SikhGiving's experience with Christian missionaries in Punjab
SikhGiving's experience with Christian missionaries in Punjab
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SikhGiving, a small sikh charitable organization
was helping a Sikh Patient Jaswinder Singh and his family to cope with their
medical costs of approx. $500 a month. "At first we didn't take up the
case as we could not afford to support the case for a long period of 3 years",
said Vicky Singh, a volunteer of the California based non profit organization.
The family went to the point where Jaswinder's
dad, Sohan Singh had to sell his cycle in order to cover a day's medicine cost.
Somehow this news spread out in the public that a Sikh Organization is helping
Sohan Singh's family. After that, their local Christian group came with an offer
to Sohan Singh's family that they can cover his child's entire medical expenses
for 2 to 3 years. They were asked to visit the church to receive the money.
Sohan Singh went to the Church feeling that he will be given the money as goodwill
by the church.
When he went inside, he was taken by the church
officials to attend a special ceremony which was to adopt Christianity as his
religion. Sohan Singh and his family are from deeply religious Sikh background.
He was given instructions by them that if they want to get the financial support
then he has to follow the ceremony which indirectly was to leave Sikhism and
adopt their religion. Sohan Singh left the church immediately after he found
that in their instructions he was told to eat Parshad (religious offering) of
Christ (which was meat).
With the generous help of many donors, we are
glad that we took up the case of Jaswinder Singh for the next 3 years, providing
them financial, physical and emotional help.
"I never thought that this would be happening
to someone in Punjab who is in need of help. Instead of helping a needy person,
they are making him to do something which he and his family doesn't want to
do. It was a direct hit at us showing that Sikhs in Punjab can't help each other
and others are lending hand to help them but with strings attached", said
Satnam Singh, the director of SikhGiving.
