Of Jesus Christ and Holy Cross

By Sidrah Roghay

At the far end of the staff colony, where you generally see manicured lawns of well-taken-care-of houses, G-Block is situated. It is a cluttered area where small blocks of houses are situated right in front of each other, and separated by miniature streams of sewage water that have sprung from under the cemented floor. Here the sweepers of the university reside. While we take care to cross, trying to prevent our dupattas and feet from getting dirty, the residents walk through it unaffected, often barefoot.

Our interest in this remote and largely ignored area was the presence of a church built in 1991.

I was expecting a medium sized stone building with a dome or minaret, but here I was standing in dirty water, trying to ignore the stench coming from it so as to not offend my subjects ( the people I was talking to).

By now a group of children had gathered around us. When we told a man that we wanted to visit the church he procured a bunch of keys from somewhere and led us to one of the doors right at our back. The door was no different from others in the area. But difference became evident as soon as we stepped in.
We were standing in the middle of a spotless white room. At the far end was the altar, with a cross on it. Elizabeth, a vibrant young girl, with heavy bangs on her head told me that they come here every Sunday.
“Do you have fun?” I asked all the kids.

“Yes, a lot.” they answered in unison.

Once inside, the children started sitting on the white floor in neat rows. Boys on one side girls on the other.

The girls told me that they clean the church everyday with their mothers. On special occasions the children get together and decorate the church with charts and ribbons.

Quite contrary to Muslim children, going to church for them was an enjoyable experience.

Here, the father was not an alien being who intimidated youngsters, and beat them up with wooden sticks, but some one they could look up to.

Maybe its time we make learning fun for our children too.