Lahore: (Pervez Yousaf) Holy Father Pope Francis calls on believers of all religions to unite spiritually in a Day of Prayer and Fasting and Works of Charity to implore God to help humanity overcome the coronavirus pandemic.  Following call of Holy Father, the National Commission for Interreligious Dialogue & Ecumenism (NCIDE) organized an Interreligious prayer gathering observing all protective measures against the spread of pandemic.

His Grace Sebastian Francis Shaw OFM, chairman of NCIDE led this prayer gathering that held at Sacred Heart Cathedral, Lahore. The leaders of Christian, Muslim, Hindu and Sikh communities including Fr. Francis Nadeem OFM Cap, (executive secretary of NCIDE), Fr. James Chanan O.P., Fr. Qaisar Feroz OFM Cap, Fr. Mushtaq Piyara, Maulana Sahibzada Asim Makhdoom (chairman board of Kalama Masalik Ulema) Allama Mufti Syed Ashiq Hussain (Principal Madrisa Bait-ul-Quran), Qari Khalid Mahmood (Qari of Punjab Assembly) Bhagat Lal (Hindu leader), and Sadar Bishon Singh (Sikh leader) devotedly participated in this assembly of Interreligious prayer. The participants recited prayers according to their beliefs for the entire humanity to overcome the coronavirus pandemic by asking God the Almighty. 

Archbishop Francis Shaw sharing his views said, “this pandemic is attacking all human beings throughout the world, it doesn’t consider any sort of boundaries or borders. It is travelling city to city and country to country and killing people. This unseen bacterial is not finding people of specific religion or creed, it hits everybody”. He further continued by saying, “The human beings today and forever must eliminate all sort of differences and discrimination from their hearts and unite in social and religious harmony”.  He also urged leaders and scholars of all religions to continuously pray for the complete eradication of this pandemic.

The participants highly venerated the spiritual motion of the Holy Father and also appreciated the efforts of NCIDE in this time of calamity which the entire world is facing today.