Pakistan (MNN) — Two Christian men were harassed and arrested in Lahore, Pakistan last week. Their crime? Reading the Bible aloud in a public park. One of the men was arrested at the scene, and the other was caught after fleeing.
A Muslim man commanded them to stop and gathered a group of others to surround them. Nehemiah of FMI says this case doesn’t even fit Pakistan’s draconian blasphemy laws: “Actually, the blasphemy law [only applies] if you say something against Muslims, the Prophet Muhammad, their holy book the Quran, or Allah. But the sad part is, they never said anything about those things. They were just reading the Bible there in the park.”
The plight of Pakistani Christians
Muslims regularly make bogus accusations against Pakistani Christians, often to steal property after they have been imprisoned. Many Pakistani Christians live in poverty, treated as the lowest of society.
Nehemiah says of the two Christians, “I assume that one guy was illiterate, while another guy was helping him to read the Bible. The Muslim guy who was passing by heard that they were reading some unknown book. They call Bible an ‘unholy,’ ‘unclean’ book.’”
Nehemiah says this story highlights the difficulties of any ministry work in Pakistan. “We have five pastors serving in the city. We have three sisters serving in the city. And our pastors, church planters, and overseas partners are serving in this difficult situation, where reading Bible in a park in a quiet place is so difficult.”
Ask God to strengthen His Pakistani people.
The header image shows a scene from Lahore, Pakistan. (Image by tayyab3425 from Pixabay)
