Christianity in the Middle East: U.S. Foreign Policy vs. The Holy Land with Nathan Perrin

When the U.S. wages war in the Middle East that American Christians support, do we remember that some of the people beneath those bombs are fellow Christians? And even when they are not Christians, how can we forget that Jesus calls us to love our neighbor and enemy alike?

Mennonite pastor, writer, screenwriter, and activist Nathan Perrin joins Craig for a conversation about the people Western headlines often leave out. Nathan has spent nearly a decade working alongside Assyrians, Kurds, Palestinians, and other Middle Eastern communities through local organizing and visits to northern Iraq.

He recounts visiting an Assyrian church that had been rebuilt again and again after attempts to destroy it. A cross in its courtyard covered in bullet holes. Yet when new bombardments began, Christian and Muslim neighbors exchanged keys to their homes so each family would have a place of safety.

That act of neighbor-love stands in sharp contrast to the fear often preached in American churches.

Craig and Nathan explore why the word evangelical carries painful baggage in parts of the Middle East. Ancient Christian communities have sometimes been treated as mission targets, while humanitarian aid has been tied to conversion. Nathan challenges us to consider whether people abroad encounter Jesus through Western Christianity, or the pressure of empire.

The conversation also covers:

Christian communities in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine

How US military action creates blowback against local Christians and Muslims

Dispensationalism and unquestioning Christian support for the State of Israel

The difference between loving Jewish neighbors and defending a government

Craig’s Ramadan meal with a Muslim neighbor

Assyrians, Yazidis, Mandaeans, and other overlooked communities