LAKELAND — As a Christian in his native Pakistan, Junaid Saqid finally reached his breaking point last year.
He knew he had to do something; he had to do more.
On Sunday, he stood in a church nine time zones away from his homeland and continued his mission to expose the religious injustices he has witnessed. From that pulpit in Lakeland, he talked about the family members he’s lost to religious tyranny, and the desperate conditions under which Christian in Pakistan practice their faith.
“We don’t even have a roof in some places on our churches,” he told a group gathered at Lake Gibson United Methodist Church. “There’s no nice carpet. Sometimes, it’s just dirt.”
When Saqid’s repeated defiance of the leadership in the Muslim-dominated country resulted in death threats and violence, he sought asylum in the United States. Last March, the Rev. Ralph Rutledge, a Canadian pastor and missionary who spends his winters in Lakeland, helped him flee Pakistan and arranged for him to stay with a Lakeland couple, Jim and Jan Plumb.
Since then, the 33-year-old Saqid (pronounced Sah-KEED) has been working from Lakeland to garner support for other Christians in countries, like Pakistan, where religious persecution and intolerance still reign.
“What I’m doing, I’m not doing for myself,” he said Sunday. “I started this mission to help the people of Pakistan, but we need to support these people and other Christians around the world.”
Saqid founded the Pakistan Minority Rights Commission in 2003, seeking a voice for those who aren’t Muslim in a country dominated by those of the Muslim faith.
“As a Christian, I believe that I have to lead my nation first, and the entire Christian nation,” he said.
Recognizing that it wouldn’t be safe to return to his homeland, Saqid said he is seeking religious sanctuary in the United State so he can further his mission. He said his visa remains active, so he’s in this country legally, but he wants to bring his wife and two young daughters over from Pakistan. Though he speaks to them almost daily via the Internet, he said he’s eager to see his family reunited. At the same time, he works to stay focused on his objective.
“If I keep my focus on missing them,” he said, “I cannot do for my country.”
The first step, he said, is creating awareness for the plight of his fellow Pakistani Christians.
Toward that end, he’s holding weekly meetings at 3 p.m. on Sundays at the Lake Gibson church to discuss the global issues facing Christians.
The Rev. Steve Polk, the church’s pastor, said he supports Saqid’s efforts.
“In Pakistan,” he told the group Sunday, “it’s not an easy thing to say you are Christian. Most have to go into secrecy.”
Pat Gilmore of Lakeland, who attended Sunday’s service and has come to know Saqid since his arrival in Lakeland, said the church is blessed that he is sharing his mission.
“We can’t understand (religious persecution) because we have never had to deal with that,” she said. “He’s an amazing man to continue doing what he’s doing.”
Suzie Schottelkotte can be reached at suzie.schottelkotte@theledger.com or 863-533- 9070. Follow her on Twitter @southpolkscene.