By Matters India Reporter
Karachi, Aug 21, 2024: Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has awarded Cardinal Joseph Coutts, Archbishop emeritus of Karachi who was born in India’s Amritsar, on the country’s 78th Independence Day.
The 79-year-old cardinal is among 104 people awarded for their contributions to the nation, licas.news reported Pak News.
Pakistan celebrates its Independence Day on August 14, a day before India’s Independence Day.
The award “Tamgha-i-Imtiaz” (medal of excellence) is given to any civilian in Pakistan in recognition of their exceptional contributions to the nation. It can also be awarded to foreign citizens who have performed great service to Pakistan, reports
Cardinal Coutts has been recognized for his efforts in fostering dialogue among various religious communities and promoting social welfare and minority rights.
His initiatives have focused on improving healthcare, education, and community well-being across Pakistan.
In his remarks, President Zardari commended Cardinal Coutts’ contributions to interfaith harmony.
“His service to humanity and his role in bringing different faiths together is an inspiration for all Pakistanis,” President Zardari said, highlighting the cardinal’s impact on peace and prosperity in the nation.
The awards ceremony is scheduled for March 23, 2025. Among other honorees were Olympic gold medalist Arshad Nadeem and the late mountaineer Murad Sadpara, who received the Sitara-i-Imtiaz posthumously for his mountaineering contributions.
Cardinal Coutts served as the archbishop of Karachi from 2012 to 2021. Earlier, he served as the bishop of Faisalabad from 1998 to 2012.
Pope Francis created Coutts a cardinal on June 28, 2018.
He was born in Amritsar, British India, now in India’s Punjab state, on July 21, 1945 in a Goan family. His father Pedro Jose Couto was from Aldona, a village in north Goa. Archbishop Anil Joseph Thomas Couto of Delhi is his first cousin.
He received his seminary training at the Christ the King seminary in Karachi and was ordained a priest in Lahore, Pakistan, on January 9, 1971.
After ordination, he completed ecclesiastical studies in Rome from 1973 to 1976 and then became professor of philosophy and sociology at Christ the King Regional Seminary, Karachi, rector of St. Mary’s Minor Seminary, Lahore, and diocesan vicar general from 1986 to 1988.[3]
On May 5, 1988, he was appointed coadjutor bishop of Hyderabad in Pakistan by Pope John Paul II and consecrated a bishop on September 16 that year. He became bishop of Hyderabad on September 1, 1990 and on June 27, 1998, he was appointed the bishop of Faisalabad.
In Faisalabad he developed ties with Muslim scholars and clerics. The Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, Germany, awarded Bishop Coutts the 2007 Shalom Prize for his commitment to interfaith dialogue in Pakistan. The award is given to people and projects working for human rights.
On January 25, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him the Karachi archbishop to succeed Archbishop Evarist Pinto.
In both Faisalabad and Karachi, he has campaigned against Pakistan’s blasphemy law, which he believes is too easily manipulated for personal attacks or to target religious minorities for insubstantial or pretended offenses.
In Karachi he has established multiple connections for inter-religious dialog between Muslims and Catholics, aiming at both acceptance by the general population and increased understanding on the part of political and religious leaders.
He was president of the Pakistan Catholic Bishops’ Conference from 2011 to 2017. He became a cardinal on June 28, 2018. He became the country’s second cardinal after Joseph Cordeiro, who was also of Goan origin.
He is a member of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue.
Pope Francis accepted his resignation on February 11, 2021.
It is a remarkable thing to notice the major role played by the Catholic Church of India in her role in the neighboring nations. St. Thomas came to India in AD 52, the first Jesuit missionary Father Xavier in 1542, how the roots of Christianity in India laid the foundation for evangelism initiated by the Indian Christians is very remarkable. The Kerala Catholic Bishops and Priests are all over India. The Kerala Protestant missionaries, especially from the Pentecostal denominations are doing evangelism in the remote areas of India. I was delighted to see the Catholic Priests from Kerala ministering in the western world by the thousands. Though Christianity is a minority religion of India, GOD did equip them for greater ministry in India and abroad. So delighted to read the good news that the Indian origin Catholic Cardinal of Pakistan is awarded by the Government of Pakistan. Hearty Congratulations and prayers.
I met him in Aldona, my ancestral village, at the 400th anniversary of the Church some 25 years ago. He told me how he had to change his name from Coutto to Couts, because in Urdu/ Hindi kooto means to make mince meat of somebody. Cardinal Ferrao of Goa is also from the same village. Quite unique to have two cardinals from the same village 👍
You are from a beautiful village of Goa. Truly, getting any chance to meet such great people in life at least once, that will be a great blessing of life for ever.