Muslims building chapel for Christians in Pakistan

The Muslim residents of a village in Pakistan are helping to build a mud chapel for their Christian neighbors. Khaksabad, located in the province of Punjab, is a place in the country where people of two different faiths live side by side and are not segregated because of religion. 

"At first I didn't believe it when Muslim community leaders said they would build us a chapel," Christian labourer Faryad Masih told Anadolu Agency. "But to my surprise, construction work began within one month of the initial announcement. Our community's longtime dream is now coming true."

The previous church in Khaksabad was swept away due to the monsoon season, and the local Christians had to rent or borrow a house for their religious activities and festivities. The Muslim leaders decided to have a chapel built for them, and the villagers are donating what they can for the effort. According to The Independent, there was a donation of 30,000 rupees from a businessman, Hussain gave 10,000 rupees, and a farmer contributed 2,000 rupees.

In an interview with the BBC, Christian villager Faryal Masih said that since he was a child, he and his Muslim friends have lived together in the same place. They attend each other's festivals and weddings.

"We are together in times of happiness and grief," he said. "I pray that we never have to go through what happened in Gojra ever."

Gojra is a city close to the village. It made the news in 2009 when religious mobs attacked Christians and torched their houses. According to Daily Pakistan, the incident left 10 people dead, with seven of them burned inside their homes. Four churches in nearby areas were also destroyed.

"After the Gojra riots, we are trying to bring people together even more," Muslim villager Ijaz Farooq told the Brtiish network. "We have increased our activity so we don't have to face something like that. By building this church we want to show that we are united as a community."