A MINISTER who publicly forgave the perpetrators of a terrorist attack that killed his mother and four other close relatives, will become the first person born in South Asia to be installed as a Presbytery Moderator.

Rev Aftab Gohar, who is originally from Pakistan, said he was “honoured and humbled” to have been chosen to be the Church of Scotland’s figurehead in Falkirk and district for the next 12 months.

His installation tonight will also make history, as it is among the first to be live streamed on video conferencing platform, Zoom due to the 
current closure of churches.

The 52-year-old minister has served Abbotsgrange Parish Church in Grangemouth since 2008 and he and his wife Samina and their two sons, Shahan, 24, and Zeeshan, 22, are now British citizens.

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In a separate service, Rev William Wilson, of Burnside Blairbeth Church, was installed as the new Moderator of the Presbytery of Glasgow.

Mr Gohar said: “It is a great opportunity and I am feeling very honoured and humbled.”

The minister grew up in Peshawar and was ordinated into the Church of Pakistan in 1995.

He first came to Scotland to study at the University of Edinburgh for a year in 1998-99 and returned again to work as full-time Kirk minister in 2008.

Mr Gohar suffered heartache in 2013 when his 79-year-old mother, nephew, niece, two uncles and other friends and relatives were among 122 people killed in a terrorist attack at their Christian church in Peshawar.

Speaking shortly after the atrocity, he said what the terrorists did was wrong but he forgave them and prayed that they would learn that it was not right to kill innocent people.

Mr Gohar said he was taking up the role of Presbytery Moderator at an interesting time for the church amid the Covid-19 pandemic, which has led to the temporary closure of buildings.

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He said: “Almost all churches in Falkirk Presbytery are providing online worship for their congregations and the three churches in Grangemouth have provided a united service for the last 12 weeks.

“We are all doing daily reflections and Bible studies and reaching out to people who did not go to church before or had stopped going.

“The online engagement has been good and shows that people are very invested in what we are providing during these uncertain times.

“Once lockdown has eased, we will be a different church but we know that different denominations of churches around the world are in the same position – we are all in it together.”

Mr Gohar is succeeding Rev Dr Mary Henderson who is also retiring as the minister of Lauriston with Redding and Westquarter Churches.