Missionaries face jail in India

The Sunday Times ^ | July 30, 2006 | Dean Nelson, Delhi

[vimto]

JULIA and Richard do not look like fugitives but they could be jailed under new Indian laws to stop missionaries converting low-caste Hindus to Christianity without a magistrate’s approval. A well educated British couple with young children, they left London two years ago to teach missionary work in some of India’s poorest states, such as Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Orissa.

Last week Madhya Pradesh became the latest state to pass an anti-religious conversion bill that could leave Christian missionaries open to criminal charges. Leaders of India’s 26m Christians say the bill is an attempt to intimidate and persecute them, while increasing votes for the Hindu nationalist BJP party. Under its provisions missionaries and their converts face up to three years in jail if they do not notify a magistrate of their intentions.

Christian leaders also fear the initiative will encourage attacks against them. India’s National Commission for Minorities has voiced concern about incidents in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan in which orphanages and schools have been targeted.

Last month police in Madhya Pradesh raided a Bible study group and arrested worshippers after complaints that they were converting Hindus. Nuns have been raped and several priests have been murdered in the past seven years. Last year 11 members of a Hindu mob that burnt an Australian missionary and his two young sons to death as they slept had their convictions overturned.

Hindu fundamentalists claim missionaries, mostly American and South Korean, prey on the ignorance of lower castes and persuade them to turn against their culture. The missionaries say they provide education and healthcare and teach the Bible to untouchables whose own religion treats them as outcasts.

[what's up]

I figured he meant something like that, but his statement was so convoluted that it was hard to tell what in the world he was talking about.

[jome]

Religion has became the root of all the evil thing's happening in this world, Responsible for most of the wars. I'm sick of people using religion to spread hatred.
I'm a proud catholic but I'm against conversion.
just go and help people, if you want to...don't convert!!!!

[Always Right]

These stuff you post has nothing to do with foreign missionaries. The stuff you post has to do with rebells who happen to be using Christianity to advance their cause for Independence. There is nothing foreign about them, except perhaps how they fraudualantly get foreign donations. Trying to use this to justify banning missionaries who are by in large doing great work getting desparately needed supplies to people is just plain crazy. These are not the people who are raping and killing and forcing people to convert. The groups you are talking about are already banned. This ban has no effect on them. This ban is to cleans Christianity out of India.

[vimto]

Er,.... Stalin? Hitler? Religious fanatics - I dont thiink so.

[SupplySider]

besides if someone goes to US to seeks converts folks like yourself will come out with a shotgun or something...lol....>

I was thinking the same thing.

To all those outraged by this missionary law, how would you react if hundreds of foreign Hindu missionaries descended on Appalachia and began converting poor and uneducated people away from Christianity by the thousands, often with financial inducements? I may be wrong, but I very much doubt you would be joyously proclaiming the virtues of free speech.

[jome]

Why did Hitler hate Jews then?

[freedumb2003]

"Render to Caesar."

It is the height of arrogance to go to another country and then break their laws while proselyting.

We can't apply out laws to them. If India wants Religious Freedom they will put it in place themselves.

[Always Right]

Religion has became the root of all the evil thing's happening in this world

Let's see, communism killed more than 100 million people in the 20th century. Communism is not exactly religious friendly.

[jome]

Please see the links below to learn more abt Apostle saint thomas in kerala(southern india):

http://www.catholicherald.com/articles/02articles/thomas0711.htm

http://www.acns.com/~mm9n/marthoma/marthoma.htm

http://members.tripod.com/~Berchmans/apostle.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_(apostle)

[Always Right]

Why did Hitler hate Jews then?

Because most Germans were poor and the wealthier business-owning Jews were easy targets for Hitler to use class-welfare against. A good way to manipulate people, create a common enemy.

[Gengis Khan]

You are a classic example of a self appointed defender of Christian religion who hardly knows anything about his own religious history. Christianity was first brought to India by Apostle Thomas (one of the twelve disciples of Jesus) almost about the same time when Jesus was crucified and long before Roman Catholicism was even born. The earliest Church in India is actually the burial ground of St. Thomas called St. Thomas's Mount in Mylapur.

The Nestorians and Portuguese came centuries later.

Secondly nobody converts to Hinduism. Not even Hindus converts to Hinduism. In fact there is no such religion called Hinduism. Its a conglomeration of several belief systems which the Brits clubbed together and named "Hinduism". Anybody who considers himself to be part of this civilization in spirit and perhaps also believes in the Vedas (although atheists and agnostics also consider themselves to be Hindus) is a "Hindu". There is no conversion.

"Christianity is about conversion and this is what you are against, but fail to reconize. "

I am against conversion. If Christianity is about conversion (or more importantly if thats how you wish to interpret the tenets of your religion), then I am against it, because in that case its not very different from Islam. Islam is also about conversion. I am sure Christianity is a lot more then just conversion but unfortunately it has been reduced to just that by some bigots.

"Yes there are those who are in it for the money,..... "
There are a many who are in it for a lot more than just money. Its the people who need to be "saved" from such missionaries.

[Always Right]

To all those outraged by this missionary law, how would you react if hundreds of foreign Hindu missionaries descended on Appalachia and began converting poor and uneducated people away from Christianity by the thousands, often with financial inducements?

How is that different from the moonies or harry christners? Nobody is screaming to put them in jail. And good luck going to the Appalchia. They don't look to kindly on trespassers.

[SupplySider]

So why should my prayers be invalidated only because I choose to call HIM by a different name.

I think it is arrogant in the extreme for sectarian partisans to simply write off the spiritual life of whole civilizations. They just take for granted that every person on the earth must share their personal reading of one scripture! In my opinion this kind hubris has little to do with Jesus, no matter what these so-called missionaries think.

[jome]

OK. That was Hitlers intention. but he created religious hatred against 'JEWS'.

[SupplySider]

I'm not afraid to read the Bible, why are people who read the Bible afraid to read the Bhagavad Gita?

I think that many people are afraid that if they use their God-given intellect in this way that they might make a mistake and end up in hell. But it seems to me that this kind of fear-based assent to Jesus is not genuine acceptance in the first place, as it's under a kind of coercion and therefore not truly free.

[Gengis Khan]

India didnt have these laws until now. And look at what we have........
We are now the worlds second fastest growing economy and a regular participant at the G8 summit. The 1st step to the 1st world ;)

[SupplySider]

How is that different from the moonies or harry christners? Nobody is screaming to put them in jail. And good luck going to the Appalchia. They don't look to kindly on trespassers.

The Moonies, who were Christians, and the Hare Krishnas, were mostly Americans and short on resources. I think if the US ever saw hundreds of highly organized and well-financed foreign missionaries doing all on their power to lead vulnerable people from Christianity, there would be an uproar and Christian evangelicals would be at the head of the pack.

I think you were right to characterize these hypothetical missionaries to Appalachia as trespassers. What about real missionaries to Himalaya?

[jome]

It was communism before. Now its religious extremism!!!! Think of all the islamist extremists arming against civilized world.

[Gengis Khan]

"Uh, she was born in Albania."

She was whole-hartedly an Indian citizen for around 60 years of her life.

[jome]

sorry!!! islamic extremists...lol