The National Catholic Register portal reports that on June 12, 2026, the Punjab Board of Revenue seized Ewing Hall, a century-old building belonging to Forman Christian College University (FCCU) in Lahore, Pakistan. The government claims the lease expired and cites unpaid dues totaling 107.79 million rupees (approximately $387,000) dating back to 1975, asserting the property was not used for educational purposes since 2015. FCCU Rector Jonathan Addleton called the action a “forcible takeover,” noting the lease had been renewed into the 2040s and that the university was given only 24 hours to vacate. Christian leaders, including Pastor Reuben Qamar and Nasir William of Minority Forum Pakistan, condemned the seizure as a violation of minority rights and a troubling signal to all minority institutions. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan also expressed concern over transparency and due process. This act of state-sponsored expropriation against a Christian educational institution is not an isolated incident but a symptom of the systemic persecution of the Church in Islamic states, a reality the post-conciliar sect refuses to confront with the doctrinal clarity demanded by the Social Reign of Christ the King.
The Theft of Sacred and Educational Property: A Violation of Divine and Natural Law
The seizure of Ewing Hall by the Punjab government is an act of theft, plain and simple. It violates the Eighth Commandment, “Thou shalt not steal” (Exodus 20:15), and the natural law principle of private property, which the Church has consistently defended. Pope Leo XIII, in his encyclical Rerum Novarum (1891), unequivocally stated: “The right to possess private property is derived from nature, not from man; and the State has only the right to regulate its use in the interests of the public good, but by no means to absorb it altogether.” The Pakistani government’s claim of “outstanding lease liabilities” dating back decades, particularly during a period of nationalization when the building was under government possession, is a fabricated pretext for expropriation. This is not a legitimate exercise of state power but an act of injustice against a religious minority.
The Church has always taught that the State’s authority is not absolute but derived from God. As Pope Pius XI declared in Quas Primas (1925), “The State is happy not by one means, and man by another; for the state is nothing else than a harmonious association of men.” When a state acts against the natural law and divine commandments, it acts illegitimately. The seizure of Ewing Hall, a property dedicated to education and the service of the Christian community, is a direct assault on the common good and the rights of the Church to carry out her mission.
The Persecution of the Church in Islamic States: A Doctrinal Reality Ignored
This incident in Pakistan is not an anomaly but a recurring pattern of persecution against Christians in Islamic states. The Church has always taught that error has no rights, and that the Catholic religion is the only true religion. Pope Pius IX, in the Syllabus of Errors (1864), condemned the proposition that “every man is free to embrace and profess that religion which, guided by the light of reason, he shall consider true” (Proposition 15), and that “man may, in the observance of any religion whatever, find the way of eternal salvation” (Proposition 16). Islam, a false religion, has no right to exist, and states founded on Islamic law (Sharia) are inherently unjust when they persecute the true Faith.
The post-conciliar sect, with its false ecumenism and religious liberty as proclaimed in Dignitatis Humanae (Vatican II), has abandoned this doctrinal clarity. It refuses to name Islam as a false religion or to condemn Islamic persecution with the vigor demanded by the Faith. Instead, it speaks of “dialogue” and “mutual respect,” effectively betraying the martyrs and suffering Christians in Pakistan and elsewhere. The conciliar sect’s silence on the true nature of Islam is a betrayal of the Church’s mission and a denial of the Social Reign of Christ the King.
The Failure of the Conciliar Sect to Defend the Church
The response of the post-conciliar sect to such persecution is woefully inadequate. Instead of condemning the Pakistani government in the strongest terms and demanding the immediate return of Ewing Hall, the conciliar sect offers platitudes about “human rights” and “dialogue.” This is the fruit of Vatican II’s Dignitatis Humanae, which proclaimed the false doctrine of religious liberty, a direct contradiction of the constant teaching of the Church. Pope Leo XIII, in Immortale Dei (1885), stated: “The Almighty, therefore, has given the charge of the human race to two powers, the ecclesiastical and the civil, the one being set over divine, and the other over human, each the highest in its own kind, and each fixed within limits which are defined by its particular nature and special object.” The conciliar sect has surrendered the Church’s rights to the secular state, leaving Christians defenseless against persecution.
The conciliar sect’s focus on “interfaith dialogue” and “ecumenism” has blinded it to the reality of persecution. It refuses to see that Islam is inherently hostile to the Catholic Faith and that states like Pakistan will never grant true religious freedom. The seizure of Ewing Hall is a direct consequence of the conciliar sect’s abandonment of the Church’s missionary mandate and her claim to be the only true religion.
The Historical Context: Nationalization and Betrayal
The history of Forman Christian College is a microcosm of the Church’s struggle in the modern world. Founded in 1864 by American Presbyterian missionaries, FCCU was nationalized in 1972 under Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, a socialist who sought to bring all educational institutions under state control. The return of FCCU to Presbyterian management in 2003 was a rare victory, but the current seizure shows that the state’s appetite for control is insatiable.
The conciliar sect, with its embrace of religious liberty and separation of Church and State, has no answer to this. It has abandoned the Church’s right to own property and to operate institutions in accordance with her own laws. The result is that Christian institutions are at the mercy of hostile governments, with no recourse to the Church’s own legal and doctrinal principles.
The Call to Action: Restore Christ the King’s Reign
The seizure of Ewing Hall is a call to action for all faithful Catholics. We must reject the false doctrines of the conciliar sect and return to the unchanging teaching of the Church. We must demand that the Pakistani government return Ewing Hall to Forman Christian College and cease its persecution of Christians. We must pray for the conversion of Pakistan and all Islamic states to the true Faith.
Above all, we must work for the restoration of the Social Reign of Christ the King over all nations. As Pope Pius XI declared in Quas Primas, “The Kingdom of our Redeemer encompasses all men… the entire human race is subject to the authority of Jesus Christ.” Until Christ is recognized as King of Pakistan, and of all nations, there will be no justice for Christians or any other persecuted group.
The conciliar sect has failed the Church. It is up to the faithful to uphold the true Faith and to defend the rights of Christ the King against all enemies, both within and without the Church.
Source:
Pakistan Government Takes Over Historic Christian College Building in Lahore (ncregister.com)
Date: 15.06.2026