Christians Send Love to Indian Leader Despite Ongoing Violence
Christians all over India have decided to present Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik with flowers on his 62nd birthday on Oct. 16.
Christian leaders and laymen have both joined in email campaigns, urging believers to wish the chief minister a happy birthday and to express "love" even after the pain and suffering the Christian community has been undergoing following violence on churches and clergies in the Indian state of Orissa.
"Since we love those who hate us, please do not fail to send him special birthday greetings from the Christian community, especially from those who are impressed by his efforts to uphold the honor of women and enforce the rule of law in this state," states the email being circulated among the Christians.
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The email gives the address of the chief minister's official residence and his email address so that the flowers and greetings can be sent both online and offline. The Orissa chief minister's phone number has been also added as a helpful gesture for those wishing to call the him on his birthday.
Meanwhile, a joint declaration was signed in the capital on Wednesday calling for an end to violence and the promotion of interfaith dialogue between Hindus and Christians.
The announcement came after a meeting between the Archbishops of New Delhi and Orissa and L.K. Advani, leader of the country's parliamentary opposition - Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Advani, who believes that India is a Hindu country and that all Indians should embrace Hinduism, spoke on the need for restoring peace and a sense of security in the state through cooperation between communities. He emphasized the need for "sustained and sincere" dialogue between Hindu and Christian community leaders on religious conversion.
"Religious conversions or re-conversions, using coercive, fraudulent and allurement-based means, or through denigration of others' faiths, are condemnable and must be stopped," read a joint statement released after the meeting.
The significant call came after a meeting between senior BJP leaders and Christian representatives, amid the escalating violence in Orissa, Karnataka and other parts of the country.
The Christian leaders condemned the killing of Swami Lakshmanananda Saraswati and his four aides in Kandhamal district in Orissa.
Violence broke out in the remote eastern state of Orissa after a Hindu political leader, known for his anti-Christian conversion campaigns, was murdered. Police had initially blamed Maoist rebels for the murder, and the rebels themselves have claimed responsibility.
But Hindu radicals refuse to believe the rebels are behind the attack and continue to blame Christians for the death of their leader. While relations between the small Christian population and Hindus have been generally peaceful, Orissa has been plagued by religious tensions between Christian missionaries and hard-line Hindu groups who claim the Christians are forcing or bribing people to convert, as reported by The Associated Press.
Since then, thousands of people have become homeless, many churches were destroyed, a nun was brutally gang-raped, and at least 60 people, mostly Christians, have been killed in the state.
Prohibitory orders are still in force in the district and a night curfew has been imposed in most towns.
