“You stayed, you prayed”: meet Aleena, a year after Jaranwala attack

It’s a year since the Christian community in Jaranwala was left reeling after it was attacked by an angry mob in response to blasphemy allegations. We ran an emergency appeal for the more than 10,000 believers affected, and here you can get a glimpse into the difference your support and prayers are making…

Aleena* was heavily pregnant when she heard a loud banging at the doors. It was a warning to escape – she lived in Jaranwala, Pakistan, and the Christian community there was being attacked.

“I woke my mother-in-law up, told my brother to get some help as she was aging, and then I took my sister’s hand and a few large shawls,” she recalls. “We ran into the dawn. We were in the sugar cane fields for hours. The next day, everything was gone – all our Bibles, our crosses, our churches, our homes, our shops and our schools. All gone.”  

Aleena and her family were among more than 10,000 believers affected when an angry mob of Muslims burnt 19 churches and destroyed 89 homes in response to rumours that two believers had allegedly desecrated the Quran (these two believers were later acquitted after a police investigation revealed that it was a plot to implicate them in a blasphemy case).

HOPE is a Christian organisation in Pakistan supported by Open Doors. Following the attack last year, Open Doors ran an emergency appeal for affected believers, and your generous response enabled HOPE to come alongside believers in their time of needed. HOPE recently visited the area to see how our brothers and sisters are doing, and to remind them that their global family continues to stand with them.

Prayers, stories and songs

“I do not know anymore,” says Aleena when asked how she is doing. “Everything is spoiled. Friends have left, there are robberies in our communities, we do not know who to trust, and those we should trust are now dangerous to us. You, the HOPE team, have been our friends.”

It’s here Aleena begins to talk about the different ways HOPE has helped believers. “The food aid, rations and special parcels for women were more than I could have imagined,” she says. “Many people came, but you stayed, you prayed, you taught us stories, and you taught us songs. I feel like I’m part of a community.                                              

“The seminars you organised have been helpful,” she adds. “I have learnt about how to respond to harassment, and I have received basic counselling skills to encourage our young people not to stay on the streets. I have also learnt Bible verses and how to safeguard our daughters and sons from predators. I have also learnt to sing in the middle of suffering. These are skills we did not have before. I received a helpline number of who to call when in danger, and I have learnt basic encouragement methods for those in despair because of the attacks on their towns. I have a lot of skills now to support my pastor in the community.”

Children have also been impacted greatly by your support. “The kids in our neighbourhood had such a wonderful summer camp,” she continues. “Thank you for arranging that. They all came back with such joy and were reciting Bible verses. Thank you for giving them a focus and helping them be positive.”

Sleepless nights

The extent to which your support has helped believers like Aleena is evident, but it’s also clear that challenges remain – not least healing from the trauma of last year’s awful attacks.

“Sometimes I lie awake for so many hours,” says Aleena. “That day, my husband, Hameed*, was in a Christian camp. He was not here. He came the next day. He did not see the attacks. He only heard from us and saw the devastation. Until now, even he can’t sleep too well. Sometimes he holds our son so close and tight I get frightened he may suffocate the baby.”

“You know, brother, it can happen again,” says Hameed. His wife adds, “They have seen everything. They know where to find us. This year it will be worse if it happens.” 

Aleena asks for your prayers

The HOPE team asked Aleena how her global family can pray for her, her family and the wider Christian community in Jaranwala. This is what she said:

“Pray for our homes, that God would protect our property and people, and if something like this ever takes place again, to help us trust Him. Trust is hard when we live in a land that does not recognise our place. So many people would rather we left. No one feels responsible for us.

“Pray for those leaders who spoke out for us. Pray that God will make the government listen. We need freedom from injustice. It is everywhere.

“Pray that God will change the hearts of our enemies; that they will give us back our employment, will let our children come back to school, and will let us buy our groceries at the shops. Pray that they will not come and burn our new Bibles and crosses again. 

“Pray that I can learn to read and write. First, I had a Bible, but my husband read it to me. Now I want to read it myself.”

*Name changed for security reasons