Summing up the synod

Guided by the theme of "communion and dialogue" participants at the Synod of Bishops for the Middle East have been discussing over the past two weeks the situation of the Church and Christian communities in the region . But as the synod draws to a close, what were the gathering's recurrent themes, its highlights and what is it likely to have achieved? To find out the answers Susy Hodges spoke to one of the participants, Monsignor Robert Stern, Secretary General of the papal agency for Middle East relief and development.
He says what many people don't realise is that "if you just do a head count of Catholics in the Middle East, including the Arabian Peninsula, around half of them are really guest workers...."
Asked whether concern had been expressed over the rise of a more militant political Islam at the synod, Monsignor Stern said "yes, it's been a very big topic and has come up frequently in small group discussions.....but I think now the challenge is how to interract more with the Muslim world." He also spoke about the sensitive issue of what happens when Muslims convert to Christianity saying such a move "can even be life threatening " for the person concerned.