The Punjab government has introduced the Christian Marriage Act Bill 2026, proposing significant amendments to the Christian Marriage Act 1872 after more than 150 years. In this proposal, the age limit will be a minimum of 18 years for both males and females to become husband and wife. Considering the special interest of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz in the welfare of the Christian community, the proposed Christian Marriage Act has been prepared. The proposed bill has been submitted in the Punjab Assembly as a private member bill by Chairman Standing Committee on Minority Affairs, Phulobus Christopher.
The honorable private representative submitting this bill very cleverly ignored the main problem of minorities: that minor girls and women are kidnapped and, after forced conversion, are married. They are privately converted, a conversion procedure is adopted only to legalize their possession, and these girls and women are trapped in a sex trade. The honorable private representative of this bill should place an extension bill demanding capital punishment for the kidnappers. Kidnapped conversion should be treated as coercion and should not be recognized by social and religious institutions or by the government. The handlers should be punished. From kidnapping, conversion, and marriage procedures to court hearings, all officials, from police to judges, who play a role in violating minority social, family, and religious tolerance should be punished. Because the duty of the police is to stop kidnapping, and the duty of the judge is to decide cases under Pakistan Penal Code, a judge may have his own religious sentiments; therefore, he should not neglect this duty if he is to remain upright.
Every person born in Pakistan should be treated equally as a Pakistani citizen. It may be that for most people this means only women, land, and gold, but if this is the case, how can you protect your women, land, and wealth? You cannot beg to keep them; you should be strong enough to protect them yourself. To protect them, you should have the courage to fight for them. This example was demonstrated thousands of years ago when the daughter of the Prophet Jacob was humiliated and abducted by a Palestinian man. In those days, non-believers were known to the Hebrews as Palestinians. So two sons of the Prophet Jacob, Simeon and Levi, entered the city and killed every man there, then brought their sister back to their home. Seeing this, the Prophet said to his children, “You have stirred up trouble with my neighbor,” but his sons said, “Should he deal with our sister as with a harlot?” (Genesis 34:1-31). This is a demonstration or reaction of a prophet, but what has been seen many times is that whenever and wherever such incidents happen, the relatives of the abducted girl wear their best clothes, go to community leaders, officials, and now to internet media, and then, in the words of corrupt politicians such as Chaudhry Shujaat, they hold rallies and create drama or throw dust on the matter. Readers have gone to jail; in jail there are many kinds of prisoners. One type is those who have taken revenge by killing the abductors of their sisters, daughters, and mothers, even when the abductors were all Muslims in Pakistani jails. However, it is also known that Christians have killed a man with a bullet who was coming into their house to murder them, and later were told that trespassing should not have led to death because the deceased was innocent. So the father was awarded a death sentence; in the days the father met him, he was at appeal.
What Christian women living in Islamic republics should live as Muslims live, I will explain to you. “We have a little sister, and she has no breasts. What shall we do for our sister on the day she is spoken for?” The Shulamite woman’s brothers discuss their young, immature sister’s future marriage and protection. It highlights family responsibilities in protecting a young woman’s purity until she is ready for marriage. Responsibility of brothers: the brothers (father) are acting as guardians, concerned about when their sister will be mature enough for marriage. “Little sister”: “No breasts” is a metaphor representing a young girl who has not yet reached physical maturity (puberty). “Day she is spoken for”: this refers to the time when a suitor, a man equal to your family religion, girl age, and acceptable to you, would ask for her hand in marriage. Verse 9 says that if she is a wall, we will build upon her a palace of silver; if she is a door, we will enclose her with boards of cedar. The brothers’ attitude toward their sister is very strict. They clearly say that their sister is not a wall, neither door, and not responsible for herself. The brother says that if she is a wall, we will build a silver palace on it; every body knows how to watch the treasure on the wall; and if she is a door, very clearly means to watch her coming and going out of the house.
Very simply and plainly it has been told that when you have girls in your house, watch them. It has been said that if you live with Muslims, live like Muslims. Do not allow any stranger to enter your house. See your Muslim neighbors: they do not allow even their nearest relatives into the area where their daughters live. If you have any kind of business, do it outside your family premises. Your daughter, your sister, your wife need watch, and as a pastor it is said very openly that no one should allow any body to be in loneliness with your females, even your pastors. You should watch your family, avenge yourself, teach other people good examples, do some things yourself, do not keep for CCP Punjab Police. The prophet’s example has been given. Teach your children God’s law and government law, pray together, control television and hand phones, and do not let lights come out of your children’s blanket. Teach your daughter that you are the mother of your Christian children. If some child girl or boy goes out of your control, stop him or her. If they obey you and God’s holy will, treat them well; if not, treat them as strangers, do not give them food, and never weep on such children. Why, at 5:30 a.m., should your daughter go out of your house?
Remember, kidnapping girls is a very old business. They convert them not to increase their population, but only after legalizing it through the adopted procedure so that police and judges share the matter. Otherwise, before the presence of the Marriage Act, preventing marriage under 18 years, and conversion, the accused were not punished. This is happening around the world. The main reason is that local Christian politicians, at the time they voted for Pakistan, did not make any deal with Muslim leaders. So they had only one demand: “Please give us ministry.” These visits were given deputy assistant ministry, so you have to depend and do it yourself. Watch your woman and your household. May Jesus Christ bless every daughter, Muslim or Christian, Hindu, or of any religion, with respect and
protection.
Society, country, religion: man as husband, father, and son, and woman as wife, mother, and daughter are the basic units of any human society. Every civilized society has solid norms to safeguard rights and duties. The basic unit of society is the family, and every family has its own values, which are adopted from its culture and finalized by its religion, law, and rituals. A family is planted when a man and woman join together to live as husband and wife, to bring them together. Family culture and religion play a vital role, although in olden times family elders used to arrange the marriage of the new couple. But in this age, even when couples join together, it is considered safe that in any case, by self or by family, religious and cultural norms should be kept in front. The most important thing is considered religion because a man or woman who is nourished and brought up in the atmosphere of their own religion, reasonably of the same age, because old age is always a danger that the elder life partner will leave earlier, religion is very important for a woman in marriage because the woman has to leave her parent house and live with her husband in his house. Religion is a way of life, the basic formula of “Two Nations Theory.”
Christian marriage in Pakistan is governed by the Christian Marriage Act of 1872, which regulates marriage solemnization, and the Divorce Act of 1869, which governs divorce. The Christian Marriage (Amendment) Act 2024 raised the minimum age of marriage to 18 for both men and women, aiming to protect minors from early or forced marriage. The 2024 amendment updated the 1872 Act, which previously allowed girls to marry at 13 and boys at 16, to a uniform 18 years. Marriage can be solemnized by a person licensed under the Act, including priests, ministers, or
marriage registrars. Despite the 2024 amendments, cases still arise involving forced conversions, underage marriages, and often forged documents to bypass the law. The Divorce Act of 1869 governs divorce, which can be granted on grounds such as adultery or cruelty. Recent legal trends have acknowledged that separation for over two years can be a valid ground for dissolution. Marriage certificates are recognized by the National Database and Registration Authority, NADRA. Concerns remain among community leaders regarding the implementation of the law and the protection of minor girls from abduction and forced conversion.
The law of God applied regarding nearest relatives is the Kinsman Redeemer law (Go’el), combined with levirate marriage, found in Leviticus 25:25-55 and Deuteronomy 25:5-10. This law required the nearest male relative to buy back sold family land, redeem family members from poverty, and marry a childless widow to preserve the deceased name and inheritance. When a man died without children, his brother, or nearest relative, was to marry the widow. The first son born would inherit the deceased’s name and property, ensuring the lineage did not perish. The nearest relative was responsible for purchasing land a family member was forced to sell due to poverty, keeping it within the family clan. The kinsman redeemer was a qualified relative willing and able to pay the cost of redemption. These rules were designed to provide social security and inheritance protection to widows and poor families.