The anniversary comes as Christians worry about the future of Syria following the ouster of longtime president Bashar Assad in December by insurgents led by the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group.

It was a mournful moment for Christians in Syria. A bell that once summoned residents to worship rang out, but the church was no longer there. The Saint Odisho church was blown up by the Islamic State ...

The spread of Ultimate Frisbee testifies to a kind of Western soft power in the Middle East, one far friendlier than bombs or bullets.