Among the many ministerial initiatives developed and administered by Dominican Laity throughout the world is the Gharo Mission to the Parkari Hindu Tribal community, located 68 km from Karachi, Sindh Province, in Pakistan.
The mission is administered by Mr. Anwar Daniel, OP, President of the St. Dominic Lay Dominican Fraternity in Karachi, in collaboration with brothers and sisters of his Lay Fraternity, as well as a local Dominican Youth group led by the local DYM President, Miss Philomena Riaz. The mission is also served liturgically and sacramentally by the friars, including the local student brother community, of the Ibn-e-Miriam Vice-Province of Pakistan.
The Gharo Mission provides the local Parkari community with faith formation, sacraments, seminars, a primary school built and operated by the Lay Fraternity to provide primary education for local children, and medical camps that offer needed healthcare. The mission must continually seek donor agencies and personnel to continue its work, as inflation and economic crisis present ongoing challenges.
The Gharo Mission is but one example of Lay Dominican-led ministerial initiatives making a concrete difference for otherwise marginalized communities, and an example of what becomes possible when Lay Fraternities, DYM groups, friars and other branches of the Dominican Family collaborate on pastoral projects.
