Author: Buddy Naidu
Publication: Sunday Times
Date: December 17, 2000
URL: http://www.suntimes.co.za/2000/12/17/news/durban/ndbn02.htm
Christians slam 'blasphemous' and 'inflammatory'
books by Hindu scholar
Two books that depict Jesus Christ on their
covers with devil's horns have sparked outrage among Christians in the run-up
to Christmas.
Written by Thayalan Reddy, an American-based
former South African Hindu scholar, the books claim to highlight "fundamental
flaws and inaccuracies" in the Bible.
Church spokesmen have branded the books, Jesus
is Satan and The Plotted Course, as "blasphemous" and "inflammatory".
Their covers show Christ on the cross with
horns on his head. Reddy said he chose the images because they should "burn
in everyone's mind when they look at religion, specifically Christianity,
today".
Reddy, 50, founded the World Church of Jesus
is Satan organisation in Detroit, Michigan, in 1993.
He said he wrote the books primarily to stem
the tide of Hindu conversions to Christianity.
"Hindus are converting to Christianity
and Islam because they are ignorant of their own beliefs. Thus they are easily
swayed," he said.
The books were launched at a function at the
University of Durban-Westville attended by several Hindu religious leaders,
followers and high-profile businessmen.
Reddy denied that he was fanning the flames
of religious intolerance in the Indian community, saying "religious intolerance
is already being fostered by Christians and Muslims alike".
"I am currently writing a book that examines
inconsistancies in the Koran," he said.
"I am no Salman Rushdie. I will not hide
from the truth. I am a Hindu scholar and a proponent of religious freedom.
I believe all religions must be opened to both study and criticism. Christians
and Muslims must now make way for the wrath of the Hindus."
He said there had been a "groundswell
of support" for his organisation in South Africa. "Most Hindu bodies
nationwide have endorsed my books, and I give lectures and talks on a daily
basis."
He was also involved in talks with a major
film production house in India to make a movie based on his books.
The president of the SA Hindu Maha Sabha,
AshwinTrikamjee, said that while he would encourage moves to avoid conversions
because they were principally wrong, his organisation was not in favour of
criticising one religious group over another.
"This does not serve any useful purpose,"
he said.
Ron Steele, a spokesman for Pastor Ray McCauley
of the Rhema Church, said while Reddy was free to express his opinions, he
had done so in an insensistive manner.
"His inflammatory remarks are offensive
to believers. The group itself looks quite cultish. His views, from a biblical
point of view, are blasphemous," he said.
Pastor Joshua Moses, of Hosanna Ministries
in Phoenix, said his statements were a diabolical attack against the integrity
of the church.
"It is indeed blasphemous. A few years
back, Ahmed Deedat did the same thing. What these individuals fail to realise
is that the church does not force people to subscribe to its beliefs. At the
end of the day, people make up their own minds as to who or what they believe,"
he said.
The Anglican Bishop of KwaZulu-Natal, Rubin
Phillip, said Reddy's beliefs were "divisive", adding that his "outrageous"
claims were unfounded.
He said the church, in general, did not coerce
Hindus specifically.
"If Reddy wishes to stem the tide of
conversion, he should find other ways. Theological and doctrinal debate will
not get us anywhere, especially in this season of goodwill," he said.
The vicar-general of the Catholic archdiocese,
Father Barry Wood, said Reddy's books and statements did not help the reconciliation
process in the country.
"The stance of the Catholic church is
to liase and work with people of different religious beliefs."
He said when indentured Indians arrived in
the country in 1860, they included a small number of Catholics.
"That is where the Catholic community
in Indian society sprung from. The doctrine may have been shoved down people's
throats in the Middle Ages, but this is certainly not the case today. Faith
is a gift of God. One either accepts it or not," he said.
