The Anglican Archbishop of Jerusalem reflects on 2014
21 December 2014 Last updated at 00:44 GMT
In recent months, Church leaders have expressed concern about the departure of a rising number of Christians from the Middle East.
The civil war in Syria and the advance of so-called Islamic State militants in Iraq have led to appeals for greater support for some of the world’s oldest Christian communities.
In the holy land, the continuing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians has also shown increasing signs of turning into a religious dispute, with a row over holy sites in the Old City of Jerusalem.
The Anglican Archbishop of Jerusalem, Suheil Dawani, is head of a diocese that covers much of the troubled region. As he prepares to celebrate Christmas this week he gave BBC News his reflections.