There are three reasons for this invisibility. The political left in the West associates Christian faith with dead white male imperialism and does not come naturally to the recognition that Christianity is now the globe’s most persecuted religion. And in the Middle East the Israel-Palestine question, with its colonial overtones, has been the left’s great obsession, whereas the less ideologically convenient plight of Christians under Islamic rule is often left untouched.
To America’s strategic class, meanwhile, the Middle East’s Christians simply don’t have the kind of influence required to matter. A minority like the Kurds, geographically concentrated and well-armed, can be a player in the great game, a potential United States ally. But except in Lebanon, the region’s Christians are too scattered and impotent to offer much quid for the superpower’s quo. So whether we’re pursuing stability by backing the anti-Christian Saudis or pursuing transformation by toppling Saddam Hussein (and unleashing the furies on Iraq’s religious minorities), our policy makers have rarely given Christian interests any kind of due.
Then, finally, there is the American right, where one would expect those interests to find a greater hearing. But the ancient churches of the Middle East (Eastern Orthodox, Chaldean, Maronites, Copt, Assyrian) are theologically and culturally alien to many American Catholics and evangelicals. And the great cause of many conservative Christians in the United States is the state of Israel, toward which many Arab Christians harbor feelings that range from the complicated to the hostile.
So what is to be done? I make a simple plea to American readers: if you go on a pilgrimage to Israel, make sure that it includes contacts with local Christians. Do not settle for the excuse that the itinerary is already arranged. These contacts are easy to set up. Worship with them. Meet them socially after worship. There is nothing anti-Israel in this and it brings home the fact, so easily overlooked, that there are living stones in the Holy Land, our brothers and sisters. There is nothing like hearing the instantly recognizable cadences of the Lord’s Prayer in Arabic.
If you want to go further, and you live in a big US or Canadian conurbation, make contact with your local Middle Eastern Christian church. Even Grand Rapids, MI, has a Coptic Church. There are Lebanese Orthodox (via the OCA) in Tucson. If modest sized cities like these yield contacts, imagine LA, NYC, Chicago. You will learn more and make good friendships and help beleagured Christians into the bargain.