The Church in Pakistan Post 9/11
by Jim TebbeI was born and raised in Pakistan, the son of a missionary chemistry professor and college Principal. For that reason I have a special interest in the country.
3.6 million Christians is an impressive number for a Muslim country. That is 180 times the 20,000 who come to InterVarsity's Mission Convention at Urbana every three years - and Urbana seems pretty full! But out of a population of well over 160 million in Pakistan, Christians are only a very small minority. Where did they come from and what is life like for them now?
Origins of the Pakistani Church
William Carey, commonly called the Father of Modern Missions, first came to Calcutta, India in 1793. The first missionaries to what is now Pakistan came in 1833. The revival that resulted in much of the church in Pakistan took place among the poorest of the poor in the early part of the 20th century. By the time Pakistan was born in 1947 the church was well established. Christians were promised legal, social and religious rights. These were later confirmed in the first and subsequent Pakistani Constitutions.
Pakistani Christians Marginalized
Christian schools, colleges and hospitals, begun by missionaries and continued with Pakistani leadership, have made a deep impact on Pakistani society and many continue to do so today. But as Pakistan has struggled to interpret its Muslim self-identity over the last half of the 20th century, Christians have been increasingly marginalized. Misunderstanding has led to misinformation, discrimination and even outright persecution. The government and the law of the land still protect Christian rights. Pakistan is not like Saudi Arabia where citizens are forbidden by law to become Christians. But extreme Islamists often interpret Pakistani Christians as being aligned with Western Christianity and not truly Pakistani.
Pakistani Church Today
In 1979 when a group of Muslim extremists seized the Grand Mosque in Mecca, the holiest city of Islam, Radio Pakistan announced just one time that Americans had seized the Mosque. Riots broke out all over Pakistan leading to attacks on many American interests in Pakistan, including the sacking of the US Embassy in Islamabad. But at the same time many totally Pakistani churches and institutions were attacked. The Pakistani church was seen by the radicals to be aligned with America and the West.
Sadly that has continued up until today. But it has only been recently that world attention has come to be focused on Pakistani Christians' plight. Recent attacks on Pakistani churches and Christian institutions by Al-Qaeda related groups have made news around the world: the Church in Bahawalpur, the hospital in Taxila, the NGO in Karachi and more.
What has been the churches' response? Attendance is greater than ever. Pakistani Christian leaders have been able to express their allegiance to their country but also how they as Christians have contributed disproportionately to the good of the society. They will stay (for most there is nowhere to go) and if necessary they will die - as Christians. Like a flower that is crushed, the fragrance of who they are can be smelled by Pakistan and the world.
If I were a Pakistani Christian, today I would be proud of my people.
Jim Tebbe
Director for Urbana 2003
Unless otherwise noted, all materials on the urbana.org web site are Copyright InterVarsity Christian Fellowship / USA. All rights reserved.
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