Research Catalog

Title

The politics of persecution : Middle Eastern Christians in an age of empire / Mitri Raheb.

Author

Raheb, Mitri

Publication

• Waco, Texas : Baylor University Press, [2021]
• ©2021

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

vii, 207 pages; 23 cm

Summary

"Persecution of Christians in the Middle East has been a recurring theme since the middle of the nineteenth century. The topic has experienced a resurgence in the last few years, especially during the Trump era. Middle Eastern Christians are often portrayed as a homogeneous, helpless group ever at the mercy of their Muslim enemies, a situation that only Western powers can remedy. The Politics of Persecution revisits this narrative with a critical eye. Mitri Raheb charts the plight of Christians in the Middle East from the invasion of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799 to the so-called Arab Spring. The book analyzes the diverse socioeconomic and political factors that led to the diminishing role and numbers of Christians in Palestine, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan during the eras of Ottoman, French, and British Empires, through the eras of independence, Pan-Arabism, and Pan-Islamism, and into the current era of American empire. With an incisive exposé of the politics that lie behind alleged concerns for these persecuted Christians--and how the concept of persecution has been a tool of public diplomacy and international politics--Raheb reveals that Middle Eastern Christians have been repeatedly sacrificed on the altar of Western national interests. The West has been part of the problem for Middle Eastern Christianity and not part of the solution, from the massacre on Mount Lebanon to the rise of ISIS. The Politics of Persecution, written by a well-known Palestinian Christian theologian, provides an insider perspective on this contested region. Middle Eastern Christians survived successive empires by developing great elasticity in adjusting to changing contexts; they learned how to survive atrocities and how to resist creatively while maintaining a dynamic identity. In this light, Raheb casts the history of Middle Eastern Christians not so much as one of persecution but as one of resilience." --

Subject

• Persecution > Middle East > History
• Persecution
• Politics and government
• War > Religious aspects
• Middle East > Politics and government
• Middle East > Religious aspects
• Middle East

Genre/Form

History.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (page 173-186) and index.

Contents

Introduction -- Under Ottoman rule -- Religious mobility -- A massacre on Mount Lebanon -- Agents of renaissance -- Christian Zionism -- The road to genocide -- Minorities in nation-states -- A catastrophe -- Arab and Christian -- A turning point -- Petrodollars -- Challenging times -- Epilogue.

Call Number

JFD 22-260

ISBN

• 9781481314404
• 1481314408

OCLC

1249801024

Author

Raheb, Mitri, author.

Title

The politics of persecution : Middle Eastern Christians in an age of empire / Mitri Raheb.

Publisher

Waco, Texas : Baylor University Press, [2021]

Copyright Date

©2021

Type of Content

text

Type of Medium

unmediated

Type of Carrier

volume

Bibliography

Includes bibliographical references (page 173-186) and index.

Research Call Number

JFD 22-260