Holy See–Pakistan relations are foreign relations between

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

and the

Holy See The Holy See (, ; ), also called the See of Rome, the Petrine See or the Apostolic See, is the central governing body of the Catholic Church and Vatican City. It encompasses the office of the pope as the Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop ...

(Vatican City). Both countries established

diplomatic relations Diplomacy is the communication by representatives of state, intergovernmental, or non-governmental institutions intended to influence events in the international system.Ronald Peter Barston, ''Modern Diplomacy'', Pearson Education, 2006, p. ...

in 1961. The Holy See has a nunciature in Islamabad. Pakistan's embassy in Switzerland is accredited to the Holy See.

Bilateral visits

The Holy See's diplomatic contacts with Pakistan are through the Secretariat of State on the one hand and the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the others. Other entities with a special interest are, on the side of the Holy See, the

Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples The Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples (CEP; ) was a congregation (Roman Curia), congregation of the Roman Curia of the Catholic Church in Rome, responsible for Catholic missions, missionary work and related activities. It is also kn ...

, which oversees the internal organization of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

in Pakistan and, on the other hand, the Ministry for Minorities Affairs, which from the government's side overlooks the interests of Christians in Pakistan. On 1 October 2009,

Asif Ali Zardari Asif Ali Zardari (born 26 July 1955) is a Pakistani politician serving as the 14th president of Pakistan since 2024, having held the same office from 2008 to 2013. He is the president of Pakistan People's Party Parliamentarians and was the ...

, President of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, met

Pope Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until his resignation on 28 February 2013. Benedict's election as p ...

at his residence in Castelgandolfo and then also met with

Cardinal Secretary of State The Secretary of State of His Holiness (; ), also known as the Cardinal Secretary of State or the Vatican Secretary of State, presides over the Secretariat of State of the Holy See, the oldest and most important dicastery of the Roman Curia. Th ...

Tarcisio Bertone Tarcisio Pietro Evasio Bertone (born 2 December 1934) is an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church and a Vatican City, Vatican diplomat. A Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinal since 2003, he served as Archbishop of Vercelli from 1991 to 1995, as S ...

and Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, the Holy See's Secretary for Relations with States. Earlier contacts at a similar level included that between President Musharraf and

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

on 30 September 2004. In February 1981, Pope John Paul II met the President of Pakistan during his visit to that country. Minister for Minorities Affairs Shahbaz Bhatti met Vatican Foreign Minister Archbishop Dominique Mamberti at the Apostolic Palace in September 2010 following the

2010 Pakistan floods The floods in Pakistan began in late July 2010, resulting from heavy monsoon rains in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, Punjab (Pakistani province), Punjab and, Balochistan, Pakistan, Balochistan regions of Pakistan, which affected the Indus Riv ...

. The President of the

Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue The Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, previously named the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID), is a dicastery of the Roman Curia, erected by Pope Paul VI on 19 May 1964 as the Secretariat for Non-Christians, and renamed by ...

, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran visited Pakistan in November 2010 and held meetings with Minister for Religious Minorities, Shahbaz Bhatti, and the President of Pakistan

Controversy

Pope Benedict has called for the scrapping of Pakistan's controversial

blasphemy law A blasphemy law is a law prohibiting blasphemy, which is the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of Reverence (attitude), reverence to a deity, or sacred objects, or toward something considered sacred or inviolable. According to Pew Re ...

. Thousands of protesters from various religious parties protested against the Pope's remarks and against any change to the blasphemy law. Hafiz Hussain Ahmed, a leader of the religious party

Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan also known the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam or simply as Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (F) (; ; JUI (F)) is an Islamic fundamentalist political party in Pakistan. Established as the ''Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam'' in 1945, it is th ...

regarded Pope Benedict's statement as an "interference in Pakistan's internal matters." Whereas the then Pakistan Prime Minister,

Yousaf Raza Gillani Yusuf Raza Gilani (born 9 June 1952) is a Pakistani politician who served as the 16th prime minister of Pakistan from 2008 to 2012. He is currently serving as the Chairman of the Senate of Pakistan since 2024. Chairman Gilani served as the acti ...

, stated that the blasphemy law "is our law and we will work according to our law."

Militancy

According to Wikileaks cables, the Holy See viewed Pakistan as "an unreliable coalition player" and doubted the government's willingness and sincerity to effectively take part in counter-terrorism efforts soon after the 9/11 incident. The cables verified an increasingly strained relationship between the Vatican and Pakistan.

References

External links

Pakistan (nunciature)Pope only wants inter-faith harmony, Pakistani bishops say
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holy See-Pakistan relations

Bilateral relations of Pakistan

Bilateral visits

Controversy

Militancy

See also

References

External links