蜜芽传媒

For Christians in much of the Middle East and Africa - where going to church or even reading the Bible on a bus risks death or persecution 鈥� there is no great need for the seasonal reminder that, while King Herod may be long gone, the evil he represented is as dark and forbidding as it ever was.

I say 鈥渟easonal鈥� but we in the west have relegated the story of Herod to an afterthought in the schmaltzy, inoffensive way that we celebrate Jesus Christ鈥檚 birth. But the murderous reaction of Herod to the infant king鈥檚 arrival 鈥� who he saw as a threat to his own rule and, as part of a sledgehammer plan to kill him, ordered the murder of all of Bethlehem鈥檚 newborn boys 鈥� has had its echo in every age.

While Christians in Syria will be celebrating their belief that, contrary to what they feared until very recently, their country will not be overtaken by Islamist extremists, there will be no great confidence about the next few years. The same for Christians in Iraq, who will be ringing the bells again of the churches in and around Mosul that were ransacked and conquered by Isis two years ago.

There is unlikely to be much gratitude either for the last two American presidents. Although it would be wrong to attribute to the view to all of Syria鈥檚 Christians, many feel Barack Obama was na茂ve about their country鈥檚 rebellion and what a victory for the rebels would have meant for them. Many Christians in Iraq, meanwhile, lay much of the blame for their sufferings at the forces unleashed by George W Bush鈥檚 decision to topple Saddam Hussein.

I鈥檓 not sure that the persecuted, frightened Christians of our age 鈥� from Nigeria to Egypt - have given much thought to what the next president of the United States might mean for them but, as I discovered on my mission to understand why so many American evangelicals had voted for Donald J Trump, some hope that he might be a significant champion of them.
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During the last year, as I reported for The Times on the most extraordinary of races for the White House, I spent a lot of time in the Bible Belt. I constantly underestimated the willingness of Americans to vote for Mr Trump and the willingness of so many evangelicals and Catholics to vote for him was a puzzle to me.

One conversation after a Sunday morning service stuck in my mind 鈥� and not just because I still treasure the memory of some southern fried chicken that, because it was so delicious, might even have tempted the devil to turn up for morning worship.

Not surprisingly, I heard the usual concerns about Hillary Clinton鈥檚 ethics and the so-called religious right鈥檚 long-held hope that Mr Trump would tilt the membership of the Supreme Court against abortion was also a factor.

Interestingly, however, and it featured prominently in other conversations I鈥檝e since had, this issue of persecution of Christians in the Middle East and beyond was at the front of Christian minds. And it meant that Trump鈥檚 rough, uninhibited, pugilistic style was not the problem I had expected it to be 鈥� it was, instead, seen as an asset.

One man looked at me directly, wiping a few chicken breadcrumbs from his beard as he spoke:

鈥淚鈥檓 under no illusions about Mr Trump鈥� he said. 鈥淗is marriages and sexual immorality. His personal meanness. I wouldn鈥檛 go within a mile of any church where someone like him was the preacher. But we鈥檙e not electing a preacher. We鈥檙e electing a president. More than that, a commander-in-chief. And he is our Putin 鈥� and the dark forces in this world will only be crushed by men like Putin.鈥�

And by dark forces he meant ISIS, Al-Qaida and the other forms of extremist Islam that Russia鈥檚 President has vowed to defeat 鈥� and, closer to home but much less deadly, the liberal judges who Christians blamed for a steady erosion of their religious freedoms.

Mr Trump, who at this time of year is loud in wishing people a Merry Christmas rather than the 鈥渉appy holidays鈥� employed by the more politically correct, may however have a limited grasp of Christianity鈥檚 key teachings. Asked to name his favourite Bible verse, for example, the president-elect nominated Exodus 21:24 鈥� that Old Testament injunction to not show pity but to exact an 鈥渆ye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand.鈥� Jesus鈥� encouragement to turn the other cheek hasn鈥檛 informed Mr Trump鈥檚 best-selling guides to succeeding in commerce.聽 "When you are in business you need to get even with people who screw you,鈥� he wrote. 鈥淵ou need to screw them back 15 times harder ... go for the jugular, attack them in spades!"

And this going for the jugular was just what a good number of Christians are hoping to see from a Trump White House. They know he isn鈥檛 a regular Christian but some have come to think regular Christians might not be the prescription that our age鈥檚 ills require. George W Bush was, after all, a born-again evangelical who, through faith, had turned his life around at the age of forty and conquered personal demons, notably alcohol. Once asked to name the political philosopher who had influenced him most, Mr Bush answered 鈥淛esus Christ鈥�. But the presidency of this impeccably credentialed Christian now is widely now seen as a disaster for many Christians in the region where the story of Jesus began.

The decline of Christianity in the Middle East predated Mr Bush鈥檚 wars, of course. Compared to the beginning of the 20th century when one-sixth of the region鈥檚 population was Christian, it鈥檚 now barely one-twentieth. But the collapse in Iraq has been frighteningly rapid. A Christian population of 1.5 million under Saddam Hussein had, via migration and war, collapsed to about 300,000 by 2014 and then, as Isis advanced and Christians fled in terror, it sank to under 200,000. The grave warnings of bloodshed and 鈥渁 new gulf between Christianity and Islam鈥�, made by the Vatican to President Bush - all before he ordered the start of hostilities - have sadly come to pass.

But this Christmas, there is some good news for Christians. ISIS is being driven out of the lands it conquered two years ago. There have been inspirational reports of church bells ringing again for the first time in two years. Although some of the liberated churches have been damaged by fire and some walls have been defaced by graffifi 鈥� with Isis fighters scrawling 鈥渙ur God is higher than the cross' and 'The Islamic State will remain' 鈥� many thousands of Christians are expected to return from their forced exile 鈥� if they can also repossess homes which were often taken over by neighbours who calculated ISIS鈥� rule would last longer than, thankfully, it did.

It won鈥檛 just be the birth of Jesus that these churches will celebrate this year. Many will mark how Herod reacted to the birth through what is called the Feast of the Holy Innocents. Once a central part of the church鈥檚 calendar it鈥檚 now pretty marginal to the western church鈥檚 contemporary Christmas.

The Feast, usually celebrated on the 28th December, remembers the dark side of this season. Herod had expected the Magi to be his informers and lead him to the location of the rival king of the Jews but, living up to their names, the wise men refused to be his accomplices. Undeterred, Herod鈥檚 soldiers murdered every boy of two years or under as part of his desperate attempt to kill the one child. 鈥淎 voice was heard in Ramah,鈥� declares the 18th verse of the second chapter of St Matthew, 鈥渨eeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and refusing consolation, because they are no more.鈥�

The Feast has, through the ages, become a time not just to remember these first martyrs but all martyrs since. One can only imagine how poignant the Feast must be for Iraq鈥檚 Christians. They will be acutely aware of the empty spaces in the pews which should have been filled by brothers, sisters, parents, children and friends whose lives were cut short by a reign of terror that sickened the whole world 鈥� and not least peace-loving Muslims who are appalled by what ISIS does in their name.

But, let鈥檚 now return to those Christians I met in South Carolina and their hope for Trump to become some sort of Vladimir Putin. Mr Putin may have played no part in Iraq鈥檚 recent story but he has been central to events in Syria. The regime of Bashar al-Assad might have survived without the Kremlin鈥檚 enormous support but Russian munitions, aircraft and counter-insurgency techniques developed by Putin in his war against Chechnya twenty years ago have given Assad the supremacy that has now caused such slaughter in the downfall of Eastern Aleppo. Leading the thanks for Mr Putin are many but by no means all of Syria鈥檚 Christians. They faced a moral dilemma in supporting President Assad, but feared, just as the Arab Spring often became something of a 鈥渨inter for Christians鈥�, their freedom of worship would be lost if the extreme elements opposed to Assad had prevailed.

Echoing that congregation in South Carolina, the Christian blogger and author Rod Dreher issued 鈥�1.5 cheers for Putin鈥� in a much remarked upon posting. 鈥淲hat an embarrassment that post-Soviet Russia, for all its grievous flaws, is, in important ways more conscious of its Christian history and character than the United States.鈥� Dreher continued: Russia鈥檚 President 鈥渋s anti-liberal in ways that are morally objectionable, but also in ways that are morally praiseworthy. The Christians of the Middle East, he wrote, have a greater friend in Vladimir Putin than they do in Barack Obama 鈥� or that they did in George W. Bush, for that matter.鈥�

This is music to Mr Putin鈥檚 ears who since becoming his country鈥檚 president has positioned himself as the closest ally of the Russian Orthodox Church. Although it is not officially part of the state it has started to resume its traditional role of close service of the governing regime. Before the 2012 presidential election the head of the church even described the government鈥檚 economic record as a miracle. Mr Putin, who includes the church in great events of state, sometimes uses Orthodoxy to justify his militarism.

As many Christians in America pay grudging respects to Mr Putin and even hope that President Trump will somehow model himself on the Kremlin鈥檚 strongman, a basic awareness of his more self-serving interpretation of Christianity should be understood. Many Christians may have been protected by his military intervention but was that Mr Putin鈥檚 real motivation or were his actions geopolitical - in defense of his most important Middle Eastern client?

And here is the big question going back to the Feast of the Holy Innocents and a remembrance of martyrdom - Is Putin Herod or the Magi? The defender of Christians in Syria from the great evil of terrorist extremists or is he the co-author of a bombing campaign that has turned Aleppo into a modern day Stalingrad? For many years to come the orphans, widows and other 鈥渕assacred innocents鈥� of the Syrian civil war will remember what was done to them and some will remember that it was done by politicians claiming to be guardians of Christendom.

What I hold onto is the hope in the biblical story itself.

Herod spilt a great deal of innocent blood in his attempt to kill Jesus but his mission was not accomplished. Just as Christians know that the crucifixion of Jesus failed too. That鈥檚 why, despite the bleak picture and the controversial choices of world leaders, this season鈥檚 story of the arrival of the prince of peace is a hopeful one. It鈥檚 hopeful for all of us but, particularly at this moment in time, especially hopeful for the Christians of the Middle East and of the persecuted church throughout the world.