Reports of a recent dispute in the Church of Pakistan (CoP) about a regional bishop’s authority to appoint a successor without the involvement of the national leadership has revealed serious tensions that once again tear at the unity of the largest Protestant denomination in the country.
In March 2024, Christian Daily International reported about a significant turn of events as the CoP seemed to emerge from years of division and legal battles to reunite its fractured ranks, raising hope for a stronger, more cohesive denomination. Earlier this month, however, the attempt of a diocesan bishop to sideline the Synod and conduct an election of a coadjutor bishop raised concerns about renewed rifts, Christian Daily International learned.
The issue first emerged after the Peshawar Diocese, one of eight dioceses in the CoP, announced on Nov. 25, 2024, that it would hold the election for its coadjutor bishop – traditionally held one year before the retirement of the incumbent – on Jan. 17.
The diocese argued that filling the successor position would pave the way for a smooth transition after the current diocesan bishop, Humphrey Sarfraz Peters, reaches his retirement age on Jan. 26, 2026. Peters himself is a member of the Synod as the eight diocesan bishops form the national leadership of the CoP.
Peters then followed up with a letter to all diocesan bishops and Synod members on Jan. 4 questioning their authority over elections and claiming diocesan autonomy. He argued that the term of the Triennial Synod of the Church of Pakistan had officially expired in May 2024, three years after the previous election was held.
According to Peters, the absence of a proper mandate meant that “the executive committee, commissions and committees [became] defunct bodies whose decisions carry no legal or constitutional binding on the dioceses.” Only an interim body of the Synod could prepare for the election with the coordination of the concerned diocesan council, he said.
Peters also demanded of President Bishop Azad Marshall that he and the Synod should mend relations with the Diocese of Lahore, which were severed after a separate dispute about a constitutional matter. The regional body proceeded to elect a diocesan bishop in defiance of the Synod in January 2023.
Following Peters’ letter, Marshall summoned a meeting of the Synod’s executive committee on Jan. 6 to discuss the apparent attempt to undermine the Synod’s authority. Issuing a resolution refuting Peters’ arguments, the committee stated that the diocese would violate the CoP’s constitution and the election rules for bishops if it went ahead without the authorization of the moderator bishop and the Synod.
The resolution, which was signed by five bishops and other officers of the Synod’s executive committee, warned that “such rebellious, anti-church acts shall be met with the full force of the law for which the Synod of Church of Pakistan reserves all rights.”
The committee argued that a special meeting of the Synod on May 10-11, 2023, had rightly interpreted the relevant clauses of the CoP constitution according to which the Synod and all its affiliated bodies, including the executive committee, shall continue until the close of the next triennial meeting with all powers and authority.
It also accused Peters of “sabotaging” the May 2024 triennial meeting by misquoting two other diocesan bishops that they would not participate in the meeting.
The committee went on to point out that Peters’ arguments contradicted his own actions when he served as the moderator from May 2017 to May 2021, as the Synod and its affiliated bodies had remained intact even though its constitutional term had technically expired in May 2020.
“Several meetings, including the elections of the diocesan bishop of Karachi and Balochistan were held under your moderatorship which were in accordance with the constitution of the Church of Pakistan,” the committee stated in its response.
It also rejected Peters’ claim that the dioceses were autonomous, stressing that based on the CoP constitution, the Synod was the “supreme, supervisory and legislative body of the Church of Pakistan.”
On his stance regarding the status of the Diocese of Lahore, the executive committee pointed to Peters’ contradictory position. On one hand, Peters had opposed the “unconstitutional and illegal election” of Lahore’s Bishop Nadeem Kamran, while at the same time maintaining contact with the diocese, encouraging them to stay away from the reconciliation process, the committee commented.
‘Two wrongs can’t make a right’
In a rejoinder to the Synod’s executive committee on Jan. 13, Peters retained a defiant posture warning that previous instances of political interference by the Synod had compromised the integrity of the constitution.
“As a founding stakeholder, the Diocese of Peshawar will not participate in any unconstitutional and unlawful activities,” he wrote in his letter, a copy of which is available with Christian Daily International.
Rejecting the Synod’s interpretation of the constitution as “invalid”, Bishop Peters termed it an “illegal and unjustifiable addition to the constitution.”
“Two wrongs cannot make a right, and an ongoing sin must be stopped at some point. As a founding stakeholder of the Union of CoP, the Diocese of Peshawar will firmly oppose any such manipulations,” he stated, alleging that the past three and a half years had witnessed “significant moral, spiritual, and constitutional decay within the Church of Pakistan.”
Intervention by Synod effectively blocked election
Peters was all set to conduct the election on Jan. 17 with the support of the Deputy Moderator, Bishop of Hyderabad Kaleem John if it hadn’t been for the Synod’s timely intervention, which effectively blocked his move, Christian Daily International has learnt.
“A sitting bishop must officiate the election as per the election rules and Bishop Peters thought he could pull it off successfully with the help of the deputy moderator,” said a source in the Synod, requesting anonymity.
According to the source, Peters’ move was thwarted after Marshall and four other bishops along with other members of the Synod executive committee reached Peshawar on Jan. 15 and held separate meetings with Peters and some members of the Peshawar Diocese who are reportedly opposed to the diocesan bishop.
“Meanwhile the Synod secretary, Shahzad Khurrum, filed an application in the office of the Registrar Joint Stock Companies warning that any move by the Peshawar Diocese to conduct an election without the Synod’s involvement would be unconstitutional and illegal, and must not be registered by the authority,” the source said.
The source added that the pressure from the Synod and some diocesan officials forced Peters to postpone the announced election.
“A three-point agreement between the Synod and Bishop Peters states that the election for the Peshawar coadjutor bishop will be held in accordance with the constitutions of the Church of Pakistan and Diocese of Peshawar.
“It was also reaffirmed that no party will make the agreement public and that the thorny issues would be discussed in the Bishops Council meeting to be held on Feb. 15,” the source said, adding that the date for the coadjutor bishop’s election would be announced with consensus after the meeting.
The source claimed that though Peters had repeatedly raised the matter of the Diocese of Lahore in his correspondence with the Synod, there was no mention of it in the agreement.
“Though Bishop Peters hasn’t explicitly expressed this, some Synod members are of the opinion that the bishop wanted an extension in his term by pressing the Synod to increase the retirement age from 73 to 75,” the source said, claiming that the threat to follow in the footsteps of the Diocese of Lahore by sidelining the Synod in the election process was a “pressure tactic” that had failed, at least for now.
Christian Daily International reached out to CoP Moderator Bishop Azad Marshall for comment but did not receive a response.
Synod’s Secretary General Shahzad Khurrum told Christian Daily International that the Synod hoped that the Diocese of Peshawar would adhere to the constitution of the Church of Pakistan and would abstain from conducting an illegal election of the coadjutor bishop.
On the issue of extension in retirement age, Khurrum said that Bishop Peters had reached the retirement age of 70 on January 26, 2023, but in its special meeting held on May 10-11, 2023, the Synod had approved enhancing the retirement age from 70 to 73.
“Though some members had opposed the enhancement in the retirement age, the Synod went ahead with the proposal and also approved an extension in Bishop Peters’ term with retrospective effect which enabled the diocesan bishop to continue in office till Jan. 26, 2026,” he said.
Regarding the issue of reconciliation with the Diocese of Lahore, Khurrum said that the Synod had already formed a committee to negotiate with the diocese.
“We are open to dialogue because we want to save the church union. Linking the reconciliation process with the Peshawar diocesan election is unfair because Bishop Peters had himself opposed the manner in which the Diocese of Lahore had deviated from the constitution and elected its bishop,” he stressed.
‘Synod disrupting diocesan affairs’
Speaking to Christian Daily International, Bishop Peters alleged that the current Synod had caused significant disruptions across the dioceses by interfering in their affairs.
“The Peshawar Diocese remains committed to operating within the constitution of the Church of Pakistan, but we are very clear that we will not allow any unconstitutional action,” he said.
Denying that he was seeking an extension in the retirement age, Peters said that he opposed any such move. “It’s time to give the younger bishops and pastors an opportunity to grow and I will stand by my commitment. This system of enhancing the terms must end now,” he emphasized.
Peters said that he had repeatedly urged the Church of Pakistan to establish a Reconciliation and Inquiry Committee to promote church unity and engage the Diocese of Lahore. “However, my requests have been ignored,” he added.
“During my talks with the Synod, I urged them to engage the Diocese of Lahore and pave the path for reconciliation, unity, and the betterment of the Church in Pakistan,” he said, expressing his desire to see the Lahore diocese participating in the election for the coadjutor bishop of Peshawar.
He said that his diocese had decided to postpone the Jan. 17 election in the larger interest of the church. “Our pastors were unhappy with the manner in which the Synod members had arrived in Peshawar and the situation could have turned ugly if I had not persuaded them to control their emotions,” he said.
The Church of Pakistan union was established on Nov. 1, 1970, with the merger of the Anglican Communion of Pakistan, the Methodist Church in Pakistan, the United Church of Pakistan, and the Pakistani Lutheran Church. The CoP currently comprises eight dioceses, including the Diocese of Lahore, the Diocese of Raiwand, the Diocese of Peshawar, the Diocese of Karachi & Balochistan, the Diocese of Hyderabad, the Diocese of Multan, the Diocese of Sialkot, and the Diocese of Faisalabad.
