“He has shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God.”
Pakistan is ending its mandatory study of Islam for non-Muslim children, and Christian students can learn the history of Christian martyrdom in Pakistan.
According to the International Christian Concern (ICC), an international Christian persecution watchdog, the Federal Ministry of Education and Professional Training announced early last week that it would no longer require Christian students to study Islam by introducing a new curriculum starting from the 2024-2025 school year. Students in grades 1 through 12 will now be able to study their family’s religion.
The decision is a small victory for religious freedom in Pakistan, where Christians routinely face blasphemy laws, mob violence, forced marriages and conversions.
The curriculum for Christian students includes a comprehensive study of the Bible, the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, core Christian values, church history, and inspirational Christians in history.
Students will also study the influence of Christianity in Pakistan, particularly the ministry of the Apostle Thomas and his ministry to South Asia.
The curriculum also included lessons on Christian values, such as martyrdom. Christian students will learn about heroes of their faith, such as Pakistan’s Minister of Minority Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti, who was murdered in 2011 for speaking out against persecuted Christians in Pakistan.
“This ruling is a huge victory for Pakistan’s religious minority teachers who have been fighting for equitable education for the past 20 years,” said Anjum James Paul, president of the Pakistan Religious Minority Teachers Association. “After appealing to various government offices, institutions, and higher courts, the Pakistani government finally recognized the rights of religious minority students and freed them from having to force them to learn Islam,” he explained.
The new curriculum brings some relief to Pakistan’s religious minorities, but many challenges remain. Because Pakistan is a Muslim-majority country, it will take time for teachers to receive appropriate training in the new curriculum and for Christian studies textbooks to be approved. Accordingly, the ICC requested prayers for Muslim students, teachers, and administrators to come to know Christ. (Source: Gospel Prayer Newspaper)
For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. (2 Corinthians 4:6)
God, thank you for opening the way to implement biblical education in Pakistan, where persecution of minority Christian students has been practised daily due to mandatory Islamic education. Please shine the light of knowledge of God’s glory into the hearts of Muslim students, teachers, and administrators who have never been exposed to the Gospel through the newly introduced Christian curriculum. Let the churches of all nations pray together so that the new changes that have occurred in Pakistan will shine light in all areas of darkness, and may the souls of this land be saved through the gospel.
Prayer 24·365
prayer@prayer24365.org
