Somber affair: Inflation dampens Christmas spirit

On this Christmas Day, while many across the world were fortunate enough to take advantage of Christmas sales to enjoy the holiday period and bring smiles across the faces of their loved ones, inflation has spoiled the festive mood for Pakistan’s Christian community.

As a result, a significant number of Christians will celebrate their religious festival without cheer with either undecorated Christmas trees, no gifts for the children, or reusing old clothes. The only silver lining for them is that with Covid-19 related restrictions relaxed, they will get to celebrate in their local churches, something they were deprived of the previous Christmas.

Al-Shaba Younis, a Christian woman residing in Punjab’s capital Lahore, told The Express Tribune that inflation had eroded Christmas cheer. “We could not buy new clothes for our kids so had to rely on buying clothes from the local flea market,” she said. A visibly sad Younis lamented that a simple tree for home decor was retailing for Rs 2,000 and she had to take a loan from her relatives to be able to afford one.

Shiza Haroon, who buys special Christmas cakes for her family every year, could not afford to do so this time around. “A pound of cake was Rs 1,000 last year but it was Rs 2,500 this time so I had to buy a normal one,” she said. However, Haroon was thankful that she could afford to buy her children new clothes and was looking forward to giving them the little money she had left to make their day.

Read Over 90pc Pakistanis believe inflation highest during PTI govt: survey

For some like Rashid Masih, who is a driver at a private company and a father of five, it is their first time celebrating the religious festival. “This is the first time in my life I have been able to give my daughters a Christmas treat and nothing could make me any happier,” he said. Rashid stated that this could not have been possible on his salary of Rs 22,000 a month, a non-governmental organization (NGO) had helped buy him rations.

Despite the high commodity prices, some like Miss Wilson, along with her daughter Zarash Mehboob, were overjoyed that they could celebrate Christmas properly this year. “The real fun of this festival comes from sharing happiness with others,” Mehboob said. However, her mother was unhappy that others in her community could not afford to celebrate Christmas. “The government offers discounted bazaars for religious festivals in different countries so our government should set up a  Christmas bazaar too so that citizens can get cheap food items,” she suggested.

With superspreader-related restrictions now relaxed, Pastor Wilson, a Christian leader based in Lahore, while talking to The Express Tribune, said, “Thank God we have the opportunity to celebrate Christmas to the fullest this year.” The pastor informed that all major churches of Lahore would have an in-person service and an online service for the sick and elderly who could not make it.

The administrator, who spoke to The Express Tribune on the condition of anonymity, informed that every year about a thousand people would pay a dinner fee and attend the Christmas dinner but the number is less than 500 this time. “Sadly, there has also been a decline in the donations for the decoration of the church this year,” he added.

Pastor Shahid Meraj, Dean of Cathedral Church of the Resurrection Lahore, however, was hopeful that many would attend Christmas festivities and be part of the festival of love, peace, happiness, and brotherhood. “Together, we will pray for the country’s progress, prosperity, peace, and security,” Meraj told The Express Tribune.