WHEATON, Ill.--Missionaries in Middle Eastern countries have seen "The Passion of the Christ" bring the gospel to regions previously closed to the Christian message, according to Baptist Press.

Arab newspapers report that the movie has been a surprise box office success in Qatar, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates and other predominantly Muslim nations.

It has been described as an amazing turn of events for missionaries who have been restricted to secret showings of the "Jesus" film to small home groups, something for which they could be arrested, Baptist Press reported.

Now "The Passion of the Christ" is depicting the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus openly in theaters.

According to WorldPulse magazine, in Syria, moviegoers from all religions and backgrounds have filled theaters in Damascus and Aleppo, breaking box office records.

Although Saudi Arabia does not have public movie theaters, pirated DVD versions of the film have been "selling like hotcakes," reported the English daily Arab News. DVDs also have appeared on the black market in Yemen and Oman, according to Operation Mobilization's news and information services. Bootlegged DVDs also are readily available in Afghanistan and Iraq, Christians there report.

According to Christians from Iraq and Palestine, an Arabic speaker can comprehend at least 10 percent of the Aramaic spoken in the movie. Among the understandable words are key points that Muslims challenge -- Jesus' response that he is God and the Jews' outcry to crucify him. The Koran teaches that Jesus wasn't actually crucified, but that someone else was in his place.

Transcripts of the movie have also made their way across the region.