Lahore, Pakistan: LEAD Ministries has welcomed Saudi Arabia's ongoing reforms to its school curriculum, describing the reported removal of material identified as antisemitic, discriminatory and extremist as an encouraging step toward greater tolerance, peaceful coexistence and respect for human dignity.
LEAD Ministries is urging Pakistan
to undertake a comprehensive and transparent review of its school textbooks,
madrassa curricula and other educational materials to ensure that content
promoting hatred, discrimination, hostility or violence against Christians,
Jews or any other religious community is removed or appropriately revised.
The call follows the July 2026
review by the Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School
Education (IMPACT-se), which examined 136 Saudi textbooks used during the
2024–25 and 2025–26 academic years. The review identified continued movement
toward greater moderation and openness, reporting that many previously
identified hateful, discriminatory and extremist themes have been reduced or
eliminated. It also found greater emphasis in newer material on tolerance,
coexistence, critical thinking, respect for diversity and opposition to
extremism.
The review also identified
significant changes in the treatment of religious minorities. Among the
examples cited by IMPACT-se, material that compared Jews and Christians to
“maimed” animals was reportedly removed, along with material previously
identified as portraying Jews in a hostile manner. The review also reports
changes in material concerning Shi'a Muslims and Sufis, including the removal
of content portraying them as inherently evil or idolatrous.
LEAD Ministries said these
developments demonstrate that educational reform can play an important role in
building societies based on tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
“Education should build peace and
understanding, not teach children to regard people of another faith as
enemies.”
LEAD Ministries Urges Pakistan to
Follow the Same Principle
LEAD Ministries has called for an
independent and transparent review of Pakistani school textbooks, madrassa
curricula and other educational materials to identify language, narratives or
interpretations that may encourage religious hatred, discrimination or
violence.
The organization said particular
attention should be given to the portrayal of religious minorities, including
Christians and Jews, while emphasizing that the same standard must apply to
every religious and ethnic community.
“Pakistan should follow the same
principle. If our objective is a peaceful society, we must ensure that children
are not educated to view another religious community collectively as inferior,
dangerous or deserving of hostility.”
Concerns about religious bias in
Pakistan’s education system are longstanding. The U.S. Commission on
International Religious Freedom has documented concerns regarding religious
bias in Pakistani public-school textbooks and the treatment of religious
minorities in education.
LEAD Ministries said curriculum
reform should be viewed as an effort to strengthen equal citizenship and social
cohesion rather than as an attack on religion.
Pastor Imran Amanat: Faith Must Not
Become a Source of Hatred
Pastor Imran Amanat, a leader of
LEAD Ministries, said people in many parts of the world continue to suffer when
religious identity is exploited to create division, prejudice and hostility.
“We have witnessed how individuals
who use religion to promote hatred against people of other faiths can cause
immense suffering and division in society.”
Amanat noted that Christians in
many parts of the world continue to face discrimination, restrictions on
religious freedom and, in some cases, persecution because of their religious
identity.
“Faith should be a source of
compassion, peace and hope—not a justification for hatred, discrimination or
violence against others.”
He called for greater
responsibility among religious leaders, educators and public figures in the way
they speak about other faith communities.
Religious differences, he said,
should be addressed through dialogue, education and mutual respect rather than
language that encourages communities to fear or hate one another.
Religious Freedom Must Be Equal and
Universal
LEAD Ministries emphasized that
curriculum reform should not be understood as a call to prohibit religious
scholarship or the study of sacred texts.
“Muslims must have the freedom to
study and discuss the Quran and Hadith, just as Christians, Jews and members of
other faiths must have the freedom to study and teach their own scriptures.”
“The issue is not the existence of
a religious text. The issue is how religious authority is used. No scholar,
teacher, preacher or religious leader should use sacred texts as a
justification for hatred, discrimination or violence against another community.”
LEAD Ministries said this principle
should apply equally to religious leaders and educators of all faiths.
Legitimate theological
disagreement, historical discussion and religious scholarship should be
distinguished from incitement against a religious or ethnic community, the
organization said.
LEAD Ministries welcomed Saudi
Arabia’s curriculum reforms while also calling for greater religious freedom
for Christians and other religious minorities throughout the Middle East,
particularly in Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
The organization said religious
freedom should be understood as a universal principle. Where Muslim minorities
are permitted to establish places of worship and practice their faith,
Christian and other religious minorities should likewise be afforded meaningful
opportunities to establish places of worship, gather and practice their faith.
According to the U.S. Commission on
International Religious Freedom, Saudi Arabia continues to impose severe
restrictions on the public practice of religions other than Islam. LEAD
Ministries said educational reform and religious freedom should therefore
advance together.
“Religious freedom should not
depend on which country a person lives in or which faith they follow. The
standard should be equal for Muslims, Christians, Jews and people of every
faith.”
Religious Teaching and Public
Responsibility
LEAD Ministries also called for
responsible teaching by religious scholars, teachers, preachers and khateebs,
particularly where interpretations of religious texts could be used to
encourage hostility toward other communities.
The organization said religious
freedom and social responsibility should go hand in hand.
“People should be free to believe,
worship, teach and discuss their faith. But religious authority should never be
used to promote hatred, discrimination or violence against another community.”
LEAD Ministries argued that
Pakistan’s efforts to combat extremism should therefore extend beyond security
measures and include education, religious institutions and public discourse.
Pakistan Must Address Extremism at
Every Level
LEAD Ministries said reform should
not stop with school textbooks.
The organization called for a
broader national effort involving schools, universities, madrassas, mosques,
religious seminaries, media and social-media platforms.
“If Pakistan genuinely wants to
establish lasting peace in its society, it cannot address extremism only
through policing and security measures. The ideas and narratives that promote
hatred must also be confronted through education and responsible religious
leadership.”
LEAD Ministries said Pakistan’s
existing counter-extremism commitments should be implemented consistently while
protecting freedom of religion and legitimate religious expression.
The organization said education
should be treated as a central component of preventing the development and
spread of extremist narratives.
Education Should Not Become a
Source of Division
LEAD Ministries stressed that the
objective of curriculum reform should not be to remove religion from education
or prevent legitimate discussion of history, theology or religious traditions.
“Religion is an important part of
the lives and history of millions of Pakistanis. The objective should be to
ensure that religious education does not become a means of teaching hatred
toward fellow citizens.”
Children, the organization said,
should be able to learn about religious differences, historical conflicts and
competing theological viewpoints without being encouraged to inherit hostility
toward entire communities.
“Children can learn about Islam,
Christianity, Judaism and other religions without being taught to hate the
people who follow them.”
Addressing Jihadist Terrorism and
Violent Extremism
LEAD Ministries also called for
careful review of educational and religious material that glorifies or
legitimizes jihadist terrorism and violent extremism.
Students should be taught about
terrorism, its causes and its consequences rather than exposed to messages that
romanticize violence or portray attacks against civilians or religious
minorities as religiously justified, the organization said.
“Islam should not be equated with
terrorism, and Muslims as a whole should not be blamed for the actions of
extremists. At the same time, any ideology or interpretation—religious or
otherwise—that is used to justify terrorism and violence must be challenged.”
LEAD Ministries noted that the
latest IMPACT-se review reports continued changes in Saudi textbooks concerning
jihad and martyrdom, including the removal of content glorifying death in
battle, stronger emphasis on protections for civilians during armed conflict
and explicit condemnation of Islamic extremism. The review also reports that
groups including ISIS and al-Qaeda are identified in the curriculum as
terrorist or extremist organizations.
A Human-Rights Approach
LEAD Ministries said the most
effective reform would be based on universal principles rather than targeting
one particular religion.
“The standard should be the same
for everyone. If a Muslim scholar incites hatred against Christians or Jews,
that should be addressed. If a Christian, Jewish or other religious leader
incites hatred against Muslims or another community, that should also be
addressed.”
Such an approach, the organization
said, would protect both religious freedom and the rights of religious
minorities.
People should remain free to
practice their faith, engage in theological debate and teach their religious
traditions, LEAD Ministries said, while society should reject incitement to
discrimination, hostility or violence.
Saudi Reforms Show That Change Is
Possible
LEAD Ministries said Saudi Arabia’s
curriculum reforms demonstrate that educational systems can change and that
governments can reassess material inherited from previous generations.
The July 2026 IMPACT-se assessment
describes continued moderation in Saudi educational materials while also
identifying areas where concerns remain. The report examines 136 textbooks
across the 2024–25 and 2025–26 academic years and documents changes involving
religious minorities, extremism, coexistence and other sensitive subjects.
LEAD Ministries said Pakistan
should approach curriculum reform as an ongoing process rather than a one-time
exercise.
“Removing religious hatred from
education is not an attack on religion. It is an investment in peace.”
A Step Toward National and Global
Peace
LEAD Ministries urged Pakistan to
use education as a foundation for social harmony, equal citizenship and respect
for religious diversity.
“Children should learn faith
without hatred, history without collective blame, and religious differences
without hostility.”
“Pakistan has the opportunity to
demonstrate that religious freedom and respect for human dignity can exist
together. If we can remove messages that promote hatred and replace them with
education that encourages tolerance, coexistence and mutual respect, it will be
a step toward peace in Pakistan and, ultimately, toward peace in the wider
world.”
LEAD Ministries said the broader
lesson from Saudi Arabia's curriculum reforms is that societies can reassess
educational material and replace narratives of hostility with messages that
encourage coexistence and respect.
The organization said lasting peace
must be cultivated in classrooms, religious institutions and communities before
it can become a lasting reality in society.


