Posted on 06/14/2007 5:57:53 AM PDT by kellynla
Laxmi Narayan Gowda, an independent pastor and representative of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), was recovering in a hospital at press time with swelling and numerous bruises.
The incident took place at about 7 p.m. in Hessarghatta, about 30 kilometers from Bangalore, when a group of about 50 people barged into the pastor’s house and threatened him with violence unless he moved out of the area, said Sam Joseph, a Karnataka-based leader of the All India Christian Council (AICC).
The group returned with 100 more people shortly after, cornered Pastor Gowda in a room in his house, and began assaulting him in front of his wife and two small children.
Extremists of the Bajrang Dal, youth wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP or World Hindu Council), allegedly led the mob.
One of the assailants threw kerosene on the pastor, and others started burning Bibles. Someone tossed a burning Bible onto Pastor Gowda, but miraculously he did not catch fire, Joseph told Compass.
The extremists then stripped the pastor naked and hung a board around his neck that said, “I am the one who was converting people,” before parading him through the area.
“By this time, the mob had swollen to about 1,000, as more people joined in to harass and torture the pastor,” Joseph added.
Local police arrived about an hour later, after one of the pastor’s relatives called them by telephone.
The assailants burned at least 250 Bibles and also vandalized furniture and equipment.
Police had not registered a case against the attackers at press time. When Compass spoke to Inspector R. Malesh of the Soladevanhalli police station, he said the victim did not want to file a complaint.
“We have requested the Christians to give us a complaint in writing, but they do not want to press charges against the attackers,” he said.
Malesh claimed that the mob consisted of local people who did not belong to any Hindu extremist groups. Some of Pastor Gowda’s neighbors attacked, he said, because they do not want Christian prayers and meetings to take place in his house.
A local source, however, told Compass on condition of anonymity that the attack was pre-planned and directed by an unidentified lawyer. The lawyer suggested to the crowd that if they hit the pastor as a mob, then there would be no possibility of prosecution, said the source.
Before Pastor Gowda accepted Christ about 15 years ago, the source said, he was a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the parent organization of numerous Hindu extremist groups in India.
“The attackers seemingly wanted to punish Pastor Gowda for converting to Christianity from their Hindu nationalistic ideology, and warn others against dong so,” added the source.
Pastor Gowda has been working in the area for the last 12 years. The source also said the pastor was firm in his faith following the attack.
Dr. Sam Paul, AICC’s public affairs secretary, said that although Karnataka was known for anti-Christian attacks, the situation has become more volatile in the state since the Janata Dal-Secular party, in coalition with the Hindu nationalistic Bharatiya Janata Party, took power from the Congress Party in February 2006.
“Extremists in Karnataka are emboldened as the police usually turn up after the incident,” he said. “There are also times when the police encourage anti-social elements to harass Christians.”
Paul also stressed the need to educate India’s people about true conversion, in particular that it does not mean that one becomes anti-national.
Dr. Sajan K. George, national president of the GCIC, told Compass that he was thankful to God for saving the life of one of his organization’s representatives.
Every other religion would say the same of yours too.
There is one Father of all creation. There is no need to think that everyone who calls God by another name is not worshipping Him. Or on a different day, or in a different shaped building. Such sectarian hatred is the cause of great suffering.
Did you know that Jesus’ appearance was predicted in the Puranas? Almost 5000 years ago? Yes, as well as Buddha’s. I don’t want to be contentious, but please re-consider your hatred of Hinduism. You really don’t know what the Vedas teach; if you did, you would have more tolerance and respect.
I’ve explained the caste system before and don’t have much time. Simply put, it’s a general description of innate qualities of people and not by birth, although generally those born in, for instance, military families, may be more likely to join the military. Or those born in families with generations of university educated members may continue the tradition.
It’s described in detail in the Bhagavad Gita. The modern understanding is not based very well on scripture; but western misunderstanding misses the entire point.
The real point is that people should do what they are suited to do by their nature, and there are rules governing the types of duties and responsibilities.
One problem (and most likely described further down the thread) is that there are some very aggressive and unscrupulous Christian groups who are pushing conversion on tribal and other poor, uneducated people, in a very offensive manner. This is not right, and I am not justifying in any way any aggression or violence. But the forcible aggressive type of conversion is not right.
“If they hate you, remember that they hated ME first.”
Be well.
If you are talking about attempts to convert by gun or sword, virtually all American sponsors of such missionaries would quickly repudiate their support upon learning of this.
If you are referring to hellfire and brimstone preaching of the hereafter, however, there is a well known adage about kitchens and heat. If it's mere man telling a fairy story, you need pay no mind. But if it's bringing to your recollection something that man has not entirely forgotten -- a sovereign transcendent spirit who has the right to punish as well as to be merciful -- I suggest you jolly well listen.
There are many types of aggression. None should be used.
Christians should try to convert atheists and Muslims, not Hindus.
No, but that's small comfort if you happen to be the parent of one of the American kids killed in the shooting, or to an Indian Christian college student whose family has been murdered by a mob because of his religious affiliation.
It is small comfort but that however is not the answer to my question. My question was, if an outsider were to form an opinion on America based on news reports of rape, murder, violence and shoot-outs how accurate would his perception of US be? The experience of being victim to such incidents has nothing to do with what I asked.
BTW I have not come across any recent news about any Indian Christian college student's family has being murdered unless it is another of the WND, compass direct or persecution.org tripe.
Incidents such as that one are probably very uncommon in India just as school massacres are very rare in the US. But the mere fact that something like that can and occasionally does happen is enough to show the Hindu majority in a bad light.
Thats how the Christian propagandists want it. If Hindus can be shown in bad light, Christians would claim their cultural/religious superiority status over others. Thats is the sole reason why you have scores of such Christian propagandist sites that thrive on "persecution new". Even rare incidents are enough to give them the ammo they need to malign the Hindus. When there are no incidents, they will fabricate one. I have rarely seen any of their report corroborated by other mainstream media (Indian or Foreign). Moreover their article have a clear bias, as if the other side of the story does even exist. Christians are always the victims and Hindus are guilty....thats it! Verdict is given on the spot. Most of their stories are based on rumors, hearsay and use weasel words like "local source". Even cheap communist propaganda sounds more credible then those like the above article.
European Christians used to persecute and murder Jews and other non-Christians too, but they gave up that practice a couple of centuries ago and Christians now rightly condemn that awful practice.
I am not so sure of that. Check post #44
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/717775.stm
BTW these are BBC articles and not some con article from a dubious site. And I dont subscribe to your cultural/religious supremacy nonsense that Christians "rightly condemn" violence and Hindus dont.
According to reports by Christian missionaries in India who serve there with the same mission org that my daughter serves with elsewhere, the desperately poor Dalits are converting to Christianity on a very large scale, and I imagine that situation is an irritating burr under the saddle for some Hindus.
What those "reports" never tell you is that most of those large scale conversion gimmickry are scams meant to draw more funds from Christian west. The "poor Dalits" who are also illiterates are herded to a large field like cattle, for mass conversion rallies, have no idea what Christianity or conversion is all about except that if they play along they would get some free handouts. Gimmicks such as these are advertised as mass conversion victories and yet another success over "Hindu oppression". This is hardly any conversion, just that some people are getting rich from this kind of shill. And the Hindus who are irritated by this are none other then the "poor Dalits" themselves who are mostly the easy targets for conversion because of their lack of education not because of their love for Christianity. Most attacks on missionaries comes from the "poor Dalits" (sic) not the upper cast Hindus. The "poor Dalits" almost always get themselves reconverted back to Hinduism in similar mass "re-conversion" rallies. After all who wants to let go of all the affirmative action benefits. IMO all this kinda religons shills should be outlawed.
“I should add that the father of Hinduism is the same person as the father of Islam.”
And who is the father of Hinduism?
If it’s not God, then it’s the Deceiver.
Again, it can’t be God because God doesn’t lie, He doesn’t form alternate theories of who He is. There’s but one truth, and that includes one God.
So every other religion thats not Christian belongs to the “deceiver”?
Yes. Don’t take it up with me, though. God said it originally.
“God said it originally.”
Not my God. My God is not a jealous God.
The fact is that God *is* a jealous God. He notes that in the 10 Commandments: “You shall not bow down to them or serve [other gods]
, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God” (Exodus 20:5).
Exodus 34:14 goes on to say that one of His names is “Jealous.”
As I write, these aren’t my opinions, so please don’t rebuke me personally. This is Scripture.
Of course, His name is also Love, something He demonstrated on the Cross of Christ. May you come to see this love, a love that gave its live to accomplish reconciliation, some day soon.
According to my God the only Satan or deceiver that exists are the vices within us (which includes even jealousy). Save for that any other Evil, HE will or has already taken care of.
Check post #81
Also post #51
I should add that the father of Hinduism is the same person as the father of Islam. So we shouldn’t be surprised when their response to Christ and His followers is one of hatred.
This is one of the funniest threads I have read in a long time, despite the tragedy of a man being beaten up for his beliefs.
You know what's funny? A little background first. I am an Indian living in the US, who has seen and appreciated both my country's and the US's culture and way of life. I am a Hindu but in a very when-it- is-convenient- way, just like most christians I know.
Here's the funny part dudes:
I know both of you are decent/warm/fair people, and I know it because I have found 90% of Americans to be so (better than Europeans, in my personal experience, but I could be wrong). I do not agree with your- seeming- religious Christian bent, but then I do not agree with Hindus who I think are as religious as you.
I also know that Gengis Khan and Maneesh are decent/warm/fair people because that is where I come from.
The funny thing is that you are arguing with the very people who are most likely to be the same as you, differences in religion notwithstanding.
As for the issue of the Pastor been beaten, let me give the opinion of most Indians and let me give it to you honestly (you decide if my religion is like Islam). So my reaction:
1. $ hit why am I being bothered by this news?
2. Oh $ hit, this is serious.
3. I hope they stand the guys who assaulted the Pastor against a wall, torture them silly, and then shoot 'em.
4. Oh fcku, in a democracy you can't do that.
5. I hope they go to jail for a 100 years.
OK?
BTW, I represent the 'middle mass' of Hinduism, which IMHO is pretty much the same as the 'middle mass/ of Christianity- the freedom to say what I want, the freedom to get drunk, the freedom to follow my belief, the freedom to watch pretty girls in mini-skirts walk by.
That's my definition of the Hindu religion and I'm sticking to it.
It ain't Islam dude.
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