The Christian communities of the Middle East represent the oldest continuous Christian presence in the world, with many tracing their faith back two millennia to the foundation of the religion in what is today Palestine, Israel, and Syria. Some Christians in parts of Iraq and Syria still speak dialects of the Aramaic languages that Jesus would have spoken, maintaining a direct linguistic connection to the earliest days of Christianity.
The largest Christian population in the region is in Egypt, where Christians make up between 10 and 20 percent of the population, or up to 20 million people. Most Egyptian Christians belong to the Coptic Orthodox church, which split from other Christian denominations 1575 years ago in 451 CE, while others belong to various Catholic denominations, as well as Greek Orthodox and Protestant churches, among others.
Diverse Celebrations Across the Region
This mix means there is no single way of celebrating Christmas, with some churches, such as the Coptic Church, using their own calendar to mark the occasion on a different day to other Christians. In Lebanon, Christians celebrate "Eid Milad Majid," which means Glorious Birth Feast, with much fanfare, while in Syria and Iraq families celebrate in a more subdued way with close family and friends.
In Syria, Christmas camels are part of local tradition. According to local tradition, camels carried the three wise men to Bethlehem and, upon seeing the exhausted animals arrive, the infant Jesus blesses them with eternal life. To welcome the camel, children fill shoes with hay and put out bowls of water on Christmas Eve.
Syrian Christianity can be traced back right to the start of the religion, and the country was the scene of Paul the Apostle's dramatic epiphany, in which he is said to have been visited by Jesus on the road to Damascus. Today's Christians in Syria belong to the Eastern Orthodox churches, such as the Greek and Syriac Orthodox churches, although there are also Catholic and Chaldean communities.
Communities Under Pressure
Christians made up 10 percent of Syria's population of 25 million before the start of the Syrian War in 2011. In Iraq, Christians are one of the oldest Christian communities in the world, with a presence since at least the 2nd Century. The largest groups are the Chaldeans, who are Catholic, and the Assyrian churches. Exact numbers are difficult to come by, but the community is thought to have once numbered in the millions. However, there are now thought to be below a million Christians in the country due in large part to the US invasion of Iraq and the rise of the Islamic State group.
A Christmas tradition in Iraq, and sometimes also Syria, involves a bonfire of dried thorned branches. The fire is lit after children complete a recitation of the nativity story, which is read by candlelight from the Book of Psalms. Tradition says that if the thorns burn completely and turn to ash, the year ahead will be filled with good fortune. Date-filled biscuits called "klecha" are also enjoyed and exchanged over the festive period.
Festive Traditions Preserved
In Jordan, around eight percent of the population is Christian, or around 800,000 people, with most belonging to the Eastern Orthodox Church. One Jordanian Christmas tradition is the preparation of a rich and sticky Christmas cake loaded with dried fruits and nuts and infused with alcohol, with preparations beginning weeks before Christmas.
Christmas in Lebanon is a big deal with lavish decorations lighting up streets and homes at the start of the festive month. There are just over two million Christians in Lebanon, making up around a third of the population, though the actual number of Lebanese Christians in the diaspora is much higher. Most are Maronite Catholics, belonging to a church formed in 1736 after the merger of the Maronite Church, which is based on the teachings of a 4th-century Syrian hermit named St Maron, and the Catholic Church.
Although Christmas trees are decorated and lit at this time of year, it is the Levantine tradition of a nativity scene decorated with green shoots that is special to the region. Two weeks before Christmas, a range of pulses including chickpeas, lentils, and beans are soaked and grown on damp cotton wool, with the tufts of green symbolizing birth and life.
Bethlehem, known as Bait Lahm in Arabic, is six miles south of Jerusalem and is famous for being the birthplace of Jesus. It is here that an annual church service is held at the Church of the Nativity, built at the site where it is believed Jesus was born. Celebrations begin with a joyous parade that marches through the city's main streets on Christmas Eve, with local scout groups typically taking part in the parade, playing instruments.
Today there are an estimated 47,000 Christians living in the Occupied Territories, with a fraction in Gaza and the rest living in the West Bank. Most follow the Eastern Orthodox church, but there are also Catholics and Protestants.
Coptic Christians take part in a holy Nativity fast, where they stick to a strictly vegan diet for 43 days before Christmas. Christmas is celebrated on two dates: 25 December for mostly non-Orthodox churches and 7 January for Coptic Christians.
Why This Matters:
The survival of Middle Eastern Christian communities represents a crucial test for religious pluralism in a region increasingly dominated by sectarian conflict and extremist movements. The dramatic decline of Christian populations in Iraq and Syria following the rise of the Islamic State group demonstrates the vulnerability of minority communities when state authority collapses and jihadist groups gain territory. The persistence of these ancient traditions—from Aramaic-speaking congregations to Christmas camel legends—serves as a reminder that the Middle East's diversity predates modern political boundaries and ideological movements. For Western policymakers concerned with religious freedom and regional stability, the fate of these communities offers a metric for measuring whether pluralism can endure in societies facing pressure from both authoritarian regimes and non-state extremist actors.