To, The CPMPF, Through Mr. Sandy Sneddon. Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ! Greetings from the Church of Pakistan This email is in response to your email dated 23-12-2004 written by you on behalf of the Church of Pakistan Mission Partners Forum. As almost all the matters related to the Church of Pakistan are challenged and pending adjudication before the Courts of Law all over Pakistan, one way or the other. Your support to a fraction of the CoP consisting of the disputed bishops only, does not affect or validate their illegal position in the light of prevailing legal situation, which even after the execution of the reconciliation agreement between the bishops and disputed bishops of the CoP dated 30-10-2004 has not changed. At the same time please be informed that the issues of episcopacy of Lahore, Karachi, Hyderabad and Peshawar are still unresolved and the constitutional as well as the legal position of Rev. Sadiq Daniel, Rev. Rafiq Masih and Mr. Mano Romal Shah is challenged in the Courts of Law where no finality has reached so far. Therefore, in the light of the prevailing legal situation nobody other then the courts can resolve these issues. The so-called reconciliation amongst the Bishops and disputed bishops, upon which you and according to you many people in Pakistan and around the world rejoice and give thanks is executed amongst the Bishops to facilitate each other in order to justify their wrong doings, specially the illegal sales of Church properties by Bishops of Lahore, Sialkot, Raiwind and Rev. Sadiq Daniel of Karachi. The same is challenged before the Court of Law as the agreement executed amongst the Bishops and disputed bishops tantamount to Contempt of Court. And for your kind information the High Court of Sindh at Karachi has already initiated Contempt of Court proceedings against the parties entered into so-called reconciliation agreement in Civil Suit no. 970/2004. Another yet important fact is that officially during the due process of law at present there is no Synod in the Church of Pakistan as the so-called Synod held in June 2003 is pending adjudication before the Court of Law and a restraining order is still operative against the functioning of the so-called Synod. The certified copies of the Case along with the certified true copies of the order passed thereupon-dated 08-09-2003 have already been sent to His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury Most Reverend and Right Honourable Dr. Rowan Williams through Airmail. The receipt of the same has been confirmed by the office of His Grace through the letter of Revd Andrew Norman dated 29-03-2004 to Mr. Raja Qureshi, Advocate Supreme Court of Pakistan. Therefore, as a brother in ministry I advise you to refrain yourself from facilitating the so-called Synod or its officers as the matters are pending adjudication before the Court of Law and your statements vide which you are trying to portray that the disputes have resolved amounts to warrant interference in the matters pending adjudicated before the Honourable Court of Law as the disputes of the Church have to be resolved by the Courts not by the Partners or the Bishops. The core issue of the CoP is of the illegal sales of Church properties through the defunct LDTA, attorneys of the Church of Scotland and those illegally sold by the Executive Board of Methodist Church in Pakistan. At the point when bishops became conscious that they have been caught red handed the execution of the so-called agreement amongst the Bishops of the CoP came into picture. To me Bishops of Lahore and Raiwind are making fool of CPMPF and that of the Church of England, Anglican Communion and His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury. As the agreement executed amongst the Bishops and disputed bishops is self-explanatory and clearly indicates the ulterior motives of the Bishops and the so-called bishops in the Section A (5) of the said agreement. For ready reference the item number A (5) of the aforesaid agreement between the Bishops dated 30-10-2004 is reproduced hereunder:- That we FURTHER AGREED that no Church of Pakistan bishop or diocesan authority shall institute any court case challenging the status and legality of the Property Holders within the Church of Pakistan, and in case of any grievance, the matter should be referred to the Bishop’s Council. Thus through signing this agreement Rev. Sadiq Daniel is bound to withdraw the Case no. 778/2004 to make way for the builder Sardar Saddique Khan entered into agreement with the attorneys of the Church of Scotland on the instigation of Bishop Pervaiz Samuel of Sialkot. The illegal sale of properties by the LDTA has been challenged in the High Court of Lahore and vide orders dated 10-12-2004 in F.A.O. no. 245/2004 the High Court of Lahore was graciously pleased to restrain LDTA from alienating or changing trust properties by any means whatsoever. A lot of documentary evidences of illegal sales by the LDTA are on record and by the Grace of God it would not be very difficult for the Plaintiffs to prove the illegal sales by the LDTA in order to recover the drained resources of the poor Church of Pakistan. At the same time the National Accountability Bureau has also instituted investigation against the illegal sales by the Bishop of Lahore. The NAB authorities vide their letter dated 14-12-2004 have called upon the relevant record and very soon the findings of the NAB will further clarify this issue. Now the question is that whether the CPMPF, Church of England, Anglican Communion, etc. will support the law of the land and demands of accountability of the members of the CoP or this time the Anglican Communion and the Partners will try to establish their stand according to the need of their close ones in the Church of Pakistan? As far as your statement regarding CoP News Service and the emails which according to you are affecting the issues of the Church of Pakistan are concerned, I would reproduce hereunder an extract of an email from Rev. Shafique Kanwal of Karachi for a ready reference: - I would like to draw your attention towards the unconstitutional and insincere alterations made in the Constitution of the Lahore Diocesan Council by the Bishop of Lahore Alexander John Malik. As the Church of Pakistan is an independent Church, free of any charge external to itself, your good office is timely approached for an appropriate action in order to safeguard the resources of the Church of Pakistan, which originally belongs to the Christian community of Pakistan. This heinous act of unconstitutionally and illegally amending the constitution of the Church in Lahore, on the part of the Bishop of Lahore is an unambiguous disregard to the Constitution of the Church of Pakistan and superseding the discipline of the Church of Pakistan a number of deceitful alterations have been made in contradiction to chapters XII and XVII of the constitution of the Church of Pakistan. This waywardness of Bishop Alexander John Malik is an obvious disregard to the supremacy of the Constitution of the Synod of the Church of Pakistan and the misbehaving bishop is making arrangements to usurp the resources of the Lahore Diocesan Council by separating his Diocese from the main streamline i.e. Synod, Church of Pakistan for which he has registered Lahore Diocese under the Societies Registration Act, XXI of 1860 vide registration no. RP/5734/L/S/96, in the office of Registrar, Joint Stock Companies, Lahore District, as an independent Church. It is also on record that a number of properties at Lahore, Quetta, Hyderabad, Karachi, etc have already been sold or put up for sale by him which itself is a Criminal Breach of Trust on his part, for which he is liable to be desecrated from the sacred post of a Bishop and the resources drained by him may be recovered from the errant bishop of Lahore. It is important to bring in your notice that the Bishop of Lahore entered into an agreement with all the Bishops of the Church of Pakistan, expect Bishop Ijaz Inayat of Karachi who refused to sign that agreement, executed between the Bishops on 30th October 2004 at Sialkot. The first item of the said agreement embarks upon the immoveable properties of the Church of Pakistan and its legal status held within the Church of Pakistan. It further capitalizes and monopolizes the exercise of powers into few hands while the said agreement attempts to deal with the properties of the Church of Pakistan. It has further provided that no one of the Church of Pakistan Bishops or Diocesan authority would institute any Court case challenging the status and legality and property holders within the Church of Pakistan and in the event of any grievance, the matter is now required to be referred to the Bishop’s Council. Hence monopoly has been generated under the agreement ignoring the aspect that there is no concept of a body called “Bishops Council” under the provisions of the Church of Pakistan. The alterations made in the Constitution of the Lahore Diocesan Council contradicts the Constitution of the Church of Pakistan, which tantamount to Breach of Oath, to which he agreed to at the time of his consecration and enthronement as the Bishop of Lahore under the constitution of the Synod, Church of Pakistan, hence he is liable to be impeached from this sacred position and the original constitution of the Lahore Diocesan Council, which is duly approved by the Synod, Church of Pakistan may please be restored. It is further apprehended that the basic structure of the Constitution of the Church of Pakistan is being attempted to be modified, altered, changed to the disadvantage of the Church of Pakistan itself viz a viz its property holdings and the benevolence which could be extended by the Church of Pakistan to the general public amongst the Christian community in Pakistan. Therefore, your good office is requested in the larger interest of the Church of Pakistan, Christian Community in Pakistan and that of the Lahore Diocese that an independent inquiry and an appropriate legal action thereupon may please be initiated so that the resources of the Church of Pakistan be saved and the drained resources may be recovered. Soon after the News Years celebrations the issue of the Criminal Breach of Oath by the Bishop of Lahore will also be referred to the Court of Law for his impeachment from the sacred post of the Bishop. Vide tempering the Constitution of the Lahore Diocese the Bishop of Lahore has clearly spelled out his motive of grabbing the resources of the Lahore Diocese by alienating it from the Synod CoP. The office of His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury has already made it very clear that as the Archbishop of Canterbury the internal affairs of the CoP are not in the jurisdiction of His Grace. The Church of Pakistan is a democratic Church and the demands of the members of the Church matters mainly and for the personal interests of few Church cannot be left on their disposal. Through your email it seems that the Bishops and so-called bishops of the CoP are afraid of Reformation Movement and that of the growing awareness amongst the members of CoP. For which they have asked you to dispute the CoP News Service so that the members may be kept unaware. You do know very well that at present the so-called Synod is disputed and headed by a Bishop of Lahore not by a Bishop of the Church of Pakistan. Please note that only a Bishop of the Church of Pakistan can be the Moderator of the Church of Pakistan. The newly registered constitution of the Lahore Diocese and the resolutions passed by the Lahore Diocesan Council and that of the Lahore Diocesan Executive Committee do not allow the Lahore Diocese or its bishop to be the part of the Church of Pakistan. The Bishop of Lahore is using the CPMPF and the Anglican Communion as his cover, which shall be revealed by going through the old and new constitutions of the Lahore Diocese. Seeing that he has not left any other way out he has asked you to write for him as he does know that whatever the CoP News is publishing is true and the Reformers have all the relevant evidences in hand for which he does not have any answer. If the CPMPF thinks that they are supporting the right fraction of the CoP; the CPMPF should ask Bishop Malik and Sammy to clarify their position in public openly instead of making way for them. As far as your view regarding the electronic correspondence about which you wrote “to the best of our knowledge, these e-mails come from one particular group within the Church of Pakistan and are not representative of the wider church membership” is concerned. The situation of the Church of Pakistan is well known to you, and keeping the disputes aside, I by virtue of this email call upon you to visit Pakistan and give us time and date so that the members from all over Pakistan may have an open discussion with you in the presence of Press and Media where we could make public the proofs of illegalities committed by the Bishops, so that your misleading statement may be clarified for the common members of the Church of Pakistan to whom you are trying to mislead through your statement on behalf of the CPMPF. Now the internal affairs of the Church of Pakistan are well known to the wider membership of the Church of Pakistan and any statement by 3 or 4 undisputed and 4 or 5 disputed bishops does not represent the whole Church of Pakistan. For the sake of cleansing of the Church of Pakistan we are even ready to bear the expenses of your trip to Pakistan so that the wider membership may talk to you directly. Please be informed that the Church is divided due to injustice and embezzlements. You could have played a positive role in bringing back the Church from the edge of splitting but sadistically you people as partners have always tried to make way for Malik Sahib and one day you too have to answer the Lord for the part you are playing in order to facilitate Malik Sahib and destruct Church of Pakistan. The Lord is giving time to the Bishops for repentance and by supporting them you are not letting them repent. Please talk about the documentary evidences and issues instead of misleading people of Pakistan using your office. Your statements on behalf of the CPMPF as well as your recognitions do not validate the wrong doings of the Bishops; in fact you are ruining your own reputation by doing so. Therefore, I advise you to refrain yourself from commenting on the issues regarding which the Reformers have already made public the documentary evidences because it damages your reputation because the wider membership have by now understood the game and clutches of Bishops and Partners and misleading statements from any office on the instigations of Pakistani Bishops would not help them in the Court of Law, where they will try to use such statement as a supporting document. If you are so keen to become a part of the Church of Pakistan do let us know by return e-mail and we can easily make you a party in the forth-coming case so that you may justify your beloved Bishops. May the Lord give you courage to stand with the truth. Looking forward for your response. Rev. Ilyas Mukhtar Rawalpindi, Pakistan Note: Documentary evidences of whatever I have written in afore paragraphs can be furnished on request. Please also note that the constitution of the Church of Pakistan defines rules and procedures for the elections of Bishops and that of the Synod and nobody’s recognition can validate the unconstitutional elections and actions.