Catholics in Pakistan -- follow-up

On November 26th I wrote about Asia Bibi, a Christian Pakistani woman who had been sentenced to death for blasphemy against Islam. Her case was under appeal, and there was some talk at the time, that the anti-blasphemy might be changed before the appeal was heard, to let her off the hook. (As she was sentenced to death so "off the hook" is putting it too lightly.)

However, the High Court at Lahore has now ordered the Pakistani government not to change the nation’s blasphemy law before the court hears the appeal, so it's still quite possible Ms Bibi may feel the sting of the executioner's sword.

Meanwhile, terrorist organizations associated with the Taliban have issued a fatwa against Shabhaz Bhatti, Pakistan's minister for religious minorities (sic), who is himself a Catholic. Mr. Bhatti is -- or was -- leading a commission that would have considered changes to the blasphemy law.

On Monday, ZENIT, a Catholic news service, ran an interview with another Pakistani Christian, Shaheryar Gill. Mr Gill is associate counsel to the American Center for Law and Justice. Here, Mr. Gill speaks of the effects of Pakistan's blasphemy law.

"20 years or more of the blasphemy law in Pakistan has instilled in people that punishment for insulting Islam is death. So, rather than going to the court, people have taken the law into their own hands.

"There was an attack on a village in Kasur by a Muslim mob where hundreds of Muslims attacked a Christian village of 135 families. The triggering event was a blasphemy charge. There was a dispute between a Christian and a Muslim.

"A Christian was driving his tractor and he saw a motorbike standing in the middle of the road. He asked the owner of the motorbike to please move so that he could pass. The owner said to the Christian with the tractor: 'How could a "Chuhra" [a derogatory term for a Christian] tell him what to do'? Over this they had a little fight. Some people intervened and stopped the fight and everybody went home.

"After a few hours a Muslim family gathered other people and attacked and beat the Christian family. The next day they announced in the mosque that a Christian desecrated the Quran. A mob gathered and attacked 135 families of that village just because of a petty fight between two people."

Let's be clear. We are talking about people who are being killed for no other reason than their belief in Christianity. They are dying for their Faith. The Church has a name for such people. It's MARTYRS.