City Faith – Christ Mission Church

Source: British Library, Photo by unknown photographer

One of the oldest churches in the city. It smells of nostalgia. The stories of bygone days echo inside.

Just like rest of the churches in Karachi, there is a school adjacent to the church. The school was founded in 1846 and the church was added to the compound in 1856. The patron of the school and church was Henry Preedy, the first Collector of Karachi. The church has undergone renovations but very few amendments had been done to its structure and the facade and wooden installments are more than 150 years old by now.

The Karachi Walla was with couple of visitors. We left our shoes at the entrance and walked in. There were wooden benches on both sides of pathway and honorary tablets adorned walls on both sides. There’s a beautiful glass windows at the end right behind the rostrum. On our right was a set of musical instruments. The priest introduced us to the pianist, a veteran who has played music with Benjamin Sisters. He told us of famous Cricketers who had graduated from the Church’s school on the other side of the road. He told us that Javed Miandad used to play in the ground adjacent to the church and broke the glass windows once when he hit a six. He showed us the book of hymns which were recited during Sunday sermons and on special occasions. When we were leaving, he asked to bow our heads and prayed for us. His voice echoed through the walls while we listened to him silently with gratitude. It was a beautiful moment.