“The spirit of interfaith harmony and religious tolerance permeates Pakistan as they are creating a tolerant society,” said Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States. “Christians are an essential and integral part of Pakistan's polity and state and their influence and impact over years has increased exponentially,” he said. Ambassador Masood Khan made these remarks while addressing a special event held at the Embassy of Pakistan to join Christian community across the world during their Christmas celebrations this month. The event was attended by religious leaders of all faiths including Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and Hindus. The event showcased Pakistan’s efforts to promote interfaith harmony and respect for other religions. Recounting important contributions being made by Christian community in Pakistan, Masood Khan highlighted significant presence of the community members in the mainstream of national life including judiciary, civil service, armed forces, parliament, education and other professional fields. “We owe a lot to the Christian community,” said the Ambassador. Referring to the horrendous incident of Jaranwala this year, the Ambassador said that the entire nation of Pakistan was outraged and shocked over the incident. He said the political, religious leadership of Pakistan and the civil society stood with the affected community and expressed complete solidarity to the affected Christian community by offering them help not only in construction of their damaged properties but also offering their own worship places to them. The incident, he said, underscored the need to come up with a national plan to stop and stem abuse of certain laws. “And we'll continue to do that,” he said. “We have to promote interfaith harmony which is essential for our progressive state,” he added. “We are a family today and we would continue to maintain this relationship, this connectivity,” Masood Khan said. The Ambassador also highlighted that the occasion of Christmas also coincided with the birth of Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah, adding to the significance of the day for Pakistani nation. Masood Khan also recalled that Christian families were invited to the presidency during his tenure as President Azad Jammu Kashmir. Pastor Michael Trivett, Dr. Joe Knight from Church of the Nazarene Michigan, Mr. Rizwan Jaka, Chair of Board, ADAMS & Compassionate Healthcare Network Clinic (ACHN), Ms. Aisha Khan, Democrat Party Leader Maryland, Ms. Srilekha Reddy, Republican Party leader Virginia, Dr. Surinder P. Singh, a doyen in US Sikh community, and former Senator Akbar Khawaja also spoke on the occasion and highlighted the significance of the event. They also appreciated Embassy’s open door policy and its efforts to unite people of all religion under one roof. Ambassador Masood Khan especially appreciated the efforts of Mr. Ilyas Masih for being a “connector” of people of faiths. The Ambassador also acknowledged his efforts to facilitate visit of Americans and people of various faiths to Pakistan enabling them to see and experience real Pakistan and remove their misperceptions.
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