"Most of my friends know that I am a Christian," he said. "I have many friends who are mullahs and maulvis.

"Some of them say they like me more these days. Before I was a liar, I was cheating people and many other things. I don't do that now."

The reasons for conversion in such a potentially hostile environment are of course varied and personal.

I also met one British Christian with longstanding links to the Afghan Christian underground, although not linked to the Afghan Christian interviewed for this article.


The British man argues that the actions of political groups during Afghanistan's civil war years and the harsh doctrine of the Taleban were factors in the conversion of some Afghans.

"There is much disillusionment," he says. "People used to look to communism, now they look increasingly to Christianity."

The British man added that the compassionate actions of Christian-based aid agencies during the civil war and Taleban era in Afghanistan had impressed many Afghans. He denied that any aid agencies were involved in proselytization.

The Afghan Christian interviewed by the BBC was quick to point out that his own conversion took place before Afghanistan's civil war began. And he was also keen to stress his respect for Islam and Islamic beliefs.

In Pakistan, Christians have pointed to the 1935 discovery of the so-called Taxila Cross, an apparent Christian symbol from the 2nd Century, as evidence to support accounts that St Thomas established a Christian community in South Asia