By
Madhu Chandra
The Christians along with other minority communities are facing
serious challenges in last one and half decade. The challenges have become more
severe with the raise of fascist forces in India. Most of these challenges are
fought in media and Christian churches have not equipped themselves to tackle
these challenges. Many Indian churches and Christian communities are forced to
act when they are affected by some of these challenges under the terror of
fascism.
To understand the challenges faced by Indian Church, it will be
worth to list how Indian churches got involved in national building. The
challenges involve the continuous involvement in national building.
The Role of Indian Churches in Building Nation in the
Past
Before moving forward in addressing the issues of the role of
Indian churches in national building, it will be worth to note the contributions
given by Indian churches in national building in the past.
Impact on Secular Idea of India
The idea of India was invented by Mahatma Gandhi through the
influences of Rabindranath Tegore, explored by Jawaharlal Nehru and latter
redefined by B. R. Ambedkar. The idea of India according to the founding fathers
mentioned above is secular state and democracy nation.
Indian Churches had role in making India as secular state and
democratic country. The campaign against Sati system and female infanticide led
by William Carey and Raja Ram Mohun Roy a reformer influenced by Christian
missionaries are the land mark of Indian churches’ role in making India as a
secular state and democratic nation.
Few of those who influenced Indian reformers who played vital
role in making India as secular state and democratic nation, are Freidrich
Schwartz of German missionary at Tranquebar who influence Tulsi Raja and Muslim
ruler Hyder Ali.
CF Andrews another missionary has close influence upon India by
his identification with Mahatma Gandhi and Tagore. Bishop Waskon Pickett, an
American Methodist Bishop associated with Jawaharlal Nehru, Dr. B R Ambedkar and
Indira Gandhi.
When Gandhi was assassinated, it was Bishop Pickett was
conducted first memorial service in Lucknow Methodist Church. He also took part
in sorting out national problems when there were community clashes between Skhs
and Hindus. Bishop Pickett was close friend of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar the father of
Indian Constitution and messiah of Dalit emancipation. Dr. Radha Krishnan
praised Bishop Pickett in 1969 for the impact of Indian Christians on national
influence and participation.
Impact in Indian Education
Exceptional is the educational contribution by pioneering
missionaries. Long before, Governments established schools; it was Christian
missions that started mission schools. The educational contribution of Indian
churches is house hold icon of every Indians.
American missionaries compiled and published the earliest
grammars and dictionaries of Punjabi, Hindi, Urdu, Marathi and Manipuri.
Missionaries gave an enormous boost to mass education and we have legacy of it
in whole nation.
Impact on Women’s Education
Culturally, among Indian societies, women were considered not
for education. Any girl having ability to read and write were practically
confined to nautch girls and not for respectable women. Despite local disbelief
and pessimism, the missionaries believed that the girls could be educated and
transformed.
The first school for girls in whole of India was established at
Tranquebar in 1707 by missionaries. Mannah Marshman opened school for girls at
Serampore in 1800 and Miss Isabella Thoburn started women’s college on her
verandah at Lucknow in 1870 and it became the first women’s college in whole of
Asia.
Ida Scudder, a missionary to South India founded Vellore
Christian Medical College in 1900 to train women as doctors and nurses and men
are admitted only in 1947.
The Present Challenges
India has lot more challenges than ever in its history after
independent. Poverty of Indian society remains almost the same after
independent. The fascist forces are left uncontrolled and assaulted Indian
democracy.
Attack on Indian Secularism
The idea of India, invented by Gandhi, explored by Nehru and
redefined by Ambedkar, is secular and democratic which is reflected in the
preamble of Indian constitution:
WE, THE PEOPLE OF
INDIA, having solemnly resolved to
constitute India into a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC
and to secure to all its citizens:
JUSTICE, social, economic and political; LIBERTY of
thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; EQUALITY of status and of
opportunity; and to promote among them all; FRATERNITY assuring the
dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the
Nation.
Component of Justice, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity in the
preamble of Indian Constitution is attacked by the rise of fascist forces in
India. The Hindutva fascist forces see the preamble and Indian constitution is
anti-majority and anti-Hinduism, therefore, they have adopted a new idea of
India, which is based purely upon Brahminical ideology. Their new idea of India
is to make India as Hindu nation based upon Vedic culture, faith and ideology.
Once Hindutva succeeds in implementing their version of India,
the secularism and democracy, of which every citizens of India enjoys justice,
liberty, equality and fraternity, will be taken away.
The signposts of attack on India secularism is seen at the rise
of caste based discriminations, faith base discriminations and racial base
discriminations. Attack on Muslims, Christians and on other religious minorities
are the recent signposts of attack on India secularism and democracy.
Rise of Fascism
India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru said once, “When
fascism comes to India, it will come in the form of communalism.” We have seen
this in many forms in many parts of the country.
India has militant fascism, cultural fascism, religious fascism
and political fascism etc. At the risk of these fascist forces, the life of
innocent civilians and their fundamental rights have been attacked and disturbed
from time to time.
To curb the militant related fascist violation, the measurements
are taken from state and central level in North Eastern state, Jammu and Kashmir
and now the Maoist affected states although they are not able to control
totally.
What worry the most for the country is the rise of saffron
fascist forces, which has attacked on religious minorities, the Dalits and Hindu
secular civil societies.
In Gujarat during Post Godhra episode, Arundhati Roy reports,
“Human rights organizations have said it is closer to 2,000. As many as 100,000
people, driven from their homes, now live in refugee camps. Women were stripped
and gang-raped, and parents were bludgeoned to death in front of their
children.”[1]
In recent ethnic cleansing of Christians in Orissa’s Kandhamal
district: “Since Aug. 23, 2008, the aicc recorded:
315 villages damaged, 4,640 Christian houses burnt, 54,000 Christians homeless,
at least 6 pastors and one Roman Catholic priest killed, 10 priests/pastors/nuns
seriously injured, estimated 18,000 Christians injured, at least two women
(including a nun) raped, 149 churches destroyed, 13 Christian schools and
colleges damaged.”[2]
After carrying out the attack on
Muslims and Christians, they attacked on women who at individual rights went for
pub at Mangalore in January 2009.
The lie and hate campaign of Sangh
Parivar against religious minority along with Hindutva ideological promotion
carried out unimaginable speed all over the country. The Hindu nation is the
agenda of Hindutva forces. Hidden agenda of Hindutva is engineered by
Brahminical hierarchy, which is to ensure the caste base society under the
dominion of Brahmanism.
The presence of secular minded civilians and non-caste base
religions, particularly the Islam and Christianity are threat to their hidden
agenda of Hindutva fronts.
Caste Apartheid
Islam has ruled India over centuries beginning from the first
invasion in 715 AD led by Arabs till the last dynasty of Bidar in 1619 AD.
British ruled a period of 200 years and Christian missionary witness in Indian
soil over 2000 years. These powerful rulers of the world and the Christianity
could not uproot the caste apartheid of the India .
India’s 85% of population at the bottom line of caste hierarchy
are affected in their socio-economic and educational lives. The worse affected
are the outcaste who are known as Dalits.
Over 3000 years, Dalit-Bahujan communities are treated in
inhuman manners for their births and remain slavery under caste dominion.
The British could abolish slavery system in Britain 200 years
ago through and by the tireless effort William Wilberforce. The same British
ruled India for 200 years, but could not do any thing to abolish casteism.
The Christian missions of the nation and foreign failed to bring
the full message of the gospel of Jesus Christ in India context. The caste apartheid of sociological
disorder has been ignored by the Indian and foreign missions while the business
of winning soul has been only central concentration.
The sad part of the story is that the Indian churches not only
failed to remove caste apartheid but the system was brought within church
setup.
Anti-Christian and Minority Policies in Different
States
The Anti-Conversion Bills currently passed in eight different
states of India – Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, Arunachal Pradesh, Tamil
Nadu, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh. Only Orissa, Madhya Pradesh,
Chhatisgarh and Himachal enacted these bills and they are enforced. Christian
minorities and Dalits are persecuted under these rules.
All India Christian Council opposed anti conversion bills passed
by Gujarat, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh. We
succeeded except Himachal Pradesh.
Let us not be misled by the hidden agenda of anti conversion
bill adopted in these states. These laws are not targeting Christians although
Christian offenders are punished and misused in many cases. The main hidden
agenda of anti conversion bills is to stop Indian Dalits from leaving Hinduism
to get ride of caste oppression by converting to other religions which does not
practice caste. This movement came after B R Ambedkar ignited to leave the
religion if it keep you oppressed and go to others that does not. The migration
of Dalits from Hinduism began 55 years ago when B R Ambedkar let the movement at
Nagpur with 50,000 Indian Dalits quite Hinduism and embraced Buddhism in
1956.
The Challenges of Human Trafficking
Human trafficking is reported worldwide as the largest organised
crimes. National Human Rights Commission’s senior research officer Savita
Bhakhry says, “Trafficking in human beings, more in women and children, is one
of the fastest growing forms of criminal activity, next only to drugs and
weapons trade, generating unaccountable profits annually.”[3] India
is also affected by this epidemic, which is not recognized as one of the
greatest thread to human rights violation. To the challenges of organised crime
of human trafficking which has affected children and women, particularly in the
areas where people live in socio-educational and economically backward areas. It
has been considered human trafficking in a contemporary form of slavery.[4] A question arises on
what should be the response of Church to this organised death thread crime of
human rights violation.
Madhu
Chandra
is a social activist and research scholar based in New Delhi. He works as
Regional Secretary of All India Christian Council (www.indianchristians.in), Spokes
Person of North East Support Centre & Helpline (www.nehelpline.net) and National Secretary of All India
Confederation of SC/ST Organisations (www.scstconfederation.org).