Author: Andy Butcher
Publication: Charisma News Service
Date:
URL: http://www.charismanews.com/news.cgi?a=709&t=news.html
Instead, thousands who took part
turned en masse to Buddhism
A highly publicized rally at which
leaders of India's millions of downtrodden "untouchables" planned to renounce
their Hindu faith went ahead yesterday, but without the widespread turning
to Christ anticipated by some Christian groups.
Up to 1 million Dalits had been
expected to take part in the rally in New Delhi, despite threats of disruption
by Hindu extremists. But media reports said that only between 8,000 and
20,000 turned up, while thousands of others were said to have been prevented
from traveling to New Delhi for the gathering.
Those who took part converted en
masse to Buddhism, reported "The Hindu." Ram Raj, who convened the event,
said it was a historic moment, as thousands were "liberated from the clutches
of the caste system," the newspaper reported. Under India's caste system,
the "untouchables" are typically restricted to the most menial jobs and
shunned by other groups.
In recent weeks the rally had become
the focus of international prayer appeals from Christian groups who said
the event could trigger a conversion landslide among the Dalits. One organization
said that 300 million Indians were "in the valley of decision," and the
rally was "a gateway for us to present the gospel."
National leaders criticized exaggerated
claims about the rally and downplayed their involvement. They said their
presence at the event was to show solidarity with the Dalits in rejecting
oppression. They dismissed claims that mass baptisms would follow the rally.
One leader, Rodrick Gilbert, said
that misinformation could jeopardize future relations between Dalits and
Christians. "Some Christians have not understood the whole story and have
spread false information, which is hurting our mobilization efforts," he
told The Elijah List. "A lot of exaggeration about the event has damaged
our efforts to build trust with the Dalit leaders."
According to one report, Raj had
initially been open to Christian representatives presenting the gospel
at the rally, but had been angered by groups he believed had misrepresented
the Dalit movement to raise money.
Among those at the New Delhi ceremony
- held on the same day as the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted
Church -- was Tina Lambert, advocacy director for Christian Solidarity
Worldwide. She said that it was a privilege to "be with the poor and oppressed
of India and to offer our solidarity to them in their struggle for basic
dignity and human rights."
She said the rally was "as political
as it was religious," and that it "could be just the beginning of an incredible
movement to challenge the caste system and offer hope to the poor and oppressed
in India."
Indian newspapers reported that
thousands followed Raj's lead in turning to Buddhism. Raj's head was shaved
in the Diksha ceremony, in which he renounced Hinduism and embraced the
teachings of Buddha.
In a prayer appeal before yesterday's
ceremony, Dr. Joseph D'Souza, president of the All India Christian Council,
criticized "irresponsible publicity" in the West regarding the event. The
Dalit movement had "huge implications" for the country's minority Christian
population, he added.
