Faith amid destructive forces
Finbar Maxwell
THE COLUMBAN mission to Pakistan is a difficult venture as political and natural forces seem to collude against the best interests of the Pakistani people.
The country remains under the military leadership rule of President-General Pervaiz Musharraf, and, as ever, there exists an undercurrent of political uncertainty. Recently, conflict has escalated after Pakistan's chief justice was fired by Musharraf for corruption. (He has been re-instated - Ed)
Adding to the tension have been suicide bomb attacks in every province. With this escalation in violence, it is feared that the November elections might be postponed.
In October 2005, a shocking earthquake devastated many towns and villages in the mountains of northern Pakistan and Kashmir. Many Columban supporters responded so generously to this disaster. Your donations were channeled into desperately needed aid. Two years later, however, much still needs to be done.
Pakistan is prone to these natural disasters, since its three great mountain ranges (the Himalayas, Hindu Kush and Karakorams) are ever shifting and moving. Global warming contributes to the woes, as many of northern Pakistan's glaciers are quickly melting.
In the cities, economic growth is visible in the increasing number of cars on the roads and the office towers and shopping plazas that are springing up.
For the overwhelming majority of people without affluence, however, life is getting harder. There is a
glaring chasm between the wealth and development in some aspects of Pakistani life and the breakdown and sheer neglect of infrastructure and basic civic amenities (including health and education) where most of Pakistan's 160 million people live.
Yet, there is much to be hopeful for, too. Against this backdrop, many people struggle to live their lives with integrity, hospitality, warmth and generosity of spirit. The faith of the people, so central a part of life whether among Christians, Muslims or Hindus, is strong.
In this setting, Columban missionaries work in the rural and urban settings of Badin, Nagar Parkar, Hyderabad and Karachi in the Sindh province and in Lahore in the Punjab province. We respond to God's call to bear the Good News, and, with others, we endeavor to build bridges of tolerance, understanding, compassion and peace.
