Names changed for safety’s sake..

In 2006, the year after Iraq had adopted a new Constitution guaranteeing greater freedoms, an Arabic friend of mine, “Ali,” traveled to Baghdad, taking with him several Children’s Bibles that present the story of creation, the Old Testament fathers, and the Gospel in Arabic. Commissioned by my writing colleague, Dr. Terry Law, thousands of them had been distributed throughout Baghdad with the permission of—no kidding—The Ayatollah of Baghdad.

When Ali entered the Customs department at the Baghdad airport, the agent inspecting his bags held up one of the Bibles and asked what it was. “A children’s Bible in Arabic,” Ali replied forthrightly.

“Come with me,” said the agent, leading him down a hallway to a nearby room.

After checking the hallway for other personnel, the agent closed the door and spoke freely. He said he had lost his previous job, and had taken the very dangerous position of working at the airport—considered collusion by Al Qaeda because it involved working with Americans—in order to support his family.

“We live in a poor neighborhood,” the man told Ali. One day my son came home with some food, and when I asked him where he got it, he told me the Catholic church down the street.” Ali remembered the church because he and Dr. Law had left a supply of Bibles there.