Milad majid! Did you know that Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on January 7th? This episode examines the millennia-long history of Christianity in Syria, the ways that Christians have participated in both the Syrian Revolution and Syrian Civil War, and ending with an overview of the country's Christmas traditions. This one's got everything from empires and caliphates to revolutionaries protesting against a dictator and even an immortal camel who brings presents to children once a year.  Sources / Quotes: https://www.worldofchristmas.net/christmas-world/syria.html https://countrystudies.us/syria/34.htm https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-22270455 https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/syrias-christians-personal-story-stolen-legacy https://minorityrights.org/minorities/christians-armenians-and-assyrians/ https://international.la-croix.com/news/politics/christian-communities-in-iraq-and-syria-are-still-very-fragile/17807 https://www.hart-uk.org/blog/the-religious-landscape-in-syria-part-1/ https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/syria-war-anniversary-christians-assad-manipulation https://erlc.com/resource-library/articles/why-christian-communities-in-northeastern-syria-may-soon-be-gone/ https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/we-must-defend-ourselves-christian-fighters-warpath-raqqa https://www.chicagotribune.com/opinion/commentary/ct-opinion-christmas-syria-homs-20211223-fec7pqar7jde7myh3qv77dsxny-story.html https://www.middleeasteye.net/discover/christmas-middle-east-traditions https://www.damascena.co.uk/posts/how-christmas-is-celebrated-in-damascus https://www.newarab.com/news/youth-exodus-takes-joy-out-syria-christmas-celebrations https://syriacpress.com/blog/2020/12/27/first-ever-erected-christmas-tree-in-kobani-deliberately-burnt/ https://time.com/4617957/aleppo-christians-christmas-syria/ https://csi-usa.org/there-were-about-1300-christians-in-idlib-but-now-only-two-remain/ https://npasyria.com/en/89664/ https://syriafreedomforever.wordpress.com/2013/12/25/christmas-in-liberated-saraqeb-idlib-provence-syria/ https://syriadirect.org/hts-looks-to-idlibs-christians-and-druze-to-whitewash-violations/ https://www.newarab.com/news/syrian-christians-reopen-church-hts-dominated-idlib https://www.duo.uio.no/handle/10852/16181 https://www.thebyzantinelegacy.com/early-christian https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7nfOGsuo2I https://syriadirect.org/syrian-christians-exploited-or-protected-minority/ https://www.ncronline.org/news/christian-activists-say-militias-target-religious-minorities-syria https://www.newarab.com/news/syrian-christians-reopen-church-hts-dominated-idlib https://npasyria.com/en/89664/ https://syriadirect.org/hts-looks-to-idlibs-christians-and-druze-to-whitewash-violations/ https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/christmas-middle-east-santa-sahlab-dabke-photos https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/03/03/muslim-syrian-refugees-converting-christianity/98685852/ https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKCN1RS19E/ https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/01/30/muslim-refugees-converting-christianity-find-safety/ https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/life-under-isis-led-these-muslims-christ-n963281 https://www.newsweek.com/evangelical-christian-church-muslim-converts-syria-isis-1398210 https://syriacpress.com/blog/2020/07/19/christianity-in-syria-a-policy-of-persecution-or-deliberate-attempts-to-eliminate-it-once-and-for-all-part-2/ https://syrianobserver.com/features/51332/kurds-embrace-christianity-and-kobani-celebrates-inauguration-of-church.html