Hindu Nationalism is a Cancer on India, says Orissa Bishop
Msgr Raphael Cheenath, archbishop of Cuttack-Bubaneshwar, talks about the situation of the Church following attacks against churches, cars and people in Orissa. There is a link between Hindu nationalist ideology and Nazism. For him though, Christianity has "deep roots" in the state and the Church is the "light" for many Tribals and outcasts.
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"We Christians refuse violence. We condemn every act of violence and terrorism. But we are also against taking the law into our own hands," said the bishop.
"As soon as we heard about Swami Laxamananda Saraswati's assassination I issued a public statement strongly condemning the dastardly attack and murders. I called on everyone to remain peaceful and in harmony. We want relations of friendship with all communities."
News of more violence are still coming in from around the diocese — a chapel torched in Sundergarh, a van owned by nuns burnt in G. Udayagir, etc.
"We feel totally abandoned. This morning the authorities sent three policemen to watch over the nuns’ convent and the bishop's residence. But they don't even have a stick to protect us from the fury of the mob!"
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Read the full story here.
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"We Christians refuse violence. We condemn every act of violence and terrorism. But we are also against taking the law into our own hands," said the bishop.
"As soon as we heard about Swami Laxamananda Saraswati's assassination I issued a public statement strongly condemning the dastardly attack and murders. I called on everyone to remain peaceful and in harmony. We want relations of friendship with all communities."
News of more violence are still coming in from around the diocese — a chapel torched in Sundergarh, a van owned by nuns burnt in G. Udayagir, etc.
"We feel totally abandoned. This morning the authorities sent three policemen to watch over the nuns’ convent and the bishop's residence. But they don't even have a stick to protect us from the fury of the mob!"
<...>
Read the full story here.
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2 comments:
It is very condmenable the act of violence against any section of the society. But our problem is that whenever there is a violence in any where in the country every body, every reliegion, every political party is trying to score points and blaming each other.
It is not only the violence against christians but against all the humanity.
We should look for the solution for the such issues rather than blaming each other. No govt. no police or military can save us if we dont understand each other and accept and accommmodate others.
Dear SSCCHEM,
May I request you to say the same thing to the dead people (embers still hot), or the people who are in the forests and hospitals, they are victims of such violence. They will be able to tell you that the real problem is not what you have elaborated, but the fact that the Hindu society cannot function in a casteless way (where every person has equal rights and dignity), hence any such person that gives every person equal rights/ dignity, will be viewed as a threat by the Hindu fundamentalists. If you do not understand this, I strongly recommend that you go and visit these places yourself and understand the real motives behind such actions.
I hail from a state (Kerala the most educated one in India), where the miscreants could not do much, as most of the people were well educated and thus aware of their rights and liberties (Christianity has its roots in Kerala before Europe!) thus any attempts made to go back to a caste dominated system is met with futility (BJP has so far not won a single parlimentary seat from Kerala!). Inspite of this the whole state is not Christian (which should be the case if what these senseless people propogate were to be true -forceful conversions!). This is what the BJP and other Hindu fundamentalists fear. They would lose their power and position defined by the caste system and may have to give other poeple rights and liberties which they now enjoy without question.
Beware GOD does not let one offence go unpunished, unless one has truly repented of the same. Thus lets wait and see what become of Orissa (let GOD do the talking and not men!).
Binoy A. Mathew
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