Christianity under attack
When US President Barack Obama, who made a high-profile visit to India recently, described the country as an "incredible and beautiful" place, "full of magnificent diversity", not many were surprised. But his next observation on India -- the land of multitudinous cultural, religious and social medleys -- had top government leaders in Delhi squirming in their chairs. "It's a place where, in past years, religious faiths of all types have, on occasion, been targeted by other peoples of faith, simply due to their heritage and their beliefs -- acts of intolerance that would have shocked Gandhiji, the person who helped to liberate that nation," Obama said.
The India government has not officially reacted to Obama's observations. Narendra Modi might have least expected this from Obama after walking shoulder to shoulder at Raj Path, the ceremonial boulevard in New Delhi. For many in Delhi's corridors of power, it's like alluding India is also a land of religious bigots.
Gandhiji might be turning in his grave, seeing the way the country's secular fabric is being smashed to smithereens. The Christian community has been at the receiving end for the last nine months. A bevy of crimes of hatred and desecration of holy places of worship have angered and hurt the Christian community across the country. 'Ghar wapasi' programmes (reconversion), saffronisation of education and culture, the demands for a Hindu Rashtra and desecration of holy places are again posing big challenges to the secular ethos of the nation in general and causing fear and consternation in the Christian community in particular.
Church leaders have not taken things lying down.
On February 6, 140 Latin-rite bishop who came to attend the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) in Bangalore led a candle-light rally of hundreds of priests, nuns and faithful. Fr Stephen Alathara, CCBI deputy secretary general and Fr Laurence Culas, CCBI Convener, PR Committee, said in a statement that the Church leaders decided to hold the procession to express "their anguish and concern over the threats to peace and communal harmony in the wake of "the various untoward incidents in different parts of the country." Hardly a day has passed off in recent months without reports of attacks on Christians, churches and Christian institutions from across the nation. "Churches have been torched even in the national capital while reports of ‘ghar waspsi' and blatant threats to hold mass reconversions are causing anxiety to the Christians scattered in the far corners of the nation," the CCBI statement said.
Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI), the body representing bishops from all the three rites, has strongly come out against the prejudice and bigotry towards Christians. "The unfortunate incidents that happened in the past few months in various parts of our country have hurt the sentiments of the Christian community and has shaken the faith in the secular fabric of our nation. The shocking incidents that have taken place against churches, clergy and laity in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi have caused great concern for the Christian community," CBCI said after a special consultation.
The CBCI special consultation was presided over by the CBCI President Cardinal Baselios Cleemis Catholicos and attended by Cardinal Oswald Gracias, Cardinal Telesphore Toppo, Cardinal George Alencherry and other religious leaders. The church leaders are a worried lot. They are concerned about the vitiated atmosphere that prevents people from practicing their religion without fear and coercion.
CBCI's view is that "the recent controversies in the name of religious reconversions portray a negative image about India. Communal polarization and the bid to homogenize India are posing threat to all minorities - women, dalits, and all linguistic, cultural and religious minorities". When we remain mute spectators to the acts of persecutors, we are standing in the way of the people to express their freedom of religion. In India, the Christian community, which has a history of 2000 years, has been in the forefront of caring for the poor through education, healthcare and better living conditions. They spread the message of love and comfort the afflicted. They never entertained intolerance or hate crimes.
On February 5, a delegation of Indian Christian leaders gave a memorandum to the Prime Minister demanding security for Christians, their places of worship and details of a wave of violence against Christians in the last one year. However, the situation has not improved at the ground level. Another attack on a Christian institution in Delhi after the election results shows that the powers-that-be haven’t learnt their lessons.
"The recurring assaults and vandalism against Christian targets in different parts of country and failure of the guardians of law to bring the culprits to book have only worsened the air of impunity. The silence of those responsible for upholding our Constitutional Rights and their failure to protect the community are indeed baffling," said the statement signed by CCBI President Oswald Cardinal Gracias and others. The new-found bravado of the perpetrators of crimes against Christians appeared more than a bluster. "Much of the violence took place after the new government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, came to power in May 2014. Violence reached its highest level between August and October, with 56 cases, and has continued in 2015," the memorandum submitted to the Prime Minister says.
Two Vatican bishops were denied visa by the Indian government recently. Archbishop Arthur Roche, secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, and Archbishop Protase Rugambwa, secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples and president of the Pontifical Missionary Societies had to drop their plan to participate in the CCBI meeting in Bangalore.
Constitution of India guarantees freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion. "Subject to public order, morality and health and to the other provisions of this Part, all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practise and propagate religion," says India's Constitution.
This guarantee seems to have been thrown to the wind if the incidents of atrocities towards Christians are any indication. The ghar wapasi programme was squarely denounced by the CBCI leaders as "a political process, carried out by the powerful exponents of religious nationalism - much against the principle of Secularism". It does not even have the legitimacy of freedom of political expression, they said.
The acts of intolerance in India are not very different from the sectarian war in Syria or the murder of Muslims and Christians in Nigeria, religious war in the Central African Republic, a rising tide of anti-Semitism and hate crimes in Europe. In short, to be a Christian is becoming a big challenge as faith is being perverted and twisted by bigots. The intolerance of tolerance is breaching all limits.
Why do these things happen? Whither the love, compassion, empathy and concern among people. Why are hate groups gaining strength? The intolerance towards other religious minorities in a modern world with all the advancements in technology and outlook leaves much to be desired. These hate groups use social media tools like Facebook and Twitter accounts to further their interests and keep their flame of intolerance raging. Their reach is enormous.
There's no doubt that people should speak up against religious oppression and bigotry. Nobody, not even religions, can say that God will forgive and condone religious oppression. All of us desire a peaceful nation with the religious majority and minorities leading a life of mutual respect and support. The nation will develop only in such an atmosphere. When viewed in a spiritual context, it may be time to sharpen our faith and fan it across the world. Yes, the same flame of faith which was ignited by none other than Jesus Christ 2000 years ago
When US President Barack Obama, who made a high-profile visit to India recently, described the country as an "incredible and beautiful" place, "full of magnificent diversity", not many were surprised. But his next observation on India -- the land of multitudinous cultural, religious and social medleys -- had top government leaders in Delhi squirming in their chairs. "It's a place where, in past years, religious faiths of all types have, on occasion, been targeted by other peoples of faith, simply due to their heritage and their beliefs -- acts of intolerance that would have shocked Gandhiji, the person who helped to liberate that nation," Obama said.
The India government has not officially reacted to Obama's observations. Narendra Modi might have least expected this from Obama after walking shoulder to shoulder at Raj Path, the ceremonial boulevard in New Delhi. For many in Delhi's corridors of power, it's like alluding India is also a land of religious bigots.
Gandhiji might be turning in his grave, seeing the way the country's secular fabric is being smashed to smithereens. The Christian community has been at the receiving end for the last nine months. A bevy of crimes of hatred and desecration of holy places of worship have angered and hurt the Christian community across the country. 'Ghar wapasi' programmes (reconversion), saffronisation of education and culture, the demands for a Hindu Rashtra and desecration of holy places are again posing big challenges to the secular ethos of the nation in general and causing fear and consternation in the Christian community in particular.
Church leaders have not taken things lying down.
On February 6, 140 Latin-rite bishop who came to attend the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) in Bangalore led a candle-light rally of hundreds of priests, nuns and faithful. Fr Stephen Alathara, CCBI deputy secretary general and Fr Laurence Culas, CCBI Convener, PR Committee, said in a statement that the Church leaders decided to hold the procession to express "their anguish and concern over the threats to peace and communal harmony in the wake of "the various untoward incidents in different parts of the country." Hardly a day has passed off in recent months without reports of attacks on Christians, churches and Christian institutions from across the nation. "Churches have been torched even in the national capital while reports of ‘ghar waspsi' and blatant threats to hold mass reconversions are causing anxiety to the Christians scattered in the far corners of the nation," the CCBI statement said.
Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI), the body representing bishops from all the three rites, has strongly come out against the prejudice and bigotry towards Christians. "The unfortunate incidents that happened in the past few months in various parts of our country have hurt the sentiments of the Christian community and has shaken the faith in the secular fabric of our nation. The shocking incidents that have taken place against churches, clergy and laity in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi have caused great concern for the Christian community," CBCI said after a special consultation.
The CBCI special consultation was presided over by the CBCI President Cardinal Baselios Cleemis Catholicos and attended by Cardinal Oswald Gracias, Cardinal Telesphore Toppo, Cardinal George Alencherry and other religious leaders. The church leaders are a worried lot. They are concerned about the vitiated atmosphere that prevents people from practicing their religion without fear and coercion.
CBCI's view is that "the recent controversies in the name of religious reconversions portray a negative image about India. Communal polarization and the bid to homogenize India are posing threat to all minorities - women, dalits, and all linguistic, cultural and religious minorities". When we remain mute spectators to the acts of persecutors, we are standing in the way of the people to express their freedom of religion. In India, the Christian community, which has a history of 2000 years, has been in the forefront of caring for the poor through education, healthcare and better living conditions. They spread the message of love and comfort the afflicted. They never entertained intolerance or hate crimes.
On February 5, a delegation of Indian Christian leaders gave a memorandum to the Prime Minister demanding security for Christians, their places of worship and details of a wave of violence against Christians in the last one year. However, the situation has not improved at the ground level. Another attack on a Christian institution in Delhi after the election results shows that the powers-that-be haven’t learnt their lessons.
"The recurring assaults and vandalism against Christian targets in different parts of country and failure of the guardians of law to bring the culprits to book have only worsened the air of impunity. The silence of those responsible for upholding our Constitutional Rights and their failure to protect the community are indeed baffling," said the statement signed by CCBI President Oswald Cardinal Gracias and others. The new-found bravado of the perpetrators of crimes against Christians appeared more than a bluster. "Much of the violence took place after the new government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, came to power in May 2014. Violence reached its highest level between August and October, with 56 cases, and has continued in 2015," the memorandum submitted to the Prime Minister says.
Two Vatican bishops were denied visa by the Indian government recently. Archbishop Arthur Roche, secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, and Archbishop Protase Rugambwa, secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples and president of the Pontifical Missionary Societies had to drop their plan to participate in the CCBI meeting in Bangalore.
Constitution of India guarantees freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion. "Subject to public order, morality and health and to the other provisions of this Part, all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practise and propagate religion," says India's Constitution.
This guarantee seems to have been thrown to the wind if the incidents of atrocities towards Christians are any indication. The ghar wapasi programme was squarely denounced by the CBCI leaders as "a political process, carried out by the powerful exponents of religious nationalism - much against the principle of Secularism". It does not even have the legitimacy of freedom of political expression, they said.
The acts of intolerance in India are not very different from the sectarian war in Syria or the murder of Muslims and Christians in Nigeria, religious war in the Central African Republic, a rising tide of anti-Semitism and hate crimes in Europe. In short, to be a Christian is becoming a big challenge as faith is being perverted and twisted by bigots. The intolerance of tolerance is breaching all limits.
Why do these things happen? Whither the love, compassion, empathy and concern among people. Why are hate groups gaining strength? The intolerance towards other religious minorities in a modern world with all the advancements in technology and outlook leaves much to be desired. These hate groups use social media tools like Facebook and Twitter accounts to further their interests and keep their flame of intolerance raging. Their reach is enormous.
There's no doubt that people should speak up against religious oppression and bigotry. Nobody, not even religions, can say that God will forgive and condone religious oppression. All of us desire a peaceful nation with the religious majority and minorities leading a life of mutual respect and support. The nation will develop only in such an atmosphere. When viewed in a spiritual context, it may be time to sharpen our faith and fan it across the world. Yes, the same flame of faith which was ignited by none other than Jesus Christ 2000 years ago
