Wall Street Journal :: Christ Statue in Mumbai Prompts Blasphemy Spat
A discussion is warranted on Blasphemy Laws.
Those Muslims, Christians and Hindus who are eager to laugh at others, need to look into their own pants, every one has things to laugh about. The idea is not to laugh but find a solution.
Those Muslims, Christians and Hindus who are eager to laugh at others, need to look into their own pants, every one has things to laugh about. The idea is not to laugh but find a solution.
Many people believe that religions sanctions the Blasphemy Laws, and many
others believe it is rather a political tool to control others. Whatever it is,
people do believe, and you cannot jerk it off them, as nothing can be removed
because you wanted it.
Who is not guilty?
Way back, when I was in college in the early 70's - Dr. Narsimhaih, the
Vice Chancellor of Bangalore University wanted to investigate the miracles of
Satya Sai Baba, but the politicians pulled him out of it. Dr. Abraham Kavoor of
Sri Lanka had a rationalist movement going at that time..... even if they had
proved the others to be wrong, do people stop believing? We must however, find
the truth, not to denigrate but it is our responsibility to find the
truth.
The bottom line is discussion on freedom.
Let people eat, drink, wear and believe what they want. We need to mind our own ..... business. The only time, we need to regulate others is for common good, which is determined by if some one is robbing your food, clothing, possessions or hurting your loved ones. Our laws need to come into effect.
Let people eat, drink, wear and believe what they want. We need to mind our own ..... business. The only time, we need to regulate others is for common good, which is determined by if some one is robbing your food, clothing, possessions or hurting your loved ones. Our laws need to come into effect.
If some one believes Jesus is appearing on the clouds, or standing under Ma
Saraswati make him intelligent, or reciting Allah's name 1000 times cures his
illness.... let them, what is your problem?
Like wise, if some says the miracles of "others" are stunts, let them?
Like wise, if some says the miracles of "others" are stunts, let them?
The more we get aggravated with aggravators, the more they do. If others
have bad intention, we don't need to match it.
You will not change, if I tell you to, then why should others change because you tell them to?
As a society we need to value freedom, but also value responsibility.
MikeGhouse is committed to
building a Cohesive
America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is a professional speaker,
thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, civic affairs, Islam, India, Israel, peace and
justice. Mike is a frequent guest on Sean Hannity show on
Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes weekly to
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News and regularly at Huffington post, and
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updated daily.
Religion Journal: Christ Statue in Mumbai Prompts Blasphemy Spat
By Joanna Sugden
- Sanal Edamaruku
- Sanal Edamaruku, pictured, has spent 30 years debunking miracles and exposing fraudulent faith healers.
The man facing blasphemy charges after
he claimed water dripping from a statue of Christ in Mumbai was not miraculous
but the result of a badly plumbed toilet is preparing to ask India’s Supreme
Court to abolish the blasphemy law.
Sanal Edamaruku is accused by Catholic
groups in Mumbai of breaking the Indian Penal Code, which outlaws “deliberate
and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings.
Mr. Edamaruku, a rationalist who has
spent 30 years debunking miracles and exposing fraudulent faith healers, denies
the offense and claims the law is being misused in order to silence
him.
His lawyers are asking the High Court
in Mumbai to intervene to stop the charges going further, but Mr. Edamaruku also
plans to make a separate challenge to the blasphemy law in the Supreme Court in
Delhi.
“I see this as an opportunity to
make sure this law isn’t misused any more against anybody,†said Mr.
Edamaruku who is president of Rationalist International, a group working to
promote science and reason in place of religious belief and
superstition.
The blasphemy law, created in 1860,
goes against the fundamental right of freedom of expression and should be
abolished, he says.
Those invoking it against him said
they were offended by Mr. Edamaruku’s comments that clergy at Velankanni
Church in Mumbai were using the sight of water dripping from the feet of a
Christ statue to make money from visiting pilgrims.
The Catholic Secular Forum filed a
first information report with the police in Mumbai, while the Association of
Concerned Catholics and Maharashtra Christian Youth Forum also objected to Mr.
Edamaruku’s claims. The groups also accuse Mr. Edamaruku of alleging the
Catholic Church practises idolatry.
“They want to avenge and put me in
prison,†said Mr. Edamaruku, who fears he could be arrested immediately if he
returns to Mumbai.
The Catholic Bishop of Mumbai Agnelo
Gracias has called on Mr. Edamaruku to apologize for “hurting†the Catholic
community and said that no money had been collected at the shrine.
In a letter to The Examiner, a
Catholic Newsletter, the bishop said he did not believe the water to be a
miracle. “But to make that an occasion to hurl false allegations against the
Christian community and its leaders is quite another matter,†Bishop Agnelo
wrote.
Although the groups who have taken the
cases against Mr. Edamaruku do not represent the bishop, he appeared to praise
them for their actions. “We can rejoice that there are some people who have
the courage to stand up when the attempts are made to besmirch the name of the
Catholic community.
Father Nigel Barrett, coordinator of
the Catholic Communications Centre in Mumbai, said that the miracle had not yet
been officially ascertained because Velankanni Church had not referred the
matter to the bishop for the proper process of verification to take
place.
Some in the Catholic media have come
out in support of Mr. Edamaruku, including Deepika, a Catholic newspaper based
in the southern state of Kerala. Mr. Edamaruku believes the groups lining up
against him are “fundamentalist,†taking their inspiration from Islamic
fundamentalism in order “to preserve their religion.
During his working life, Mr.
Edamaruku, who is from Kerala, has been attacked with fire by an “angry
god-man†and faced the black magic of a tantrik priest trying to kill him
during a televised stunt.
But he says he has never felt as much
under threat as he does now.
“This is the first time I have had
cases filed against me… I don’t want unexpected people to come and attack
me, so only close friends know where to find me,†Mr. Edamaruku told India
Real Time.
He added that his case echoes that of
Salman Rushdie, whose book the “The Satanic Verses†was labelled blasphemous
and led Ayatollah Khomeini, Iran’s leader, to issue a Fatwa ordering the
author to be put to death. Mr. Rushdie didn’t
appear at the Jaipur Literary Festival this year because of claims he would be
targeted by assassins from the Mumbai underworld if he turned up.
“It’s the same category of threat
[against me]… just a different form,†Mr. Edamaruku said.
However, he said he refuses to be
bowed by the cases against him.
“I’m determined, I have a duty to
develop scientific temper and promote inquiry so on these two grounds we will
challenge the very veracity of this law in the Supreme Court.â€
Mr. Edamaruku added that if the
blasphemy law could not be overturned then a committee to prevent it being used
as “a mechanism to stop someone’s freedom†should properly police
it.
“I believe in absolute freedom of
expression in any free society people should have the freedom to ridicule to
criticize or to be ridiculed. That should be guaranteed in any civil society,â€
he said.
Rationalist International has
conducted over 2,000 outreach programs in villages around India to promote
reason and “liberate†people from belief in miracles, superstitions and
fraudulent faith healers, according to its president.
“India is a very fast developing
country, we have a very serious interest in science and we are going around the
world serving people with our IT and science knowledge,†Mr. Edamaruku
said.
Thats one India that is in the
20th century. We have
another India that’s in the 16th century – we are in constant conflict and
it is 16th century India
that is pulling us back.â€
Joanna Sugden is freelance
journalist living in Delhi. Before coming to India in 2011 she spent
four-and-a-half years as a reporter at The Times of London, covering religion
and education. You can follow
her on Twitter @jhsugden.
Follow India Real Time on
Twitter @indiarealtime.
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