
Photo courteys: ©Thinkstock/Memedozaslan

1. What is a Syriac Christian?
Syriac Christians belong to very old churches that date back to the first Christian communities. They use Aramaic, the language of Jesus, in their church services and, in some cases, in daily life as well. The Syriac churches have a rich history: Their monasteries saved the philosophical, mathematical and medical handwritings of ancient Greece and Persia, and Syriac Christians translated Aristotle and Hippocrates into Aramaic and then into Arabic. As missionaries, they went as far as China, India, and the Philippines. Growing discrimination and persecution from Muslims has caused the recent decline of Syriac Christianity in Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Turkey.
Photo courtesy: Getty Images
]]>