Somehow many in the West are completely unaware that there are Arab Christians. This National Geographic cover story is a sad tale of how they seem to have been forgotten.
Paolo Dall’Oglio, a Syrian Christian monk, makes an important point about why we ought not foget them:
You can’t live alongside people for a thousand years and see them as the children of Satan. On the contrary, Muslims are us. This is the lesson the West has yet to learn and that Arab Christians are uniquely qualified to teach.
HT: Stepehn Sizer
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I was fortunate to visit Israel several years ago and had the privilege of meeting several Arab Christians up in Cana. I wasn’t able to understand all that was discussed between them and the leader of our group, but what I did come away with was their plea, “Don’t forget about us.” I remember writing about them seemingly caught between the Jew and Muslim, a small minority, in a hard place. It was encouraging and heartbreaking at the same time. They were ministering in their community, trying to build community. They were Israeli citizens, but second-class, not allowed all the same privileges as the Jewish citizens. It was difficult.
We then went to the West Bank and met another group of believers who were smack in the middle of several muslim communities. Simply surviving was about all they could do.
I have not been able to stay in touch, but I continue to pray for them. I’m glad to have found your blog.
Elda,
I’m glad you haven’t forgotten them. Recently I took my 4 year old daughter to the dentist and the hygienist was an Arab Christian from Israel. She told me that whenever people hear she is from Israel they immediately assume she is Jewish. If she tells them she is Arab they immediately assume she is Muslim. It seems no one knows about Israel Arab Christians.
Hi Dustin,
What a wonderful endeavor this looks like, and what a great reminder that God is in the business of keeping His promise to call to Himself people from every tribe and nation. Providentially, this last Sunday I was down at Grace Community Church (John MacArthur’s church), and the benediction was given by a Lebanese Christian who is in the process of translating the Macarthur Study Bible into Arabic. He gave a wonderful exhortation to us to not lose hope, and to not beileve the secular media – that many people in the Middle East are coming to know and worship the Lord Jesus. I haven’t heard such a loud “AMEN!” from the congregation ever (they’re usually a pretty reserved bunch
).
God bless you!