By Patricia Mukhim
One is nonplussed by the apathy of the churches here in the North East to the acts of vandalism against Christians and churches across the country by right wing fundamentalists. Some leading columnists have expressed their anxiety at this attack on Christian minorities but the church leadership, other than Archbishop Machado of the archdiocese of Bangalore, are muted. Today the churches in Meghalaya and the North East seem leaderless and the laity in a state of flux not knowing what to say and how, since the act of making public statements has always vested with the church leadership. Could it be that the church today has become so insouciant about these series of events because the leaders have lost their moral compasses or are we Christians waiting until we are neck-deep in water before raising our voices?
Much has been said in email groups about the churches and their leaders having lost their moorings and colluding with the politics of the day especially in Kerala. The BJP will do what is possible within its might to win Kerala even if it has to work with the church leadership there which it hopes will appeal to the faithful on its behalf. But if one were to analyze the church attacks, they are not led by the BJP as a political party but by fringe elements of the Sangh Parivar. The BJP hardly has a hold on these rabble rousers. They go about doing what they like and saying what they want and get away with it. The state simply refuses to take action against them. From the look of things, it appears that in BJP-ruled states these demagogues enjoy the tacit support of the state. Hence even the law enforcers look the other way but are quick to book the critics of the NDA/BJP government on sedition and contumacious charges. Such is the situation today that there are more journalists behind bars than ever before in the history of India.
The situation is not getting better. On the contrary, the Missionaries of Charity were told that their accounts governed by the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) were not in order. Now this could have been pointed out to them earlier. Why on Christmas Day? Naturally the Missionaries of Charity – the order started by Mother Teresa stopped operating the accounts out of panic. These are subtle ways of intimidating Christian institutions despite their outreach programmes for the poor and destitute and their educational institutions which have provided a robust educational framework that has benefitted millions in this country over the years and without the burden of conversion.
Coming to the allegations of forced conversion one cannot testify to that since one has not witnessed any such thing at least in the North Eastern States. True, the missionaries preached and evangelized for that is their mission and indeed the mission of every follower of Christ to spread his teachings. And Christ’s teachings are condensed into one simple sentence, “Love your neighbour as yourself.” The sentence is simple but a tough one to practice especially since we are all obsessed with self-love. Christ also paraphrased the word “neighbour” to mean those who we interact with on a daily basis and not just people living next door.
If there are over-enthusiastic preachers who wish to increase their flock for reasons best known to them and to others and are therefore threatening people with dire consequences unless they become Christians then those should be held accountable for such acts. Unfortunately, the churches are so divided by denomination that there isn’t an overarching authority over “Christian churches.” Catholics are governed by canon laws and papal edicts while other protestant churches have their own governing councils. Hence there is no single authority to control wayward church leaders.
Perhaps it would not be wrong to surmise that the church today has slipped into a comfort zone because Christians have not faced persecution for as long as we can remember. Churches, especially those in Kerala are filthy rich and where mammon gets a hold over church leadership then depravity follows. Not that other religions are not guilty of the same predilections, but when Christianity asserts that it is the only way to salvation for all humankind then naturally questions arise when the Christian leadership falters.
This reminds us of the ugly incident that beset the Mawkhar church way back in August 2019 when Rs 4.67 crore went missing from the church accounts and nothing has been heard about this issue since January this year when the police said they would file the chargesheet against the fraudster. These sort of incidents are a slur on church management and a slap on the face of the laity that regularly pay their tithes with the hope that their hard-earned money would reach the needy. After this incident, several church members have defaulted in paying their tithes since they don’t want to tempt the fates and have a repeat of the same melodrama.
If I may say so, then every Christian is expected to be a model of integrity. We are supposed to live our faiths and not just attend church in our Sunday best and the rest of the week get back to doing what we do best which is to break all the commandments especially No 8 and No 10. Thou shalt not steal and Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, wife, ox, ass man-servant, maid-servant or anything that belongs to the neighbour. What are politicians doing if not daylight robbery by pilfering from schemes meant for development and for the poor? Remember the rice scam? What has happened to that enquiry? The top honchos in the cabinet are all Christians. Then why are water pipes of such inferior quality being brought in to supply water to poor households under the Jal Jeevan Mission? Why do roads have to be repaired every year?
Sadly, despite the visible signs of corruption the churches continue to patronize politicians in their respective churches instead of calling out their acts of omission and commission. What we see in Meghalaya is that politicians shamelessly flirt with church leaders. One doesn’t know whether to blame the church leaders or the politicians. For a politician every election is a matter of metaphysical survival and a clash of existential identities. In the end their identity as politicians wins the day. To win the elections they will climb on anyone’s back including that of acquiescent church leaders. Since church leaders are influencers in their own right the laity can be influenced to become force multipliers for the politician of choice.
It is this convoluted relationship between the church and partisan politics that has eroded the very foundations of Christ’s teachings. Christ was a messiah who stood with the weak, the widow, the outcast. There are among Christian leaders even today who carry out Christ’s mandate and care for orphans; for destitute and for those that have lost their way in life. But they are a dwindling community. We respect and honour such souls and can only hope that many more join their arduous paths. There are also those within the church who speak through their writings undaunted by what the laity will say or how they will be judged. They listen to their inner voices and call out what’s wrong. May their tribe increase!
Meanwhile it’s embarrassing that a state with a Christian majority simply refuses to look the problem besetting it, in the eye and to deal with it. Are church leaders waiting for politicians to wield their swords against the right wing brigade that pulled out people from a place of worship in Silchar, Assam? Such malcontents will soon develop clout here if there is no resistance to such ugly incursions into places of worship.
What’s needed is for the laity to take on the mantle of leadership, for church leaders have failed to rise to the occasion when they are most needed.