Lahore: March 30, 2017. (Fr. Inayat Bernard) We welcome you with open minds and hearts at our Markiz Bilal to offer you the iftari (breaking of fast). Pir Shafat Rasool Nuri; the head of the Markiz Bilal was talking to the 10 member religious and the lay delegation of Christians. He said that from the Markiz we wish to bring this message to the whole world that we work together about our commonalities. However to understand one another in best way it is also advisable to decipher the difference to be aware and then come to appreciate the difference or wherever possible to discover the peaceful solutions. Fr. Inayat Bernard talked about the Christian FAST basing on the Fast by Prophet Moses and Prophet Elijah and especially the 40 days fast by Jesus Christ. He said that it is a misconception by some people in our country that Christians can eat anything accept cooked in the oven. He said that fast means “not to eat or drink anything. He made a special mention that the Christian fast is composed of Almsgiving and prayer. These three together make the real fast. He said that the works of charity, fast or prayer should not to be done to impress other people but show to God. Fr. Francis Nadeem OFM Cap thanked Pir Shafat Rasool and the Muslim religious leaders and others gathered there. He said that the National Commission for Inter-religious dialogue and Ecumenism (NCIDE) is determined to bring harmony and common understanding among the religions existing in Pakistan. He continued that we work on different levels and include all faiths in Pakistan by inviting them and showing our respect and tolerance. The Muslim religious leaders included Pir Shafat Rasool Nuri, Dr. Badar Munir, Mufti Ashiq Hussain, and others while the Christian delegation included on Rev. Emmanuel Khokhar, Rev. Saleem Khokhar, Rev. I.B.Rocky, Fr. Inayat Bernard and Fr. Francis Nadeem along with the official cameramen of the NICDE Samson.