Two million have left from these ancient lands in the past five years. Some 12 million remain.

Half of the Christian population has left Lebanon in the past 20 years. Principally it is the young who are leaving these Middle Eastern nations, causing observers to wonder where subsequent believers are going to come from.

According to Christian accounts, persecution and loss of liberty have been a factor in this loss of numbers. But the nations these adherents flee from fiercely challenge this contention.

In a global sense, persecution against Christians is definitely growing. According to authoritative sources, an estimated 200 million to 250 million Christians are at risk in countries where these kinds of incidents regularly occur. (Sources: The Independent, Reader's Digest.)