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Christians of the Middle East
العربية

Sites

Places and heritage sites

Churches, monasteries and places of pilgrimage — most of them still in use, and some where prayer has not stopped since the fourth century.

Palestine

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Looking up into the golden dome of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre: Christ Pantocrator at its centre holding a book, ringed by saints and archangels with Greek inscriptions, and the Mother of God below.
Image: Godot13 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Church of the Holy Sepulchre

كنيسة القيامة

Jerusalem

The site of the crucifixion and the tomb, administered jointly by several denominations.

Inside the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem: rows of columns and hanging lamps.
Image: Diego Delso · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Church of the Nativity

كنيسة المهد

Bethlehem

One of the oldest churches still in use anywhere, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Mar Saba Monastery and its domes, built into the desert cliff of the Kidron Valley.
Image: Godot13 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Mar Saba Monastery

دير مار سابا

Kidron Valley

An Orthodox monastery where monastic life has continued unbroken since the fifth century.

The Church of St George in Burqin: an old stone façade with a round window and arched doorway, a small arched bell gable above it holding a bell and topped with a cross, and a paved courtyard in front with potted palms and flowers.
Image: Sylwia Ufnalska · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Church of St. George

كنيسة القديس جورج

Burqin, Jenin

Considered one of the oldest churches in the world.

A printed plate from 1903 showing the excavated ruins of Jacob's Well and a Crusader church: low stone walls and broken column drums on stony ground, with its original English caption beneath.
Image: Sanday, W. (William) Waterhouse, Paul · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

Jacob's Well

بئر يعقوب

Nablus

Where Christ met the Samaritan woman, according to the Gospel of John.

An abandoned two-storey traditional stone house in Taybeh: stone vaults on the lower floor, weathered wooden shutters, and grass and trees grown over the roof.
Image: AnasNashashibi · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Taybeh

الطيبة

Ramallah

The only entirely Christian town in the West Bank.

Israel

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The Basilica of the Annunciation in Nazareth, its conical dome above the town.
Image: Hoshvilim · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Basilica of the Annunciation

بازيليك البشارة

Nazareth

Among the largest churches in the Middle East, built over the grotto associated with the Annunciation.

The white limestone remains of the synagogue at Capernaum: columns and carved Corinthian capitals, one column bearing a Greek inscription, and fallen column bases on the paving.
Image: James Emery from Douglasville, United States · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Capernaum

كفرناحوم

Sea of Galilee

The town of Christ's ministry, with a Byzantine-era synagogue and a house associated with Peter.

An archival black-and-white photograph of the Tabgha mosaic: a basket of loaves flanked by two fish, set in stone in the church floor, with the edges of the old photographic plate visible around it.
Image: Matson Collection · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

Tabgha

الطابغة

Sea of Galilee

The Church of the Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes, with fifth-century mosaics.

The Church of the Transfiguration on Mount Tabor: a pale stone façade flanked by two towers, a deep arched portal, and a paved path lined with flowerpots.
Image: gugganij · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Mount Tabor

جبل الطابور

Galilee

By tradition the site of the Transfiguration, with a Franciscan church.

The view out from beneath one arch of the Roman aqueduct at Caesarea to the beach and the Mediterranean under a heavily clouded sky.
Image: Hardscarf · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Caesarea Maritima

قيصرية

The coast

Capital of the Roman province, and home to the library of Origen and Eusebius where the Ecclesiastical History was written.

The Carmelite monastery of Stella Maris on Mount Carmel: a pale stone building with rows of shuttered windows and a small dome above, and in front a stone pyramidal monument topped with an iron cross, among palms, cypresses and flowerbeds.
Image: Dan Palraz · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Stella Maris

ستيلا ماريس

Mount Carmel, Haifa

The Carmelite monastery on Mount Carmel, associated with the prophet Elijah.

The Franciscan Church of St Peter in Jaffa: a cream-coloured building with a tall bell tower carrying a clock and topped by a cross, palms around it, a paved public square with passers-by, and city towers on the horizon.
Image: Berthold Werner · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

Jaffa

يافا

The coast

The Church of St Peter, and the place of Peter's vision in Acts.

Lebanon

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The Qadisha Valley in northern Lebanon, its wooded slopes falling to the valley floor.
Image: Vyacheslav Argenberg · CC BY 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Qadisha Valley

وادي قاديشا (الوادي المقدس)

Northern Lebanon

Monasteries and hermitages carved into the rock; a UNESCO site together with the Cedars of God.

The Maronite patriarchal seat at Bkerke: a long pale stone building with a red tiled roof, blue shutters and arched windows, a domed bell tower at one end, and a broad paved forecourt in front.
Image: J.Hassoun · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Bkerke

بكركي

Keserwan

The Maronite patriarchal see.

Deir Qannoubin

دير قنوبين

Qadisha Valley

Seat of the Maronite patriarchs for centuries, deep in the valley.

An aerial view directly above the shrine at Harissa: the fan-shaped ribbed roof of the modern basilica, plazas and car parks around it, and at the top of the frame the circular base of the statue of Our Lady of Lebanon, amid wooded slopes.
Image: MikhaelBitar · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Harissa

حريصا

Jounieh

The shrine of Our Lady of Lebanon, among the most visited places in the country.

The monastery of Saint Maron at Annaya on a ridge: white buildings with red tiled roofs and a tall spired bell tower, terraced hillsides with dry-stone walls below, and the mountains of Lebanon behind.
Image: paul saad · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Annaya

عنّايا

Jbeil

The monastery of Saint Maron and the tomb of Saint Charbel Makhlouf.

Syria

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Maaloula in rural Damascus, its houses stepped up the rocky mountainside.
Image: Majd Mohabek · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Maaloula

معلولا

Rural Damascus

One of the few villages where Aramaic is still spoken; home to the monasteries of Mar Sarkis and Mar Taqla.

The ruins of the Church of St Simeon Stylites: massive limestone walls with rows of arched windows and one great arch, fallen blocks and column stumps on grassy ground, and open country behind.
Image: Bernard Gagnon · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Church of St. Simeon Stylites

قلعة سمعان

North of Aleppo

Part of the “Dead Cities” inscribed by UNESCO.

Deir Mar Musa: sand-coloured stone buildings set on a rocky outcrop in an arid mountain landscape, further buildings to the right, and steep scree slopes below.
Image: Bernard Gagnon · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Deir Mar Musa

دير مار موسى الحبشي

Nabk

Rare wall paintings from the eleventh century.

A painted carved triptych on the rough stone wall of the Chapel of St Ananias, showing three scenes: Paul lowered from the Damascus wall in a basket, Ananias laying hands on him to restore his sight, and the vision on the road with Paul fallen from his horse.
Image: Bernard Gagnon · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Chapel of St. Ananias

كنيسة القديس حنانيا

Damascus, Bab Kisan

Associated with Paul's stay in Damascus after his conversion.

The monastery of Our Lady of Saydnaya: a pale stone complex on a rock outcrop, a domed bell tower topped with a cross, an arcaded gallery with a cross-patterned balustrade, and broad flights of stone steps climbing to it, with visitors on them.
Image: Bernard Gagnon · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Saydnaya

صيدنايا

Rural Damascus

The monastery of Our Lady of Saydnaya, one of the oldest Christian pilgrimage destinations in the East.

Turkey

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A nineteenth-century lithograph of the interior of Hagia Sophia, showing the dome and galleries.
Image: Gaspare Fossati (artist, 1809-1883) Louis Haghe (lithographer, 1806-1885) Adam Cuerden (restoration) · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

Hagia Sophia

آيا صوفيا

Istanbul

The cathedral of Holy Wisdom, and the largest church in Christendom from 537 to 1453.

The Phanar

الفنار

Istanbul

Seat of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Church of St. George.

Mor Gabriel Monastery in Tur Abdin, its stone buildings on open ground.
Image: Photographer: Christian Koehn (Fragwürdig), selfmade · CC BY-SA 2.0 de · via Wikimedia Commons

Mor Gabriel Monastery

دير مار جبرائيل

Tur Abdin

Founded in 397, and reckoned among the oldest working monasteries in the world.

Deyrulzafaran (Mor Hananyo)

دير الزعفران (مار حنانيا)

Mardin

Seat of the Syriac Orthodox patriarchate for centuries, until it moved to Damascus.

The Church of St Peter at Antakya: a stone façade set against a cliff face, with three arched recesses pierced by star-shaped openings, a central arched doorway with a visitor entering, and a paved forecourt in front.
Image: Volkan Hatem · CC BY 2.5 · via Wikimedia Commons

Antioch (Antakya)

أنطاكية

Hatay

The city where the disciples were first called Christians; home to the Church of St. Peter, cut into the mountainside.

The entrance to a rock-cut church in Cappadocia: a narrow arched doorway carved into pale tufa, with surviving red-ochre decoration above it — a band of rectangles and a cross in a circle — and a carved blind arch to its left.
Image: José Luiz · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Cappadocia

كبادوكيا

Nevşehir

Rock-cut churches and monastic dwellings with their wall paintings, on the UNESCO list.

The ruins of the Basilica of St John at Ephesus: brick and stone walls, standing columns and arched openings, an information board, grassy ground, and the walls of a fortress on the hill behind.
Image: Bernard Gagnon · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Ephesus

أفسس

İzmir

One of Paul's churches, the site of the Council of 431, and by tradition the house of Mary.

Iraq

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Three monks in black cassocks and kalimavkia standing before the monastery's arched stone portal, weathered walls and grass around them.
Image: Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain · via Wikimedia Commons

Alqosh & Rabban Hormizd Monastery

ألقوش ودير الربان هرمزد

North of Mosul

A monastery carved into the mountain, dating to the seventh century.

Mar Mattai Monastery on the slope of Mount Alfaf near Mosul.
Image: الدبوني · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Mar Mattai Monastery

دير مار متّى

Mount Alfaf

One of the oldest working monasteries in the world, holding a collection of Syriac manuscripts.

A packed church at Qaraqosh during a service: pews filled to the back, a gallery above hung with garlands and a star, press photographers at the side of the nave, stone columns and stained glass.
Image: Mar Sharb · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Qaraqosh (Bakhdida)

قره قوش (بغديدا)

Nineveh Plains

The largest Christian town in Iraq; its churches were rebuilt after 2017.

Bartella & Karamlesh

برطلة وكرمليس

Nineveh Plains

Two ancient Syriac towns in the surroundings of Mosul.

Ainkawa

عنكاوا

Erbil

A large Christian district that became the main refuge for the displaced after 2014.

Egypt

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The façade of the Hanging Church in Old Cairo, with its twin bell towers and stone stair.
Image: Przemyslaw "Blueshade" Idzkiewicz derivative work: MrPanyGoff · CC BY-SA 2.5 · via Wikimedia Commons

Hanging Church

الكنيسة المعلّقة

Old Cairo

Built atop a tower of the Babylon fortress; its origins go back to the third or fourth century.

A white bell tower with a spire and cross rising above the trees of one of the Wadi El Natrun monasteries, a flame tree in red bloom, palms and a pergola in front, and the sand-coloured monastery buildings to the right. An older, washed-out photograph.
Image: The Eloquent Peasant · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Monasteries of Wadi El Natrun

أديرة وادي النطرون

Beheira

Four monasteries in continuous use since the fourth century, among them Deir Anba Bishoy and the Syrian Monastery.

Monasteries of St. Antony & St. Paul

دير الأنبا أنطونيوس ودير الأنبا بولا

Red Sea

Considered among the oldest Christian monasteries in the world.

The ruins of Abu Mena: low stone foundations and column stumps spread across a wide expanse of scrub desert, brick structures in the middle distance, and two visitors walking among them.
Image: isawnyu · CC BY 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Abu Mena

أبو مينا

West of Alexandria

A Byzantine pilgrimage city on the UNESCO list.

A carved wooden screen at Deir al-Muharraq: a wall of dark timber in a dense repeating geometric pattern of squares and crosses, with a small arched door bearing a cross motif and inlaid panels of Arabic inscription above it.
Image: 松照庵 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Deir al-Muharraq

دير المحرّق

Asyut

On the route of the Holy Family according to Coptic tradition.

St Catherine's Monastery in Sinai, its stone walls set among bare mountains.
Image: Berthold Werner · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

St. Catherine's Monastery

دير سانت كاترين

Sinai

A Greek Orthodox monastery in continuous use since the sixth century, with one of the richest manuscript libraries anywhere.

Jordan

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The modern Orthodox church at the Al-Maghtas baptism site: pale limestone with a gilded dome and cross, two bells in an arched gable, and a deep arched porch patterned with stars, with palms and visitors around it.
Image: Berthold Werner · CC BY 3.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Al-Maghtas

المغطس (بيت عنيا عبر الأردن)

Jordan Valley

The baptism site, on the UNESCO list.

Inside the memorial church on Mount Nebo: rows of ancient stone columns and capitals preserved within a modern shelter with a slatted timber ceiling, three narrow stained-glass windows above the sanctuary, and glass floor panels revealing the mosaics.
Image: Carole Raddato from Frankfurt, Germany · CC BY-SA 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Mount Nebo

جبل نيبو

Madaba

Where Moses saw the Promised Land; a memorial church with Byzantine mosaics.

The Madaba mosaic map on the floor of the Church of St George, its cities picked out in coloured stone.
Image: Bashar Tabbah · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Madaba

مادبا

Madaba

The Church of Saint George and its celebrated mosaic map.

The mosaic floor of the Church of St Stephen at Umm ar-Rasas: a central field of vine medallions holding animals and figures, framed by panels of named cities with Greek inscriptions, many of the figures deliberately effaced long ago.
Image: Dosseman · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Umm ar-Rasas

أم الرصاص

Madaba

Mosaic floors from the Byzantine and Umayyad periods, on the UNESCO list.

The shrine of Our Lady of the Mountain at Anjara: a modern church in pale stone, a deep arched entrance through which icons inside are visible, a gilded statue of the Virgin and Child above the façade, and two olive trees on the paved forecourt.
Image: Thaler Tamas · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Anjara

أنجرة

Ajloun

The shrine of Our Lady of the Mountain, an approved pilgrimage site.

References

General further reading, not citations to specific pages.

Primary sources

  • Eusebius of Caesarea. Ecclesiastical History (Historia Ecclesiastica), c. 325

Further reading

  • Habib Badr, Suad Abou el-Rouss Slim, Joseph Abou Nohra (eds.). Christianity: A History in the Middle East. Middle East Council of Churches, 2005
  • Andrea Pacini (ed.). Christian Communities in the Arab Middle East: The Challenge of the Future. Clarendon Press, 1998
  • L. G. A. Cust. The Status Quo in the Holy Places. Government of Palestine, 1929
  • Anthony O'Mahony and Emma Loosley (eds.). Eastern Christianity in the Modern Middle East. Routledge, 2010
  • UNESCO World Heritage Centre. UNESCO World Heritage List. whc.unesco.org
  • Pew Research Center. Religious composition reports for the Middle East and North Africa. www.pewresearch.org
  • Kamal Salibi. A House of Many Mansions: The History of Lebanon Reconsidered. I.B. Tauris, 1988
  • Matti Moosa. The Maronites in History. Syracuse University Press, 1986
  • Sebastian P. Brock. An Introduction to Syriac Studies. Gorgias Press, 2006
  • Jean-Pierre Valognes. Vie et mort des chrétiens d'Orient. Fayard, 1994
  • Aziz S. Atiya. A History of Eastern Christianity. Methuen, 1968
  • Christoph Baumer. The Church of the East: An Illustrated History of Assyrian Christianity. I.B. Tauris, 2006
  • Philip Jenkins. The Lost History of Christianity. HarperOne, 2008
  • Otto F. A. Meinardus. Two Thousand Years of Coptic Christianity. American University in Cairo Press, 1999
  • Aziz S. Atiya (ed.). The Coptic Encyclopedia. Macmillan, 1991
  • Sidney H. Griffith. The Church in the Shadow of the Mosque: Christians and Muslims in the World of Islam. Princeton University Press, 2008
  • Pew Research Center. Global Christianity: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Christian Population, 2011. www.pewresearch.org

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