The current conflict in Lebanon has caused almost a quarter of the Lebanese population to relocate, some within their own country, others to Syria and Jordan. Christians currently comprise about 30 percent of the Lebanese population. Although they formed a large majority 100 years ago, emigration and the small size of Christian families have greatly reduced their proportion in the population.

The Lebanese refugees join hundreds of thousands of other displaced people who have already fled other war-torn areas in the Middle East. According to a news release from the Barnabas Fund, a ministry that aids persecuted believers, Christians displaced in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, and the West Bank are estimated to number between 550,000 and 750,000.

Many of the refugees are in need of shelter, food, and clothing, the Barnabas Fund stated. Some also have specific medical needs resulting from either war injuries or ongoing medical conditions. For example, many Iraqi refugees in both Jordan and Syria have cancer. Some also need trauma counseling, especially children who have seen the bombing in Lebanon and are now unable to sleep.

Other needs of the refugees vary from one location to another, and are becoming more acute as time passes, the Barnabas Fund stated. Most of the Lebanese Christians displaced within Lebanon are currently staying with other Christian families in their homes. But this situation will not be viable if the war continues for a long time.

Jordan has begun to refuse entry to Iraqi men between the ages of 18 and 35, the Barnabas Fund stated. As a result, the most recent refugees there are women, children, and older men. Families without a man to protect them are very vulnerable in Middle Eastern society, the Barnabas Fund commented, and women have very few ways in which they can support their children and elderly dependents.

Another new rule in Jordan forbids Iraqi children from studying in government schools. As a result, they can only study in private schools, which are out of reach financially for many refugees.

In Syria, the Barnabas Fund reported, there is more need among the Iraqi Christians in Damascus than amongst those in Aleppo. But some Iraqi Christians have begun to establish church buildings, with permission from the Syrian government.

The third country nationals are probably the most vulnerable of all the refugees from the Lebanon conflict, the Barnabas Fund news release stated. Filipinos, for example, do not expect any help from the Filipino government, nor from the Lebanese families who formerly employed them as domestic servants. Many people have lost their personal documents as a result of the current war. While Syria has allowed in thousands of Lebanese without identification, the Barnabas Fund reported that Syria is refusing entry to Filipinos and other third country nationals unless they are carrying valid ID.

Patrick Sookhdeo, Barnabas Fund's international director, is calling on Christians around the world to remember the displaced believers in the Middle East. "I urge my fellow believers to pray for our Christian family in Lebanon and to send help as you are able," he said.

The Barnabas Fund "serves the suffering Church and makes their needs known to Christians around the world, encouraging them to pray." For more information, go to www.barnabasfund.org/aboutus.htm.

Jeremy Reynalds is a freelance writer and the founder and director of Joy Junction, New Mexico's largest emergency homeless shelter, http://www.joyjunction.org. This article was adapted from an ASSIST News Service report (Aug. 7, 2006), © 2006 ASSIST News Service (www.assist-ministries.com). Used by permission.

Copyright © 2006 by the author or Christianity Today International/Today's Christian magazine.

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