Today Syria is a lesson about how motivated citizens can challenge governments that act violently and seem invincible, says Harry Hagopian. But we also need to be wary towards religious radicalism or fanaticism on the one hand, and military arrogance or political kleptocracy on the other, infiltrating movements for change and co-opting them in order to impose new forms of dictatorships, totalitarian control, subjugation and discrimination.

A two-day conference at Lambeth Palace on 'Christians in the Holy Land,' jointly hosted by Catholic and Anglican leaders, has ended with a call to action.

Noting that much of the critical energy and revolt arising from the six-month old 'Arab Spring' has been directed internally rather than externally, respected scholar Elizabeth Kassab, who has a particular focus on post-colonial debates on cultural malaise, looks behind the headlines and media glare to examine features of the newly emerging landscape in the Arab world. Recovering a balanced, healthy and empowering sense of self has not been and will not be an easy task, she suggests.