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Pope asks India not to ban religious conversions
Hindustan Times ^
| May 20, 2006
Posted on 05/19/2006 6:12:50 PM PDT by nickcarraway
India has responded with diplomatic equanimity to Pope Benedict XVI's seemingly provocative remarks condemning attempts to ban religious conversion in certain states.
The pope had told Indias new ambassador to the Vatican, Amitava Tripathi, on Thursday that the country should "firmly reject" attempts "to legislate clearly discriminatory restrictions on the fundamental right to religious freedom". He had also taken note of the "disturbing signs of religious intolerance which had troubled some regions of the nation".
New Delhi responded on Friday with a statement, reiterating the constitutional "freedom of conscience" and the right to freely profess, practise and propagate religion. "It is acknowledged universally that India is a secular and democratic country where adherents of all faiths enjoy equal rights," said a foreign ministry spokesperson.
It was the pope's second declaration this week in defence of religious freedom in countries where Christians are a minority. In India, the statement comes in the backdrop of Rajasthan planning to become the sixth state to enact the anti-conversion law the pope was referring to. Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Orissa already have laws that bar conversions but allow re-conversions to Hinduism. Jharkhand has declared its intention to enact a similar law.
The BJP-ruled Rajasthan, however, has not been able to convince Governor Pratibha Patil to give her assent to the Religious Conversion Bill. She returned the bill making a point similar to the one made by the pope -- that its provisions would affect the right to freedom of religion.
The BJP has often attributed attacks on Christian missionaries, including the murder of Graham Staines in Orissa, as reactions to their proselytising. During his recent Bharat Suraksha Yatra, BJP president Rajnath Singh had described proselytising "dangerous" and asked all BJP-ruled states to enact a similar law.
TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: christians; conversions; india
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To: Mrs. Don-o
<< The hate literature against Hindus comming from religious institutions isnt uncommon or just a figment of my imagination as you are trying to suggest.
Huh?? I never said a word about hate literature. >>
But poor G-K did.
The Hindu extremists print their own. Just part of their ceaseless promulgation of slanderous and libelous anti-Christian/anti-Western blood libels.
As was the case in the Soviet Union, of which India was long the tugging on its forelock cap-in-hand client satellite state -- and is still the case in China and Singapore and Malaysia and in every other petty dictatorship -- the mis-and-disinformation thus promulgated helps India's Hindus' self-annointed, self-appointed and self-perpetuating brahmanas and their cunningly created communistic state and feral governments' lackeys keep their boots to 800,000,000 necks.
And 800,000,000 Indians in effective slavery and bondage.
So please forgive poor G-K. He is, in addition to being still wet behind the ears, painfully immature and wilfully ignorant, organically indoctrinated and has a hair trigger on his cocked and loaded hate-epithet firing fingers.
And he knoweth not what he does.
But I'm convinced he is a Good Man at heart and my family and I love him and in our every prayer pray for him and for all of those he loves.
Blessings - Brian
441
posted on
05/23/2006 5:06:11 PM PDT
by
Brian Allen
(All that is required to ensure the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke)
To: The Lion Roars; Admin Moderator
Welcome to FR.
A FRiendly word of warning, though, unless you wish your stay hereabouts to be a tempoary one.
FR is an American site and our Nation, the most successful, powerful, loving, generous and the mightiest there has ever been upon the Earth in all of Human History is Founded in and Stands upon the Rock of Judeo-Christian-American Law for which you demonstrate such mindless hatred and contempt.
Furthermore, more than 85% of all Americans and very likely a far higher percentage of all who post here are Christians.
It might therefore be to your advantage, if you want to stick around, to reign in your hatred and contempt for us all and to keep your anti-Christian passions within due bounds.
I suggest that you take note, think of it as being your first step in the direction of becoming a more permanent FR person, that Jesus, Christ and Christianity are the whole names of the Son of Almighty God and of the Christian Religion of more than 85% of Americans, among around half of the Earth's inhabitants -- and are always capitalized.
OK?
Otherwise there are many many anti-Christian and anti-American sites where you will very likely find and perhaps better enjoy the company that misery so craves.
Blessings - Brian
442
posted on
05/23/2006 5:34:08 PM PDT
by
Brian Allen
(All that is required to ensure the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke)
To: Brian Allen
One or two instances of violence against Christians by some violent gangs are being blown up to create an atmosphere of mistrust and ill will between Hindus and Christians.
Moderation, is the key to co-existence. 30 million Indian christians have already learned to live along with Hindus. Its time some proselytizers tone down their rhetoric about "evil Brahmins" and "demonic hindu gods".
To: GregH
I suppose the party "whipping up nationalistic fervour appealing to a narrow hindu ideology" would be the BJP?
Come, let's have some definitons, shall we? Please define "narrow hindu ideology."
You don't object to nationalism, no, just so long as it's your brand of nationalism.. What you object to truly is Hindu, after all, and therefore India's true identity.
Be honest.
To: Brian Allen; Mrs. Don-o; design engineer; The Lion Roars
Huh?? I never said a word about hate literature. >>
But poor G-K did.
The Hindu extremists print their own. Just part of their ceaseless promulgation of slanderous and libelous anti-Christian/anti-Western blood libels.
As was the case in the Soviet Union, of which India was long the tugging on its forelock cap-in-hand client satellite state -- and is still the case in China and Singapore and Malaysia and in every other petty dictatorship -- the mis-and-disinformation thus promulgated helps India's Hindus' self-annointed, self-appointed and self-perpetuating brahmanas and their cunningly created communistic state and feral governments' lackeys keep their boots to 800,000,000 necks.
And 800,000,000 Indians in effective slavery and bondage.
So please forgive poor G-K. He is, in addition to being still wet behind the ears, painfully immature and wilfully ignorant, organically indoctrinated and has a hair trigger on his cocked and loaded hate-epithet firing fingers.
And he knoweth not what he does.
But I'm convinced he is a Good Man at heart and my family and I love him and in our every prayer pray for him and for all of those he loves.
Blessings - Brian
Apropos to you meaning ranting and and your vain caveat to The Lion Roars, here is something you need to know in no uncertain terms that being pro-Hindu is not akin to anti-Christian/anti-Western ideals, principles or religion. In matters of faith, culture and tradition we value that which is ours and do so for a very good reason but this in not to say that we trash the good things that belongs to others.
I dont suppose you are opposed to conservatism but for some reason your bigoted mindset does not allow you the liberty to see Indian conservatism in the very same light as your worthy equivalent. In other words your allegiance is not for true conservatism but for some obscure Supremacist (bordering on communal and racist) purport which nothing more then a projection of you prejudice and insecurity. My advise is get over it. The world isnt likely change according to your liking.
And quit playing the victim here. Claiming that the the Soviets have wronged you, Indians have wronged you, the Hindus have wronged you, "brahmanas" have wronged you, the third world has wronged you isnt likely to win you any sympathy (if thats what you are looking for) or impart any real meaning or substance to you post rather you will only end up rankling that imaginary chip on your shoulder which is but a creation of your own. You post is quintessential of man scraping deep down inside the barrel.
And your rhetoric against the "brahmanas" (a community which is today hardly 10% of India's population {less then half the number of Muslims in India} as a result of a 1000 year persecution at the hands of Muslims) comes straight from the same Anglo-Islamic propaganda press that created a vast literature of calumny to demonise and denigrate Hindus (and later on picked up by the Marxists for the same reason). You are merely parroting the same hate rhetoric that was once the hallmark of the British press and Muslims league's hatred for Hindus which resulted in the creation of Pakistan.
their cunningly created communistic state and feral governments' lackeys keep their boots to 800,000,000 necks.
800,000,000 necks? So you mean the remaining 200,000,000 odd Muslims are the liberated lot? Its just plain reflective of your hatred for Hinduism and anything that India stands for. And why don't you prove it to me how India is a "communistic state" or is this another of your delusional ejection from you anus?
And judging form your intimidatory post for The Lion Roars (who merely hinted about he popularity of Hinduism and Buddhism) I can only imagine the kind of "religious freedom" you have have in the US. The equivalent of foreign Hindu missionaries going to US and denigrating Christianity with offending and insulting remarks is unimaginable but not uncommon in India if you interchange Christianity with Hinduism.
The religious freedom in India is 100% more then what you have in the US. And no mistake, secularism exists in India only because of the Hindus are tolerant people, regardless of your hatred for them.
So please forgive poor G-K. He is, in addition to being still wet behind the ears, painfully immature and wilfully ignorant, organically indoctrinated and has a hair trigger on his cocked and loaded hate-epithet firing fingers.
I am sorry ....don't forgive me for anything. I don't need you sympathy or your condescension. Keep that supremacist crap to yourself.
To: Brian Allen; Mrs. Don-o; design engineer; The Lion Roars
Apropos to you meaning = meaningless
To: Diamond
What are you blabbering about, it is falsified and incoherent.
447
posted on
05/24/2006 2:04:56 AM PDT
by
GregH
To: ARridgerunner
No not really, A nationalism based on a dominant culture of the nation is not bad but a nationalism based on a very narrow section of the dominant culture is not welcome. However as I understand regarding the DVC movie the RSS has come out in support of Christians protests against it, so there may be some decent elements in them even though their ideology is suspected in the society
448
posted on
05/24/2006 2:10:33 AM PDT
by
GregH
To: Gengis Khan
<< I am sorry .... >>
And so you should be.
You've been a very naughty little boy.
A very naughty and brainwashed-into-hesperophobia little boy who, I pray and trust, had a mirror directly in front of himself as he froth and foam-flecked vomited and spewed his post # 445's latest silly, supremacist and sanctimoniously pseudo-British, character-revealing-and-projecting anti-American hate diatribe.
You are in my prayers, G-K.
Get well soon.
And grow up.
You silly, naughty little boy.
Blessings - Brian
449
posted on
05/24/2006 2:10:53 AM PDT
by
Brian Allen
(All that is required to ensure the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke)
To: ARridgerunner
To paraphrase it further, a ideology that goes against established constitutional freedoms and norms.
450
posted on
05/24/2006 2:15:31 AM PDT
by
GregH
To: design engineer
<< Moderation, is the key to co-existence. >>
Of course it is and I am the very model of moderation.
For what it's worth, by the way, I passionately love all of Asia, more than half of my family are Asians, I keep several homes in various Asian countries and live out there for most of every year -- and have done so for more than forty years.
But when I spot an aggressive anti-American and/or anti-Israeli and/or anti-Semite and/or anti-Jew or Christian and/or any kicker of under-dogs, particularly on these boards, I will rhetorically meet his aggression and give him good return on his investment.
And when he is as worthwhile an adversary as is a certain Zero-Sum-Game-conflicted gentleman on this thread, I'll generally keep it up as long as it continues to be fun for me -- and also seems to be either fun for him and/or to be providing him a much-needed education.
Although I'd rather take him out and break some nan with him and have a chat over a nice hot cuppa chai!
451
posted on
05/24/2006 2:34:46 AM PDT
by
Brian Allen
(All that is required to ensure the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke)
To: GregH
A Nationalism based on a dominant culture of the nation is not bad but a nationalism based on a very narrow section of the dominant culture is not welcome.The dominant culture of India is Hindu. You still haven't defined this "very narrow section" of Hinduism.
To paraphrase it further, a ideology that goes against established constitutional freedoms and norms.
What is this ideology? This "very narrow section" of Hinduism?
It doesn't exist.
To: Brian Allen; Gengis Khan; Admin Moderator
A FRiendly word of warning, though, unless you wish your stay hereabouts to be a tempoary one..blah, blah, blah, blah I am sorry..did I miss the news about you buying FR?? Looks like you have a copyright on conservatism and patriotism . Seriously please read your rants before advising other people.
To: Gengis Khan
communist lackeys, cunning brahmanas...lol. looks like some people confuse a visit to china town as travelling throught asia.
To: ARridgerunner
An ideology of some groups associated with the BJP, is narrow, but it is not mainstream.
455
posted on
05/25/2006 2:08:23 AM PDT
by
GregH
To: Gengis Khan
Oh yeah right! I am losing perspective eh?
Yes.
The Tamil regional language problem was a minor problem thats was solved with the linguistic restructuring of Indian constitution. It has nothing to do with DMK or AIADMK.
Not really -- the problem was that there was (and IS) a real feeling that Delhi dominates and stamps out regional feelings. That's diminished ever since the south became the center of the IT industry. And you can't deny that or go hysterical and try and think it's related to Sri Lanka.
Terrorism in NE (with the backing of the Church) is supported by the fundings comming from Christian countries and from China
"The Church"? Really, you mean to say that the Catholic Church supports terrorism? You have no proof of that. You post some articles that some crazy individuals from Baptist groups say things, but no church group supports terrorists.
The N-E problem also exists in other states there, even those with Hindu majority because the NE felt (and for your information, that's the past tense), yes, FELT alienated. HAve you noticed that terrorism and militancy in the NE has declined considerably since the 1990s? Why? Because the NE is now part of India's mainstream economy, it's more integrated and people feel that they are part of India.
When the same tirade is used against Hindus as regarding unverified news articles about nuns or Jesuits being assulted (reported by Christian propagandist sites) you would believe them in a heart beat. You dont want to believe this particular article because it shows Christian missionary work in poor light but it does not mean this news has got to be untrue
REally, have you even READ my posts or do you just want to make unqualified remarks? I don't believe silly posts (and you've been copied in on my posts where I do refute such crazy articles). Does that mean that there aren't instances of Christians being targetted in INdia? No. there are Steines cases, but they are barely a handful. are there Hindu persecutions in India? Yes, the same answer qualifies. If a Hindu gets burnt to death by Christians in India or anywhere because of his faith, I'll condemn that, and the opposite as well.
Thats because they are pseudo-secularists. We dont yet have our version of Fox-news and so long as we dont we dont have much choice except to quote from this very biased media about Christian ot Muslims excesses.
If they are pseudo-secularists, why do you quote them as fact when they happen to parallel your views?
456
posted on
06/12/2006 3:30:35 PM PDT
by
Cronos
(Remember 9/11. Restore Hagia Sophia! Sola Scriptura leads to solo scriptura.)
To: Gengis Khan
So by right at least the Imam has a say in India's affairs. The Pope has no such right. His statements are akin to a foreign head of the State directly meddling in India's affairs.
The Pope didn't even try to dictate to India's govt -- he commented, he didn't say "do this". There is a difference.
457
posted on
06/12/2006 3:33:04 PM PDT
by
Cronos
(Remember 9/11. Restore Hagia Sophia! Sola Scriptura leads to solo scriptura.)
To: The Lion Roars
You should try going to an american consulate as a hindu priest with a stated aim of getting a visa to convert the pagan and devil worshipping americans to hinduism. See how fast the consulate officer boots you out.
Really? Then how come so many Hindu priests get religious visas to go to the west?
458
posted on
06/12/2006 3:34:38 PM PDT
by
Cronos
(Remember 9/11. Restore Hagia Sophia! Sola Scriptura leads to solo scriptura.)
To: ARridgerunner
No, I think people first think about surviving in THIS world before they can think of the next one.
most, not all.
459
posted on
06/12/2006 3:35:58 PM PDT
by
Cronos
(Remember 9/11. Restore Hagia Sophia! Sola Scriptura leads to solo scriptura.)
To: Saberwielder
460
posted on
06/12/2006 3:37:21 PM PDT
by
Cronos
(Remember 9/11. Restore Hagia Sophia! Sola Scriptura leads to solo scriptura.)
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