Religious harmony: Aiming for Jinnah’s Pakistan

We need role models to inspire Christian youth: Speaker.

ISLAMABAD:

This is not the Pakistan that Jinnah envisioned. He envisioned Pakistan to be a nation where there would be no discrimination based on religion and other variations. However today there are differences abound, with minorities being heavily discriminated against.

This was said by Brigadier (retd) Samson Simon Sharif at a conference organised by the Young Christian Leaders Network on the current political situation in Pakistan. The conference was held at St Thomas Church in G-7 and around 50 people attended.

“We should not stop our pursuit of Jinnah’s Pakistan and work hard to bring it to fruition,” he said criticizing some Christian political parties, whom he referred to as “zombies” who gained political office to further their own needs. He cited the example of a church in Lahore that was bulldozed without prior notice, with the approval of aforementioned officials.

Sharif went further when he expressed the need for dutiful Christian leaders and posited that in areas where Christians are in majority, they should stand for MNA and MPA positions.

Later, Sunil Sheroon screened a video on the church losing its present generation to the information age where children emulate celebrities like Eminem, Lady Gaga etcetera. The video aimed to promote the “4-14 window movement”, where children below the age of 15 are taught to be Christian leaders and inspire change for the community and country.

“I criticise the generation before me for not having enough role models for my generation to look up to. It becomes our responsibility to inspire the youth,” Sheroon said.

The movement aims to form a space for such young leaders by making changes at the policy and individual level. Five regional conferences will be conducted with the concluding conference being a national one.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 22^nd, 2012.