New Video Reveals Christian Missionary Misdeeds in India

INDIA, March 28, 2008: Bad Manna is a three-part YouTube video subtitled "A first hand report on the effects of missionary activity in India." It is highly recommended that all concerned Hindus view this well-made in-depth look at the nefarious activities of Christian missionaries that continue to this day in India.

Bad Manna - Part 1



Bad Manna - Part 2



Bad Manna - Part 3

Accommodating religious needs or a formula to proselytize?

Jennifer Siegel
April 7, 2007
Hareetz

As U.S. gay rights activists and liberal interest groups gear up for a fight against a broad-based religious alliance over a bill to expand rights in the workplace, Jewish organizations are struggling to determine which side to line up on.

At issue is a proposed bill, the Workplace Religious Freedom Act, aimed at strengthening a federal law that requires employers to accommodate the religious needs of workers. The measure is backed by a coalition that includes more than 40 faith organizations spanning the political spectrum.



Recent religious accommodation cases have included a police officer's request to be exempted from protecting an abortion clinic and a social worker's use of Bible readings with prison inmates in counseling sessions.

In recent years, religious conservatives have increasingly squared off against liberal activists over the appropriate extent of religious accommodations in public life. On "gay rights, but also on abortion and contraception, traditional religious groups and the civil rights community are at loggerheads that are irreconcilable," said Marc Stern, general counsel of the American Jewish Congress, which is backing WRFA. This is "really a culture war."

The workplace accommodation bill has been introduced in Congress since the early 1990s, but came closest to passing in 2004, when opposition from the ACLU and the Chamber of Commerce derailed the measure. At that time, several liberal Jewish groups vocally backed the measure, including the Reform movement.

At least one Jewish organization, the National Council of Jewish Women, opposes the bill. Several other prominent Jewish organizations belong to the coalition pushing the bill. Among them is the Orthodox Union, which tends to line up with other religious conservatives on such matters, as well as three groups - the American Jewish Committee, the AJCongress and B'nai B'rith International - that generally side with liberals on church-state issues.

Two other Jewish groups in the coalition, the Anti-Defamation League and Hadassah, have told the Forward that they now favor amendments to the measure. There is concern "that this legislation, whose intent is to serve as a shield against religious discrimination, may be used by some to advance their majority religious agenda, which could result in discrimination, proselytizing or harassment," wrote Deborah Lauter, national civil rights director of the ADL, in an e-mail to the newspaper.

Lauter told the Forward that the ADL now favors a compromise, originally proffered by the ACLU in 2004, that would limit the bill to claims involving religious dress and grooming, and time off for religious observance. The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, which is in the workplace coalition and reportedly opposed the ACLU's compromise several years ago, declined to comment.

In the current Congress, the measure has received bipartisan support. In the House of Representatives, its dozen or so co-sponsors include Rep. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, who is chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, and Eric Cantor of Virginia, the House's only Jewish Republican. The bill has not yet been introduced in the Senate, but last time around it was sponsored by then-senator Rick Santorum, a leading conservative lawmaker and Pennsylvania Republican, and by Senator John Kerry, a prominent liberal and Massachusetts Democrat. Other Democratic backers in the Senate included Hillary Rodham Clinton and Charles Schumer, both of New York, and Senator Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut.

Both supporters and opponents of the bill back putting new teeth in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which requires employers to guarantee some measure of religious accommodation to workers. Since the 1977 Supreme Court decision Trans World Airlines v. Hardison, the courts have required employers to show that granting religious exemptions would cause only relatively minor burdens, making it easier for the employers to prevail in court. Meanwhile, religion-based accommodation claims have mushroomed in recent years, increasing about 50 percent since 1997, according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

According to one study conducted by the ACLU of some 900 workplace religious accommodation suits brought since 1977, the vast majority of claims fell into the categories of dress, grooming and time off.

Supporters of WRFA argue that civil liberties groups are pushing "nightmare" scenarios unlikely to play out even if new teeth are added to the Civil Rights Act. The backers say a clause in the bill, allowing employers to reject religious accommodations that constitute a "significant burden," would enable them to refuse accommodations that entail proselytizing, or speech that targets gays and lesbians or other minorities.

"You can't have a one-size-fits-all approach," said Nathan Diament, Washington director of the Orthodox Union. "The way we crafted the bill, it's meant to be flexible, it's meant to take into account a set of factors." If the bill moves forward, Jewish groups in the coalition backing it are likely to find themselves increasingly divided.

Several of the Jewish organizations, including the O.U., the AJCommittee, the AJCongress and B'nai B'rith, say they will oppose any effort by the ACLU to narrow the bill.

That amendment "creates two levels of religious claims," Stern said. "If I'm a Muslim wearing a hijab, I get a higher level of protection. If I'm a conservative Christian saying I can't dispense contraception - which is exactly the same claim in the workplace - it gets a lower level of protection." But leaders of Hadassah say they may join the ADL in backing the ACLU's compromise or other changes.

"Religious freedom has always been one of the major tenets of our public policy agenda," said Shelley Klein, Hadassah's director of advocacy. "But what happens when religious freedoms in the workplace can burden the civil rights or reproductive rights of co-workers, clients or patients? We're very much interested in striking a balance."

Massive conversions under R. Reddy in Andhra

Half of the ‘Savara Girijans’ took baptism.

Santoshi, Rajyalaxmi, Seethamma, Mangaiah, Buddaiah—these are the common names of adivasis (tribals) of North Andhra Agency area. At present you can’t listen these names at all. Most of them change their names to Sunto, Sobita, Deena, Yakub and Joseph. In previous days Jannodu says about festivals, Majjodu says about the muhurtam and Deesarodu gives treatment to ill people. But at present they got new names. Pastor came in place of Jannodu, vice-pastor in place of Majjodu and doctor in place of Deesarodu.

If you think these changes occur due to the development of tribals then you are wrong. This is a pucca planning of Christian missionaries. A pastor belonging to Orissa state planned all these—by luring the Girijans and converting them into Christians. Missionaries are destroying the Girijan culture. They are getting funds from foreign countries. In the name of modern treatment they are exploiting Girijans. In the name of Christ service they are looting Girijans. In previous days tribal were depended on religion heads for every issue but today they look for pastors to solve their problems. By embracing Christianity Girijans are not getting any benefits but conflicts are increasing between them. Group politics entered among Girijans.

Evangelism is going on high scale in tribal areas of Seethampeta, Maliaputti, Patapatnam mandals of Srikakulam district. The evangelists of Serango, Parlakamidi border villages of Orissa are the key persons in these conversions. One family is responsible for all these activities in these three mandals.

Accurate Plan

Christian missionaries drafted a perfect strategy to spread Christianity in tribal areas. In the beginning they select important persons in the villages and give them a motorcycle. These persons are responsible for three to four villages and they organise religious programme. Meanwhile, some more persons are identified to help them and these persons are given bicycles and a salary of Rs 700 to Rs 1000 per month. Even though the Christian activities and conversions have been going on since 1994, but recently these activities have increased rapidly. The missionaries make friendship with the village sarpanchs and get their help in spreading Christianity. In Gajapati district of the Orissa state is the center of evangelism. In the name of tourists persons coming from Nepal, African countries, Germany, England and Sweden to propagate Christianity. They tell the people Christian stories in tribal language ‘savara’. The missionaries first study stories and other literature of tribals then they understand the stories using English language. Most of the evangelists are from Baptist group and they approach the tribes with ‘Savara’ language. Hence missionaries easily attract the tribals. They conduct the meetings in Christian culture and construction of churches are going on. They studied the festivals of tribals and their food habits. When Girijans celebrate their festivals Christian missionaries conduct prayer meetings. They succeeded in including puri and chapatis in tribal menu.

Exploitation

In the name of service to Christ, missionaries exploit Girijans. Pastors collect 1/10th of the agriculture production from Girijans. Others collect donations in the name of Christ and they also are receive donations from foreign countries for their evangelism. In the villages Kotturu, Gummada, Veeraghattam, Battili, G.L. Puram, Hiramandalam and Patapatnam, in the name of hospitals, medical business is going on. They started missionary schools for Girijans.

Unrest in villages

Due to Christian conversions in tribal villages, clashes started between the groups of the villages. Among Girijans two tribes are there—one is Savara tribe and the other is Jatapu tribe. Most of the conversions are taking place in Savara tribes but Jatapu tribe is not converting. In village politics they are divided vertically. In the sarpanch elections converted Christians play a key role. In Haddubanga and other areas they became a vote bank for political parties. Due to conversions Akkannaguda of Sitampet mandal, Kummariguda, Nallaraiguda of Bhamini mandal, Irupadiguda of Kothur mandal and some other villages are facing conflicts between them.

In the tribal areas of Sitampeta, Maliaputti and Patapatnam, Savaras have been converted into Christianity in large number. In that area, every prayer meeting is attended by nearly 5,000 people from a minimum of 250 villages. Srikakulam and Vijayanagaram Agency area has nearly two lakh Savara tribes. As per statistics nearly one lakh Savaras have been converted into Christianity. In the Agency area conversions occurred 100 per cent in 60 villages, 75 per cent in 30 villages, 50 per cent in 20 villages and 25 per cent in 10 villages.

(Courtesy: Andhrajyothi)

So the caste is a convert’s nightmare still!

Let the prodigals return home
By Sandhya Jain

Over the decades, evangelicals have sought to gain access to the caste-based reservation benefits of Hindu depressed classes. Though they failed to get religion-based reservations in the Constituent Assembly, the first Mandal Commission listed some ‘Muslim castes’ among the OBCs, and this set off the Christian quest for SC/ST benefits for ‘Dalit Christians.’ Dalit Muslims have now joined this bandwagon.

It is now certain that UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi is going to use the National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities (NCRLM) to procure Scheduled Caste status for Christian and Muslim converts once elections to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly are over. The Congress president has been itching to snatch caste-based quotas from the Hindu community and hand them over to Muslims and Christians for the past two years, and according to available indications, Justice Ranganath Misra is likely to play ball and recommend the delinking of religion from caste while deciding Scheduled Caste status.

Official leaks suggest that the Commission has already prepared its report. This would have been submitted to the government on March 26, but the announcement of UP election schedule made this inadvisable. Accordingly, the Commission was ‘advised’ to seek an extension till May 15. The sources have revealed that the report is not unanimous on extending SC benefits to non-Indic converts, but this may not deter a regime hell-bent upon damaging Hindu society by promoting conversions.

Historically and civilizationally, caste, the Portuguese term for jati or gotra, has been the organising principle of Hindu society from ancient times, and is integral to Hindu society and in fact, synonymous with it. The varna system provided a framework which integrated the diverse jatis and resolved mutual conflicts on the matrix of an evolving dharma. Both caste and dharma emphasised heredity because ancestry (gotra) was imperative as the spirits of the ancestors had to be invoked in all social sacraments (samskara) to establish the individual’s worthiness to receive the sacrament.

Caste/jati is rooted in the tribal concept of gotra, and gotra is the organising principle of both tribal and caste Hindu social identity. That is why the 1950 government order fixing the Scheduled Caste category was extended only to Hindus; later amendments in 1956 and 1990 extended the facility to Sikhs and Buddhists as part of a common Indic tradition.

Over the decades, evangelicals have sought to gain access to the caste-based reservation benefits of Hindu depressed classes. Though they failed to get religion-based reservations in the Constituent Assembly, the first Mandal Commission listed some ‘Muslim castes’ among the OBCs, and this set off the Christian quest for SC/ST benefits for ‘Dalit Christians.’ Dalit Muslims have now joined this bandwagon. What is more, there is now mounting evidence that SC/ST reservations in educational institutions are being stealthily cornered by non-Hindus.

This raises some fundamental questions. First, should those who have renounced their Hindu identity get the benefits of a caste identity, which is the sine qua non of being Hindu? Second, should individuals who have renounced their Hindu identity be allowed to retain their caste names and thus mislead society?

Political parties with the brand equity of being Hindu-minded parties need to deliberate and articulate their views on the issue of caste within missionary religions. A constitutional challenge to the OBC Muslim quota would be a step in the right direction of creating both Hindu consciousness and a Hindu centric vote bank. Certainly, the sterile approach of fighting for a piece of the minority vote bank should be avoided at all costs.

It bears stressing that Christianity and Islam profess complete worldviews and seek to completely annihilate the old religious and cultural beliefs of converts. Both ruthlessly wiped out the traditional religion and culture in the lands where they spread. The Pope’s pride in Europe’s “Christian roots” cannot disguise the truth that the faith is a cruel imposition of just 2000 years, and spread through brutal genocides in North and South America, Australia, and Africa. Islam similarly triumphed by wiping out native communities (including Christian) in lands where it became dominant. Both religions have regularly launched movements against “heretics” and resisted the liberalisation of dogma. Islam has the tabligh movement to cleanse Muslim adherents of old practices of their former faith traditions, Christian clergy are engaged in battle with modern “secularism.”

Caste has no place in the theology of Christianity or Islam. Hence in India, these faiths cannot be allowed to make a political expedient of caste and use it to undermine Hindu society from within. This is a political ruse to not merely permit so-called Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims to garner reservation benefits, but actively augment the conversion agenda of both groups.

Both Islam and Christianity are transnational religions with enormous numerical, economic and political clout. The Vatican in Rome caters to the interests of Catholics, while the World Council of Churches in Geneva looks after Protestants. The 2.1 billion-strong Christian community constitutes one-third of the world population, and its clout extends beyond national boundaries, as does that of Islam. Adherents of these transnational faiths should not be permitted to cannibalize the legitimate dues of Hindu depressed classes.

Moreover, as Christianity sought converts on the plea that it did not discriminate between believers, a claim later echoed by Islam, both owe an explanation for the persisting discrimination against low-caste believers in their ranks. The Church in India must be asked to explain the creation of separate pews and even cremation grounds for Dalit Christians, and their poor social and economic conditions.

Indeed, the National Human Rights Commission should take suo moto notice of this state of affairs, as this is nothing but a gross and institutionalised violation of human rights and human dignity. The Supreme Court would also do well to consider if such religion-based reservations amount to altering the basic character of the Constitution. It may also like to investigate why most conversion activities in India are focused on strategic areas (like the north-east) and upon clusters which create pockets of minority concentration and inexorably force others out.

Such concentration makes sedition and partition possible. 1947 happened because of the Cold War strategic needs of the West. More recently, East Timor happened after conversions by Western missionaries delinked Indonesia’s oil-rich portion. This has impoverished the native people of “independent” East Timor, while their oil wealth is being exploited by White fellow Christians of Australia! It would be interesting to examine if conversion to Christianity has benefitted any non-White people anywhere in the world.

The bottom-line is that if Christians and Muslims practice caste discrimination, the conversion process among them should be legally declared incomplete. They should be designated as non-Christians and non-Muslims and asked to complete the transformation to the new faith, or return to the Hindu fold. There can be no half-way house in this matter.

I suspect that the UPA’s real objective is backdoor political reservations for Dalit Christians by providing an opportunity to ‘steal’ the existing quota for Hindu Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Hindu society should rise to the occasion before it is too late.

Equality is a Hindu heritage. Others only profess

The plight of the converted dalits

By Shachi Rairikar

For decades dalits have been converting to Christianity or Islam in the vain hope of being liberated from their dalit status. The proselytising forces of these foreign faiths market their religions as not recognising the caste system and giving equal status to all. Only after conversion do the dalits realise the fraud that has been perpetuated on them in the name of equality when they find discriminatory treatment in Christian and Muslim societies and even their places of worship.

And this is not a new phenomenon. Many decades ago Dr. Ambedkar had studied the plight of dalits converted to Christianity and observed, “Indian Christians like all other Indians are divided by race, by language, and by caste. Their religion has not been a sufficiently strong unifying force as to make difference of language, race and caste as though they were mere distinctions.” The same was the case with the Muslim converts. He said, “Everybody infers that Islam must be free from slavery and caste. (While slavery existed), much of its support was derived from Islam and Islamic countries. While the prescriptions by the Prophet regarding the just and humane treatment of slaves contained in the Koran are praiseworthy, there is nothing whatever in Islam that lends support to the abolition of this curse. But if slavery has gone, caste among Muslims has remained.”

Dr. Ambedkar’s conversion to Buddhism was his way of revolting against the caste system in Hinduism. When he announced his intention to convert to another religion in 1935 many Christian and Muslim leaders and organisations tried to lure him into their religions. To those people he said, “We are fully conscious of the fact that go anywhere we will, we would have to fight for our welfare if we took to Christianity or Islam.”

For 20 years he studied all the alternative religions for the purpose of conversion. Christianity did not satisfy the criteria laid down by him for determining a true religion. About Islam he wrote, “The brotherhood of Islam is not the universal brotherhood of man. It is brotherhood of Muslims for Muslims only. There is a fraternity but its benefit is confined to those within that corporation. For those who are outside the corporation, there is nothing but contempt and enmity.” He was of the opinion that “Islam can never allow a true Muslim to adopt India as his motherland and regard a Hindu as his kith and kin.”

But the most important factor that desisted Dr. Ambedkar from converting to Christianity or Islam was that both these religions were foreign, born outside of the Hindu civilization. Adopting these religions would de-Indianise the dalits, which would be against the national interest. He wrote, “If the depressed classes join Islam or Christianity, they not only go out of the Hindu religion, but they also go out of the Hindu culture. What the consequences of conversion will do to the country as a whole is well worth bearing in mind.” So after the detailed study and great introspection, he chose Buddhism, an offshoot of Hinduism. The Dalai Lama has considered Buddhism a part of Hinduism. He has said: “When I say that Buddhism is part of Hinduism, certain people criticise me. But if I were to say that Hinduism and Buddhism are totally different, it would not be in conformity with truth.”

Dr. Ambedkar himself perceived Buddhism as a part of the larger Hindu family. When he introduced the Hindu Code Bill in Parliament, he included the Buddhists, the Jains and the Sikhs in the Hindu fold. On being questioned for doing so, Dr. Ambedkar replied, “The application of the Hindu Code to Sikhs, Buddhists and Jains was a historical development and it would be too late, sociologically, to object to it. When the Buddha differed from the Vedic Brahmins, he did so only in matters of creed, but left the Hindu legal framework intact. He did not propound a separate law for his followers. The same was the case with Mahavir and the ten Sikh gurus.”

The Christian and Muslim proselytisers have no interest in the welfare of the dalits or the integrity of the nation. Had their concern been genuine they wouldn’t have permitted the caste discriminations to be carried over to the church or mosques. All they are interested into winning converts and increasing their numbers. The dalits are the soft targets whose impoverished conditions are exploited to change their religion. Pope John Paul II had exhorted the bishops to target the dalits for conversion. He had said, “At all times, you must continue to make certain that special attention is given to those belonging to the lowest castes, especially the dalits.” It is common to see the different Christian and Muslim religious organisations boasting of the number of converts they had obtained and competing amongst themselves as to which religion has the largest number of followers. For them, it is just a number game.

The demand for reservation for dalit Christians or Muslims arises not out of sympathy for the depressed classes but out of the fact, as confessed by the president and founder of Gospel for Asia K.P. Yohannan, that the denial of affirmative-action benefits for dalit Christians and Muslims is “a huge, huge roadblock for masses of communities to embrace the Christian faith.” Reservations and privileges for dalit Christians and Muslims will only strengthen the dubious designs of the proselytizing forces that are using dalits for furthering their goals. Dalits converted on the false promise of equal status in a casteless society, must be reconverted to Hinduism. The dalit icon Babu Jagjivan Ram had said, “…we oppose the way in which conversions are done. Therefore, we have to reconvert those who might have been converted by deceit or under some temptation.”

R. Thirumalvalavan, leader of the Dalit Panthers Party of India, said, “For emancipation of dalits, conversion is not the solution.” The solution lies in the comprehension and adoption of the real essence of Hinduism by all the Hindus, irrespective of their caste.

Hinduism perceives divinity in everything, whether living or non-living. One of Adi Shankaracharya’s finest poems, Manisha Panchakam, was inspired by his dialogue with a chandala, a member of the lowest caste. Once, when Shankara was on his way to the temple after a bath in the Ganga, he found a chandala with four dogs blocking his path. He got furious when the chandala refused to step aside, and asked him to do so. The chandala asked, “If there is only one existence, what is it that you want to drive away: My body or my soul? If it is my body, both your and mine are made up of the same physical elements. But if it is my soul, it is also no different from yours. How can therefore be any distinctions of caste and creed?” Filled with remorse, Shankara prostrated himself before the chandala, thinking: “He who has learnt to see one existence everywhere, he is my master—be he a Brahmin or a chandala.”

The need of the hour is a collective effort of all sections of the Hindu society to reinstate the true spirit of Hinduism. Dalit activist and poet Namdeo Dhasal says, “Yes, I do feel that the fight to eradicate caste has to be fought by dalits and caste Hindus together carrying forward the tradition of Adi Shankara, which got broken somewhere in between.”