St. Anthony's Church, Lahore
Encyclopedia
St. Anthony's Church, Lahore, 270 kilometers southeast of Islamabad
, was consecrated in 1899 and is one of the oldest churches in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lahore
in Pakistan
. It was formerly called the "Railway Church".
Father Andrew Francis
was pastor of St. Anthony's Parish until becoming Bishop of Multan in 2000.
Father Emmanuel Asi
, one of the country's leading theologians, took over as parish priest at St. Anthony's in 2000.
In order to improve relations between Christians and Muslims, Church officials of St. Anthony's Church organized a Christian-Muslim meeting on November 19, 2005, to form a Christian Muslim Rabita (cooperation) Society in Lahore.
The parish has other ministries, such as visiting and teaching prisoners. The Inspector General of prisons in Punjab
granted permission on May 29, 1990, to Church organizations to teach the Bible to Christian prisoners. There are 35,000 prisoners in 28 jails in Punjab province but there are no statistics available on how many are Christians.
On June 12, 2007, more than one thousand Catholics attended the blessing of the expanded wing of St. Anthony's Church. Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha
of Lahore conducted the blessing. The construction took two years and was made with contributions collected largely form locals, with only a little help from foreign donors. The enlargement raises the church's capacity from 900 to 1,500. Father George Daniel was the parish priest at the time.
Islamabad
Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan and the tenth largest city in the country. Located within the Islamabad Capital Territory , the population of the city has grown from 100,000 in 1951 to 1.7 million in 2011...
, was consecrated in 1899 and is one of the oldest churches in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lahore
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lahore
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lahore is an archdiocese in Punjab, Pakistan.-History:It was founded as a diocese on 1 September 1886, having previously been the Vicariate of Punjab. On 23 April 1994 the diocese was elevated to the rank of Archdiocese. Fr...
in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. It was formerly called the "Railway Church".
Father Andrew Francis
Andrew Francis
Andrew Francis is an actor and voice artist from Vancouver, British Columbia. He has appeared in many television shows including Poltergeist, Dark Angel, Twilight Zone, The L Word, Smallville and Kyle XY...
was pastor of St. Anthony's Parish until becoming Bishop of Multan in 2000.
Father Emmanuel Asi
Emmanuel Asi
Fr. Emmanuel Asi received his religious training at the Christ the King Seminary and was ordained a priest of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Lahore in 1974. He obtained his doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Biblical Institute, Rome. Among his many appointments he has served as Rector...
, one of the country's leading theologians, took over as parish priest at St. Anthony's in 2000.
In order to improve relations between Christians and Muslims, Church officials of St. Anthony's Church organized a Christian-Muslim meeting on November 19, 2005, to form a Christian Muslim Rabita (cooperation) Society in Lahore.
The parish has other ministries, such as visiting and teaching prisoners. The Inspector General of prisons in Punjab
Punjab (Pakistan)
Punjab is the most populous province of Pakistan, with approximately 45% of the country's total population. Forming most of the Punjab region, the province is bordered by Kashmir to the north-east, the Indian states of Punjab and Rajasthan to the east, the Pakistani province of Sindh to the...
granted permission on May 29, 1990, to Church organizations to teach the Bible to Christian prisoners. There are 35,000 prisoners in 28 jails in Punjab province but there are no statistics available on how many are Christians.
On June 12, 2007, more than one thousand Catholics attended the blessing of the expanded wing of St. Anthony's Church. Archbishop Lawrence Saldanha
Lawrence Saldanha
Lawrence John Saldanha was born in Mangalore, India on 25 October 1936. He received his religious training at the Christ the King seminary in Karachi and was ordained a priest in Lahore, Pakistan on 16 January 1960....
of Lahore conducted the blessing. The construction took two years and was made with contributions collected largely form locals, with only a little help from foreign donors. The enlargement raises the church's capacity from 900 to 1,500. Father George Daniel was the parish priest at the time.