The BJP and its cadres in Kerala are wooing Syrian Christians to the party to get the support of one of the major minority communities. It appears that a few bishops are supportive of the move.
“Are the Christian leaders in Kerala unaware of the agenda of Hindutva ideology?” asked retired archbishop of Guwahati Thomas Menamparampil. He cited the “inimical” attitude to Christians and conversions of what he called RSS frontal organisations such as Janjati Dharm Sanskriti Suraksha Manch (forum for protection of tribal religion and culture).
Archbishop Menamparampil’s opinion finds an echo in the words of former archbishop of Bhopal Leo Cornelio who said that Kerala bishops did not understand the entire context of India. “They are thinking in terms of only one State as if Kerala is India.”
The criticism of the Kerala Church leadership has been aired in interviews of retired archbishops in the Light of Truth, a fortnightly published from the Ernakulam-Angamaly Archdiocese. The archbishops spoke in the wake of Church leaders meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Kochi in the last week of April. The meeting bolstered a widespread perception that the BJP was wooing Christians, who were perceivably charmed by the party’s gestures.
Archbishop Cornelio did not take names but said that some bishops had made comments without understanding facts. He referred to the question of the factors in play in the price of rubber. In late March, Joseph Pamplany, Archbishop of Thalassery, stirred up a hornets’ nest when he openly linked Christian support to the BJP to the price of natural rubber.
The Church leadership should limit its intellectual endeavours to educating the people and working for the poor. “When invited by party leaders, they should only send their representatives. They should not go in person. I don’t think shunning them is an option,” said archbishop Cornelio.
Archbishop Menamparampil said “while Modiji visited the Delhi Cathedral, he had not said a single word of sympathy about Father Stan Swamy at any stage.” He also said that it was not for him to suggest the political strategies to be adopted by the Christian community in various parts of the country with varying situations.
In the midst of these developments, the archbishop said: “We must still renew our trust in the balanced and mature element in Hindu society. We should explore ways of entering into dialogue with them at life-related levels where people look to each other for cooperation.”
Catholic Church leadership under fire for overtures to BJP
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