Aren't there a lot of Christians in Lebanon? Anyone have the stats? nt

[cantstandbush]

[silverlib]

1. Another post earlier today

posted a government statistical sheet that read "39% Christian."

[cantstandbush]

2. Thanks. Wonder what the funddies are feeling and thinking now? nt

[Bozita]

4. "39% Christian"?? - This is gonna get interesting!

Maybe it depends on which Christian subcategory.

[MidwestTransplant]

6. The Christians tend to live in N Beirut while the Muslims in S Beirut

and S. of there. That's why Israel has been bombing S. Beirut and S. Lebanon as that's where Hezbollah's base of support lies.

[AnnieBW]

3. Most Are Syrian Orthodox

My co-worker is second-generation Lebanese, and is Syrian Orthodox. Basically, they make money off of all involved parties. :D They tend to distrust the Muslims because of past history. And this is an area of the world that measures history in millennia. They're still fighting over wrongs committed in the 1400's.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

7. A lot of the fundies wouldn't consider them "real" Christians

because they have icons and incense and revere saints and all that.

[demosincebirth]

9. They're different branches of Catholicism.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

11. I know that, but when your average fundie says "Christian," he

means someone who believes and worships as he does, not Roman Catholics, not Syrian Orthodox, or even ELCA Lutherans or Episcopalians.

[BringEmOn]

17. Definitely not those brown skinned Christians.

[papau]

5. 55% Christian in last official census in 1932 - estimates today vary

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/35833.htm

[pitohui]

8. interesting to see the stats

i had thought a great many of them had emigrated to central and north america over the decades, it's selection bias, obviously the ones i had met had emigrated

i had no idea such large numbers of christians remained there

[uppityperson]

10. Bit from a Reuters article, "bombarded ports in Christian areas"

"In Beirut, a visibly emotional Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora denounced Israel for turning his country into a "disaster zone" and appealed for foreign aid.

His speech came hours after Israel bombarded ports in Christian areas for the first time and a helicopter missile hit a lighthouse on Beirut's seafront."
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=newsOne&storyID=2006-07-16T051308Z_01_L11538533_RTRUKOC_0_US-MIDEAST.xml

[nealmhughes]

12. 40% is about right, but there are a lot of ex-pats in Australia, UK, US

Canada and France. They are not all Ortodox -- some are Syrian Orthodox, some are Jacobian Christians, some are Maronite Catholic (Orthodox icons and liturgy but in alliance with Rome) some are Roman Catholic and there are also Armenian Orthodox and Protestants! In other words, they run the gamut.
The troubles made many ex-pats and some have begun to return with the rebuilding of Beirut and many to retire in their homeland.
The Muslims tend to have larger families, which is why Lebanon is no longer majority Christian.

[rucky]

13. Juan Cole has the skinny

www.juancole.com

You'll have to scroll way down or do a search on the page, because he's been blogging like mad - blow-by-blow (best coverage by far).

[AnnieBW]

16. I'm So Disappointed

I had a chance to see Juan Cole speak at a government-sponsored seminar on blogging, and he was going to talk about blogging in the Middle East. Unfortunately, I had to back out because of a mandatory meeting. :( I was going just to play fangirl to Juan. Whichever Dem becomes President in 2008 needs to put this guy on the payroll as a Middle East adviser - he's the only one that has a frickin' clue about the culture.

[GreenTea]

14. Yes there are! But Israel and oil profits supercede Bush's "Faith"!

Just control and/or get rid of the billion plus Muslims and they believe they'll have it all...What a philosophy huh?

[Hatalles]

15. 40% Christian... Pres. must be Christian, PM must be Sunni Muslim, and...

... Speaker of Parliament must be Shia Muslim.