Sydney, Australia: Pakistani Christian Fugitive From Muslim Persecution Finds Safe Haven

Just under two years ago, at this website, we covered the story of a mass-murderous Muslim attack on the Christians of All Saints’ Anglican Church (Church of Pakistan), Peshawar that took place on 22 September 2013.  87 Christians were murdered; more than 170 were wounded, many very seriously.  The story, and further reports on the suffering endured afterward by the victims, was also covered by the British Pakistani Christian Association, and by Barnabas Fund.

Now, here, is a little more: the story of their parish priest, who because of his non-dhimmi conduct has been forced to flee Pakistan and has been welcomed into the Church in Sydney.  As reported by Nick Gilbert in the diocesan newspaper of the Anglican Church in Sydney.

http://sydneyanglicans.net/news/refugee-minister-leads-new-urdu-congregation

“Refugee Minister Leads New Urdu Congregation”

“A Pakistani minister in Australia as a refugee has begun an Urdu-speaking congregation based at St Mark’s Revesby.

‘The Rev Ijaz Gill, who served as the vicar of All Saints’ Anglican Church in Peshawar, was forced to leave the country after death threats from the Taliban. 

“He was a survivor of the bomb blasts (that is: the bombings conducted by Muslim jihadis – CM) that hit the church in late 2013, and was further hounded after continuing to preach publicly.

That is: he refused to behave like a Dhimmi.  Dhimmis are forbidden to evangelise Muslims; Dhimmis are supposed to cringe and cower in silence, and are forbidden to display the symbols of their faith – such as Bibles, or the Cross – where Muslims can see them. – CM

“His outreach through a sticker ministry – similar to bumper-bar stickers in Australia – was specifically referenced in a death threat letter he received.

Muslims can’t even abide the sight of a Christian message or symbol on a car bumper-bar.  How petty and mean-minded is that? – CM

“My bishop [the Right Rev Humphrey Peters, Bishop of Peshawar] was telling me I was not safe, he was supporting me and my family with a house”, Mr Gill says.

“I spent a month living in Dubai, and applied to many places – Germany, England, Australia.  I came to Sydney, but my experience was very difficult here…no good friends I know here. It was hard.”

“Mr Gill has been in the country for eight months, spending time in several suburbs and churches in Sydney.

“He eventually arrived at Revesby with the support of former CMS (Church Missionary Society) missionary to Pakistan, the Rev John Bales, Bishop Peter Tasker, and the rector of Revesby, the Rev John Bartik.

“Since arriving at Revesby, Mr Bartik encouraged Mr Gill to use his experience and gifts to begin an Anglican congregation for Urdu speakers.

“The congregation began in April and attracts 30 to 50 people on any given week, most of whom had no previous connection with the Revesby church.

‘The service follows an Urdu-language Anglican liturgy, with Mr Bartik presiding  over some elements of the service while Mr Gill awaits a licence from the Diocese.

“I took Ijaz to meet Bruce Hall, and on the way home Ijaz asked me why there wasn’t an Urdu Anglican service,” Mr Bartik says. “There are several other Urdu services in other traditions, but no specifically Anglican ones. So I just said, “Alright, Ijaz, start one! You can do it.”

“It was a light-bulb moment.  We got home and he just went to town, calling people, and they all turned up at once.”

“Mr Bartik says that apart from the obvious value of having a space for Urdu speakers in his church to meet and worship together, it has also been a boon for Mr Gill, who can now continue his ministry in a new country.

‘It’s had a big effect on him personally, being useful and making the most of his gifts, even though he’s in a different country,” Mr Bartik says.  “When I first met him, my first impression was that he was in this deep sadness that wasn’t going to go away.  He knew no-one apart from his wife; his children were in Pakistan (presumably they are grown-up and no longer dependent and could not flee with him – CM); he had left home under threat of violence – there was that trauma there.  But in that first service, I hadn’t seen him more happy.

“It has also allowed for connections with other Urdu-speaking Anglicans from similar backgrounds. So many of the people in this congregation left Pakistan in similar circumstances and have families back home or in other locations, going through refugee processing of some sort.”

One hopes that the Anglican and other churches in Australia, who are receiving an influx of people like Rev Gill, people fleeing from Muslim persecution, will start putting a bit more pressure on our government, both to (1) prioritise and fast-track the offering of refugee – and immigration – places to Christians from majority-Muslim lands, all of whom are suffering persecution of varying levels of intensity ranging from daily bullying, abuse and discrimination punctuated by murderous attacks (Egypt, Pakistan) right on up to outright ethno-religious ‘cleansing’ and near-genocide (the Christians of Iraq and Syria), and also (2) to no longer permit immigration into Australia of Muslims from those same persecuting countries ..for why should card-carrying proudly-identifying members of the cult that persecuted Mr Gill in Pakistan and mass-murdered his parishioners and drove him out into exile, be permitted to follow him here to Australia, there to resume persecuting him – and others – as soon as they are numerous and strong enough to do so??  One also hopes that the Anglican Church in Sydney, as they listen to the stories of people like Rev Gill – and as they also begin to hear the stories of Coptic and Assyrian emigre and refugee Christians – will read Rev Dr Mark Durie’s book “The Third Choice”, and obtain an accurate understanding of just how deadly-dangerous, how abusive and destructive, orthodox Islam actually is. – CM

“Mr Gill says the experience has humbled him, moving from a relatively important position in the church in Pakistan, to beginning again in a new country, with a new language, and new partners in gospel work.

“In Pakistan, my lifestyle is different”, he says. “I have a driver, I have a person who cleaned my house, I have a verger who would iron my cassock, I have three assistants, I am area dean, assistant to the bishop. It was very different.”

“Life is different.  I talk to my bishop in Pakistan, he says I am king in Peshawar – but I am not king in Sydney.  God blesses me, God gives fruit. God humbles and he provides everything we have. I give thanks to him for what we  have here.”

Amen.  May God bless and multiply Rev Gill’s ministry in Sydney.  And may the Australian churches and the Australian Government soon get a clue, and open wide the gates of hope for many, many Pakistani Christians  like Rev Gill – and for Copts, and for Assyrian Christians also.   Speaking as an Aussie, I would rather take in 500 000 Christians from Pakistan, Egypt, Syria, Iraq, than even one Muslim.  If instead of 500-600 000 sullen, whining, complaining drama-queen Muslims – from among whose ranks criminals of all kinds along with mass-murder-minded jihadis and jihad plots are ceaselessly pullulating – we had 500 000 or 600 000 Pakistani, or Copt, or Assyrian Christians, ASIO and the AFP and our metropolitan police would have a much, much smaller security headache.  – CM