On Sunday 15 March, two young Taliban members blew themselves up, one outside each of the two churches – St John’s Catholic Church and the Protestant Christ Church in Lahore, separated by about 400 metres in Youhanabad, the largest majority Christian area in Lahore.

The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attacks and warned of more to come until Sharia law is implemented in Pakistan.

The bombers had attempted to get inside the two churches, but were stopped by security personnel outside. Security measures have been increasingly implemented by churches in Pakistan to protect their people, in response to growing attacks. In 2013, two suicide bombers detonated explosives from within All Saints Church in Peshawar, during Sunday worship. Over a hundred people were killed in the attack, sparking concern that the Pakistani Government was doing little to protect churches from Taliban attacks.

St John’s Catholic Church in Lahore, Pakistan, one of the sites of suicide bombings at the weekend. Photo: World Watch Monitor

Head of Bible Society in Pakistan, Anthony Lamuel, says church and government security personnel at the two churches in Youhanabad “sacrificed their lives to stop [the bombers] from getting inside the churches.”

“These two churches are packed on Sundays,” Lamuel told Eternity. “Thousands attend every week. Had the bombers gotten inside, it would have been very, very… I’m shaken when I think of it. The loss of our Christian brothers and sisters is very sad. But it could have been so much worse.”

According to World Watch Monitor, the impact of the attack outside St. John’s Catholic Church was lessened by a security volunteer, Akash Bashir, 16. Akash’s father, Bashir Emmanuel, told World Watch Monitor that Akash’s family often tried to stop Akash from joining church security volunteers, but that he wanted to offer his life for the security of his community.

“One man approached the church from one side while firing, while the other one – in a suicide jacket – attempted to scale the church boundary wall,” said Emmanuel.

“Akash rushed to grab him by his leg. The suicide bomber warned him to get away, as he had a suicide jacket. But Akash pulled him down and left the bomber with no choice but to blow himself up, instantly killing Akash and several others.”

Lamuel, who is a leader within the Pakistani Christian community and a member of the diocesan executive looking after Christ Church, one of the churches attacked, says he and the Bishop of Lahore were at the bomb sites within an hour of the attacks.

“There was a lot of agitation in the streets after the attacks,” says Lamuel. Christians in the region took to the streets, protesting the attacks and the government’s failure to protect minorities. The ABC reported the protests in some areas turned violent, as Christians clashed with police.

Lamuel says Christians came together the night of the bombings, holding a press conference to openly condemn the attacks. They announced that the following day, March 16, all Christian institutions would be closed as a protest. Bible Society closed its doors as part of that protest.

“We called on the government to do something more substantial with security,” says Lamuel.

But Lamuel said the press conference was designed to send a clear message: the bombings would not stop Christians from worshipping.

“This will not stop us from worshipping,” said Lamuel. “In fact, after the Peshawar church attacks, that very next Sunday many people travelled from far away to join the worship.

“The bombings are scary, very scary. The fear is always there. But our churches are still full.”

Bible Society Australia is supporting the work of Bible Society in Pakistan in 2015. Christian work in Pakistan is difficult and dangerous at the best of times. But, in a country where Christians can face dreadful consequences for sharing their faith, Bible Society’s interdenominational ‘Beacon of Light’ project bravely teaches underprivileged Christian women in Pakistan’s rural and poor areas to read using Bible-based materials. Find out more here, or you can donate below.