Pope on India

Society Pakistan & World Affairs
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Pope Benedict XVI spoke openly on Friday against the Indian anti conversion issue while receiving letters of credence of the new Indian ambassador to the Vatican Amitava Tripathi and said;

“The disturbing signs of religious intolerance which have troubled some regions of the nation, including the reprehensible attempt to legislate clearly discriminatory restrictions on the fundamental right of religious freedom, must be firmly rejected as not only unconstitutional, but also as contrary to the highest ideals of India’s founding fathers, who believed in a nation of peaceful coexistence and mutual tolerance between different religions and ethnic groups.”
http://www.zenit.org/english/visualizza.phtml?sid=89357
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1539523.cms
http://www.ibnlive.com/news/pope-slams-indias-conversion-ban/10853-2.html

His comments since have stirred quite a political battle of claims and counter claims. The govt of India fired back denying and saying that India is indeed secular and the constitution denies no rights and so on.

http://www.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=67988

The BJP also slammed the remarks;

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1702831,0008.htm

And the VHP asked the Pope to unite with Hindus against Jihad;

http://www.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=68029

Hindus went as far as burning the Pope’s effigy;

http://www.catholic.org/international/international_story.php?id=19915

And suddenly;
“Archbishop of Mumbai, Cardinal Ivan Dias, has been appointed Prefect of the Congregation of the Evangelisation of the Peoples at the Vatican. Cardinal Dias was one of the contenders for the pope’s position after John Paul II died last year.”
http://www.zeenews.com/znnew/articles.asp?rep=2&aid=296828&sid=REG

Some interesting commentry;

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1030523&catid=19
http://www.indolink.com/displayArticleS.php?id=051906053438

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Re: Pope on India

These comments by the Pope slamming the rising religious intolerance in India are very important, and should be a wake up call to the Indian's.

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Re: Pope on India

Whatever Pope has said about his feelings over the status of India……something equivalent Feroz Khan, an India Muslim actor cum director has said about Pakistan.

And the President of Pakistan signed a decree to ban the entry of Feroz Khan to Pakistan.

And in this thread they will teach us tolerance.

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Re: Pope on India

On May 20, members of Dharma Sena (religious army) set fire to the pope's effigy in the district headquarters of Balaghat, Chhindwara, Jabalpur, Mandla, Narasinghpur and Seoni in Madhya Pradesh state, central India. The pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, Indian people's party) rules the state.

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Re: Pope on India

a thousand strong AIIMS students burnt the effigy of Dr. Manmohan Singh. and so.

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Re: Pope on India

^
Singh can never command the reverance of a billion people like the Pope can.

Bye Gupshup!
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Re: Pope on India

well said, actually its more then billion..

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Re: Pope on India

arey yaar....the catholic arch bishop of delhi himself has distanced himself from these comments, i guess

Besides, this pope had spoken against the secular framefork of the constitution of europian union and he is speaking against some other country???

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Re: Pope on India

Don't preach us, India tells Pope

Press Trust Of India
Posted Tuesday , May 23, 2006 at 15:28
Updated Tuesday , May 23, 2006 at 19:18 Email Print
New Delhi: In a "firm, appropriate and timely" response, India on Tuesday told the Vatican that it disapproved Pope's criticism against banning conversions and his remarks on religious intolerance in the country.

Minister of State for External Affairs, Anand Sharma told the Rajya Sabha that Charge d'affaires to the Holy See in Delhi was summoned by his Ministry on Monday and it was conveyed to him in "no uncertain terms that Government of India disapproved (Pope's) statement" and was displeased by it.

Pope Benedict XVI had made the statement to new Indian Ambassador to Vatican, Amitava Tripathi, when he presented his credentials on May 18.

"There are disturbing signs of religious intolerance which have troubled some regions of the nation (India)," the Pope was quoted as saying.

He emphasised, "The reprehensible attempt to legislate laws to ban conversions is clearly discriminatory" impinging on the fundamental right of religious freedom.

Sharma was responding to agitated members of BJP led by Ravi Shanker Prasad who during Zero Hour in Parliament said the Pope's statement was "grossly unwarranted and we protest and condemn it".

Prasad attacked the UPA government of maintaining silence on the issue.

Explaining the action taken by India, Sharma said it was pointed out to the Charge d'affaires that the Pope was not properly briefed about secularism and religious tolerance in India.

"I will like to assure the House that Government of India's response was firm, appropriate and timely," he said.

Earlier last week, representatives of world religions met in Rome to begin working on a "code of conduct" that would affirm conversion as a basic right but curb aggressive proselytising.

The Vatican and the mostly Protestant and Orthodox World Council of Churches launched the initiative after Christian minorities in India complained about aggressive proselytising by newly arrived evangelical groups.

The conversion meeting came two months after Afghanistan threatened to execute a Muslim convert to Christianity, who took refuge in Italy after an outcry from Western countries and the Vatican. Several Muslim states prescribe death for apostates.

Meanwhile, the Rajasthan government passed a law last month threatening five years in prison and heavy fines for proselytising, but the governor has not yet signed it.

Five other states have already passed such laws to curb missionary activity there.

BJP has been advocating conversion bans in recent years. The party argues that such bans foster communal harmony, but Muslim and Christian minority groups accuse the party of whipping up Hindu voters' fear to boost its political support.

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Re: Pope on India

Dellusional thinking aside, dictatorships tend not to illicit any reverance from the people they rule. Not the case in a democracy. Elected leaders are held in very high regard, simply for the office they hold. In the US, India, and all democracies, the elected leadership does command a great deal of reverance form the people.

To your point, Benedict is quite different from John Paul. He does not have any of his predecessor's will to unite and to accomodate. His rant againts India is just his recent. His more popular decrees are against Muslims, particularly Arabs. Have a read, and then pontificate on his reverance. Benedict is a religious man, like any Mullah, and should be looked at with the same contempt.

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Re: Pope on India

It was only an effigy, not the pope himself, you getting the drift, eh????

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Re: Pope on India

Church leaders in India have defended the pope's comments.
Cardinal Telesphore Toppo of Ranchi told UCA News May 22 the pope did not intend to interfere in India's internal matters. Cardinal Toppo, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India, is based in the Jharkhand capital of Ranchi, some 760 kilometers (about 470 miles) east of Jabalpur.

Aamir Khan meets Danny Boyle
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Re: Pope on India

So, who said otherwise. You just want to be heard.

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Re: Pope on India

^
Look at the comments of some Indian's in this thread who have stated that Indian leaders do command a great deal of reverance form the people.

Desi Chinese
Desi Chinese
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Re: Pope on India

By the way, who is this Pope, whom they have suddenly become very fond of???

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Re: Pope on India

Obviously in India he doesnt command so much respect , hence burnt his effigy. Got a problem with that.:)

desi men with
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Re: Pope on India

^^ Yup most definitely. Because the pope is a figure which is revered by most Christains as being god's representative on Earth. Burning his effigy is very different from say burning effigies of world leaders who have waged war on other nations. The pope stands for peace, burning his effigy is just indicative of the general extreme intolerance in India, and shows the inability of Indians to accept diverse viewpoints.

I mean, they almost burnt the Eden Gardens in Calcutta in 1996 when Pakistan won, the mobs keep burning stuff in Gujrat, and now this. Seems burnin stuff is like a favorite past time for Indos ;)

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Re: Pope on India

Oh really.. let me find a catholic who find it insulting to burn the effigy of the Pope. :).
Atleast they are sane enough to understand that its an effigy and not the Pope himself.:D

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Re: Pope on India

Indian Hindu's these days have little respect for any religion excecpt High caste Hinduism.

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Re: Pope on India

Again one liner sly remark or cut and paste.......... SILLY
I think you have started another thread on reservation......... right....
You seems to be confusing your own thought process.......

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