Release International

A rural church congregation have forgiven a gang who attacked their church after Release partners prompted local Muslims to make a public apology.

Christians in the mainly Muslim village of Lakho Ki, Lahore district, were badly shaken after an armed gang raided their Presbyterian church last Sunday and started smashing up its contents.

Release partner Sharing Life Ministry Pakistan (SLMP) reports that three or four elderly Christians were slapped and beaten with bamboo sticks, although none required medical treatment. The altar, tables and Bibles were damaged in the raid.

When an SLMP team came to the villagers' aid, they realised Christians were reluctant to file a case against their assailants, whom they believed to be local Muslims. Christians in the village rely on wealthy landowners for their income.

SLMP also recognised that there was little point registering a complaint with police, who often fail to uphold minority Christians' rights. Instead, SLMP contacted senior police officials and explained there would be a protest unless action was taken to prevent further attacks.

After negotiations with SLMP, Muslim community and religious leaders gathered in front of the Presbyterian church in Lakho Ki, made a public apology to local Christians and promised there would be no further attacks.

An SLMP spokesperson said that the decision not to pursue the matter through the courts did not mean the Christians were simply stepping down. Instead, he said, they were showing that forgiveness was more powerful than revenge – a strong statement in a country whose notorious blasphemy laws are widely abused to persecute religious minorities such as Christians.

'The gang committed blasphemy against these Christians but we can give an example of forgiveness and show how we can be peaceful. In this light, we are showing that they can forgive people like Asia Bibi and show their courage.'

Asia Bibi, a farm labourer from Punjab, remains on death row after being convicted of blasphemy last November following an argument over religion with work colleagues.

(Source: Sharing Life Ministry Pakistan)

• Ask God to heal all those who suffered physical or psychological injury during the attack on the Presbyterian church in Lakho Ki.
• Pray that the Christians' powerful witness to God's forgiveness and unconditional love will speak into the hearts of their neighbours and help to avert any further attacks.
  
 

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