, commonly known as the “blasphemy law,” has been falsely used to imprison Christians. The article criminalizes the use of religion for the justification of extremist actions, yet in practice is unfairly used to arrest Christians exercising their free speech rights. The Egyptian constitution is also not appropriate for religious minorities. Article 2 states that “the principles of Islamic Sharia are the principal source of legislation,” meaning Sharia law is what inspires other forms of law. The establishment of Islamic law as the source of the legal code fundamentally excludes religious minorities, especially as Sharia regards them as second-class citizens. Despite controlling 6% of the Egyptian parliamentary seats, Coptic representation in state agencies such as the police force or military is capped at an unofficial 1%. Copts are not hired for university leadership positions nor is their history included in the state education system. Professor of Religious Studies at Yale Stephen Davis, pointed out that “it would be very difficult for a Christian to say, go to university and study Arabic.” He expanded that Copts don’t have access to the same societal resources as Egyptian Muslims and many experience poorer economic conditions as a result.
The Coptic community has not experienced a calamitous event that sparked emigration. Rather, financially capable Copts have slowly left the country leaving the less fortunate behind. The decline of the community will not be total, yet if the trends continue the percentage of Copts will continue to decrease.
A Bright Light
There is hope for Christianity in the Middle East and it is contained within the acceptance of religious differences for economic reasons. In recent years, Islamic Gulf states have opened up to the West for investment. The cities of Doha, Dubai, Muscat, and Abu Dhabi have all welcomed Westerners to establish residence. They impress the world with extravagant architecture and world-class services. Yet, to build skyscrapers and staff new industries these states turn towards Christians. They import millions of contract workers from countries like India, Vietnam, South Korea, and the Philippines. Many of these workers are Christian, meaning this is the first mass immigration of Christians to the Middle East in contemporary history. Though these migrant workers are often temporary, they have caused the Christian populations in the Gulf states to increase greatly. In the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, Christian populations have increased by 12 percentage points. These new populations force the Gulf states to confront the treatment of the Christian minority.
As the Middle East engaged in a century of conflict, Christians fell by the wayside. Many historic communities that preceded Islam are at risk of extinction while others slowly decline. Christianity is certainly not disappearing from the region. Yet, neither is it flourishing. With the further proliferation of extremist ideologies Christians will continue to emigrate. The solution is tolerance. The next step is embodying it.
Joshua is a first-year in Trumbull College. He can be reached at joshua.danziger@yale.edu.