INDIAN CHRISTIANITY: IN SEARCH OF THE CHRIST WITHIN
by Suma Varughese, December 1999 Lifepositive.com Inc.
Christianity in India is progressively partaking of Indian beliefs and customs, even meditation systems.
The trend has been given a name : inculturation.
The doorway of the suburban Mumbai flat, in the southern part of India, is festooned Christianity with flowers.
Christianity in India is progressively partaking of Indian beliefs and customs, even meditation systems.
The trend has been given a name : inculturation.
The doorway of the suburban Mumbai flat, in the southern part of India, is festooned Christianity with flowers.
Strains of religious songs waft out from within. Some 30 women sit cross-legged on the floor facing a silk sari-clad, flower-covered stone idol. Implements for a traditional Indian puja (prayer ritual), including prasad (food offerings to the deity, in this case plates of fruits) sit on either side. Typically Indian, right?
Wrong. For the gathered devotees, this is just another way of celebrating the feast of Mother Mary. Its prime mover Anjali Aranha feels that she is only expressing her conviction that she is a Hindu by culture and a Christian by belief.
Wrong. For the gathered devotees, this is just another way of celebrating the feast of Mother Mary. Its prime mover Anjali Aranha feels that she is only expressing her conviction that she is a Hindu by culture and a Christian by belief.
"I am taking back what is mine. Being Hindu is not opposed to being Christian," says she. A minuscule movement is transforming Indian Christianity. One that sees Hinduism and Christianity in sync with each other, thereby disentangling the confused strands of identity that make an Indian Christian.
"Hinduism helped me become a better Christian," says Eric Pinto, "I found it hard to believe in a vengeful Biblical God who made the universe in six days and rested on the seventh. Learning yoga made me understand that all universal laws operate through God. That made sense."
But where does Indianness end and Christianity begin? Are Christians betraying their faith by practicing yoga? What is the exact nature of the sin committed by accepting prasad?
The questions compel us to inquire into the nature of faith and nationality.
THE INDIAN WAY
For a faith that emphasizes the need for belief, these are radical questions. Yet more Indian Christians are looking to ford the twin halves of their identity.
Some institutions, such as the Fr. Agnel ashram* in Pune, India, will not ordain priests unless they take a Vipassana course. Most Indian seminaries even have courses on Indian philosophy. In many Christian ashrams in India today, you may encounter a vegetarian kitchen, Sanskrit verses, even meditation and yoga. Some ashrams follow Indian architecture. Some present Biblical stories through Indian dance and music. Many Christians adopt Indian names. The term for this trend is inculturation, and it is primarily happening within the westernized segment of the Catholic Church in India. Inculturation is inspired by the enlightened edict of the Second Vatican Council, 1962-65. In essence, the Vatican recognized the validity of other faiths and directed local churches to align themselves to prevailing cultures. To quote: "All nations form one human family; all of them are guided by the one God, all of them have the same destiny... The church exhorts Christians to preserve and promote the moral and spiritual goods found among the people."
IN THE BEGINNING
Ironically, inculturation was the basic nature of Indian Christianity long before the West entered.
Christianity here is believed to have been introduced in AD 52. This is when Thomas the Apostle came to Malankara, Kerala (a southern Indian State). Thomas converted many caste Hindus and established a church that, in every way save religious, was Indian. Belief in the divinity of Jesus went hand in hand with belief in karma, reincarnation, lighting of lamps and distribution of prasad. Clearly, the early Indian Christians made a distinction between religion and culture.
When the Portuguese came to Kerala in the 16th century, they gave Christianity a western orientation.
In 1599, they eliminated Indian elements and introduced the Latin rites of Roman Catholicism even though not all Kerala Christians chose to give allegiance to the Pope. In Goa too the Portuguese influenced the people's cultural moorings.
THE INDIAN WAY
For a faith that emphasizes the need for belief, these are radical questions. Yet more Indian Christians are looking to ford the twin halves of their identity.
Some institutions, such as the Fr. Agnel ashram* in Pune, India, will not ordain priests unless they take a Vipassana course. Most Indian seminaries even have courses on Indian philosophy. In many Christian ashrams in India today, you may encounter a vegetarian kitchen, Sanskrit verses, even meditation and yoga. Some ashrams follow Indian architecture. Some present Biblical stories through Indian dance and music. Many Christians adopt Indian names. The term for this trend is inculturation, and it is primarily happening within the westernized segment of the Catholic Church in India. Inculturation is inspired by the enlightened edict of the Second Vatican Council, 1962-65. In essence, the Vatican recognized the validity of other faiths and directed local churches to align themselves to prevailing cultures. To quote: "All nations form one human family; all of them are guided by the one God, all of them have the same destiny... The church exhorts Christians to preserve and promote the moral and spiritual goods found among the people."
IN THE BEGINNING
Ironically, inculturation was the basic nature of Indian Christianity long before the West entered.
Christianity here is believed to have been introduced in AD 52. This is when Thomas the Apostle came to Malankara, Kerala (a southern Indian State). Thomas converted many caste Hindus and established a church that, in every way save religious, was Indian. Belief in the divinity of Jesus went hand in hand with belief in karma, reincarnation, lighting of lamps and distribution of prasad. Clearly, the early Indian Christians made a distinction between religion and culture.
When the Portuguese came to Kerala in the 16th century, they gave Christianity a western orientation.
In 1599, they eliminated Indian elements and introduced the Latin rites of Roman Catholicism even though not all Kerala Christians chose to give allegiance to the Pope. In Goa too the Portuguese influenced the people's cultural moorings.
This trend towards fusing religion and culture was reinforced by the British, who brought with them the Anglican Church, to which the Churches of North and South India are aligned. However, there were protests. As far back as in the 19th century, Brahmanbandhab Upadhyay, a passionate Brahmin convert and freedom fighter, wrote that the Christian's faith was "too... mixed up with beef and pork, spoon and fork, too tightly pantalooned and petticoated to manifest its universality".
WHY INCULTURATE?
In many ways, inculturation is a profound phenomenon. It reflects the willingness within even the highest echelons of church authority to re-examine the truisms of the Christian creed. The clergy, at least, accept that it is old-fashioned to insist that salvation lies only through Christ. Naturally, there is no longer a compulsive need to convert.
WHY INCULTURATE?
In many ways, inculturation is a profound phenomenon. It reflects the willingness within even the highest echelons of church authority to re-examine the truisms of the Christian creed. The clergy, at least, accept that it is old-fashioned to insist that salvation lies only through Christ. Naturally, there is no longer a compulsive need to convert.
*Pilar Fathers
NOTE: Inculturation means the adoption of yoga. It means understanding evangelization not as the Bible [or the Church] teaches it. It means making Vipassana Buddhist meditation [above] and Yoga [below] compulsory for our seminarians.
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