A cleric in Sialkot district disrupted a Saturday mass, abused the pastor and is now threatening to register a blasphemy FIR against him for drawing upon verses from the Quran during his sermon.
Pastor Messiah George* had been invited by Data Zedka village Christians to give a sermon at the local church.
According to Arif Hameed*, a school teacher who arranged the pastor’s visit, Qari Muhammad Fazal* disrupted the mass around 11 pm, abusing the pastor and threatening to kill him. Fazal had objections to the pastor reading Quranic verses during his sermon. “He [Fazal] tried to get through to the pastor but we were able to help him escape,” said Hameed.
Fazal called the police to the church but by the time the police reached the church, the pastor had fled. Police officials were able to “persuade the Qari” to go home after assuring him that action will be taken against the pastor.
The next morning local Christians, said the school teacher, apologised to Fazal who is still insisting that the pastor “confess to his crime”, and publicly apologise for quoting the Quran. “Fazal has warned us that we will be responsible for the consequences,” he said.
Hameed said they had also sent women to the cleric’s wife and mother to apologise. “But Fazal’s adamant that the pastor apologise over the megaphone,” he said. Hameed said that they feared agitation by Muslim residents.
Fazal, when contacted, told The Express Tribune that Pastor George had “tried to justify the Christian point of view by giving Quranic references.” He said his “blood stared boiling” when he heard the pastor quoting from the Quran. “Yes, I abused them. I would have killed the pastor right there and then but I could not arrange for a weapon,” he said.
He said he had given an application to the police, asking that they file a blasphemy FIR against the pastor and the parish.
The police, however, told him that they would ask the pastor to apologise to the cleric at noon on Thursday (today) at the office of the DSP concerned. “In case the pastor does not come,” said Fazal, “I will get the FIR registered.”
He described the police as “followers of the American agenda of protecting the Christians”.
SHO Khalid Dar, however, denied receiving an application from the cleric. He said they were trying to “resolve the matter amicably” with the help of locals.
*Names have been changed to protect the identity of parties involved
Published in The Express Tribune, May 24th, 2012.
COMMENTS (90)
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@Anon: If the christians should not quote from the Quraan then why our mullahs quote from the Bible e.g. every mullah tells in his sermons that the news of the arrival of the Prophet (PBUH) has been specifically mentioned in the Bible.
it is called the First Amentment here in America, freedom of speech. Amen. If you don't like it you are free to leave
Some @ unbeliever May 24, who claims that he is reading the Old and new testiment scripturesand also hindu scriptures without any bias is totally wrong. He is actually reading the scriptures in a wrong way. From the very start he is wrong when he calls the Old Testament Jews Bible and the New Testament Christian Bible. He must know this as a fact that the Christian Bible contains both the Old and New Testament. That is why he is having such erroneous conclusion regarding his view concerning the Holy Bible. What really is needed is that there should forums where each should be given a chance to explain their scripture and what are their beliefs. It will only then, will all the bias will be removed. Till then, people like this socalled ubeliever who has chosen Islam as his Religion will remain in his errors with regard with his views about other religions.
live and let other live.... may allah guide that cleric the path of righteous so that he may able to understand true teachings of islam..
@Deb @ Jim Ackley:
Im sorry but either you're both extremely ignorant or extremely ill-informed. Islam is about submitting to God's will, that is, accepting His blessing and believing in the wisdom or purpose behind the suffering one has to bear. In Islam there is no concept of women "submitting" to men. Women are accorded equal status in Islamic teaching. Its only the misogynistic brainwashed bigots who would say that women must 'submit' to men in Islam. Just in case you start quoting to justify your claims, let me clarify that the verse stating the best women are those who are obedient refers to obedience to God, not man. Also, if women were supposed to submit to men, why on earth would Islamic law FORBID forced marriages? Something you should think about before you make judgements.
The Qarri Sahib has proven himself to be a blind guide. The Qarri, Dr. Zakir Naik and people like him and quote and declare the Holy Bible and Other Holy Books wrong and fabricated but others are not allowed to quote the Holy Quran and do not comment about it. Next time they will ask that all non-Muslims must not have a Holy Quran in their Houses. We non-Muslims of Pakistan are made to hear the Holy Quran every where but the non muslims will never be given any such oportunities to teach about their faith. O Lord God! God of the Universe! Rab-ul-Alamin! teah us to be tolerant with each, that we may hear each other and learn from each other come closer to each other.
@unbeliever:
"why your god is so reluctant to let me get into paradise even if i am honest, charitable and generous, but i do not consider him the only good. because, the first surah begins saying ALLAH to be the most merciful, but he isn’t showering his mercy upon me just because i do not believe in him."
Very interestingly, I had this conversation with my religious minded friends quite a while ago. They were of the view that a non-believer could not go in paradise irrespective of his good deeds. And I was of the view that it was the prerogative of God, the ultimate authority, to decide who would go in paradise or not. In support of my argument I raised the case of people living in remote places who might not have ever heard the message of Islam, and also the millions who lived before Islam. They were of the view that God rewards them for their good deeds in this world. However, I couldn't change their opinion and they couldn't change my views. So have faith in the God's benedictions "the most merciful, and the most benevolent". However, I may suggest you to read Quran's translation in English to understand its teachings before being critical of Islam without having its basic knowledge.
@JoelB:
"Such nonsense. It’s just a book, anyone should be able to read from it. And if anyone should have called the police, it should have been the Pastor, to report the cleric who made threats against him."
Totally agree with you.
@someone: "Islam actually means peace acquired by submitting one’s will to God. So both men and women submit to God, neither gender submits to the other." ... And, may I add...
Islam was founded by 'The God' through his 1st Messenger Adam. Messengers followed, renowned among them: Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. Each one of them carried fwd the original teachings of ISLAM and added fresh instructions Revealed to them. Today, Qur'an is the final set of Divine Instructions for the Children of Adam. ... "Accept It OR Reject It!" is the free option offered to Man by the Sender (of This Constitution!) - "There is no compulsion in Islam", declares Allah. By virtue of this Free Choice we are eligible for the good or bad consequences of our Response as clearly stated in the Book Of Allah('The-God') .
This badmashi gives Islam a bad name
Alas! If only there was a reputable Public Complain Center run by Peace Loving Religious Scholars who are loved and respected by all___ people in Pakistan could sleep peacefully, that tomorrow no one will call police on me for Blasphemy.I wonder what problems the religious and political leaders are looking to solve for public when it's right there_ in the middle of the road.
@Jim Ackley
The things you wrote about Islam are not written in the Quran but is part of a propaganda against Islam. Islam actually means peace acquired by submitting one's will to God. So both men and women submit to God, neither gender submits to the other. But the things you wrote are actually in the Old & New Testaments... ie women being the belongings of men...
God forgive us. This is a black day in Pakistan. Quran is a book for everyone. No one has any right on it particularly illitrate maulvi. God has not given up his right to protect His Book. God said this " "I have revealed this zikr and I will protect this". These ignorant mullah has no right to kill anyone. This mullah should be put in jail for attempting to kill.
@Jim Ackley
Quite a succint depiction.Waiting for rebuttals with bated breath! Specially from @kaalchakra.
@Kanwal: But, thousands of Maulvis are like him in Pakistan, and millions of Muslims follow them blindly and would readily take to streets on their call. Putting one or a few in Jail won't make any difference. Patience and Prayers only would work.
This is how true Islam works
As an ideology, Islam is not entitled to equal respect and acceptance, because ideas do not carry equal moral weight. Islam is not simply a belief about God. It is a word that means submission. Islam is a set of rules that define a social hierarchy in which Muslims submit to Allah, women submit to men and all non-Muslims submit to Islamic rule
In a country where 98% of the people are Muslims, Qari Fazal felt his faith was threatened and was willing to kill another human for this. This again brings up the question of ' why do we have a Ministry of religious Affairs ?'
Is it ok to hate someone because of their Beliefs/Religion
Its quite possible at the reasoning of these jahil mullahs that this violent mullah has placed himself out of islam by attending a christian mass - any chance of a 'blasphemy' law being used against him? or is that just reserved for innocents?
@ somone @ Khizar.. Its incredible to see that you can openly criticize and abuse any religion in the world whilst no one is allowed to quote a few versus from the Quran. Incredible to see the so the called "Tolerance" taught in Islam. I just want to ask every muslim in Pakistan a few Questions... Why is it the Muslims from Pakistan are the only "Thekedaars" of Islam? Why does the rest of the Islamic world always remain quite? Why does Muslims from Pakistan always try to justify any atrocity in the name of Islam and why does any other Muslim from anywhere else in the world condemn any attrocity in the name of Islam? The Muslim Pakistanis blame illiterate Clerics of all the religious brain-washing and mis-interpretation of the Koran but most of the readers of this english website must be educated and still have the same perspective regarding other religions and if the Muslim Pakistanis do blame the illiterate Clerics of all the religious brain-washing and mis-interpretation of the Koran then why dont they file blasphemy cases against them? Can someone answer please!
@ someone it is really getting difficult to discuss with you. ET today seems to have hired the most prissy moderator. they have not published my five comments on the trot. and i am not one with infinite patient. however, the first absurdity is that you consider the book to be the word of god, but why your god is so reluctant to let me get into paradise even if i am honest, charitable and generous, but i do not consider him the only good. because, the first surah begins saying ALLAH to be the most merciful, but he isn't showering his mercy upon me just because i do not believe in him.
@leila rage
Regarding the story of Hazrat Khizar, the boy was killed by Hazrat Khizar, no where does the Quran mention that Allah Commanded Hazrat Khizar to Kill the boy. This event in the Quran is used as an example to make people understand that even though something bad may happen, it will be good in the long run. Notice that as Hazrat Khizar killed the boy he was saved from Allah's punishment in the hereafter as he was innocent when he died. Contrast this with the Talmud where God says to Saul (a supposed Messenger) that the punishment of this city is put to death everyone including all the women and new born infants and also all animals. Saul leaves some animals for use and God punishes Saul for not killing the animals as well. The Old testament/Talmud (changed Taurat) gives the message that God punished the new born infants for their fathers sins and even the animals of the city. Thats a big difference to the merciful yet just attributes of Allah mentioned in the Quran.
I have already pointed out that the other scriptures contain contradictions and hence only the Quran can be accepted as the True word of God. So if you believe in the Quran, it clearly mentions that Islam is the only way of life acceptable in the sight of Allah. Hence in order to be a muslim you have to reject other Gods and other religions and accept Allah (the real God) and Islam as the only true religion. The Pagans of makkah told the Prophet (saw) that we are ready to worship Allah together with the other idols we have. At this Prophet (saw) replied "There is no Ilah (Diety) worthy of worship except Allah (The true God)"
Funny. How @someone can tear apart other religions by quoting the texts from other religious books. If a non-muslim does the same, oh my god.... the blood will boil and jihad will begin.
@someone:
My point is that if you look at what i've discussed with a free mind, you will see that these points are not necessarily contraditory.
Also consider the story of Hazrat Khidr and Moses (AS) [chapter 18, verses 65–82 of the Quran]
Moses asks to accompany Khizr so he may learn from him. Hazrat Khidr warns him that he will lose patience with him, Moses promises not. He also promises that he will not ask any question.
then in the middle of the narrative you will read that Khidr murders a young man. Moses again cries out in astonishment and dismay, and Hazrat Khidr reminds him of his promise. At the end it is revealed
"And as for the boy, his parents were believers and we feared lest he should make disobedience and ingratitude to come upon them" and this is followed by the promise of another child for the bereaved parents.
Please note that as yet the young man had NOT done what was feared he would do in the future. So you could argue he was also an innocent killed.
But thats not my point. All i'm trying to say is that there are many ways of looking at God's will and understanding God.
Muslims do not own the Qur'an it was sent for the guidance of whole humanity
@unbeliever
Interestingly The Quran tells every human (its readers) to be unbelievers in absurdities and be believers of the truth. Quran says "There is no ilah (God or Diety) except Allah (The one true God)"
I advice every one (especially the non muslims) to read all the different religious scriptures with an unbiased mind and then decide for yourselves which one makes sense.
@Leila Rage
The Quran mentions 99 NAMES of ONE God. The Vedas mention in one place that God is One diety and then mentions Brahmah, Vishnu and Shiva are separate entities with each of the three Gods a clear and separate diety.
In the Talmud it is specifically mentioned that God told the messengers to Kill all people including New born Children. In the Quran there is not even a single verse which says that God commanded punishment to an INNOCENT or to a New Born Baby. The Quran specifically mentions in the verses that only the oppressors were/are punished.
About the Bible even if you were to say the sword of Jesus was not literal, there are numerous other references where Jesus says 'whoever does not have a sword should sell his coat and buy a Sword'. In other places Jesus says he comes to confirm the previous laws but then he overrides the previous laws. Many other contradictions.
The point is if you study all the scriptures with a free mind. You will notice only the Quran is free of contradictions which proves only the Quran is God's word.
@someone
"...only true religion from the One & Only true God."
That's the problem,The 'only true' this and the 'One & Only true' that. How do you know? Did you conduct a lab test? Surely not. In fact, what you think you know is actually what you believe in.That's fine. But to qualify it as 'one and only true' is rather flippant.
@Ashar: and who are YOU to decide that christianity is a 'false' and 'concocted' belief? Of course, you believe in your religion, but that does not give you the right to bad-mouth and insult other religions.
@someone: have you ever heard of the use of symbolism in scripture? the vedas affirms the oneness of God, and then talks of brahma, vishnu and shiva---have you considered that like the 99 names of God in Islam, these too are names for the different aspects of God? Brahma refers to God as the Creator, Vishnu is the 'maintainer' and so this refers to God as being the maintainer and provider of mankind, and lastly shiva is the wrathful or the destroyer, so the name shiva represents the Jalal and Jabar of God.
As to your reference to the talmud, even in Islam we are told God is merciful, and yet there are many instances in which the wrath of God is shown (the drowning of the pharaohs army, the plagues of egypt, the destruction of the people of the prophet Lot, the people who drowned in the flood during the time of Noah- who knows if a couple of these people were innocent too). these are not necessarily contradictions but merely God in His many forms, just like God is the giver of life and he is also the taker of life.
Also, you say that Jesus preaches peace and then say i come not with peace but with the sword= please look at the meaning behind the saying. Do you think he literally meant a sword? Of course not, here the reference is to the sword of Truth, the sword of Faith in the Divine.
@Mawali
Just to correct you, the Quran does not acknowledge the old or new Testament. It acknowledges the Taurat and Injil as previous books which were changed by men (also mentioned in the Quran). The Quran remains unchanged to date and Allah mentions in the Quran that the message of the Quran will be protected by Allah.
Needless to say but apt nonetheless.......Ridiculous. Mr. ill informed aka Qari Sahib (synonomous) ought to know the quran with certain exceptions is based on the Hebrew Bible (old Testament). Quran acknowledges these books as predecessors.
@unbeliever
I gave you a reply on the contradictions in detail with references. not sure if it went through.
Just generally (you can search for yourself)
The vedas says the sky is balanced on a bull. One the one hand the vedas say God is one on the other hand it mentions Brahmah, Vishnu and shiva, three separate Gods,
The talmud on the one hand says God is merciful, on the other hand God commands the messengers to kill whole towns/cities even women and new born children who were innocent.
In the bible on the one hand Jesus preaches Love and turn the other cheek on the other hand he says I come not with peace but with the sword. In one place Joseph's father is Jacob, in another place Joseph's father is Heli.
@unbeliever: That does not make any difference for an unbeliever. you are advised to read dictionary.
@someone: point me two contradictions in bible, two in vedas and two in talmund.
Can somebody please put the idiot Maulvi in jail for STOPPING the non-muslims to know Quran? its downright blasphemous to stop them from reading our holy book. This idiot maulvi should be tried in anti terrorism court to make sure he does nt terrorise any other minorities.
@unbeliever I have read the old testament (Jewish bible) new testament (christian bible) and the hindu religious stories as well with an unbiased mind. They have a huge amount of contradictions, fatual errors and logic less material. I have also read the Quran with an unbiased mind and the Quran's message is consistent without any contradiction and all the verses of the Quran appeal to sense and logic. Hence after studying all religions I have chosen Islam as my religion and concluded that Islam is the only true religion from the One & Only true God. I would urge you (and all other non muslims) to read the scriptures of all the religions and then decide which one makes most sense.
strong textDEPENDS ON WHAT THE PASTOR WAS SAYING IN HIS SERMON,IF IT WAS ANYTHING WHAT I MYSELF HAVE HEARD IN AMERICA OR CANADA THEN IT WOULD SURELY MAKE MY BLOOD BOIL TOO!!! BUT ,the matter here should be IF the Pastor was misquoting or misleading from Quranic verses,,if he was simply quoting relevantly ,its ok ,,but if was misleading then he should be told not not to do so,,not run after him with a dagger
@Stewie Griffin: the matter here should be the Pastor was misquoting or misleading from Quranic verses,,if he was simply quoting relevantly ,its ok ,,but if was misleading then he should be told not not to do so,,not run after him with a dagger
@ Reeba, Pastor was using loudspeaker. All Mullahs, Imams, Zakirs, Pastors, Pundits have same mentality and attitude. They think themselves shepherds and people the sheep. Qari did a great job, he protected his sheep.
@Anon:
He doesn't have to, but why shouldn't he for whatever purpose?
@Cynical: Any body can quote from the Quran provided the message is taken in its entirety instead of incomplete verses are quoted to deduce desired meanings in favour of false beliefs.
Why was the muslim cleric attending a christian mass in the first place? He did not consider it as blasphemy?
The mentality of forcing and killing others who disagree with us is hurting islam. When Allah Swt sent Moses to Pharoh, Allah Swt instructed Moses to be soft and linient when he is talking to Pharoh, may be he would understand and follow the Deen. What does that mean to us mulsims today? Pharoa did not take the message, so what??. Was that end of Islam?. We should preach islam in the way Prophet saw did and be good with other who are not muslim the way Prophet saw did.
Botomless hole situation. No one should be surprised if these Government sponsored "Ulemas" make it criminal for any non-"Pakistani Government Certified Muslim" to breathe the air which God created for the "Pakistani-Muslims" only !!!
@All Non Muslims Islam never ends at this cleric...do some research urself about Islam on all such issues before lamenting Islam for all the wrong deeds of "so called Muslims" Thank you!
unlikely how did the Qari know what was going on in the mass. Churches are generally not open to the non Christian public in Pakistan (for security reasons). This hasnt appeared in any other daily. I am sceptical...
I have seen Christian Arabs teaching Quran to non Arabs
It is 'jahils' like these who give Islam a bad name. How can one file an FIR for blasphemy unless the pastor was ridiculing the Quran. Islam is such a beautiful, flexible and peaceful religion. Its image is ruined constantly due to these so called saviours of Islam. Shame on these maulvis!
Welcome to the Land of the Pure :)
@Anon
If I can't quote from the quran, how I am going to convince the world that Islam is a religion of peace and nobody has ever been forced to convert.
He's really not doing his own religion any favors. Gotta love that blasphemy law since technically the cleric himself is guilty by dragging Islam's name into the mud one more time. Go get him. That blasphemy law sure is fun. Coming from the right hypothetical angle and playing with context you could probably accuse just about anyone of it from just a few minutes of talking about Islam. Even if their intents are positive.
Why all these incidents take place mostly in Punjab? Even the ruling political party refuses to accept both the President and PM as rulers of the country. This is the only province which is threatening the federation unity. On the other hand we do not see such problems on the other side of the border (Punjab).
Religion of peace in action.
Tit for Tat..!! If this argument makes any sense to any one at all then Zakir Naik Shouldnt be allowed to refer Vedas and Bible in his Sermons.. Quran is a Book for Guidance, not confined to Muslim only, but to the whole humanity. If this Qari is stopping anyone from getting benefit from it, then he is the one is actually committing blasphemy. Disgusting.. This illiterate Qari should be prosecuted for spreading ignorance.
Traditionally ET is in hunt for such news, I won't judge without listening to other side of story. If cleric threatens someone he should be punished. Islamic state has a foremost priority to ensure safety of non-muslims. Those blaming it on Islam, can you quote where it endorses the clerics behavior?
@A2Z: Your comments clear indicates that you yourself are not educated in the subject and knowing nothing at all about the concocted beliefs of christianity, talking about education for moulvis. They know very well what is illustrated in the Holy Quran and what Bible talked about divinity of one God. It is better for you to go through the material available on this subject then come out to talk like that about it. I am sure your views would be changed if you have enough reason to analyse.
I wish somebody has taught the Holy Quran to "qari sahab" as well..
I would just say this, what Dr. Zakir do with Christians, Hindus & Other religions in USA , and in Foriegn Countries .
We must not scared from anyones tactics , Quran is an error free book. So, let these debates happen would be more useful and good. However , Jahalat is in the roots of 60% Pakistan , 20% Over Smart (who believes know one is genius then themselves, & 20% Struggelers )@Ali Ask I.K to dare and speak out against these illiterate and fanatic clerics (or ask him if he ever did) How we can expect that he wil do something when he is so scared of them.This is the problem in our society, we left our religion to the least educated. Liberal and secular promotes the ideology that Maulvis are useless and creating hatred among masses. But they don't mention 'uneducated' with it. If this cleric would have been properly educated then he would have counter the pastors arguments with logic and reasoning instead of fighting with him. So the govt should revive Maulvi's role on professional basis. This would also help to tackle extremism.
The problem in Pakistan is that the so called clerics themselves do not have any knowledge of Islam. Pakstan needs to build state of the art high quality Madrassas where proper Islamic Education is provided together with Science and Mathematical education. The Islamic education should be formalized and no one should be a cleric without proper certificates from accredited Islamic universities.
@Patriotic: I agree with you mate!
Why do we think God, out of his 7billion current population on earth has decided to give us Pakistanis the right to decide who is to be messed about for being 'blasphemous'? All this distorted concept of blasphemy and protecting 'religious sanctity' is just a corrupt version of our own failures as Muslims, we've failed to understand the core principles of Islam.
I see people like Zakir Naik and other Islamic clerics who quote from the Bible, but they don't like it when a non-Muslims quotes from the Qur'an.
Double standards.
So then, who can quote from the Quran? Can anyone explain the new Pakistan rule here !
Molvis are damaging Islam in the very same way Christianity was damaged by Priests. There is no shortage of lunatics anywhere in the world.. On one hand we have a Terry Jones in the US; and on the other hand we have these molvis over here...
Seriously, why can't these people live and let others live in peace.
ET you are biased and normally gove news against Mullahs; so i am not going to take this article serious
that cleric needs to be put in solitary confinement till he comes to his senses!
"Religious Corruption" at its worst.
He described the police as “followers of the American agenda of protecting the Christians”.
?? What nonsense.. Hes another human being.. it has nothing to do with being christian.
case should be thoroughly investigated and whoever is guilty should be punished according to the law
This is the future of Pakistan
“Yes, I abused them. I would have killed the pastor right there and then but I could not arrange for a weapon,”
Clerics in Pakistan are such peaceful god fearing people
we can never expect justice from this PPP goverment. PTI will inshAllah protect minorities and throw the real hypocrites in jail.
it's official. I'm no longer a Muslim. I prefer staying human instead of becoming so divinely holy as these people! Better off being anything else but a Muslim.
Why does the pastor need to quote from the quran??? unless hes trying to misguide people into assuming the Christianity is the same as Islamic beliefs and get people to convert Christianity then why does he need to do so? Pastor should have the common sense to not purposely try to stir up sensitivities when he knows how things get out of control here.
Can The people concerned not assign a bit of a literate maulvi!?! I dont think he comminted a crime but even if the maulvi thinks he has,the pastor has appologised,that should be enough!blasphemy cases are to be registered when the person repeatedly says something that is offensive to another religion.the pastor said it once,realized his 'mistake' apologised.that is enough; but prolly the maulvi has nothing to do,he needs sonething to pass time afterall
hate is in our blood :(
Things that once used to happen in the times of Jahiliya are happening today in Pakistan.
What pathetic people.