BR 1070 .S878

• Series introduction / Dana L. Robert
•  -- Preface / Gina A. Zurlo, Mark A. Lamport
•  -- Book introduction / Souraya Bechealany
•  -- Secton One. The Story of Christianity Narrated in Historical Context
•  -- The expansion and dispute of the Christian movement (First to Sixth centuries) / Claudia Rammelt 
• -- Conquest and Christian-Muslim relations during the Islam era (Seventh to Eleventh centuries) / Michael Kuhn -- Imperialism and Mission during European rule (Twelfth to Nineteenth centuries) / James C. Skedros -- Christianity in the Twentieth century / Mitri Raheb
•  -- Section Two. The Story of Christianity Expressed in a Grand Church Family Mosaic
•  -- The Coptic story / Wafik Wahba
•  -- The Syriac story / George Kiraz
•  -- The Armenian story / Hrayr Jeelijian
•  -- The Greek story / Nicholas Abou Mrad
•  -- The Assyrian story / Karl Pinggéra
•  -- The Catholic story / David Bertaina 
• -- The Protestant story / Mitri Raheb
•  -- Section Three. The Story of Christianity Encounters Twenty-First-Century Issues
•  -- Diaspora and Middle Eastern Christianity / Mariam Youssef 
• -- Women in Middle Eastern Christianity / Pamela Chrabieh
•  -- Interfaith relations with Middle Eastern Christianity / Najib Awad 
• -- Public theology and Middle Eastern Christianity / Anne E. Zaki
•  -- Timeline / Brett Knowles
•  -- Appendix: Christian communities in the Middle East.

The Christian church was born in the Middle East and grew there for centuries. Its interaction with Islam turned Christianity in this once predominantly Christian region into a marginalized jewel, surviving at great peril within a difficult, even sometimes hostile, political and religious climate. Of course, the story of Christianity over the last 1,300 years is not solely one of conflict, marginalization, and persecution but is also about accommodation, interchange, and cooperation. This introductory book details the history of the church in its Middle Eastern birthplace through the past two thousand years It is a story described as "a lost history" by Philip Jenkins, but it is here uncovered and placed on display. For those with eyes to see, the church of the Middle East is here revealed as a precious jewel, still catching the light