Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, August/September 2000, Pages 70, 74

Christianity and the Middle East

 

The Information Network: Providing News About Christians in the Middle East

 

By Fred Strickert

In this age of e-mail lists, the traditional print media still have a major role in providing American Christians access to the latest reports from the Holy Land. Here is a roundup of both new and traditional publications available, in addition to this magazine.

 

Via Dolorosa

The monthly newspaper Via Dolorosa is now halfway through its second year of publication and is on a steady road to success. Publisher Edward Calis reports that this eight-page monthly already has reached a circulation of 8,000.

Its primary audience is the American-Arab community and other Middle Eastern ethnic groups, but it appeals also to anyone who wishes to keep informed. Among its regular readers are also many from Britain.

Calis is the former assistant managing editor of the Jerusalem Times, with eight years of writing experience. With the move from Jerusalem to Silver Spring, Maryland, Calis says that his decision to begin publishing Via Dolorosa was natural, “in order to make Americans aware of the plight of Palestinian Christians, as well as the situation of Middle Eastern Christians in general.”

Managing editor Mary Cook places her origins in the opposite direction: North Dakota and Kansas. However, after a 10-year stay in the Middle East, she brings the experience of working with a Palestinian magazine. “What distinguishes us from every other publication,” says Cook, “is our comprehensive coverage of the socio-political affairs of all Middle Eastern Christian ethnic and religious groups, including Assyrians, Armenians, Arabs, and Copts. It is within this framework that we strive to create an awareness of Middle Eastern Christians and each community’s issues.”

The newspaper’s name, Via Dolorosa, is aptly chosen, since the well-known Latin phrase (literally “Way of Sorrows”) sets a foundation on the way of the cross by Jesus in its historic Jerusalem context and points also to the plight of Middle Eastern Christians in contemporary society who take up their cross and follow.

The mission statement in the newspaper’s masthead says it clearly, “The silent exodus of Palestinian Christians from the Holy Land has long needed to be addressed, not only by churches and institutions, but by us, the individuals who in one way or another have contributed to the problem…Via Dolorosa is also the tool to bring all Christians, Middle Eastern and American, closer together. It concentrates on our similarities rather than focusing on our differences. It is an open forum for all to freely discuss, debate, criticize, and educate.”

Subscriptions are available at $27 for one year or $48 for two years. Inquiries can be addressed by mail to P.O. Box 14125, Silver Spring, MD 20911 or by e-mail to < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >. Via Dolorosa can be found on the Web at <www.via-dolorosa.net>.

There are other publications available which already focus on Middle East Christian news. In fact, most publishers look to their “competition” as really complementing their own task. The Washington Report and Via Dolorosa, for example, advertise in each other’s publication. The common attitude is that they all share a common goal of better informing the American public. Each publication has a different format and focus so that they all contribute to this common task. What does Eddy Calis think about a tight market? He answers, “When you consider the number of Arab Americans, we have a potential circulation of over a million.”

 

The Link

With the Via Dolorosa as the newest member of the Middle East Christian communication team, it is also worthwhile to call attention again to other publications which have been around a bit longer.

Many readers are familiar with The Link, which is now in its 33rd year of publication. This 16-page quarterly is published by Americans for Middle East Understanding, Inc., with John F. Mahoney as executive director.

What makes The Link unique is that each issue focuses on one particular theme. For example, the current summer issue discusses the Lydda Death March of 1947. Beginning with a description of this notorious event by Israeli historian Benny Morris, autobiographical memoirs by Lydda residents Audeh G. Rantisi and Charles Amash present the details of their families’ experience. The report is concluded with three pages of excerpts on the death march by historians, journalists, and diplomats.

Publication offices for The Link are housed at AMEU, 475 Riverside Drive, Room 245, New York, NY 10115-0245. A Web site is available at <http://members.aol.com/ameulink>. The e-mail address is < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >. A voluntary $40 annual contribution is requested to defray publishing costs.

 

Churches for Middle East Peace

Like AMEU, Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP) is an ecumenical organization representing a large segment of American Christian denominations. With offices in Washington, DC its primary focus is advocacy.

Periodic newsletters and “action alerts” thus are designed to equip the American church audience to advocate on behalf of justice and peace for all people and countries in the region. The current focus is on raising awareness concerning the growing support for a shared Jerusalem.

There is no charge for joining CMEP’s grassroots network. Because of the speed of communication and lower costs, however, Corinne Whitlatch, executive director of CMEP, sees Web communication and e-mail networking as a most favorable alternative.

To join the e-mail and/or postal network send an e-mail to < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >. CMEP’s Web site: <www.cmep.org> includes a new Shared Jerusalem Resource Center with numerous documents, reports, and articles related to Jerusalem. The mailing address is CMEP, 110 Maryland Ave. NE, Suite 108, Washington, DC 20002-5626.

 

Cornerstone

A number of publications originate in the Middle East and are written by members of the Christian community living in that setting. Cornerstone is a quarterly published by the Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center. Each 20-page issue is unique in that the bulk of material is written in Jerusalem by Palestinians at the Sabeel center. A four-page supplement by American Friends of Sabeel is inserted, giving updates on the American scene. The $25 annual membership fee includes the subscription to Cornerstone. U.S. administrative offices are at FOS-NA, POB 4214, Ann Arbor, MI 48106-4214, with their e-mail address as < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >. The Jerusalem Sabeel Web site is <www.sabeel.org> while the Jerusalem e-mail address is < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >.

 

NewsReport

The Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) also produces an impressive 48-page glossy periodical titled simply NewsReport. Since MECC is the ecumenical voice of most of the Middle East Christians, 28 churches in all, this publication intentionally provides a survey of news for the entire region.

While MECC headquarters are located in Beirut, Lebanon, with liaison offices in six other Middle Eastern cities, editorial offices of NewsReport are housed in Limassol, Cyprus, with Lewis R. Scudder Jr. as editor.

Subscriptions (the production cost is $5. per issue) can be made by writing NewsReport Editor, MECC, P.O. Box 54259, 3722 Limassol, Cyprus, or by e-mailing < This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it >. MECC will send copies of NewsReport to anyone who asks to be on the mailing list. Contributions to help defray expenses are welcome but not required.

The MECC also has a Web site at <http://www.mecchurches.org/>.

 

Catholic Near East

Published bimonthly by the Catholic Near East Welfare Association, a papal agency for humanitarian and pastoral support, Catholic Near East serves the churches and peoples of the Middle East, northeast Africa, India and Eastern Europe. To subscribe, contact CNEWA at 1011 First Ave., New York, NY 10022-4195, phone (212) 826-1480, Web site <www.cnewa.org>. U.S. subscriptions are $12 per year.

A summary such as this can only highlight some of the major publications which focus on Christianity in the Middle East. Perhaps the largest readership is informed through an occasional story in a denominational magazine or newsletter. The bottom line is that there are ample resources available for those who wish to be informed.

Dr. Fred Strickert is professor of religion at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa.

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