John R. Houk
© May 26. 2016
Shamim Mahmood writes of potential solutions to alleviate
discrimination by the Sunni Muslim majority against Pakistan’s Christian
minority.
Pakistani-Christians are horrendously persecuted in Pakistan
via both extra-legal (e.g. terrorism and prejudice) and legal paths primarily
through enacted Blasphemy Laws in this Islamic Republic. More egregiously the
Blasphemy Laws are used as an instrument of false accusations for various
reasons such as revenge, monetary extortion, property acquisition and such
nefarious evil designs by Muslims against Christians.
Shamim is a great brother in Christ; however, his faith in
the historical promise of Pakistan’s founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah of equal
rights for all of Pakistan’s religious minorities. Particularly after Jinnah’s
death untimely right after Pakistan’s 1947 birth
made the equal rights promise a historical
delusion. It is my humble opinion that the declaration of an
Islamic Republic meant that religious minorities not bowing as dhimmis to Sunni
Muslims made an equal rights promise a delusion.
Muslim love of the Quran
that tells them to physically coerce non-Muslims through humiliation to convert
or to kill them if they insult Islam or its pseudo-prophet Mohammed is a dooms
day promise toward Christians and other religious minorities in Pakistan.
A Muslim apologist will tell a Christian that Islam is peace
and makes provision for the People of the Book which are Jews and Christians.
And indeed the Quran has those provisions. Unfortunately, those provisions of
the Quran spoken by Mohammed were abrogated by the Islamic prophet after the
conquest of Medina. Mohammed grew weary of courting the favor of Jews and
Christians and sadly and suddenly the moon-deity Allah began telling Mohammed
to subject Christians and Jews in humiliation even death for insults. (Later one of four honored Caliph’s that
assumed the reins of power after Mohammed’s death figured out how to sustain
the then Muslim minority with a stinging protection tax. Failure to pay meant
death.) Thus it became an insult for a Christian to proclaim Jesus the Son
of God who died on a cross and was resurrected by the Father in bodily form at
oneness with the Father and Holy Spirit.
In the Quran, Christians are
generally referred to as “people of the book” and then in the various suras and
ayahs (or chapters and verses) a number of references are made. In 2:120,
“Never will the Jews nor the Christians be pleased with you till you follow
their religion. Say: ‘Verily, Islamic Guidance is the only Guidance. And if you
were to follow their desires after what you have received of Knowledge, then
you would have against Allah neither any protector nor helper.”
In 3:56: “As to those who disbelieve, I will punish them with a severe torment
in this world and in the Hereafter, and they will have no helpers." In
3:85: “And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted
of him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers.” In 3:118: “O you
who believe! Take not as your helpers or friends those outside your religion
since they will not fail to do their best to corrupt you. They desire to harm
you severely. Hatred has already appeared from their mouths, but what their
breasts conceal is far worse. Indeed we have made plain to you the verses if you
understand.”
3:178 states: “And let not the disbelievers think that our postponing of their
punishment is good for them. We postpone the punishment only so that they may
increase in sinfulness. And for them is a disgracing torment.” Hardly
encouraging for the basis for a peaceful co-existence and a comfortable
pluralism.
Muslims reject the idea that Jesus
was God and consider the belief blasphemous (Sura 5:75). Islam says that
Jesus was an apostle of Allah just like all the other apostles of Allah (Sura
5:78). The Qur’an says that anyone who believes Jesus is “the Son of God”
is imitating “what the unbelievers of old used to say. God’s curse be on
them; how they are deluded away from the Truth” (Sura 9:30). …
…
Islam says that Jesus was never
crucified on a cross
There are several competing
theories put forth by different Muslim scholars concerning Jesus and
the cross.
Nevertheless, they all contain the belief that Jesus did not die on the cross
for the sins of the world…or anything else (Sura 4:157).
Muhammad, the founder of Islam,
misunderstood what the term "Son of God" meant with respect to
Christianity. He thought of it only in terms of sexual reproduction,
i.e. that God fathered a child through sexual intercourse with Mary. Therefore
he spoke out against it.
Christians also reject that God had
physical intercourse with Mary, but we understand Christ being God's Son as an
analogical term. We believe that the eternal Son of God, one with
the Father from all eternity, united to Him in one Spirit, "became flesh
and dwelt among us" (John 1:14), and took "the form of a servant,
being born in the likeness of men" (Philippians 2:7). We
believe in the incarnation of the Son of God.
Muhammad did hear the Christians
proclaim Jesus the Messiah as God's Son, but understanding or not, he
specifically denied that Jesus was the Son of God. He said in the
Quran,
Sura 2:116 - "They
say: "God has begotten a son". Glory be
to Him. No, to Him belongs all that is in the heavens and on
earth: everything renders worship to Him."
and,
Sura 9:30 - "The
Christians say the Messiah is the Son of God, that is a saying from their
mouths."
Muhammad was unable to distinguish
between the Christian belief in Jesus as the Son of God and the Arab Pagan
belief in idols as offspring of God, i.e., Al-Lat, Al-Uzza, and Manat, (these
were idols worshipped around Mecca as daughters of the supreme God - or
Allah). Muhammad misunderstood that Christians in no way
consider Jesus - the Son of God, in the same way the Arab Pagans understood
their idols.
I think you get the idea. There will never be equal rights
for a Christian residing in a nation in which the Quran and Sharia Law define
culture and society and its rule of law.
That’s my take though and not Shamim’s.
Should Shamim give up and quite being a Rights Advocate for
Pakistani-Christians? ABSOLUTELY NOT! On Christ’s ascension to the right hand
of the Father He gave a message to the disciples who were the minority of their
faith in their day:
16 Then the
eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had
appointed for them. 17 When they saw Him, they
worshiped Him; but some doubted.
18 And Jesus
came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in
heaven and on earth.
19 Go therefore
[a] and
make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them
to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always,
even to
the end of the age.” Amen.
[b] (Matthew
28: 16—20
NKJV)
14 Later He
appeared to the eleven as they sat at the table; and He rebuked their unbelief
and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who had seen Him
after He had risen.
15 And He said to them, “Go
into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He
who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be
condemned.
17 And these signs will follow those who
believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new
tongues;
18 they
[a] will
take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt
them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
19 So then,
after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down
at the right hand of God.
20 And they went out and
preached everywhere, the Lord working with
them and confirming
the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.
[b] (Mark
16: 14-20
NKJV)
36 Now as
they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to
them, “Peace to you.” 37 But they were
terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. 38 And
He said to them,“Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts?39 Behold
My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does
not have flesh and bones as you see I have.”
40 When He
had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.
[a]41 But
while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, “Have
you any food here?”
42 So they gave Him a piece of
a broiled fish and some honeycomb.
[b] 43 And
He took
it and ate in their presence.
44 Then He
said to them, “These are the words which I spoke to you
while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were
written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms
concerning Me.” 45 And He opened their
understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.
46 Then He
said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the
Christ to suffer and to rise
[c] from
the dead the third day,
47 and that repentance and
remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at
Jerusalem. (Luke 24: 36-47
NKJV)
AND this is why Shamim Mahmood should NEVER stop being a
Christian Rights Advocate among a Muslim Sunni majority that have been taught
to hate non-Muslims their entire lives.
SUPPORT Shamim’s Christian advocacy in Pakistan by
Western Union sending money with this LINK to the
destination Islamabad. Shamim’s email is shamimpakistan@gmail.com, Western Union
may ask for Shamim’s phone - +92-300-642-4560
**********************
Way Out to Long Sufferings
Join hands to save
the lives of Pakistani Christians
By Shamim Mahmood
Sent: 5/25/2016 9:47
PM
Islamabad (Shamim Masih):
7 And the Lord said: “I have surely seen the
oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their
cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. 8 So I have come down
to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up
from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk
and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the
Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. 9 Now therefore, behold, the cry
of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen
the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10. Come now, therefore, and I will
send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out
of Egypt.” (Exodus 1:7-10)
The world has seen surly seen the oppression of Christians
living in Pakistan. Since Zia’s regime, there are more than 1400 blasphemy
cases registered and thousands of the Christians girls have faced force
conversions and huge numbers of persecution cases were registered against
religious minorities. According to the sources more than sixty people accused
of blasphemy were killed before their respective trials were over though the
death sentence has never been implemented.
Affected before partition of Indo-Pak, this section was
introduced in 1860 [
Blog Editor: See the
PDF “Blasphemy
Laws in Pakistan: A Historical Overview” Beginning page 9 for
British 1860 blasphemy law & Pakistan
Penal Code (Act XLV of 1860)]
and was meant to
prevent religious violence. Prior to 1986, only 14 cases pertaining to
blasphemy were reported. But later it is being used to settle personal secures.
And thus minorities of the country have been facing persecution under this
unsympathetic blasphemy law.
To me persecution of Pakistani Christians is aligned with
other issues as well, like poverty. There are different options to get rid of
long sufferings. Being an optimist, here are few recommendations, and I feel
this is workable and can minimize the level of persecution. Major portion of
this marginalized community lives in outskirts under/below the poverty line.
Ninety percent of poor girls work as maids and thus become the victims of
domestic violence or being raped. This leads to being forcefully married and
are asked [Blog Editor:
more often forced]
to convert to Islam. A major portion of the youth are unemployed or work as
laborers with a low salary or bonded labor. Practically speaking, any Christian
working under Muslim bosses face discrimination in/on a regular basis. Even
Isfan Yar Bhandara [or
Isphanyar M.
Bhandara]
(minority parliamentarian) confessed that minority parliamentarians receive
discriminatory development funds [
Blog
Editor: 2 articles on discriminatory practices with Development Funds – HERE
& HERE]
in the lower house.
Education is the first and foremost priority, go to school
is a right of every child and to ensure the provision of an education facility
can fix the problem. Church based institutions and other buildings can be used
to educate the Christian community. Big donor agencies can take this initiative
and I assure you after fifteen years, things would miraculously change. Drop
out ratio has gone higher ever since the standard of the public school
education cannot meet the required result and education at private sector is
much expensive.
So provision of better employment opportunities to the
marginalized segment of society is the only solution for a better future. There
are a number of measures one can take to save their skin. For example;
providing small loans in establishing their own businesses in livestock, petty
trading, agriculture, stitching, embroidery, handicrafts and small scale rural
manufacturing can raise the living standard of the poor population. This will
help them start earning on their own instead of relying continuously on cash
grants by some donor agencies/church based organizations. Any interest free
loan scheme can alleviate unemployment and poverty from this
marginalized segment.
There may be some organizations working on the same issues
but we need to take as a challenge and start working at broader level.
Otherwise there are a number of options youth can choose on their own, that may
be destructive not constructive. So I suggest constructive measures can save
Pakistani Christians as a sense of deprivation is prevailing among the
Christian youth in Pakistan. And it’s an alarming situation.
Be Blessed,
Shamim Mahmood
SUPPORT Shamim’s Christian advocacy in Pakistan by
Western Union sending money with this LINK
to the destination Islamabad. Shamim’s email is shamimpakistan@gmail.com,
Western Union may ask for Shamim’s phone - +92-300-642-4560
Diplomatic Correspondent
Daily Times, Islamabad
Blogger and Human Rights Activist
______________________
Introducing Shamim’s Christian Advocacy in
Pakistan
John R. Houk
© May 26. 2016
_____________________
Way Out to Long Sufferings
Edited by John R. Houk
Text embraced by brackets are by the Editor. Links are by
the Editor.
© Shamim Mahmood (Masih)
