Amritsar: Christians from various denominations held candlelight prayer services at their respective churches to pray for peace and harmony following a week of communal attacks on the community in Punjab.
Christians from the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of North India (CNI), the Salvation Army and Methodist Church, who have united under the banner of Masihi Maha Sabha (MMS), offered prayers for peace.
The prayers came three days after a church was vadanlised in Patti, Tarn Taran, and idols of Jesus Christ and Mother Mary desecrated on August 31.
Speaking on the occasion, MMS president P K Samantaroy, who is also bishop of the Diocese of Amritsar (DoA), CNI, said, “Christian community in Punjab has been deeply involved in inter-faith and peace-building efforts. Till recently, we have enjoyed the patronage of people of all faiths. However, it is really painful for us to suddenly find ourselves being targeted for persecution on the completely baseless charges of converting the masses by force and allurement.”
Samantaroy urged the government to ensure speedy investigation and take strong action against the culprits, besides taking adequate measures to maintain peace and harmony between all communities.
Terming the attack on a church in Thakkarpura village near Patti in Tarn Taran district as just the tip of the iceberg, Daniel B Das, director of Socio-Economic Development Programme (SEDP) and property manager of DoA, CNI, appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann and other authorities concerned to hold an intensive probe into the attacks on the Christian community in Punjab and elsewhere in India, and ensure that the sources behind this deep-rooted conspiracy were duly exposed.
There have been a spate of attacks on Christians in Punjab, amid calls by Sikh leadership for action against the community, alleging that they had been converting Sikhs to Chritians by force. These allegations have been rubbished. On August 29, there were at least two incidents of violence and intimidation reported in Punjab. In Amritsar district, Nihangs, blue-clad members of a Sikh order of warriors, disrupted a Christian prayer meeting. The Akal Takht later demanded that the first information report on the incident be withdrawn and the arrested Nihangs be released. In Ludhiana, a pastor was forced to bow to a Hindu idol on the same day.
Christians from the Roman Catholic Church, the Church of North India (CNI), the Salvation Army and Methodist Church, who have united under the banner of Masihi Maha Sabha (MMS), offered prayers for peace.
The prayers came three days after a church was vadanlised in Patti, Tarn Taran, and idols of Jesus Christ and Mother Mary desecrated on August 31.
Speaking on the occasion, MMS president P K Samantaroy, who is also bishop of the Diocese of Amritsar (DoA), CNI, said, “Christian community in Punjab has been deeply involved in inter-faith and peace-building efforts. Till recently, we have enjoyed the patronage of people of all faiths. However, it is really painful for us to suddenly find ourselves being targeted for persecution on the completely baseless charges of converting the masses by force and allurement.”
Samantaroy urged the government to ensure speedy investigation and take strong action against the culprits, besides taking adequate measures to maintain peace and harmony between all communities.
Terming the attack on a church in Thakkarpura village near Patti in Tarn Taran district as just the tip of the iceberg, Daniel B Das, director of Socio-Economic Development Programme (SEDP) and property manager of DoA, CNI, appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann and other authorities concerned to hold an intensive probe into the attacks on the Christian community in Punjab and elsewhere in India, and ensure that the sources behind this deep-rooted conspiracy were duly exposed.
There have been a spate of attacks on Christians in Punjab, amid calls by Sikh leadership for action against the community, alleging that they had been converting Sikhs to Chritians by force. These allegations have been rubbished. On August 29, there were at least two incidents of violence and intimidation reported in Punjab. In Amritsar district, Nihangs, blue-clad members of a Sikh order of warriors, disrupted a Christian prayer meeting. The Akal Takht later demanded that the first information report on the incident be withdrawn and the arrested Nihangs be released. In Ludhiana, a pastor was forced to bow to a Hindu idol on the same day.