Pakistan’s blasphemy laws used to target Bible

Pakistan (MNN) — Radical Muslim clerics in Pakistan are taking aim at the Bible.  

They want the country's Supreme Court to ban certain passages in Scripture under the country's notorious "blasphemy" laws. Specifically, Muslims regard certain biblical characters (i.e. Abraham, Isaac, David and Solomon) as prophets, and the Bible's accounts show them as flawed.

Assertions that Jesus is God, that He died and rose from the dead, and that salvation comes through Him are also falling in conflict with Islamic teachings. Todd Nettleton is a spokesman for Voice of the Martyrs USA. He says the sect that's making the demands want "at least those sections taken out of the Bible, if not the entire Bible banned in Pakistan. They say that there won't be trouble as long as the courts act in this case, as long as the courts do what they want them to."

Within Pakistan's Penal Code are penalties ranging from a fine to death for "blasphemy." According to VOM, the law is often misused to target religious minorities, including Christians.

The law is a flashpoint for religious tensions in Pakistan. Just this year, because they supported the repeal of the law, assassins murdered Punjab Province Governor Salman Taseer and Minister for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti. Nettleton adds that the potential for violent reaction is possible. "There is a high level of concern right now in Pakistan because of the Asia Bibi case, because of anti-Christian and anti-American feeling that is the result of the killing of Osama bin  Laden."

The Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-S) party–a Muslim offshoot party out of India–is ready to launch their formal petition to ban the Bible should the courts not rule to outlaw the sections they complained about.  When asked if such a petition would cause more trouble for believers, Nettleton says, "At this point, it's a lot of noise. If it starts to be motion towards actually banning the Scriptures, that will be a huge concern."

Even if the motion gains traction, Gospel outreach won't be hampered much. "The reality is that Christians are already taking great risks in Pakistan to share their faith. Some are even going into the most devout Islamic areas to share their faith with people there."

Less than two percent of Pakistan's 17 million people are Christian. Other religious non-Muslim minorities are less than one percent of the total population. The rest of the country is Muslim, mainly Sunni.

There's been no word on when the Supreme Court will hand down a decision on the JUI-S request. Nettleton says, "Pray for justice in Pakistan. We can pray that the courts will rule according to the Constitution and according to the law." 

For the believers, "Pray that they will be encouraged. We can pray that they will continue to minister in spite of the risks that they already face, and we can pray that Muslims will come to know Jesus."