Christmas is changing throughout the Middle East, but not for the better (except in the one place you might not guess).

In Lebanon, Christians make up 35 percent of the population, and state laws still officially recognize different religious groups, despite the hijacking of the government by Hezbollah, the armed Iranian proxy militia whose aim is to establish an Islamic republic. In the meantime, Christians in Lebanon are still able to celebrate Christmas with limited freedoms. 

But from there, things only go downhill.

In Syria, after years of bloody civil war, many Christians have fled unchecked persecution, and the Christmas season effectively no longer exists. Most of the churches have been destroyed, and many antiquities and historical records of the country’s Christian past dating back to the Apostles have been stolen and destroyed. The Syrian regime is changing and is now also following in the footsteps of Iran. The Syrian resistance movements are not much better, aligned as they are with Turkey’s Islamic leader, Erdogan. In the past, Syria was tolerant and accepting of its rich Christian heritage....