Nowhere is the situation more dire than in Iraq. Hundreds of Christian Iraqis have been killed, thousands injured and more than 400,000 are reported to have fled their homes in recent years. Most that have run live in desperate conditions in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, relying on the United Nations for daily aid and hoping the rest of the world will hear their plea for help.

Later this month The Catholic Register will publish a special section devoted to the plight of these forsaken people. Our reporter, Michael Swan, has been on a two-week assignment to the Middle East to witness first hand the unfolding tragedy, to hear the stories of harassment, discrimination and violence directed at Christians and to speak to church and political leaders.

But during the season of Easter we all should pause to remember their situation and to contemplate the consequences if the light of Christianity goes dark where the Gospels were first proclaimed.

Christianity has contributed immeasurably to the culture, economy and very fabric of the region. It has provided schools and hospitals, care for the poor, nurtured the arts and strengthened the economy. More important, in a region rife with intolerance, Christians bear witness to values of tolerance, justice, charity and forgiveness handed down by Christ and which provide an important framework for a way forward between Jews and Muslims.

It takes a martyr’s courage for a Christian to stay at home as neighbours turn against you, or to bundle up your family and leave all your possessions behind in a flight to safety. These people face hardship and sometimes death because they hold Christian beliefs, because they believe the message of Easter.