The Miracle In Pakistan

PAKISTAN First Pakistani Jesuit ordained

April 1, 2009 |

LAHORE, Pakistan (UCAN) -- The Society of Jesus has ordained its first priest from Pakistan since re-establishing its presence here 48 years ago.

Jesuit Father Imran John, 33, was ordained on March 28 at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Lahore. Archbishop Lawrence John Saldanha of Lahore, who presided at the ceremony, affirmed the new priest was the "first Pakistani Jesuit" to be ordained. "We plan to have 20 local priests this year," he added in his homily.

Father Maria Anthony, who heads the Jesuits' Sri Lanka province, was one of about 40 concelebrants. The congregation of around 500 included nuns and students.

Father Renato Zeechin, superior of the local Jesuit community, called the new priest a gift of the local Church to the Society of Jesus. "He can be a good example in the community by supporting our charism, mainly in education, catechism and interfaith dialogue," said the priest, who heads two high schools in the city serving a total of 1,000 students.

The Jesuits first arrived in Lahore in the 16th century during the reign of Akbar (1556-1605), widely considered the greatest of the Mughal emperors that ruled the subcontinent from 1526 until 1761. He invited Jesuit priests from the Portuguese colony of Goa.

By 1597, a large church building stood in Lahore, and in 1604, Akbar gave the Jesuits a written declaration allowing any of his subjects to embrace Christianity. However, later Mughal rulers were less friendly and the church was destroyed in 1650. The Jesuit mission disappeared from what is now Pakistan until 1961, when the German Jesuits came to Lahore and established Loyola Hall, a formation and retreat house with a big library.

Although the Society of Jesus is the largest congregation of brothers and priests in the world, Pakistan has only three Jesuit priests including Father John, with three candidates in formation.

"Preparing young people is a challenge. Most of them leave after getting a higher education and training abroad," explained Father Zeechin, who pointed out that six candidates left after spending more than nine years with the Society of Jesus.

Father John was among the first group of Jesuit candidates in the training program, which started in 1995. "We were 15. Strong prayerful life and willpower helped me during the long formation program," he said. The other 14 eventually left the program.

The newly ordained priest hopes to make a positive contribution to the Church's struggle for interfaith harmony. "Building relations socially, not at the level of religion, is important for a healthy society, especially amid growing extremism," he said.

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Photo is of Sacred Heart of Jesus Cathedral in Lahore

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