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Dear Peter,

Although the news server picked up this story, it seems to have missed the follow up. There was an excellent article in yesterday's Times by the Archbishop of Canterbury which began:

The Times December 23, 2006

Pray for the little town of Bethlehem
Rowan Williams

We mustn’t forget the plight of Arab Christians


One warning often made and systematically ignored in the hectic days before the Iraq War was that Western military action — at that time and in that way — would put Christians in the whole Middle East at risk. They would be seen as supporters of the crusading West. At the very least, some were asking, shouldn’t we have a strategy about how to handle this?

The full text can be had at http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...516379,00.html

The Archbishop's conclusion is worth citing:
The first Christian believers were Middle Easterners. It’s a sobering thought that we might live to see the last native Christian believers in the region. It’s not a problem we can go on ignoring if we care about the health and stability of the Middle East; we need to confront it, not by weighing in with firepower but by making real relationships with the communities there and working at trustful contacts with those Muslims who understand their own history and want to live in a lively, varied culture.

This Christmas, pray for the little town of Bethlehem, and spare a thought for those who have been put at risk by our short-sightedness and ignorance; and ask what you might do locally to raise the profile of these brave and ancient Churches. So I wondered if, at this Holy season, as most of the Christian world prepares to celebrate the Nativity of Our Lord, and as we all ponder the miracle that the Word became Flesh, we might also heed Dr. Williams' request, and pray for the the little town of Bethlehem and all that it represents.

A peaceful and joyous Christmas to you all,

In Christ,


John