In memoriam: The legacy of a faithful servant

Reverend Sarosh had the gift of composing music and hymns

LAHORE: The short rotund elderly bespectacled man attired in a neat warm coat would have easily gone unnoticed in a packed Alhamra Hall on The Mall where a classical music event was underway a couple of months ago. Yet as the maestros took the stage one by one, they called out his name and sought his permission to perform. Even in a crowd of maestros, Reverend Hizkiel Sarosh stood a giant. 

Sarosh died in a car accident on his way to Lahore from a prayer convention past midnight on November 8. When his body was brought to the Full Gospel Assemblies (FGA) Church in Sultan Park, Walton Cantt, the next morning, it was received by thousands. The large church hall and the floor above it could not accommodate the sea of humanity that had gathered to pay their respects to their beloved pastor. As his sons and church elders carried in the charpoy with the body of the deceased, the soft sobs of men and women sitting in neat rows morphed into anguished wails.

For the congregation of the FGA, Sultan Park, Hizkiel Sarosh was more than a spiritual mentor – he was a counsellor, a sympathetic ear, a gifted conversationalist, a veritable treasure trove of knowledge, a friend who would leave the meanest wretch in fits of laughter and the man who gave the Pakistani Christian community its hymns. After each Sunday service, he would stand in the gateway to greet by name everyone who passed through it. Sarosh was born on April 3, 1947, in Umarpura, Lahore. He attended Don Bosco High School and obtained an undergraduate degree in music from Punjab University. He enrolled at the Faith Theological Seminary in Gujranwala where he was mentored by some of the most celebrated Christian pastors of that era and later went to the Rochester Bible College. He was gifted in the art of composing music and hymns.

Sarosh wrote and composed over 600 Christian hymns which are sung in Pakistani Christian churches the world over. He recorded the first ever cassette album of Christian hymns in Pakistan titled Har Dil Aziz Naghmat. He authored three poetry books: Hawa ka Shehr, Dil Pasand Naghmat and Yaadon ka Nagar. Some of his music albums include Aasmani Naghmat, Dil Pasand Naghme Vol 1, Dil Pasand Naghme Vol 2 and City of the Cross.

Sarosh was married to Maya Gill and sired seven children. He was laid ton rest on November 11. A memorial service for him was held on Saturday at the Mary Magdalene Church ground.

Members of his congregation and scores of pastors lined up to pay tribute to Sarosh. Several gospel singers presented their tribute in song and the orchestral church choir, led by Muazzam Murad, led the gathering in hymnal worship. Together they celebrated a life well lived and a race well run. Pastor Hizkiel Sarosh lived by what he wrote. And what he wrote moved hearts.

Aye meri jaan tu issi zor mein chal

Apne Khudawand ki rahon mein chal.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 22^nd, 2015.