14.5 million Christians remain in Middle East
August 04, 2017
The Christian population in nine Middle Eastern states is 14,526,000, down from 14,740,000 in 2010, according to a report published by the Vatican newspaper.
The total population of Cyprus, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Turkey is 258 million.
The report draws on a recent study by the Catholic Near East Welfare Association on Christians in the Middle East. The study documented sharp recent and historical declines in Christian population:
- in Syria, from 2.2 million (2010) to 1.2 million
- in Egypt, from 19% of the population (1910) to 10%
- in Lebanon, from 53% (1932) to less than 40%
- in Jerusalem, from 20% (1946) to less than 2%
- in Palestine, from 20% (1948) to 1.2%
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Posted by: Randal Mandock -
Aug. 06, 2017 11:54 PM ET USA
Given that the Christian population decreased in Syria by 1,000,000 in the last 7 years, but that the total population in the cited countries decreased by only 214,000, the Christian population must have increased in one or more of these other countries during that period. Note that the percent decrease in land controlled by Israel is precipitously greater than that in the surrounding countries. Are we to surmise from this that these countries are more hospitable to Christianity than is Israel?
