Birkitts Books presents ... The Christians of Pakistan: The Passion of Bishop John Joseph ISBN: 0700716564 Author: Walbridge, Linda Publisher: Routledge Release Date: 2002-09-19 Seller Category: Religion Qty Available: 1 Condition: Used: Very Good Sku: 250823006 Notes: Minor shelf wear, binding tight, pages clean and unmarked. In May 1998 John Joseph, the first indigenous Pakistani Catholic bishop, shot himself in front of the courthouse where a Christian had been sentenced to death for blasphemy. This book tells the story of the Christians in Pakistan, with Bishop Joseph as its centrepiece. It is an account of outcastes who sought hope through Christianity, but who now find themselves victims of a struggle to define Islam in Pakistan. The majority of Pakistani Christians are descendents of untouchables converted to Christianity in the late 19th century. In Pakistan a minority religion is linked with low status, perpetuating the Indian Hindu caste system even though the Muslim majority has disassociated itself from all things Hindu and Indian. The book also deals with enculturation in the Pakistani church, the rise of indigenous clergy, conflicts between the local church and Rome, the rise of 'fundamentalist' Islam and the position of women in society and church. Linda S. Walbridge is an adjunct faculty member in the Anthropology Department at Indiana University. She is the author of the book, Without Forgetting the Imam: Shii Islam in an American Community (Wayne State University Press) and the editor of The Most Learned of the Shia: the Institution of the Marya'Taglid (Oxford University Press). She specializes in Shi'ism and minorities in Islamic societies. Don't forget to check out other great deals in our Store!!