Middle East & North Africa

POV: New Perspectives on the New US Embassy Jerusalem
POV: New Perspectives on the New US Embassy

As part of the Providence POV series, the editors reached out to friends and colleagues in the region—including Palestinians and Israelis, Jews and Christians—to share their points of view on the new US embassy in Jerusalem.

Four Steps to Smother the Chaos in Syria
Four Steps to Smother the Chaos in Syria

Syria—with five million refugees, 500,000 dead, the Pandora’s box of chemical warfare reopened, a cesspool of terror groups, and Russians and Americans, Israelis and Iranians shooting at each other—is the very definition of chaos.

American Blunders in the Middle East: A Review of Michael Doran’s in Ike’s Gamble: America’s Rise to Dominance in the Middle East
American Blunders in the Middle East: A Review of Doran’s Ike’s Gamble

Michael Doran’s book shows how the Eisenhower administration made several mistakes in the Middle East, and today policymakers can learn from them.

Pushover or Push Beyond? Rebeccah Heinrichs on the US Withdrawal from Iran Deal
Pushover or Push Beyond? Rebeccah Heinrichs on the US Withdrawal from Iran Deal

Three years after Obama finalized the Iran deal, President Trump withdrew the US, and today Secretary of State Mike Pompeo laid out a new and very ambitious path forward.

Israel at 70: Independence and the Eleventh Commandment
Israel at 70: Independence and the Eleventh Commandment

David Ben-Gurion, who declared the establishment of the State of Israel 70 years ago this week, once mused that “God left one commandment out of the Bible. Perhaps the Almighty delivered this commandment to Moses, but Moses forgot to bring it down from the mountain. That commandment is No. 11: ‘Be strong.'”

Where is the Love: Do Reformed Christians Really Love Israel?

Reflecting on Israel at its seventieth anniversary, I wonder why Reformed Christians, or Calvinists as they are sometimes called, are more reluctant and timid about their views on Israel. 

POV: Israelis Amidst the Fray: How US Foreign Policy Affects Daily Life in Israel

Providence reached out to colleagues and friends living within Israel to ask four pointed questions about what it is like to live in the land beneath the rockets.

Could Christians Care Less?
Could Christians Care Less: Are We Indifferent to the Cries of the Faithful?

More than any other period in the last two thousand years, Christians across the globe are facing persecution. From Africa to the Middle East, India to Southeast Asia, China, and North Korea, the global church is undergoing violent persecution. While Christians in America and in the West are aware of the plight of their brothers and sisters abroad, the question remains: do they care?

What Should Christians Think about Israel's 70th Birthday?
What Should Christians Think about Israel’s Seventieth Birthday?

Few would have estimated 70 years ago, let alone one thousand, that this week would arrive. On Monday, May 14, Israel celebrated the seventieth anniversary of becoming a nation. In light of this remarkable and unlikely reality, Christians are faced with the task of celebrating and interpreting this event against the backdrop of the last 70 years.