St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Karachi hosted the interfaith event on Dec. 12. (Photo supplied)
By UCA News reporter, Karachi
Dec 17 2020
Cardinal Coutts leads celebrations at St. Patrick’s Cathedral with a message of unity and peace
Christian and interfaith leaders joined hands in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi to celebrate the Christmas season with a message of unity and peace.
Cardinal Joseph Coutts, the archbishop of Karachi, led the celebrations at St. Patrick’s Cathedral on Dec. 12.
“We should not only gather to celebrate but we have to be one in each other’s difficult times. We were united a few years back when the Ismaili community was targeted,” he recalled, referring to the 2015 Islamic State terrorist attack that left 45 people dead.
“We invited religious leaders and requested them to pray for the victims and their families. The event was widely covered by international and national media.
“That event became a source of unity for us all at a time when there was lot of terrorism and unrest in Karachi. But we must not forget this is the city of Abdul Sitar Edhi , Dr. Ruth Pfau, Hakeem Muhammad Syed and many other resilient people who defied violence and spread peace.”
Cardinal Coutts said the message of peace and harmony must be spread at grassroots level for real change.
Illama Ahsan Sadiqui, general secretary of Albaraka Welfare Trust International and the Interfaith Commission for Peace and Harmony, asked everyone to say “Alleluia” together.
“This is the beginning of peace and brotherhood. We can do it with small good steps which can bring about a big change in our society. But we can do it only when we are united and denounce hate and announce love,” Sadiqui said.
“One day we will be able to proudly tell ourselves that we belong to a country that was founded by Muhammad Ali Jinnah. His dream of an inclusive Pakistan will come true.”
Mangla Sharma, a Hindu lawmaker, thanked the Christian community for its efforts to promote interfaith harmony and dialogue among people of various religious groups.
“We should back and organize such initiatives that can be instrumental in our struggle for the equal rights of minorities,” Sharma said.
Father Saleh Diego, director of the National Commission for Justice and Peace, hailed the interdenominational unity.
“We all, not only Christians, have to unite and stand together with Hindus and Sikhs for the cause of peace and justice. Our Lord is the Lord of Justice and everything is possible if we are united and stand together.”
Pastor Suleman Manzoor, chairman of Rapha Mission International, thanked Cardinal Coutts and organizers for the event.
He invited Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Parsi and other communities to join a Christmas peace rally on Dec. 20. The rally will start at the Christian Cemetery and end at Karachi Press Club. – UCANews
