PopeWatch: Eminent personalities, artistes slam Papal visit
Posted November 5, 1999
New Delhi, November 5: A group of eminent personalities and artistes on Friday accused Pope John Paul II of visiting India to convert Hindus and said religious conversion was 'violence' against the Hindu faith.
In an 'open letter' to the Pope, who arrived here on Friday night, they recalled his open statement that salvation had to come only through Christ and not through any other faith and said "this is where, as the encyclopedia Britannica observes, Christianity is intolerant towards other faiths. This intolerance makes Christianity aggressive in efforts to convert others," they said. "We make no demand of you. We only want to tell you that religious conversion, which seems to be synonymous with the Papal work, is violence, pure and simple, particularly against the Hindu faith, which does not believe in conversion," the personalities said.
Expressing concern over the purpose of his visit and the 'modalities for new evangelisation of Asia', they described the term evangelisation as a 'dignified substitute' for its less dignified cousin 'conversion' "Thus the stated object of your visit is to convert the Hindus," they said.
Prominent among signatories to the letter include artistes Padma Subramaniam and Sonal Mansingh, eye-surgeon S S Badrinath, Hindi scholar Vidya Niwas Mishra, Justice Krishnaswamy Reddiar and former CBI director C B Narsimhan.
india-today.com |
