Pakistani Christians join Muslims for Ramadan meals amid Iran war fallout

LAHORE, Pakistan — White bedsheets for Muslim worshippers were laid on the grassy lawn outside the Dominican Peace Center in Punjab an hour before the annual interfaith iftar — the fast-breaking meal during Ramadan.

The aroma of crispy pakoras (fritters), dried dates, rose-flavored Rooh Afza, and dahi bhallay (lentil dumplings in yogurt) drew guests to the dining tables after they finished reciting their iftar prayers in Lahore, the provincial capital.

Dominican Father James Channan, director of the center, has hosted such interfaith gatherings for 25 years in a country where religious tensions have periodically turned violent.

“Table friendships are very important in our context. People attending such forums highlight them on social media, reaching millions,” he told EWTN News at the sidelines of the program, timed with International Women’s Day on March 8.

“The combined meals and prayer services have helped curb trends of church attacks that followed U.S. wars in Muslim countries.”

Pakistani Christians have faced multiple terrorist attacks since October 2001, after the United States — seen by many Pakistani Muslims as a Christian nation — launched its military campaign in Afghanistan.

“It’s a bitter past. Churches and Christian settlements were considered soft targets. The ongoing conflicts are not crusades; they are wars of interest,” Channan said.

Interfaith meals continue despite unrest

Interfaith gatherings continued this year even as protests against U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran left 26 dead in Pakistan.

Church leaders joined clerics in prayers for peace and shared meals at mosques, church premises, and hotels across six dioceses and one apostolic vicariate, as Middle East air travel disruption and rising fuel prices added regional tension.

Many Pakistanis view the United States and Western Europe as Christian nations, and some militant groups target local Christians as linked to these “Christian countries.”

Communal tensions have also erupted locally. In May 2024, a mob attacked 74-year-old Christian Nazir Masih over alleged blasphemy in Sargodha. He later died of his injuries. In August 2023, violence in Jaranwala destroyed 26 churches and 80 Christian homes following allegations of Quran desecration.

In a Feb. 17 message, Archbishop Joseph Arshad of Rawalpindi-Islamabad invited Christians and Muslims to offer special prayers for peace as Lent and Ramadan coincided this year. He encouraged people of both faiths “to visit one another, exchange greetings with respect, and unite in serving vulnerable segments of society.”

Joint events across Pakistan

In Multan, over 82 participants attended a Feb. 28 iftar jointly organized by the Catholic Commission for Inter-Religious Dialogue and Ecumenism; Saiban-e-Pakistan, a state peace initiative; and the Centre of Excellence on Countering Violent Extremism.

A day earlier in Lahore, Channan and four Catholic priests attended the fast-breaking event at the Badshahi Mosque, the country’s second-largest mosque. He presented a framed photo of Abdul Khabeer Azad, the mosque’s “khateeb” (prayer leader), who met Pope Leo XIV in October 2025 at the “Christian-Muslim Dialogue and Daring Peace” conference in Rome organized by the Community of Sant’Egidio.

Among 120 guests at the Dominican iftar was Muslim speaker Shehzad Qaiser. The event, held in collaboration with groups including the Seventh-day Adventist Church, highlighted ongoing social challenges.

The head of external affairs at Sundas Foundation, which supports patients with blood disorders, agreed that Christians face discrimination in some offices and some Muslims refuse the food prepared by Christians.

“It is very important to share our common practices, joys, and sorrows. Religious leaders have the duty to raise awareness. Sadly some mistake local Christians as ‘kafir’ (infidels),” Qaiser said.

“During Ramadan, people distribute free meals to everyone without asking their religion. Blood donors don’t discriminate either. This is the real spirit of Ramadan and Lent.”

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