During
his recent visit to the Vatican Cardinal Telesphore Placidus Toppo expressed
two vital alarms in the Church in India, namely, persecution of Christians and
a rapid decline in the Church turnout due to the recent scandals in Europe. The
religious of India can contribute towards these two concerns that are affecting
the Church today.
The Militant Evangelization
In
the wake of recent attack on the Catholic College in Anekal, I am inclined to
enunciate the cause of deep-seated atrocities on the minorities in two
worldviews. Firstly, ‘the militant
evangelisation’ made its way into India through myriad missionary
activities. It is an unpleasant historical dilemma that Church faces even now.
Missionaries brought Christianity to India under the noble cause of saving
souls through the Church. But this noble cause formed an indelible mark on the ethnic
people of India and it remains an unhealed wound until now. Gandhi in his
autobiography accounts to his first reaction to Christianity. Christianity in
his early boyhood was one of resentment, because Christian missionaries ‘used
to stand in a corner near the his high school and hold forth pouring abuse on
Hindus as their gods as satanic.’ However his early resentment was largely
overcome when he later on met worthy and noble Christians and studied the New
Testament when he was in England. This is just trivial spark that can trigger
Hindus to react badly towards Christianity. There are other issues that can
give way to hatred towards Christianity namely, calling us as ‘Roman’ Catholics
or public holiday on Sunday, which happens to be our worship day. We have to
try and solve these small issues with utmost respect to a religion that existed
even before Christianity.
The Militant Saffronization
Secondly,
“the militant saffronization” can jeopardise
the fundamental right to freedom of religion guaranteed by the country’s
constitution. India is fundamentally a secular state. The diverse religions
make India a unique cradle that accommodates major world religions. However,
some militant fanatics, who motivated by the political ideologies, act with an
allegiance to some group or leaders who seek to destroy the harmony between
myriad religions constantly threatening minority. Hindu civilisation, which
came to be considered by the Hindus themselves as non-offensive, docile,
tolerant and the accommodating type unlike the war-like and aggressive Greek,
Roman, Christian and Islamic civilisations. Hindu apologists project
‘non-invasion of foreign lands’ as a great virtue and an outstanding
characteristic of the great Hindu culture and civilisation. ‘We never invaded
anyone in our 3000 or 5000 years of glorious history’ croak the Hindu leaders. One
wonders how is the docile, non-offensive, and tolerant and accommodating
religion has turned into a religion of offensiveness, intolerance and
non-accommodating enterprise. Religion is the gateway to instil hatred and
enmity between brothers and sisters of the mother India. One can question, is
that a true religion or just political façade under which personal and selfish
goals are met.
A Way Forward
Pope
Benedict XVI clarifies in his book, Light
of the World, that it is not the same thing to say that Christ is the Son
of God in whom the full presence of the truth about God finds expression and to
say that various kinds of truth are also present in other religions, that they
have some thing like fragments or beams of the great light, that, in a certain
respect, they even represent an inner movement toward him. Thence the
traditional Christian understanding of Church alone is salvific is modified.
Today the Church accepts and recognises that other religions contain truth and
God’s continual revelation. Today we have to redefine the papal document
‘Evangelii Nuntiandi’ issued in 1975, on mission in modern times. The Synod of
Bishops from all over the world met to draft a document for the “New
Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith” on October 7-28,
2012 in Vatican. The draft of the Synod, lineamenta clearly seems to suggest
that success in the new evangelization implies an internal examination of
conscience and a willingness to explore “new ways of being Church” and “new
models.” Therefore religious have a gauntlet that is challenging and dangerous.
We have to think outside the box to be witnesses with taking on board all the
people in our land. We have to coexist with each other rather then remaining in
our own ghettos. We have to have due knowledge of other religious practices in
order to coexist with others.
Oozing Wounds of Scandals
Cardinal
Toppo by thanking the missionaries who brought faith to our continent forewarned
that Indian Christians are facing a crisis as a result of the scandals in the
Vatican. And the Churches are getting emptier and emptier. It is vital for us
to pray and especially to stay united in Christ and close to Pope. Whole
episode of revelation of scandals in the Church has created a rift between the
religious and the people. Trust that once religious enjoyed has been distorted
after the perilous scandals. I was confronted by a group of young boys with an
obvious question, why should we go to Church, to listen to the priest who might
endanger our children? One has to be aware that the Church existed long before
these scandals, and faith is rather personal, consequently the crisis in the
Church should not virtually affect the functioning of the Church and be a cause
to change one’s faith. There is ample literature written on this issue. Pope
Benedict addressing in the Westminster Cathedral apologised to the victims of
sex scandal with deep sense of pain and regret.
This
can be a huge challenge for the religious in India sooner if not later. Mass
media is no more sympathetic and poignant in reporting the truth. Unearthing of
the long kept secrets can affect the faith of the people and empty our
Churches. We got to act quickly but with ‘New Evangelizing’ approach. People are
becoming aware of the current knowhow of the situation. We can preach without
preaching through our undivided and sanctified life.
No comments:
Post a Comment