Beyond oil and conflict, Iran’s Kharg Island holds a lost Christian past

While Iran’s Kharg Island has drawn global attention due to its pivotal role in the energy market amid escalating military tensions, its Christian history remains far less known, even though its architectural remains and ecclesiastical carvings testify to a forgotten chapter in the region’s past.

Kharg Island is located in the northeastern part of the Persian “Arabian” Gulf, about 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) off the Iranian coast, opposite the city of Bushehr.

Because of the island’s strategic position and deep waters, it has held particular importance throughout history and is also one of the few islands in the Gulf with its own source of fresh water — a factor that helped make settlement there possible since ancient times.

Although the island is neither an oil field nor a giant refinery, it serves as Iran’s most important gateway for oil exports to the world. It contains oil storage facilities capable of holding more than 20 million barrels of crude arriving through a vast network of pipelines, before being shipped from its large terminals.

Around 90% of Iran’s oil exports pass through the island. These exports total roughly 1.5 million barrels per day — a figure that exceeds the output of most OPEC countries.

In the context of recent developments, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that the bombing that struck the island two days ago destroyed military assets without targeting its vital oil infrastructure, since hitting those facilities could send already-high oil prices even higher.

According to the latest reports, Axios cited a U.S. official as saying that Trump is leaning toward the idea of direct control over the island, which could deal a severe economic blow to the Iranian authorities. Such a move, however, would require the deployment of ground forces, which would not be easy to carry out.

A Christian presence

Although no conclusive evidence is available, it is likely that a Christian presence on the island began in the fourth century and that in the following century Kharg became part of the Diocese of Beth Qatraye of the Church of the East.

The confirmed Christian presence there, however, dates to the late Sasanian period in the sixth century. Notably, the fall of the Sasanian Empire to Arab forces in the seventh century did not bring that presence to an end.

On the contrary, the island experienced significant ecclesial activity afterward that continued until the ninth century. From that point on, the Christian community on the island gradually declined until it eventually disappeared.

The most prominent archaeological witness to this period is a monastic complex regarded as the largest Christian archaeological site discovered so far in the Gulf region. It was uncovered by French archaeologist Roman Ghirshman in 1960 and dates to the seventh century, or at the latest the eighth century. The site includes a central church where floral stucco decorations were found, along with a number of interior rooms, including a dining hall, a hall for the instruction of monks, a library, and a room for copying texts, in addition to at least 19 adjoining three-chamber monastic cells.

It is worth noting that excavations on the island have remained limited. Ghirshman focused primarily on the church more than on the monastery itself or other sites on the island. For that reason, it remains likely that other Christian remains have yet to be discovered.

The island also contains rock-cut tombs dating to various periods, including the Seleucid, Parthian, and Sasanian eras.

Significantly, Christians reused some of these ancient tombs, where “Nestorian crosses” were found carved into the stone, along with grave markers decorated with floral motifs in the shape of the cross.

ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News, also contacted the Assyrian Church of the East Patriarchate to better understand the monastery’s history and significance. According to the patriarchate’s secretary, Patriarch Mar Awa III, head of the Assyrian Church of the East, incorporated into the new patriarchal complex in Erbil, Iraq, is one of the cross designs used at the monastery on Kharg Island. The patriarchate also said the property today belongs to the state.

Today, the monastery site is surrounded by a security fence tied to the island’s military use, limiting access while also contributing in part to its protection. Even so, these remains remain threatened, not only by erosion and oil pollution but also by geopolitical conflict, which repeatedly makes the island a military target. The question remains: Will Kharg’s Christian heritage survive the present conflict, or will it become yet another casualty of international strife?

This story was first published by ACI MENA, the Arabic-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated for and adapted by EWTN News English.

Source: https://www.ewtnnews.com/world/middle-east/beyond-oil-and-conflict-iran-s-kharg-island-holds-a-lost-christian-past