Shabaz Aftab's family is fully engaged this Christmas and they barely have time to think about anything else but celebrating the festival. Today Shabaz and his family are very active in running the Pakistani Australian Christian Fellowship in Melbourne that was established by Shahbaz in 2004. However, life was entirely different when his Christian family arrived from Karachi, Pakistan in 1998.
Mr Aftab - a chemical engineer - was accompanied by his wife Jasmine, four-year-old son, Nile and five-year-old daughter, Abana at the time, finding themselves in a "very lonely place" and their first Christmas was very silent.
"We were missing everything at our first Australian Christmas twenty years back and we celebrated it at home in a very lonely way," he said recalling the family's first Christmas in Melbourne.
He says Christmas in Pakistan is a bit different from today's Australian Christmas.
"For example, Mid Night Christmas service is a significant part of the Pakistani Christmas celebration while it is not a normal Aussies Christmas tradition", Mr Aftab says.
Church services are a central part of Christmas morning. Pakistani Australian Christians also begin the day with prayers in the church.
Unlike in the US and Europe, Australia does not have white Christmas because it falling in the summer season. However, taking advantage of summer, Aussies do a lot of outdoor activities as part of the celebrations. Carols by Candlelight is one of the most popular events of Christmas, where people come together at night to light candles and sing Christmas carols.
Source: Supplied
While most families have Christmas lunch with their close and immediate family members, the tradition in the Pakistani Christian community is to hold the Christmas lunch with a large number of community members gathering at one place, sharing their food.
Food, food and food
Mr Aftab says he has observed a big change in Australian food and traditions in the last two decades.
"In the past, traditional roast meats and hot pudding had been a part of the Aussie Christmas spread as Australians ignored seasonal and climate-appropriate foods during those days. But in the recent years, Australians have embraced traditions more suitable to the local weather and lifestyle," he says.
"Today’s Australians are having a love affair with seafood, especially at Christmas, but Pakistanis still love their traditional spicy food such as "tandoori chicken" (Spicy chicken roasted in an oven) and "Biryani" (Rice with meat and flavored with Garam Masala i.e. mix spice and herb)."
OZ Christmas BBQ and lunch menus now include seafood, especially lobsters and fresh prawns. Outdoor activities and sports are also a big part of the Christmas holidays Image
Boxing day is not prominently celebrated in the Indian subcontinent, whereas in Australia, it is not only a day of caring for others but also a day of outdoor activities and gatherings.
The Boxing day Test at the MCG has a special place on the Australian sports calendar. Taking advantage of their summer Christmas, Australians also enjoy waterfronts with people packing for the beaches. Though the ongoing bushfire emergency may have dampened plans of some Australians over the Christmas break, most Australians still love driving. Motorways, caravan parks, motels, and other tourist attractions are busy during this time.
In the Indian subcontinent, Christians do not swap gifts in the same way as Australians do but this tradition is common among migrants as a gesture of love and harmony.
روز کریسمس در ساحل برایتون در نزدیکی ملبورن Source: Getty Images
Decoration, Santa and Christmas tree
Australian traditions have now adopted a summer Christmas but decorating the Christmas trees and taking photos with Santa is a very popular activity of Christmas season in Australia.
The Pakistani Christians traditionally don't focus much on Santa but Christmas decorations and exchanging presents are very common.
What I learned from first Australian Christmas
Mr Aftab still remembers those early days when they arrived in Australia from Pakistan and felt lonely.
"We did not have any friends, relatives or even community members to welcome us", he said.
"I still remember that our first Christmas here had overshadowed our happiness. We didn't even know church to go to," he told SBS Urdu.
"We were lonely at home and my wife cooked some food but soon we realized that we had to come out of our shells and start meeting with others."
He says after overcoming the initial feeling of "alienation and loneliness", they began meeting with people with similar backgrounds and also with fellow Pakistani citizens who were accommodating and welcoming.
Shahbaz Aftab with wife Jasmine Source: Supplied
"With the help of a like-minded Pakistani Christian fellow, I decided to establish a community church service in Melbourne in 2004 with the name of Pakistani Australian Christian Fellowship, Melbourne", Mr Aftab said.
Source: Supplied
The purpose of setting up the fellowship was to accommodate the Pakistani Christian community and to welcome new migrants.
"Today, we have a large group of the Christian community under one umbrella and the goal is to accommodate those who feel lonely and alienated on special occasions such as Christmas and we celebrate like we used to back home in Pakistan, with a big gathering, yummy food and a lot of fun."
