ASIA/PAKISTAN - Shabhaz Bhatti remembered in Italy for his testimony of faith in politics

Rome (Agenzia Fides) - An excellent testimony of faith in politics, significant for the present and the future of Pakistan: With these reasons, on Sunday, December 4, the figure of Shahbaz Bhatti, Federal Minister for Religious Minorities, Catholic leader directly involved in politics, killed in March 2011, will be remembered in Italy, in the award ceremony "Santa Barbara in the world", organized by the diocese and the city of Rieti, of which Santa Barbara is the patron. The prize will be awarded to Marcianum Press, a Venetian publishing house that published the text "Christians in Pakistan: hardship and hope" that collects Bhatti’s spiritual testament, a text that has left its sign for its depth and incisiveness. It is the most widely distributed text after the Minister’s death, in which Bhatti says he would only like "a place at Jesus' feet". Monsignor Dino Pistolato, Director of Caritas Venetian, author of the text-conversation with Bhatti, reminds Fides: "This text is an act of prophecy. I remember Bhatti’s faithfulness, consistency, passion for man. In each daily gesture, he was able to be with God". Prof. Mobeen Shahid will be present at the award, a professor at the Lateran University, and Secretary General of Pakistani Christians Association in Italy who, in the name of Shabhaz Bhatti, promotes in Europe the care and support to the faithful Pakistanis who suffer discrimination and persecution. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 02/12/2011)