THE FRONTIER NEWS February: 2016 Diocese of Peshawar Church of Pakistan

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1 THE FRONTIER NEWS February: 2016 Diocese of Peshawar Church of Pakistan Individual Highlights Pre Lentan Retreat 1 ECS Wing II Sports Day 2 Confirmation Service 2 Syllabus for Peace Building 3 New Appointment 3 Seminar 4 Lay paster for Parachinar 4 Easter Greetings 5 Group photo of the participants with the Rt. Revd. Humphrey S. Peters The Pre Lenten Retreat (Suffering) This year the Pre Lent Clergy Retreat of the Diocese of Peshawar was held at St. Thomas Centre, Raiwind, Punjab. This was a three days programme, and theme of the Retreat was Suffering in the Church. The keynote speakers were The Rt. Revd. Irfan Jamil, Bishop of Lahore, The Rt. Revd. Victor John Mall, Bishop (Rtd) Diocese of Multan, The Revd. Canon Emanuel Bahadur, Principal Lahore Collage of Theology, and Dr. (Ms) Farhana Gujernawala Theological Seminary Every morning, the Retreat started with prayer and Holy Communion Service, followed by lectures, messages, small talks, group assignments and discussions. All the speakers emphasized various types and stages of suffering, either it be the suffering in the church, parish, life in general or in the world. The Rt. Revd. Humphrey S. Peters during the final devotion at the Holy Communion Service summed up the theme by the temptations and suffering of our Lord Jesus and eventually our Lord s steadfastness and fidelity to the Heavenly Father, these tribulations transformed into a triumph. The most touching moment was when Bishop Humphrey S. Peters following the footsteps of Jesus humbled himself and washed feet of all the participants of the Retreat. Retreat in images

2 Edwardes College School Wing II, Sports Day Confirmation Service at Tarnab Farm, Peshawar Group photo of confirmed girls Revd. Samuel Pervez.Asghar, Bishop Humphrey S. Peters, Mrs. Afreen Sarfraz The Rt Revd. Humphrey S. Peters in a graceful ceremony confirmed over 20 boys and girls at St. Thomas Church, Tarnab. The Priest Incharge, of the Church presented the young boys and girls to the Bishop for his blessings and confirmation. The newly confirmed members were very excited to have participated in the Holy Communion for the first time in their lives. It was both an honor and privilege for their parents and relatives, who after the service garlanded them and distributed sweets among all present at the occasion. Later, they had a special photo session with the honorable Bishop, a memory to be cherished for the rest of their lives. February, 2016: Annual Sports Day of the Edwardes College School Wing II was held with traditional pomp & show. All the teachers, and especially the sports teachers for their hard work and efforts to make the event a big success. The Rt. Revd. Humphrey S. Peters was the Chief Guest at this occasion. All the Diocesan Officers, Clergy, Head of the Institutions and parents of the students were also invited to witness the event It was a highly organized programme and the participants (students) put on a wonderful show of skills and discipline. The students from Class-Prep to Class-10th presented tableaus, sports activities, gymnastics and various other physical trainings show, including rally race and folk dances. The winners of every activity were awarded trophies. Whereas, the Rt. Revd. Humphrey S. Peters awarded Certificates of Appreciation to all the staff members. Earlier, on arrival of the Bishop and his team the local congregation and leaders warmly welcomed and garlanded the honorable visitors. Many were of the view that the Bishop s visit is always a source of blessings for them. The Bishop in his speech applauded for the efforts of the students and teachers. He also appreciated Mrs. Afreen Sarfraz, Principal and Mrs. Rosaline Edwin for their hard work and ability to organize such a big successful event. Group photo of confirmed boys Page 2

3 Syllabus for Peace Building New Appointment Group Photo of the Participants Group photo of participants Dr. Nadeem Hadayat have been appointed as new Director of the Mission Hospital Peshawar, by the Diocese of Peshawar. Infect, Dr. Hadayat has been transferred from Pannell Memorial Hospital, Bannu where he served as Administrator of the Hospital. February 17-18, 2016: A two days Training Programme for the Peace Building Officers (PBOs) was held at the Diocese of Peshawar. The main objective of this training course was to equip PBOs with knowledge and skills to effectively communicate with multi-ethnic and religious communities. It is pertinent to mention that all the twelve PBOs represent different religious communities from six different districts of the province. In January, 2016,The Diocese of Peshawar in collaboration with the World Relief, Pakistan initiated a mega Peace Building Programme for Interfaith Harmony and Peaceful Co-existence in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) province. The teams to execute the programme have been selected in the first phase of the programme. In the 2 nd Phase the organizers of the programme chalked out a syllabus with the help of leaders of various faiths communities. However, the key contributors towards the syllabus are the Rt. Revd. Humphrey S. Peters, Bishop of Peshawar, and Mr. Cyprian Nkiriyumwami, Africa Director for Integral Mission Church Empowerment and Peace Building who worked tirelessly to design the Syllabus. The keynote speakers and resources persons of the trainings course were the Rt. Revd. Humphrey S. Peters, Mr. Cyprian Nkiriyumwami, Prof: Dr. Qibla Ayaz, Prof: Dr. Abdul Ghafoor, Mr. Haroon Serbdiyal, Dr. Kararvi, Mr. Charan Jeet Singh, along with other prominent members of the Faith Friends KPK. The Peace Building Officers informed the Frontier News Correspondent that this training course has sharpened and enhanced their skills to work more effectively with various communities. In a welcome ceremony at Mission Hospital, Peshawar Mr. Pervez Ghouri, Administrator of the Hospital along with his team welcomed the Doctor, and the hospital staff garlanded him and assured their full cooperation. The staff said that we have high expectations from him and hope the hospital will grow and prosper to the new highest under his leadership. Similarly, Dr. Nadeem Hadayat was also welcomed by the Administration, Staff and Pupils of the Special Education School of the Mental Health Centre, Peshawar. The children welcomed him by holding placards, balloons and later a cake cutting ceremony was also held, and tea was served to all present at the occasion. Special Children welcomed the guests

4 Seminar on Sexual Harassment Lay pastor installed for the tribal Parachinar Revd. Shahzad Murad, Mr. Dildar, Mr.Anjum Tasneemm, Revd. Shahid,Revd. Patric Naeem The keynote speaker with organizers and participants February 20, 2016: The Diocesan Development & Relief Sector in collaboration of the Church of Scotland and the Women Desk, Diocese of Peshawar held two Seminars, at the Diocesan Centre Peshawar, a ) Sexual Harassment, b) Day to Day Life. More than 120 female participants from various walks of life, including staff member of the Diocesan Parishes, Health and Educational Institutions. The keynote speaker for the seminar was Mrs. Romana Bashir, Director, National Human Rights & Development, and Islamabad. She elaborated on causes of sexual harassment and the laws related to the crime. The participants after her oral and visual presentation were divided into different groups and were assigned various tasks regarding the theme, who came back with their feedback, suggestions and recommendations which was highly appreciated by the resource person. Whereas, theme of the 2nd half of the seminar dealt with Day to Day Life, and problems faced by the women. The participants from their own experiences contributed towards the theme and came up with brilliant ideas to deal with expected and un-expected situations. Many shared their bitter experiences and advised others how to overcome and solve their problems at personal level. At this occasion, the Rt. Revd. Humphrey S. Peters was the Chief Guest, and his brief speech he encouraged the women participants for their struggle and efforts. He also praised the organizers, including: Revd. Altaf Gohar, Secretary, Development & Relief, and Mrs. Noureen Altaf, Coordinator Women Desk for holding such a useful seminar. Later, all the participants were served dinner in the lawn of the Diocese of Peshawar. Parachinar is a beautiful mountainous tribal area, and is notoriously famous for sectarian violence between Muslim Shia and Sunni Sects. Although, inhabitants of the valley may be described as religious extremist, but it is also true that they are very tolerant towards the Minority Christian community who without any restrictions enjoy their religious freedom. In the month of February, 2016 the Revd. Shahzad Murad, Secretary Mission & Ministry, Revd. Patrick Naeem, Diocesan Secretary, along with Mr. Anjum Tasneem, Secretary Property paid a special visit to Parachinar in order to install Mr. Dildar Masih, as Lay Pastor of the Church, as the Priest Incharge Revd. Riaz Shahid vision is gradually deteriorating and he badly needed a helping hand. In a church ceremony both the Reverends officially installed Mr. Dildar Masih. The local congregation along with the Priest Incharge showed their gratitude towards the Diocese and the Bishop for immediately fulfilling their request. Earlier on arrival of the team from Peshawar Diocese the locals warmly welcomed and garlanded the visitors and extended their traditional hospitality for the guests. Page 4

5 The Diocese of Peshawar, Church of Pakistan wishes A Very Happy Easter to all its readers, friends and partners. Kindly remember the Diocese of Peshawar in your prayers for all its efforts for the Christian community s uplift, including Peace Building Programmes for other religious minorities and the majority communities. The Bishop s Bishopdop@hotmail.com The Diocesan Centre E.Mail DioceseofPeshawar@gmail.com Contact Us at: commdeskdop@gmail.com Visit Us at: Page 5