From: Ravi
Date: Fri, May 6, 2011 at 9:00 PM
Subject: (Book Review) “STRONG RELIGION, ZEALOUS MEDIA : Christian Fundamentalism and Communication in India"
To:
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/looking-at-christianitys-handshake-with-media-in-india-book-review_10074366.html
Book: “STRONG RELIGION, ZEALOUS MEDIA : Christian Fundamentalism and Communication in India" ;
The book is a result of a two-year study done in Chennai by Pradip Ninan Thomas, an associate professor at the School of Journalism and Communication at the University of Queensland, and naturally an academic point of view.
“(It was) inspired by a comment about conversions and riots in Gujarat by the historian William Dalrymple in an article several years ago,” Thomas told IANS.
“It suddenly opened my eyes to the fundamentalism that is getting entrenched in Christianity across the world, in Brazil, (South) Korea, Africa and also in India.”
One of the reasons why Thomas took up the study of modern-day Christian fundamentalism in Tamil Nadu is because as many as 62 million people in the southern state follow the religion.
“Chennai is today considered the fastest-growing hub of Christianity in South Asia,” he says.
His study is preceded by Lionel Caplan’s 1987 work “Fundamentalism as a Counter-Culture: Protestants in Urban South India” and Susan Bayly’s 1994 study in southern Tamil Nadu and Kerala, “Christians and Competing Fundamentalism in South Indian Society”.
Thomas has left himself open to criticism that he is playing directly into the hands of rising Hindu and Islamic fundamentalism by choosing to investigate how neo-Christian camps in India use the media and its audio-visual power to hypnotise their constituencies with “good news”, miracles and blessings.
Thomas writes that “Christian fundamentalists”, like Islamic fundamentalists, “belong to a global umma and harbour real and perhaps imagined…longings directed towards making all of god’s people Christian”.
Thomas says he himself is a practicing Christian, but that it is time “mainstream churches” begin looking at “Christianity in India and begin going to the media more” to halt what he calls “Karaoke” Christianity.
His concern is delivered in his critique of the media-supported Joshua project, the Christian Broadcasting Network and the evangelism of GOD TV, the 700 Club, Num TV of the Chennai-based organisation Jesus Calls, the Rede Record TV Network belonging to Brazil’s Pentecostal movement and such other mass followed sects.
He fears that more and more the “worship experience on a Sunday” is being overtaken by rallies like those organised by Benny Hinn Inc (in the US).
“Politics of mis-recognition certainly applies to Christian broadcasting in India,” Thomas notes.
The book takes a close look at India’s Pentecostal and neo-Pentecostal movements, their use of radio, television, merging church space with multi-media.
Thomas says his is a “wake-up call” to the traditional church in India to recognise the danger of fundamentalist incursions into a faith that is largely seen as beneficial and peaceful, surviving for several thousand years in a multicultural, multi-religious space, which this subcontinent has provided.
Warning against “evangelic spectacles” and various “brands of exclusive Christianity”, Thomas gives the example of “militantly pro-conversion events” like the “Every Tribe, Every Tongue” convention in 2006, attended by political bigwigs like P. Chidambaram and from the self-proclaimed atheist Dravidian party the DMK and 20,000 others who had gathered in Chennai from all across tribal India.
The event was supported by the International Living Mission; the stated objective of this group is: “In India itself there are more than 500,000 villages who have never heard about Jesus. There is neither a church nor has any missionary been in these parts. Our responsibility as the chosen one of god is to make an opportunity for these people so that they too can hear the word of god.”
Such events generate “new meaning for religion and politics, simultaneously mixing the religious with business and finance, creating spectacular events and media personalities”, Thomas points out.
“Liberal Christians…along with many others in India certainly have serious misgivings about” this kind of aggressive proselytisation, Thomas says.
“The traditional church is, however, reluctant to admit it and take action against this, especially in the face of rising Hindu and Islamic fundamentalism.”
The traditional church “keeps quiet” because it “feels the need to maintain unity” among Christians of all denomination, Thomas says, advocating that traditional religion, including traditional Christianity, should search for a media model like Canada’s “Vision TV” to reach out to India’s pluralist multitude.
One Comment
- Ramesh Kumar Says:
February 9th, 2009 at 5:43 pmAstha se Vishwasghat (Hindi)
A betrayal of faith
Astha se Vishwasghat (Hindi), R.L. Francis: PCLM Publication, pp 176, Rs 150.00
After the advent of the Portuguese in India, the sole aim of the missionaries in India became conversion of local citizens. From the 16th century to the19th century, the missionaries adopted every tactic possible to increase their numbers and the easiest target were the natives who could be converted into Christians because they were the most deprived lot. Conversion on large scale was carried out of tribals like the Malas and Madigas in Andhra Pradesh, Pulayas in Kerala, Mahars and the Mangs in Maharashtra, Bhalai in Madhya Pradesh, Chuda in Punjab and the Chamars in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.But all these castes, remained deprived and depraved despite conversion because the church made no effort to alleviate their social and economic status. If the church did something, it was patchy and was aimed at keeping the new convert subjugated. Though the missionaries tried their utmost to convert the high castes to Christianity, they did not earn as much success as they did with the deprived classes. Today Indian Christians comprise at least 70 per cent of Dalit Christians who have been persistently exploited by the creamy layer of the church.
Christianity is an amalgam of strange happenings. The poor Christians still harbour full faith in Jesus Christ’s words who had said that if man was a devoted servant and if he appeared true in the realm of lust, he could become a top administrator.
The author says that the church in India is a Dalit Church which is under the control of the selfish and self-centred creamy layer. The church leadership has never considered it advisable to go against the high castes because they have realised that by displeasing them, they would not succeed as rulers in India and nor be able to increase their numbers by converting the locals to Christianity. However, the author says that the church leadership has founded many educational institutions and hospitals but the fruit of such effort has been enjoyed by the rich and the high castes only among the Christians.
Since the past few decades, national and international forces are fighting for return of Christian converts in the category of Scheduled Castes.
This is a book which shall be enjoyed by those who have embraced Christianity after conversion from Hinduism.
(PCLM Publications, A-262 DDA Flats, Ghazipur, Delhi-110 096.)
Email:francispclm@yahoo.comPCLM: Poor Christians Liberation Movement
2 comments:
Chopper Crash Could Become Headache
. Given the very strong defense ties that Pakistan and China currently have, I wouldn't be surprised at all to see this wreckage end up in Beijing. And that has to be of great concern to the U.S. Department of Defense, because with that technology, the Chinese or any third party could either incorporate that technology into their own aircraft or they can figure out ways to defeat that technology.
(America better threaten Pakis to return the wreckage before Chinese get their hands on it)
Are there 62 mil Christists in T-Nadu? Or is it in {T-Nadu+Kerala}?
Doesn't matter, probably! Has the deep south been lost already?
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