St. Jude's Church, Karachi

St. Jude's Church in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Karachi, is situated in North Nazimabad in Karachi, Pakistan.

In 1951 Gabriel Indrias did a survey of 25 Catholic families living across the Lyari River from the Portiuncula Friary. Fr. Edouald OFM was the first parish priest. In August 1955 a house was acquired and a small church and school started functioning.

Four hundred and fifty families from Laluketh, Bara Maidan, Golimar, Peerabad, Siraj Colony and Jalalabad were included in the parish. Until 1958 most of the parishioners were Urdu-speaking.

In 1958 the Archdiocese acquired seven and a half acres of land in North Nazimabad. Jerome D'Silva and his partner Hussain undertook an innovative housing scheme of 400 houses, which became known as Hussain D’Silva Town. 175 English speaking families joined the parish in 1961.

On September 22, 1989, four Muslim teenagers desecrated and burgled the church.

On the evening of March 25, 2004, a crude incendiary device was lobbed into St. Dominic's Church in the congested Bara Maidan area of the parish. It caused little damage but left Christians feeling unsafe. Local authorities have provided security for the church and posted two constables on guard.

On 22 April 2009, armed men attacked a group of Christians in Taiser Town within the parish. They set ablaze six Christian houses and injured three Christians, including an 11-year-old boy, who died on 27 April in the hospital. According to AsiaNews Taiser Town is home to about 750 Christian families including 300 Catholic families. Fr Pervez Khalid, assistant Parish Priest at St Jude’s Parish, told AsiaNews that although no one was killed at that time, six people had received gunshot wounds.

The St. Jude's complex includes a parish house (presbetery), a high school and the under-construction St. Pius X Minor Seminary.

The St. Jude's educational center is run by Soldiers of Christ, the youth group at St. Jude's parish. A team of six teachers hold two-hour evening classes during the week, preparing under-privileged students for ninth- and 10th grade exams while charging just 400 rupees (US$5) a month for the service.

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Wikipedia