THE VANISHING

An intimate look at the fate of shrinking Christian populations in the Middle East.

In her latest poignant book, veteran war correspondent and Guggenheim fellow di Giovanni focuses on Christian communities struggling to survive in the region where the religion had its birth. The author specifically explores the plight of Christian communities in Iraq, Gaza, Syria, and Egypt, using firsthand experience from extensive travel in those places. Melodramatically bookended by the author’s shelter experience during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, these four lengthy chapters provide relevant historical background, cover recent events, and delve into the personal stories of dozens of individual believers. “I traveled to these places,” writes the author, “to try to record for history people whose villages, cultures, and ethos would perhaps not be standing in one hundred years’ time. But I also wanted to write about the people I met along the way, whose faith and resilience allowed them to survive, and to pay tribute to those who had vanished.” Though factionalism and violent religious intolerance have taken their toll on Christian minorities in the Middle East, di Giovanni makes it clear that the ultimate factor (the “tipping point”) forcing Christians to leave is economic uncertainty. Christians in these areas, situated within financially hard-hit areas of the world and torn apart by war and instability, have little hope of economic survival. Beyond economic fear, di Giovanni uncovers an existential crisis as centuries-old communities, rocked by trauma, sense the coming of extinction. She exposes a tremendous pathos and shared sense of grief across the region. But she is also impressed by the overriding faith of these communities, the members of which are uncertain about their earthly fates but focused on the promises religion has provided. The author presents a distinctly personal and subjective account full of empathy and humanity amid upheaval.

Heart-rending stories of dying communities buoyed by the hope of their faith.