Pakistan is home to over two million Christians, and none of them is exempt from the daily risk of persecution and harassment. A small number of these Christians are Orthodox. Orthodox Christians in Pakistan are under the spiritual jurisdiction of the Orthodox Metropolitanate of Singapore and South Asia, which comprises all the Orthodox Communities, Parishes, Foundations and Philanthropic Projects in Singapore, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Afghanistan, Brunei, Timor, Maldives, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, as well as Pakistan.
Please pray that our beloved brothers and sisters of these often forgotten communities of Christians in Pakistan would be granted the light of religious freedom and relief from those who blaspheme the name of God with anger, violence, and hatred.
For previous ChristianPersecution.com coverage of the persecution of Christians in Pakistan, see here.
“Attack on a Lahore Pentecostal church leaves several people injured,” by Shafique Khokhar, AsiaNews, September 9, 2021:
Lahore (AsiaNews) – Christians were attacked once again last Sunday. The targets were a Pentecostal church, The New Hope Church of Pakistan, in Sheracote, a district in Lahore, and the homes of some faithful.
A group of Muslims opened fire during Sunday service at 2.30 pm, injuring several people, both men and women. A pregnant woman was among the victims; for some, the injuries are life threatening.
“I was cleaning a room when suddenly I heard shots coming from the street. I fainted for a while,” said Rukhsana Bibi, one of the victims of the attack.
After regaining consciousness, “I remembered my three-year-old son was playing in the courtyard. I ran out to him. While I was rescuing my son, a stone broke a window and a piece of glass injured my hand.”
According to witness accounts, Christians, especially women in Sheracote, had been the victims of harassment in previous days; families going to church were mocked and insulted with offensive language.
Last Sunday, things got worse, threats and insults were followed by an actual assault against the church and homes.
The attackers “had military-style weapons and fired directly at the houses,” said Christian journalist Simon Aleem. They “wounded several people, including the New Hope Church pastor, Rev Asif Nawab Masih.”…
