Campaign to Ban Holy Bible in Pakistan

Karachi (Agenzia Fides) - The radical Islamic party Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam has filed an appeal to the Supreme Court of Pakistan and has launched a campaign asking to ban the circulation of the Bible, described as a "pornographic " and "blasphemous book". This is a new attack against the Christian community in Pakistan, frightened by the attacks and threats suffered after the death of Bin Laden, already under attack due to the damaging effects of the blasphemy law, with the consequence of death penalty to those who insult the Holy Quran or the Prophet Muhammad. The radical group Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, with its headquarters in Karachi, launched the campaign at a public conference. According to the group's leader, Abdul Rauf Farooqi, some passages of the Bible describe characters that Muslims regard as prophets as being "vicious and immoral".

"It is a move that could fuel religious hatred against Christians. It is a threat to peaceful coexistence, an attack on the heart of our faith", says a bewildered Fr. Saleh Diego to Fides, who presides over the "Justice and Peace Commission" in the Archdiocese of Karachi. "As Christians we are already very weak and subject to pressures for the unjust blasphemy law. These radical groups want to delete us entirely. Sure, they are only minority groups, and we hope for the rise of voices of moderate Muslim leaders to stop this campaign of hatred " he remarks.

"Our response as Christians in Pakistan, already seen as targets, can be only to confirm the urgency of dialogue and respect for all religious symbols and sacred books of all religions. But we expect that, at an international level, a stronger and more determined answer might emerge, in order to sustain us", concludes Father Diego, calling for a mobilization of Christians and international institutions to stop the campaign against the Bible. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 03/06/2011)

Christians go to court for protection

ISLAMABAD, April 4: An Emmanuel Church Committee on Monday moved a petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC), asking for protection and security as it plans to construct a church in sector G-8/2.

IHC Chief Justice Iqbal Hameed-ur-Rehman is likely to take up on Tuesday the petition filed by the committee through Nazir Masih, its president.
Making chairman Capital Development Authority, Inspector General and Senior Superintendent of Islamabad police respondents, the committee through its lawyer Abdul Hafeez Amjad prayed to the court for security for construction of the church on a “lawfully allotted plot”.
In the petition, Pastor Masih has maintained that certain “extremist elements” have been averse to the construction of the church, adding that he felt threatened.
According to the petition, the CDA on October 22, 2002 allotted a plot measuring 100 x 200 square yards near PARC Colony for the construction of church for the followers of the Emmanuel Church in Islamabad.Pastor Masih applied for the plot way back in 1972.
He got the physical possession of the plot in October 2002.
When the committee submitted construction plan of the church with the Capital Development Authority for final approval, the petition said some “practical difficulties such as threats of cancellation of the allotted plot” started emerging.
It said cases were filed against the construction of the church. But all cases have been dismissed by the courts, the petition said.
An appeal against the dismissal of cases had also been turned down on July 30, 2005.
But the petition said after clearing all legal hurdles whenever the petitioner started construction work, “either its construction material was removed or the deployed labour was threatened by the some persons from nearby mosque.”
Meanwhile, Justice Mohammad Anwar Khan Kasi of the Islamabad High Court reserved verdict on a bail plea of Raja Aftab-ul-Islam, a former joint secretary of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, in the Haj scam case.
Raja Aftab has been accused of being co-signatory with Rao Shakeel, former DG Haj, of all contracts for hiring expensive and ill-equipped residences for Pakistani pilgrims.
In his bail plea, the former secretary has maintained that Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) could not find any evidence against him in the case as no abnormal transaction had been traced through his accounts.

Famous Christian Women in History

Proverbs 11:16
A kindhearted woman gains respect, but ruthless men gain only wealth. 

It is a fact that women are mostly honest, brave, courageous and hardworking. But Christian women are even more than ordinary women. Christian women worked a lot throughout the history, for humanity and for Christianity. The most blessed, caring and brave woman in the history of mankind is Blessed Mother Mary. We also cannot forget what St Joan of Arc, Mother Teresa and Florence Nightingale did. These women are famous and we know about them. But there are also some other Christian women who worked a lot but only few people know about them. Today is International Womens Day and we salute all those brave Christian women who did a lot for us, there are of course many other Christian women who did great things but we dont know about them.. Here is the list of some of those Christian women with their names and their work.

Christian Women in the Early Church

Blandina died 177 AD She was a famous martyr in what is now France

Perpetua and Felicitas 203 AD

These two women were famous Christian women martyrs. (There were of course many other women martyrs).

Faltonia Betitia Proba 4th Century AD

There were also women writers in the early church. She was a Christian poet.

Fabiola 4th Century AD She was a wealthy woman who gave up everything to nurse the poor.

Christian Women in the Middle Ages

Brigid c. 450-525

She founded the first women's religious community in Ireland.

Clotilde 475-545

Clotilde married Clovis, the king of the Franks who ruled northern France. She was instrumental in converting her husband to Christianity.

Berta or Bertha 539-612

In the 6th century AD England was divided into small kingdoms and the English were pagans. However Berta was from France and she was a Christian. She was married to the king of Kent. It was partly due to her influence that Kent was converted to Christianity.

Hilda of Whitby 614-680

Hilda was an influential woman in the Saxon church who founded several monasteries. In 664 she hosted the Synod of Whitby. (At that time there were two kinds of Christianity, Roman in most of Europe and Celtic in Ireland, Wales and Scotland. The Synod (meeting) of Whitby was held to decide which side the kingdom of Northumbria (northern England) should join. (Hilda much preferred Celtic Christianity but the Synod decided on Rome).

Kassia 810-867 She was a Greek poet and hymn writer

Hildegard 1088-1179

Hildegard was a theologian and writer. She also wrote about natural history and the medicinal use of plants. She also wrote music and a play.

Heloise 1101-1164 She was a French Abbess and she was widely respected for her learning.

The Waldensians 1175 onwards

The Waldensians were a Christian movement that began in southern France and spread across central Europe and Italy in the 13th century. Many Waldensian preachers were women.

Clare of Assisi 1194-1253 A follower of Francis of Assisi she founded an order of nuns called the Poor Clares

Julian of Norwich 1342-1416

Despite the masculine name Julian was a woman. She was a famous mystic and writer. Julian wrote about the 'motherhood' of God.

Margery Kempe 1373-1439

Margery was an English mystic. The story of her life became a famous book The Book of Margery Kempe.

The Lollards c. 1380 onwards

The Lollards were a Christian movement in England from the late 14th century to the early 16th century when they merged with the Protestants. Many Lollard preachers were women.

Christian Women in the 16th Century

Anne Askew 1521-1546 She was an English Protestant martyr

Katharine Zell 1497-1562 Neither Luther or Calvin believed in women preachers. However Katharine was an influential Protestant in Germany. She visited the sick and prisoners and sheltered Protestant refugees. She also wrote letters, which were circulated among Protestants.


Christian Women in the 17th Century

In the 17th century the Baptists and the Quakers had many women preachers. However in the late 17th century the Baptists became more conservative and began to disfavour women preachers.

Anne Hutchinson 1591-1643 Anne was a preacher in 17th century Massachusetts

Anne Bradstreet 1612-1672

Anne Bradstreet was a Christian poet of the 17th Century. She was born in Northampton but in 1630 she emigrated to North America.

Margaret Fell 1614-1702 Co-founded the Quakers with George Fox. One of the books she wrote was called Women's Speaking Justified, Proved and Knowed of the Scriptures.

Christian Women in the 18th Century

In the 18th century when the Methodist movement was born many Methodist leaders were women. John Wesley supported them but after his death in 1791 the Methodists began to disfavour women leaders. In the USA there was a movement called the Separate Baptists, which allowed women preachers.

Anne Dutton 1692-1765 Anne was a theologian

Selina, Countess of Huntingdon 1707-1791 Selina was a key figure in the Methodist Movement of the 18th Century.

Sarah Osborn 1714-1796 Sarah was a Christian leader and writer

Sarah Crosby 1729-1804 Sarah was a famous Methodist preacher

Ann Lee 1736-1784 Ann was a Quaker missionary.

Hannah More 1745-1833 Hannah was a famous writer and philanthropist.

Phyllis Wheatley 1753-1784 Phyllis was a poet

Hannah Adams 1755-1831 Hannah was a famous Christian writer.

Elizabeth Ann Seton 1774-1821 She was a Christian writer

Ann Judson 1789-1826 Ann was a missionary to Burma

Christian Women in the 19th Century

Some people think that Victorian women just stayed at home all day. In reality women were evangelists, preachers, writers and missionaries. They also organised charities.

Phoebe Palmer 1807-1874 Phoebe was a famous evangelist and writer.

Fanny Crosby 1820-1915 Fanny (Frances) was a famous hymn writer of the 19th century.

Anoinette Brown 1825-1921 In 1853 she became the first ordained Congregationalist woman minister

Catherine Booth 1829-1890

Catherine Booth was a preacher. She married William Booth in 1855. (At first William disagreed with the idea of women preachers but he changed his mind after hearing Catherine preach!). Catherine and William founded the Salvation Army in 1865.

Hannah Whitall Smith 1832-1911 Hannah was a writer and evangelist.

Lottie Moon 1840-1912 She was a missionary to China.

Maria Woodworth-Etter 1844-1924 She was a famous evangelist

Mary Slessor 1848-1915 She was a missionary to Africa.

Christian Women in the 20th Century

Evangeline Booth 1865-1950

From 1904 Evangeline was leader of the Salvation Army in the USA. From 1934-39 she was Commander in Chief of the Salvation Army worldwide.

Ida Scudder 1870-1960 She was a medical missionary

Evely Brand 1879-1974 She was a missionary to India

Gladys Aylward 1903-1970 She was a missionary to China

Patricia St John 1919-1993 She was a Christian writer

Esther John 1929-1960 She was a Pakistani Christian nurse and martyr

Eva Burrows 1930- She was an Australian evangelist

Meanwhile a new Christian movement started at the beginning of the 20th Century - Pentecostalism. Many of the preachers in the new movement were women.

Agnes Ozman 1870-1937 She was a Pentecostal evangelist

Aimee Semple McPherson 1890-1944 Is probably the most famous women evangelist of the early 20th century

Pakistan: Yet another Christian accused of blasphemy

A Christian woman, Agnes Nuggo, was accused of blasphemy and arrested in the Diocese of Faisalabad, in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The Catholic Church, which is handling the case, expressed "extreme concern"  over the affair.
The Commission for Justice and Peace in the diocese reported that Agnes (50) is married to Bashir Masih, has children and lives in the Christian quarter of Waris Pura. She was accused of blasphemy after a dispute over a piece of land that had already created controversy with his relatives. Some Muslim neighbours accused her of having made insulting statements against the Prophet Mohammed and against Islam. On 16 February, the local police registered a FIR (First Information Report) pursuant to art. 295/a of the Criminal Code and arrested her. Agnes professes her innocence and says the accusations are completely fabricated.
Fr. Nisar Barkat, Director of the Justice and Peace Commission in Faisalabad, reported "Bishop Joseph Coutts has become aware of the case and asked me to follow it closely." Fr. Nisar was in court and obtained a copy of the complaint against Agnes, who will have her first court hearing in two weeks. The church will find her a lawyer and will take care of her family.
According to some sisters who know Agnes personally "the case is quite complicated: the woman was lured into a trap. Some people wanted to take revenge on her, because in the past Agnes had agreed to testify in court for money."”
Fr. Pascal Paulus, a Dominican priest in the Waris Pura area, said that "the situation is critical for us Christians. We need to be very careful. The Islamic radicals want to exploit these cases to attack the Christian minorities. We are exposed to spurious attacks, which have already been happening."
Asia Bibi, another Christian woman accused of blasphemy, has been imprisoned for several months and has been condemend to death under Islamic law, Haroon Barket Masih of the Masihi Foundation said of Nuggo, "She is a new Asia Bibi. Agnes' case is one of many cases of persecution that continue to occur. Most of the episodes don't leave a trace and do not reach the clamour of the spotlight. Only when the victims' families trust in the Churches, foundations and NGOs, then the injustices come to light. Families often keep silent for fear of retaliation. And institutions are absent: in this situation, what can Christians do?"
Rosemary Noel, head of the Pakistan Catholic Women's Organisation said, "Being a Christian woman in Pakistan is a dual challenge. Even the status of women is itself exposed to discrimination, violence and abuse. Women struggle to gain access to education and the world of work. Those Christians are doubly discriminated against. They are considered as objects by Muslims and suffer all sorts of abuse and injustice to general indifference."
According to data provided by the Justice and Peace Commission of the Pakistani Bishops, including Agnes, there have been 16 Christian women accused and imprisoned between 1987 and 2010 (in addition to a Muslim woman and a Hindu), but many other cases escape inclusion, because they did not end with a formal complaint.

Pakistani Police constable get harshly beaten in front of the camera

Asia Bibi says she was raped by accusers

Pakistani woman Asia Bibi, who has been sentenced to death for blasphemy, says she was raped at the hands of her accusers.

This is what she told the Governor of Punjab, Salman Taseer, who visited Asia in prison two days ago, Fides reports.

Following their conversation, the governor said that the woman “signed an appeal of clemency to President Ali Zardari” and said that she affirms her story, which she will “personally report to the President.”

Bibi says she is innocent, but groups of Islamic fundamentalists have already threatened to kill her if she goes free, Fides says.

Meanwhile, Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has said he intends to issue a pardon for Bibi, Radio Vatican adds.

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, has also appealed for her release.

Speaking to Vatican Radio Archbishop Lawrence John Saldanha of Lahore says Bibi’s case highlights “how dangerous (Pakistan’s blasphemy) laws are and how from something so small, such as an argument between a group of women, something so serious can take place”.

The Archbishop adds that the infamous blasphemy laws target all civil society as a whole; “since they were first introduced over 1000 cases have been reported"

However he adds, “there can be no comparison in how they affect the minorities. For example when a Christian is accused of blasphemy then his or her family and the entire Christian community often pay the consequences”, which can come in the form of discrimination, persecution and even violence.

Instead “when a Muslim is accused of blasphemy then he or she as an individual pays and no one else”.

Source: http://www.cathnewsasia.com/2010/11/25/asia-bibi-says-she-was-raped-by-accusers/

Islamic cleric in Pakistan offers $5,800 reward to anyone who kills Christian woman accused of blasphemy

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - A hardline, pro-Taliban Pakistani Muslim cleric Friday offered a reward for anyone who kills a Christian woman sentenced to death by a court on charges of insulting Islam.

The sentence against Asia Bibi has renewed debate about Pakistan's blasphemy law which critics say is used to persecute religious minorities, fan religious extremism and settle personal scores. Non-Muslim minorities account roughly 4 percent of Pakistan's about 170 million population.

Maulana Yousef Qureshi, the imam of a major mosque in the northwestern city of Peshawar, offered a $5,800 (3,700 pounds) reward and warned the government against any move to abolish or change the blasphemy law.

"We will strongly resist any attempt to repeal laws which provide protection to the sanctity of Holy Prophet Mohammad," Qureshi told a rally of hardline Islamists.

"Anyone who kills Asia will be given 500,000 rupees in reward from Masjid Mohabat Khan," he said referring to his mosque.

While Qureshi is not believed to have a wide following, comments by clerics can provoke a violent response and complicate government efforts to combat religious extremism and militancy.

Qureshi, cleric who has been leading congregation at the 17th century Mohabat Khan mosque for decades, later told Reuters he was determined to see her killed.

"We expect her to be hanged and if she is not hanged then we will ask mujahideen and Taliban to kill her."...

Everyone Please pray for Asia Bibi, also do not forget Hector Aleem Chairman of Peace Worldwide who is in jail due to same charges. Hector Aleem is not convicted, please pray for his release.