Video clips of Orissa, India

http://www.ibnlive.com/videos/73064/.html
At the bottom of the video there are 5 more links, to watch more click on 2,3,4 & 5.
Please join us in prayer for our christian brothers and sisters. Their faith is being tested to the max. Come on the scene Lord Jesus! Be their strength! Bring Glory to your name!

Brown's Daily Word 9-12-08

Good Morning,
The late great English novelist, Charles Kingsley (1819 - 1875), once said, "Did it ever strike you that goodness is not merely a beautiful thing, but by far the most beautiful thing in the whole world? So that nothing is to be compared for value with goodness; that riches, honor, power, pleasure, learning, the whole world and all in it, are not worth having in comparison with being good; and the utterly best thing for a man [or, a woman] is to be good, even though he [or, she] were never to be rewarded for it." We know the goodness of Almighty God through His Word! The psalmist, David, in Psalm 34:8 NLT), tells us: "Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who trust in Him!" In Psalm 107:1 (NLT), David goes on to say: "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! His faithful love endures forever." We know that Almighty God, our Heavenly Father is good because of the pains to which He went to bring about the redemption of mankind - It was the goodness of Almighty God that sent His only-begotten Son , for our redemption, for our release, for our salvation.The late great French scholastic, philosopher, theologian, and logician Pierre Abelard (1079 - 1142), once said, "Since His goodness is so great, His will so perfect, that He does what ought to be done, not unwilling, but spontaneously, He is so much the more completely to be loved because of His very nature, and the more to be glorified because this goodness of His belongs to Him not by accident, but substantially and immutably."Almighty God - is our Heavenly Father, is our stronghold in times of trouble! As Augustine confessed" O Lord you have made us for yourself, our hearts are restless until they find rest in you". Jesus Christ our Lord comes with the wonderful invitation "Come to Me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens and I will give you rest."Our Lord and our Saviour does not remove the difficulties and sorrows from our pathway; but, He does provide us with the strength to face them! The psalmist tells us, in Psalm 46:1 (NLT): "God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble." The psalmist goes on to tell us, in Psalm 121:2 (NLT), "My help comes from the Lord, Who made the heavens and the earth!" We are more than conquerors through Him who loved and still loves us.
In His great Love,
Brown

Home / blogs / Dr. Sajan's blog / Orissa -one more death and Authorities bluff to International team
A- 10 years old boy called Srikanta Mallick died Yesterday at the Habaq High School relief camp at G. Udayagiri. He suffered developed fever and Diorrieha first and succumbed to Maleria. He was a student and inmate of a Missionary Hostel at Kalinga. Dr. Pratap Singh has confirmed his death.
B-The Orissa state government authorities during their interaction with the American Consul General Madam Beth. A. Pen and her team, has misguided them about the burning issues of Kandhamal and other 13 districts of Orissa. In reply to her question of "why repeatedly communal violence and riot is taking place in Orissa and mainly in Kandhamal", the Orissa team have stated that the riot is not of any communal nature but out of two groups and castes of the society fighting between each other based on their social and economical status among Kandhs and Panas..The death and destruction of Christians and their properties are taken lightly and VHP and other terror outfits are given a clean chit by the state of Orissa

Home / blogs / Dr. Sajan's blog / Kandhamal -VHP's renewed attacks covered under 'peace parades'
Situation Volatile in Kandhamal Sept 13th :VHP continues attacks on Christians
Shift in strategies and technique ,radical outfits unleash on terror on Christians
1. Female extremist squads of nearly 7,000 and blocking the roads, gheraoing the PS and the block offices, forcibly barging into the relief camps of the Christian refugees
Defying curfew, demanding relief to be given to them, and demanding release of arrested the rioters and dismissal all the cases registered against Hindus.
2. Hindu devotional songs loudly chanted by peacemaker through "Sankirtan Yatra" Clanging of symbols while singing Bhajans and Hymns on Hindu Gods.
3. Attacking Christians houses that escaped fundamentalist destruction and attacking Christian who has returned either from the forest or from the relief camp etc.
4. Sankirtan Yatra activists terrorizing Christians to reconvert to Hinduism, tonsuring Chrsitians forcing them by the sword to stomp upon the Holy Bible, drink Cow dung water, wear ‘hindu tilak’ on the forehead, sign on the VHP's declaration note of reconversion to Hinduism.
5.. In Sisopanga village of Raikia block 3 Christian houses were burnt by the radicals on 10.09.08 night.4. In Piserama village of Raikia block, a Church was torched on 10.09.08 night.5. In Battaguda village of Baliguda Sub divn. few houses were ransacked by the Hindu radicals Yesterday in the afternoon.6. Houses of Benjamin Nayak, a School Head master and Gamara Nayak at Telingiapada of G. Udayagiri and One Church there were burnt Yesterday night.7. It has been reported that duirng the Sang Parivar's female rally on 10.09.08 at G. Udayagiri, two Christians from Adaskupa village were killed. This news needs to be confirmed yet with detailed information.
Ashok Singhal, International President VHP on Sept 11th, in Bhubaneshwar, had meeting with Puri Sankaracharya after which stated• Ban on cow slaughter• No Christian conversion in Orissa• Protect and defend Hindu religion and culture• Beginning 23rd Sept, perform Swamiji's Kalas Yatra carrying the soil of Chakapada Ashram where he was buried in and around Kandhamal and throughout Orissa.
The State Govt. is thinking of deferring the Muncipality Election in Kandhamal Dist. for the situation there has not come to Normalcy yet. However, the Governement in an affidavit to the Supreme Court stated that situation under control in Kandhamala and CBI inquiry not required.
The State Govt. is not declaring the compensation package citing the Election period up to 29.09.08 .whereas Global council of Indian Christians(GCIC) it clearly learned that in chapter iv- sub section III of the mode of Municipality Election conduct that in case of natural calamity and emergent nature of works relief, restoration and rehab work can be undertaken.GCIC calls upon the democratic forces to expose the merchants of death in Orissa

Brown's Daily Word 9/11/08

Good morning,
A recent article in the New York Times commented on the fantastic wealth concentrated in certain parts of the country. In Palo Alto, California, the median home price is, apparently, well over $2,000,000 and the article specifically mentioned a 850 square foot house which recently sold for more than one million dollars. Wow! The article interviewed a young man who lived in Palo Alto. He said “You know, out here, with ten million dollars you’re nothing.” I wonder how much money that young man thought it took to “make him something.” Pastor John Ortberg in his book entitled, "When the Game Is Over, It All Goes Back in the Box". When he was a kid he always lost to his grandmother at Monopoly. She was ruthless and John says that every game ended with giving his last dollar and piece of property to Grandma, leaving him with only disappointment and sadness. The goal of the Monopoly is money, and Grandma knew how to get all of it. One summer, however, John met a kid who taught him some of the subtleties of Monopoly. Near the end of the summer he challenged his grandmother—and won! It was his moment of great glory. “Then,” Ortberg says, “I learned the final lesson—when the game is over, it all goes back in the box. All the houses, all the hotels, Boardwalk and Park Place, all that money—everything goes back in the box.” (Preaching, volume 24, number 2, 9). Many people (even those NOT living in Palo Alto) base their hopes for fulfillment on stuff which goes back in the box. In the end, will what you counted as significant still count? In order to help us think about that question, notice three things in this passage.
Rick Warren, in his book "The Purpose Driven Life", states that we are shaped to serve the Lord. We discover in the New Testament that we are saved to serve the Lord. Our true significance come from serving the Lord and investing our lives in the cause of the Kingdom our Lord and Savior. Rick Warren writes in his book, "One day every one will stand before the Lord God Almighty. He will ask us two questions, 'What have done with my Son, and what have you done with the gifts and talents that I had given you?'".
We do not serve the Lord out of guilt, fear, or even duty, but out of joy and deep gratitude for what He has done for us. We owe Him everything. As Paul wrote, "In Him we live, move, and have our being." Through His great salvation our past has been forgiven, our present has been given meaning, and our future is secured. In the light of these magnificent and marvelous benefits, Paul wrote, "Because of God's great mercy offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His service." In the Epistles of John we are reminded that our loving service to others shows that we are truly saved. It is written, "Our love for each other proves that we have gone from death to life."
Thank you for praying for the persecuted Christians of Orissa, India. I get daily reports from Orissa, where conditions are still deplorable. Thousands have lost their homes, belongings, stores of food -- everything -- and have fled to refugee centers. Those who return to their villages are being terrorized to renounce Christ and become Hindus. My mom, niece, and nephew are staying at a friend's house in Bhubaneswar, some 175 miles from home. Thank you for your generous gifts and love offerings which I have been forwarding to needy families. I plan to send receipts for these gifts in a few days.
Have a wonderful, blessed day today, serving Jesus, serving His church, and serving His saints. May the Lord make us instruments of His peace, His grace, and His love to those who are outside His fold. As our nation commemorates 9/11, may we all repent of our own sins and rededicate our lives to Christ and His kingdom. May the God of great comfort, comfort those who mourn, those who grieve, and those who are in deep pain. May the Lord heal our land and turn us back to Him.
Please take time to pray for Orissa and for the persecuted Church around the world, and take time to read the following press release.
In Christ the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords,
Brown

VIJAY SIMHA examines the consequences of lessons taught by men of religion, among the desperately poor in OrissaWHEN THEY came for Narmada Digal, she wasn't there. She had fled, five children and mother-inlaw in tow, to the safety of the jungles a kilometre away. So, they set about what she left behind. A framed picture of Jesus, a Bible in Oriya, utensils in the kitchen, some clothes, and linen. By the time Narmada tiptoed back, her home was gone. What was left was still hot from the ashes, and smoking. The neighbours came to commiserate. Narmada took a good look, stood erect, and pulled her sari over her head. She began to pray."Lord, forgive us our sins. Jesus, you are the only one. Save us from our misfortune. Free us, Lord." The words are tumbling out. Narmada's children have joined her. She is weeping as she pleads for deliverance. So is everybody else. It's a simple bond that no human wrath can sever, a woman and her God. "I will die. But I won't stop being a Christian," Narmada says.This is in the heart of Kandhamal, a district at the geographical centre of Orissa, ravaged by probably the worst fighting in India between Hindus and Christians. Kandhamal is young, constituted as recently as 1994. It has 2,515 villages spread over 7,649 sq km. The terrain is inaccessible, full of hills and narrow lanes crisscrossing the villages. There isn't a single industrial unit here. There are no railway lines, and so no trains come here. Buses are rare. It's so far behind that even the official website of Kandhamal says, "Overall, the district is ranked as a backward district in the state of Orissa ."In this doleful land live close to eight lakh people. In terms of population, nearly a quarter of Kandhamal are Christians, the rest almost wholly Hindus. The percentage of Christians in Kandhamal — 25 percent — is astonishingly high compared to the 2.44 percent for the whole of Orissa. In percentage terms, Orissa has the third-largest concentration of Hindus in India (nearly 95 percent in the 2001 Census). Muslims are barely two percent.The rise in the number of Christians in Kandhamal is offering radical Hindu outfits like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) the perfect alibi to launch an aggressive anti- Christian movement. The movement has two aims: to reconvert Christians to Hinduism, and to stop the alleged slaughter of cows.An 81-year-old RSS activist, Swami Lakshmananda Saraswati, was heading the VHP movement in Kandhamal. He operated largely from two ashrams 150 km from each other. He was a member of the VHP's Kendriya Margadarshak Mandal, a powerful decisionmaking panel. On August 23, Saraswati was gunned down in one of the ashrams at night while celebrating Janmashtami. It was the tenth attempt at killing Saraswati, a figure disliked by the Christians, but revered by a band of fanatic Hindu male followers in his ashram.Few know who killed Saraswati. But, there are some theories. The Orissa Government says the Maoists (who are trying to build a base in Kandhamal) killed him. The government claim is based on two statements purportedly released by the CPI (Maoist), taking responsibility for the murder. The second statement said: "We have decided to punish anti-people, fanatical leaders like Saraswati because of endless persecution of religious minorities in the country. There will be more such punishments if violence is continued against religious minorities in the country." It is too pat for the Orissa Government. And, if true, the statements would mean that the Maoists have entered the religious conflicts of India.A second theory is coming from the VHP. After Saraswati's murder, VHP International President Ashok Singhal issued a statement saying, "Once again the cruel face of the Christian missionaries has been exposed. Swami Lakshmananda Saraswati was working for 45 years among the tribals by building hospitals, schools and hostels. He was neither a capitalist nor an anti-social. Because of his work, the tribals were awakened to our culture and religion, which was an obstacle only for the Christian missionaries."Christian bodies, on the other hand, have a third view. They say they have nothing to do with Saraswati's murder and have sought an inquiry by the Central Government. The National Secretary of Public Affairs of the All India Christian Council, Dr Sam Paul, said, "The Christian community in India abhors violence, condemns all acts of terrorism, and opposes groups of people taking the law into their own hands. We have had major differences with Mr Saraswati, the deceased VHP leader. It was the hate campaigns of the Sangh Parivar [the RSS is often referred to in this fashion], which led to untold misery for Christians — including the unprecedented violence last Christmas in Orissa. But, we wish peace to everyone and urge everyone to follow the rule of law."Whatever the truth, the murder inflamed passions. Even those who do not support the RSS were disturbed by media reports that 30 people in masks and hoods had come to kill Saraswati, and that they hacked at his legs after shooting him. When the Orissa Government allowed Saraswati's funeral procession to pass across 150km in Kandhamal, reason went out.By August 25, hordes of Hindu militants were attacking Christian homes and places of worship in Kandhamal. The attacks were mainly at night. On September 1, the Orissa Government told the story in figures: 16 persons killed, 35 injured, 185 arrested; 558 houses and 17 places of worship burnt; 12,539 fed in 10 relief camps; 12 companies of paramilitary forces, 24 platoons of the Orissa State Armed Police, two sections of the Armed Police Reserve Force, and two teams of the Special Operation Group deployed.The human story is worse. VHP International General Secretary Praveen Togadia, who trained to be an oncologist but who likes nothing better than to drive non-Hindus out of India, reached Kandhamal for Saraswati's last rites (he was buried in a sitting position — the padmasana — in his Chakapada ashram, where he ran a school and hostel for boys). Togadia said a Christian sect had killed Saraswati. It was enough to trigger murderous assaults on Christians in Kandhamal and elsewhere in Orissa. Hundreds of Christian homes were set ablaze, a few pastors were slain, and warnings were issued asking them to return home as Hindus, or never.IN SOME cases, the terror works. In the jungles off Sankarakhol village, one of the first targeted by the militant Hindus, a group of RSS whole-timers are reconverting 18 Christians to Hinduism. It's a daytime ceremony. The RSS Mandal Mukhiya (head of the Mandal unit) Sudhir Pradhan, a slim bearded man, is in charge. There are 30 Hindus to make sure that the 18 Christians don't change their mind.Each of the Christians has brought a Bible, in Oriya, along. They have also brought a coconut each, and some incense sticks, red thread to tie around the wrist, and vermillion for their foreheads. The Christians first burn their Bibles in a small bonfire. They sit in a circle. In the middle are the coconuts, each one signifying a Christian, and the other paraphernalia. The God of the Hills is appeased first in a prayer.Then, a Christian rises. He has a coconut in his hand. "I swear that I have become a Hindu today. After today, if I ever become a Christian again, may my dynasty perish," he says. He breaks the coconut on a stone. The other Christians follow, each one making the same promise. Some murmur, some are loud. A Hindu priest begins to apply vermillion on the foreheads of the Christians-turned-Hindus. One of them protests, but it is too late. There's a red streak on his forehead as well.Sudhir Pradhan then takes over. Eyes closed, spine firm, and voice ominous. There is a deep and rhythmic chanting of Om followed by the Gayatri Mantra, a sacred chant of the Hindus. The slogans follow: "Bharat mata ki jai." "Ganga mata ki jai." "Gau mata ki jai." "Sri Ramjanambhoomi ki jai." They pause for a few moments and the Christians-becoming-Hindus kneel, placing their foreheads on the ground. There's a final "Jai Shri Ram." The first stage of reconversion from Christianity to Hinduism is over. The motivation for these Christians to reconvert is life. They want to live in Kandhamal, keep their houses and, maybe, get some regular work.Months afterward, these Christian-turned- Hindus will be asked to attend a yagya — a Hindu ritual of sacrifice that involves the worship of deities, unity and charity. In the yagya, they will wear saffron clothes and a sacred thread, and get their heads shaved. They will offer a few goats and some rice as fee. They will be given Gau Mutra (cow urine) and Tulsi water to drink. They will take Hindu vows. Then, they will share the mutton and rice (cooked from their offerings) in a small feast. This completes their reconversion. From then on, they will have a Tulsi plant in their homes, have pictures of Hindu gods on their walls, and celebrate Hindu festivals. They will pray only to Hindu gods.Pradhan is happy. He's done his job for the day. He explains the difference between a Hindu and a Christian. "They (Christians) eat cows. We (Hindus) worship cows." Therefore, "people who eat cows should be given the same treatment that they give the cows." Pradhan says Togadia has laid down the policy. "He has already announced that there is no place for Christians. If Christians don't become Hindus, they have to go. We don't care where they go. They must leave Orissa," he says.BUTWHAT'S the point in killing and driving a people out, merely to nudge the percentage of Hindus from near 95 percent to 100 percent? Dr Krishan Kumar, the young District Magistrate of Kandhamal, thinks it's actually about jobs, land, and only then religion. Kumar has studied medicine (hence the Dr prefix), and was given overnight charge of Kandhamal when the Hindu militants began attacking the Christians.Kumar works out of a suite in the Circuit House at Phulbani, the district headquarters of Kandhamal. He has gone two days without sleep during the crisis. After Saraswati's murder, he was told of the killing of a pastor in Raikia, an area in Kandhamal where the Christians outnumber the Hindus. He drove with a full company of the Rapid Action Force and a contingent of the Orissa State Disaster Management Agency. "It took me 11 hours for a journey that normally takes two hours. There were so many trees cut and laid across the road," Kumar says.He explains why he thinks jobs are the first cause of war in Kandhamal. He says his administration has 1,000 cases of fake caste certificates to investigate. Apparently, many non-tribals, which in Kandhamal usually mean the dalits, have submitted fake certificates showing them as members of the Kandha tribe.The certificates enable government employment in the reserved quota. This is possible because the law enables job reservation for the Scheduled Tribes (ST) even though they have converted to Christianity, while the Scheduled Castes (SC) are deprived of this quota if they convert to Christianity or another religion. This is a principal reason why the Dalit Christians are seeking reservations as well.Government jobs are precious in Kandhamal, since there are barely any private outlets offering employment. So, the STs seethe with resentment against the SCs over jobs. Often, they fight. Since the STs are Hindus and the SCs form the bulk of the Christians, the battles can easily take a religious turn.Then, there is land. "The tribals have been around forever. They are the original dwellers here. They never had to prove that they owned the land. I mean, why should they? In the early 1900s, the tribal land opened up. Pattas, a certificate indicating ownership of land, began to be given out. The tribes have a complex social structure. Within themselves, they had given land to neighbours for various reasons. When they had to prove ownership of land, they couldn't. Others came in and the tribals couldn't integrate with the market economy," says Kumar. Loss of land could, therefore, be a cause for the fighting between the STs, who are Hindus, and the SCs, who are Christian.A new dimension emerged in November 2007 when the Orissa Government said both the dalits and the tribals were part of one family, the Kui Samaj. Kui is the dialect spoken in Kandhamal, and the government intended to bring the dalits and the tribals on a common platform using language as glue. More importantly, it intended to give dalits job reservation and other social advantages that the tribes were given, even if they had converted to Christianity. The tribals objected strongly.Into this mix enters religion. "Nobody fights over spirituality," says Kumar. The war is over theology and the power that comes with organised religion. Kandhamal area has a history of 300 years of missionary work. Among the first Christians to work here were Catholics and Lutherans from Madhya Pradesh. These foreign missionaries set up schools and provided medical facilities. In those days, malaria was a major killer. The missionaries would go house to house, and help people recover from malaria and other diseases.The core appeal of the Christian missionary is this: he helps the locals in distress when the authorities or the RSS are not around. Thus, the motivation for a Hindu to take to Christianity in the past may have been a better life. The Church provided access to better education and improved health. Some of the earliest recoveries from malaria may have helped create the myth of faith healing as well. The concept of miracle cures is a powerful attraction, and many Hindus who convert to Christianity in Kandhamal say they do so because a member of the family was healed when they began to pray to Jesus.Money and work may be possible motivation as well. Narmada Digal, the woman who stood her ground in her razed home, is convinced. Narmada became a Christian in 1998, when her daughter Subhadra was healed. "She had a peculiar fever, which didn't go even though I prayed to the Hindu gods. One day my husband told me about a pastor who said we should pray to Jesus. I did, and my daughter was cured. Why should I not be a Christian?" she asks.Narmada's husband Goverdhan Digal, who carried the pastor's message, was employed with the local post office. He often had to take his daughter Subhadra for medical check-ups. One day, Goverdhan's boss told him he had taken enough days off and had to report for work. Goverdhan had to take his daughter for another check-up. He told his boss that he would be by his daughter's side. He lost his job. His travails soon reached the pastor's ears. Damodar, the pastor, talked to Goverdhan about Jesus, the Bible and Christianity.Goverdhan and his family converted to Christianity. They were given a Bible, and told that Jesus is the only God who gave his life for others. After six months, they were baptised. Narmada says Goverdhan was paid Rs 800 the first month, and Rs 2,000 for six months afterward. Stories like those of Goverdhan and Narmada have helped the Church to spread.Today, there are around 1,500 churches and congregations in the 2,515 villages of Kandhamal. Between 500 and 750 churches are solid structures, made of marble, wood, cement and even glass. There are close to two lakh Christians in Kandhamal, a quarter of the population. The Catholic Church has a big presence. And among the Protestants, the most active denominations are the Baptists, the Pentecostals, the Church of North India, and the Church of South India.TO A man like Swami Lakshmananda Saraswati, the rise of the Church would've been an insult. To his followers, Saraswati was the incarnation of Parashurama, the first warrior saint in Hindu mythology. Legend has it that Parashurama had killed the Haihaya-Kshatriyas, enemies of the Brahmins, on earth 21 times for their arrogance. Saraswati saw himself as the saint who would vanquish the Christians. Saraswati was a member of what are now called the Most Backward Castes. He was a government employee and quit his job in unpleasant circumstances. Apparently, there were some "irregularities" though the nature of the irregularity is not known precisely. There isn't much on what he did afterward, except for unconfirmed reports of a police case for murder and criminal conspiracy.Sometime in the 1960s, the RSS leadership summoned Saraswati. The RSS had begun to implement its plan of working in the most backward areas of India, unlike the Marxists who had begun to work in the industrial townships. The then RSS Orissa head Bhupendra Kumar Basu chose Kandhamal for Saraswati.From all accounts, Saraswati was a driven man. He pursued his Christian foes with all his energy. By 1969, he had begun his ashram in Chakapada, where he is now buried. The ashram has between 300 and 400 students. All of them are Hindus and trained to be fulltime RSS activists. Saraswati also enlisted volunteers for the renovation of several small and dilapidated temples. And, to thwart the Christians, he worked on the lifestyle of the tribals.He began to hold satsangs, an assembly of people with the guru who listen to and talk about issues and the truth. Saraswati began to talk of the alcoholic ways of the tribals and started a campaign against beef. His followers say he helped restore healthy lifestyles among the tribals. Coincidentally, the Christians were doing exactly that among their followers.By 1988, Saraswati opened another ashram, for girls, at Jalesapata (where he would be killed), 150 km from his first ashram. This became controversial and questions were asked of the ethics of a man teaching young women in a residential school. By then, Saraswati had simplified his work into reconverting tribals who became Christians, and protecting cows.In December 2007, major clashes erupted between Hindus and the Christians when Saraswati ordered his followers to demolish an arch that the Christians had erected on government land in front of a church. The Christians said it was for Christmas and they would take the arch down in a day or two. Saraswati didn't wait. After his men pulled the arch down, Saraswati drove down to see it. He passed by a village where the Christians outnumbered the Hindus.Some Christians in the village stopped Saraswati's car and pulled him out. Stones were also pelted at him. One of Saraswati's assistants called friends in the VHP and told them "Babaji ko maar diya (they've got Babaji)". Saraswati's men set upon the Christians on a scale similar to that of the current attacks.AFTER THE December riots, Saraswati gave an interview, probably his last, to the RSS publication Organiser. He said, "With their numbers increasing, Christians forcefully took away Hindu girls and forced the neo-converts to eat beef." He said the Christians "threw the mortal remains of cows on temples". Saraswati said that the Christian missionaries were "serving medicines claiming them to be the prasad of Jesus". He said the "Church and Christians erect a small prayer house in the middle of a Hindu locality, close to a temple, and after a few years of missionary activity, transform the prayer house into a big church".Towards the end of the interview, Saraswati said foreign money was being pumped into churches in India to erect "insolent symbols of the church which offend the eye, the heart and the mind of Hindus". He spoke of "towering Jesus Christ statues obstructing the skyline, towering steeples with a cross atop, which is visible from a long distance, new and big churches close to old and popular temples". He called for a constitutional ban on conversion of Hindus to "Abrahamic faiths" and warned that "Christians in India must understand fast that they cannot be protected by the US State Department writing its annual vituperative anti- Hindu reports on religious freedom and human rights". He added: "Christians can be protected only by the goodwill of the majority Hindus in whose midst they have to live." These thoughts Saraswati drilled into the Kandha tribals.The tribals of Orissa are a tough people. They gave Ashoka the Great the fight of his life. Ashoka invaded Kalinga in 261BC. There was no king to oppose him, but the tribals fought against him. Ashoka won the Kalinga War, but 110,000 people died in battle. Ashoka never fought again and took to Buddhism.It is this lineage that Rupesh Kanhar, 19, comes from. Rupesh and his friends are part of an RSS war council meeting on August 28 in the jungles near Gopingiya village. He passed out of Saraswati's ashram in Chakapada in 2006. He lives near the jungle and is a fierce member of the Kandha tribe. There are 15 people in the meeting including Rupesh's friend Bhimraj. They are working out plans to attack Christians. The meeting concludes that they will not kill Christians, but scare them into leaving Kandhamal.Rupesh recites the RSS prayer fluently. He hasn't killed a Christian, but he has burned some houses down. In a few hours, Rupesh and his friends will prepare to attack. Some of them would have downed plenty of liquor by then. The group will assemble at 9 pm, about 200 of them. They will have axes, swords and machetes, and torches. They will tie red threads around their wrists, so tight in some cases that they leave red marks on the skin, and they will anoint each other's foreheads with vermillion. They have colour codes for the headbands. If it's an ST versus SC battle, the headband will be red. Tonight, it's a Hindu versus Christian fight, so it will be a saffron headband.Rupesh and his group will march until past midnight, scaring Christians and sending them rushing into the jungles at night. It's a daily routine in Kandhamal, the Hindu militants shouting slogans and conducting torchlight marches. A conch is blown. It's the signal to attack. The slogans come rushing: "Vande Mataram", "Jai Shri Ram", "Om, Shanti Om", "Hindu Rakhiya, Momo Dikhya (Save Hindus, Save our Culture)". When 200 people say them, even the deaf can hear.BUT INTROSPECTION respects no ideology. Even the best efforts of the RSS and the VHP can't stop a change of heart. Vijay Pradhan, 35, is hiding in Raikia. For eight years, Vijay Pradhan says, he was an active RSS worker. He worked with Saraswati and conducted several reconversions. He also trained many RSS workers in the art of reconverting Christians to Hinduism. "I taught people what I was taught. That I must serve the country by fighting the Muslim and Christian religions, which are foreign to us. Our culture had to be saved. Then, one day a young pastor told me about Jesus. I was surprised at his courage in accosting me, but I was curious. This man told me that I could have eternal life with Jesus," says Pradhan.The one-time RSS worker says he was confused after this encounter. "I began searching for Jesus because I was intrigued by what I was told about him. On January 26, 1994, I challenged the creator. I asked why there are so many religions if there is one creator. I said whoever you are, I need to know you by name. I threatened that I would turn atheist if the Creator didn't show himself. I couldn't sleep at night. At 4.30 am, as I was getting ready for yoga, I saw a human-like figure. There was plenty of light. A voice said, 'I am the one you are looking for,'" says Pradhan.He says his thought process changed after this. He began spreading the gospel and going to church. "The RSS workers came to me and asked me why I had converted. They asked me how much money I was given. I used to ask people the same things. But I wasn't paid. The RSS searched for me. I had to hide in the jungles. As long as there is trouble, I will hide," he says.Pradhan says only those who are called by Jesus are the true converts. "Only the attraction of God can make them that. Hindus become Christians, they are never made into Christians. The reconversions by the VHP and the RSS are false. They are conducting a political war in the name of God."The state is, of course, missing in all this. The law in Orissa states that religious conversions are allowed. However, people must seek the permission of the District Magistrate. The District Magistrate will enquire into it. If he is convinced that there is no bribe or threat involved, he permits the conversion. Officially, there are only two conversions shown in Kandhamal since 1961.The retreat of the state is an accepted part of life in Kandhamal. People can tell you who the RSS pramukh is, or who the area pastor is. But they wouldn't know the names of the Sarpanch, or the police head. Soon, they may not need the state. On the night of September 1, there were two meetings in the Raikia relief camp. The Inspector General of Police chaired a peace meeting with 21 officials and several Christian seniors. Then, a group of young Christian men met separately. They declared pride in two villages of Raikia: Gundhani and Gamandi. Christians mainly populate these villages. Yet, they have been untouched so far. Apparently, because the Christians there have put together a few home-made bombs and repulsed at least one attack by Hindu militants.The young men said these villages were the pride of Christians and that they had shown the way. They said they needed to arm themselves so that they could fight the Hindu militants. Some pastors objected. They said Christianity doesn't teach violence. They are not sure if they were heard. •
The Freedom Of Peace
Three villages in Kandhamal are brave enough to stay calmSUDDENLY, THERE is a church intact in Kandhamal. In three villages, Dolukamba, Sugudabadi, and Bradabadi, Hindus and Christians are not fighting. Together, 1,100 people live in these villages. They attend each other's funerals and celebrate festivals. "It's a tradition we have been passed down from our forefathers," says Amit Mallick, a Christian who is a part-time teacher. With Mallick are Pramod Mahapatra and Surya Mahapatra, both Hindus, and Samarendra Nayak, a Christian student looking for work. Behind them is Kanta Behera, 81 years old and still fit. In clear English, Behera says, "Hindus and Christians are equal. I hope they keep it this way."They are preparing for the festival season beginning with Ganesh Chathurthi on September 3. "It won't be the same fun as in the past. But, we will celebrate as always," says Surya Mahapatra. But, the peace from these three villages hasn't travelled far. In hamlets barely a kilometre from Sugudabadi, the Christians are leaving their homes for the relief camps. Mallick and his friends have laid boulders across the roads to keep the aggressors away. Tonight they're safe. Tomorrow is another story.
From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 5, Issue
Home / blogs / Dr. Sajan's blog / India’s national shame
http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/indias_national_shame/
Attacks on impoverished Christians in the northeastern state of Orissa have shocked the nation.
China and India may be keeping the world economy ticking over with their phenomenal growth rates, but their human rights records lag far behind. China’s treatment of Tibet, its cruel one-child policy and its persecution of independent religious groups is well-known. But India has its own problems with human rights and savage religious persecution which are being ignored by the world media. In the latest eruption of religious violence in the poor northeastern state of Orissa, impoverished Christians have been the target of horrific violence.The respected newspaper The Times of India says that "many believe Orissa has brought religious hatred in India to a new low". It quotes Asit Mohanty, of the Global Council of Indian Christians, who describes recent incidents as "the worst-ever attack on the Christian community in the history of independent India." They have been described as a "national shame" by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.The violence began on August 23. Eighty-five-year-old Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his followers were gunned down at a school in the Kandhamal district of Orissa. Guruji, as he was known, was a fanatical Hindu nationalist. One of his objectives was to wipe out Christians and Christianity from Kandhamal and its environs, because their numbers had increased over the past 30 years. He attributed this to force and fraud by Christian missionaries. "The sooner Christians return to the Hindu fold the better it would be for the country," was his feeling.A local TV channel reported that the murderers had left a note declaring that this was a revenge killing for attacks on Christians last Christmas. Who really killed him? Guruji had many enemies. The most likely suspects, say local police, are the Maoist guerillas who still infest the jungles of Orissa. But it was Christians who were blamed by local Hindus.On the following day, a meeting of leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Orissa, the Hindu nationalist party, Rastriya Swayam Sevak (RSS), a Hindu militant organisation, and other groups, decided on immediate retaliation.In the violent aftermath at least 25 people have died and about 50 churches and 4,000 Christian houses have been destroyed. The violence is spreading to the nearby states of Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.On August 25, FatherThomas Chellan was dragged out of a house in Kandhmal where he and a nun had taken shelter. A mob of about 50 men armed with clubs, axes, spades, crowbars, iron roads, sickles mercilessly thrashed him and kerosene was poured over him to burn him. They were paraded half-naked for half a kilometer.Another priest, Father Edward Sequera, who was running an orphanage in Kandhamal was beaten with spades, sickles and iron bars for more than an hour. After that his room was set on fire. Fortunately he escaped death by locking himself into the bathroom. But his attackers scaled the roof of the orphanage where Rajani Majhi, the 19-year-old caretaker, had locked herself in along with the 20 children. They entered the room, dragged her outside, tied her hands together and burnt her alive. Rajani was a Hindu.More than 400 churches, 500 houses and many Christian institutions have been gutted. Many Christians have fled to the jungle for safety. Similar incidents have happened throughout Orissa. Even in its capital Bhuvaneswar, Christian schools have been ransacked. Raphael Cheenath, the Catholic archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar, says that it is clear that "the fanatical forces of Hindutva want to eliminate Christians from Orissa".Hindu fanatics are even invading the camps set up for the 50,000 Christians in relief camps in Kandhamal. There are credible reports of groups going to the relief camp and threatening people to reconvert to Hinduism. In one relief camp, two extremists were caught by a security guard trying to poison the drinking water.Sadly, none of this comes as a surprise. On Christmas Eve 2007, more than 40 churches, convents and 700 Christian houses were burnt down. Christian villagers hid in the jungles for weeks. In 1999, an Australian evangelical missionary and his two sons were burnt to death by a mob.What is the truth of Hindu accusations of forced conversions to Christianity? Nearly all of them are absurd. An anti-conversion law recently came into force in the state of Gujarat, on the western coast of the sub-continent. Missionaries convicted of "forcibly converting" someone could face up to three years in prison. However, there have been only three complaints of "forcible" conversions in Gujarat in the last 10 years, and only two of those concerned Christians.The fundamental rights of freedom of conscience and freedom of religion are enshrined in Article 25 of the Indian Constitution. Officially, India is secular. However, outside of the capital, New Delhi, the state ideology of secularism quickly runs out of steam. In fact, the BJP has managed to pass anti-conversions laws in five of India’s 28 states. In 1967 Orissa became the first state to legislate against religious conversion -- with an act bizarrely named the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act.The upshot of this is that in some of the BJP-ruled states, this fundamental right to practice and propagate one’s religion now almost ceases to exist -- especially among the poor dalits, or untouchables, and aboriginal tribal peoples.The violence against the Christians in Kandhamal is linked to the empowerment of the dalits and tribals. Through education dalits and tribals have been achieving dignity freedom from oppressive traditions of caste-based discrimination and slavery. This has sometimes been violently opposed by dominant castes, who could no longer rely upon them for cheap farm labour or bonded labour.As Telesphore Toppo, the Cardinal of Ranchi -- India’s first tribal cardinal – has said, "Suppressing and restricting the freedom of religion and conscience is the worst kind of slavery. The dalits and the tribals have suffered as they are deprived of freedom by opportunists who are raising the issue of conversion for their own political mileage".The Guruji’s followers remain adamant, claiming they will "do everything possible to protect the Hindu faith in Orissa." Kabi Chandra Nath, his successor, says ominously, "We are not converting anyone. We are simply bringing misguided followers back to the fold."Catholic authorities have asked the Supreme Court and the National Human Rights Commission to investigate the violence against Christians in Orissa. But it is unrealistic to expect much support. After the December riots, government compensation for damage to Christian property was meagre. "This paltry amount given by way of compensation is also the reflective of the will to secure justice for the Christians, more seriously", said Archbishop Cheenath. "No serious action was taken against the perpetrators of the December violence and the culprits are emboldened by their freedom."Like China, the Indian government will not accept any interference in its internal affairs. But without pressure from overseas, it is unrealistic to expect the central government to take firm steps to quench the violence. There is not much sign of that at the moment. A spokesman for the British High Commission in Delhi, almost yawned. ‘‘India is viewed as a diverse place and the country has made a success of diversity,’’ he said. "A few incidents cannot mar the image of the country." What is needed is a world action, like the "Free Tibet" campaign which has galvanised people around the world. Otherwise, it is absolutely certain that more impoverished Christians will die for their faith.Anjalee Lewis is a freelance journalist writing from Mumbai.

Brown's Daily Word 9-10-08

Good Morning,
As I write this morning's devotion, I am thinking of my brother Patel, who is in jail, in G.Udayagiri, Phulbani. I am thinking about and praying for those who are put in prison for the sake of Jesus around the world.
We read in Acts 16, about two of the most radical followers of Jesus. They were sold out to Jesus. Paul could say, "For me to live is Christ and to die is gain". Paul & Silas had been called by Jesus to take the gospel into the region of Macedoniabut when they got there, instead of wide open doors, as they might have expected, they ran into great opposition. It was opposition so powerful that the crowd was able to convince the authorities to treat these men like common criminals. Here's a newsflash for you! "Those who want to live a godly life in Christ Jesus WILL SUFFER PERSECUTION!" Some time back, in a church bulletin, it said,“JESUS NEVER SAID FOLLOWING HIM WOULD BE EASY, JUST THAT IT WOULD BE WORTH IT!” He wants us to count the cost. He wants us to think it through. He wants us to know that the Christian walk is not a cake-walk. There's going to be pain, there's going to be suffering, It was a balmy October afternoon at Badger Stadium, in Madison, Wisconsin in 1982 where 60,000 die-hard University of Wisconsin fans gathered to watch their football team take on the Michigan State Spartans. It wasn’t long before they realized they were really there to watch their team lose, and lose badly. Then a very strange thing happened. As the score became more and more lopsided, the Wisconsin fans started to cheer more and more loudly! At odd times, there would be these bursts of applause here and there throughout the crowd, even though their team was getting routed! It seems that there was a reason for this applause that had nothing to do with that particular game. 70 miles away the Milwaukee Brewers were beating the St. Louis Cardinals in game three of the 1982 World Series! Sprinkled throughout that football stadium were little groups of people gathered around portable radios, responding to something other than their immediate circumstances! This reminds me of Paul and Silas in Acts 16:22, "The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten. After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks." That's what I'd call a bad day! What would you do if somebody beat you until you were bloody, threw you in a cold prison cell, and then to make things worse, they shackled you to the wall and left me there? That's exactly what they did to Paul and Silas. About that time they had every right to be downright angry with God, or at least disappointed! In their apparent defeat they may have become disappointed or disillusioned, but they did not. Verse 25 states, "But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them." Amazing! Paul and Silas certainly weren't the first to be imprisoned for their faith. Many others, down through the ages, had been in very similar, perhaps identical, circumstances. David, as he hid in the cave of Adullam, was cold, scared and hungry. He was running away from the very man he would have given his life for, now fearing for his own life! Joseph, in Pharoah's prison, had been sent to Egypt by jealous brothers but protected by a loving God. Righteous Daniel slept like a baby while the lions prowled around him all night, dreaming of having Daniel for dinner - but only dreaming because God had closed their mouths. When I look at Paul and Silas on that prison floor, bleeding, bruised, and enchained, I envision three young men thrown into a fire so hot that it killed the men who threw them in! I can hear King Nebuchadnezzar say to his servants, (My favorite line in the Bible!), "Weren't there three men we tied up and threw into the fire?" And they said, "Yes, O King." He responded, "Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods." Paul and Silas weren't alone in that prison cell and they knew it! They were surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. They were filled with the Holy Spirit!They were encircled by the heavenly host. Talk about prison overcrowding - this one was crammed! And so they sang and rejoiced and praised God at the top of their lungs. The next time you're in the prison of persecution or the dungeon of despair, look around! Realize you're not alone, and then do something that may seem a little strange - sing . . . "When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost..." "Jesus loves me this I know..."At first you may feel silly, but that's alright! If Paul & Silas felt silly, they didn't show it. Verse 25 says, "and the other prisoners were listening to them."(What choice did they have? They had a captive audience!) Paul and Silas could have stayed right there and had a jail ministry, but God had something else in mind. Look at verse 26, "Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose." Hear this if you hear nothing else. God can set you free when you can't do anything but to pray and sing. How much of a chance did those men have of getting out of there on their own? - zip, zilch, nada! Could they chew through the chains, could they break down the doors, could they overpower the guards? NO!They were absolutely, totally, powerless to free themselves, and they knew it.That's exactly what God was waiting for! When your strength is gone and your resources depleted, know this - God can set you free! He will set you free, and He does it because He loves you, He does it because he cares, but He also does it so that we may be instruments in saving others. Look at verse 27, which says, "The jailor woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, 'Don't harm yourself. We are all here.' The jailor called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.He then brought them out and asked, 'Sirs, what must I do to be saved.'" Are you allowing God to use you as his instrument, as his hands, as his feet to take the good news to a world who desperately needs it? One last note, just to keep us in context - Do you remember where Paul was?He was in Philippi. Several years later Paul wrote a letter to the church in Philippi and said something that the Philippians knew to be true. He said, "I have learned the secret of being content in every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." (And, he could have added, in a prison cell or out of one) And then he topped it off by saying... "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength."
In Christ,
Brown

Lead story - Tuesday September 09, 2008
INDIA: ATTACKS, ‘RECONVERSIONS’ CONTINUE IN ORISSA
At least 20 houses burned and 70 Christian families forced to become Hindus in one day.
NEW DELHI, September 9 (Compass Direct News) – The spate of anti-Christian violence that began following the killing of a Hindu leader on Aug. 23 in Orissa’s Kandhamal district continued yesterday despite a stream of meetings by Christian and rights groups with high government officials.
the toll could cross 100. Hundreds of houses and churches have also been burned or destroyed in the violence, forcing thousands to hide in jungles or take shelter in relief camps set up by the state government.
The Catholic Bishops Conference of India said in a statement yesterday (September 8) that relief camps needed more facilities and protection for the people who were “still in the grip of fear and loss.”
“In some villages people continue
At least 20 houses were burned last night and 70 Christian families were forcibly ‘reconverted’ to Hinduism yesterday in separate incidents in the eastern state.
According to the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI), more than 20 houses belonging to Christians from the Orissa Follow-Up ministry (OFU) in Khajuripada village in Kandhamal were set on fire last night. The Rev. Dr. D.B. Hrudaya of the OFU told EFI that the whereabouts of the 20 families whose houses were destroyed were unknown and that he was “deeply concerned.”
Earlier in the day, around 70 families in four villages – Bogapada, Boriguda, Kuttiguda and Danniguda – in Kandhamal were forcibly ‘reconverted’ to Hinduism by Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP) extremists.
On Sunday (September 7), a mob of around 2,000 people attacked a church during the morning worship service in Bhudainjal village in another district, Kalahandi, reported EFI. While the church members were able to flee, the attackers caught hold of two church workers and assaulted them.
“When the three-months pregnant wife of one of the men tried to rescue her husband, one person in the mob kicked her in the stomach,” EFI reported. “She was admitted to the Kathiguda Government Hospital.”
In the afternoon, the mob burned a daycare center in nearby Bamnichatra village. The crowd also stole items worth around 10,000 rupees (US$225) from the center before setting it on fire.
Poisoned Water
There were also reports of Hindu extremists poisoning the water at relief camps in Kandhamal.
“An attempt to poison the drinking water source of the relief camp in Habaq High School in G. Udayagiri village, Kandhamal was foiled by an alert security guard at 9 p.m. on September 2,” EFI said in a statement.
The water of another relief camp in Vijay High School in Raikia, Kandhamal was reportedly poisoned last Wednesday (September 3). Six Christians fell ill from the toxicity and were taken to hospitals, according to EFI.
The violence in Orissa began following the killing of a VHP leader, Laxmanananda Saraswati, and four of his disciples on August 23 in his ashram (religious center) in the Jalespeta area of Kandhamal district. A Maoist group claimed responsibility for the killings, but the VHP continues to blame Christians.
The Global Council of India Christians has recorded at least 56 deaths thus far, and the rights group believes to live under threat,” the conference said in a statement. “They think they could be attacked any time.”
Representatives of the Christian community in India have met with the president, the federal interior minister, the leader of the ruling United Progressive Alliance Sonia Gandhi, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, and several other political leaders to urge them to ensure protection of Christians in Orissa.
At the same time, the VHP defied a government ban to organize a gathering at Saraswati’s ashram in Jalespeta to pay homage to its slain leader over the weekend, reported The Telegraph newspaper.
The VHP was planning to take the ashes of Saraswati in public procession from village to village in the whole of Orissa on Sunday (September 7), but the state government banned it after the Supreme Court on Friday (September 5) ordered it to take all measures to protect the lives and property of Christians.
Yesterday the state government banned all rallies and processions in connection with Saraswati’s killing, as it has to inform the Supreme Court about the security measures taken to end the violence on Thursday (September 11), reported the Press Trust of India agency.
Saraswati allegedly incited the attacks on Christians and their property in Kandhamal last Christmas season. The violence lasted for more than a week beginning December 24, and killed at least four Christians and burned 730 houses and 95 churches.
The 2007 attacks were allegedly carried out by VHP extremists under the pretext of avenging an attack on Saraswati allegedly by local Christians. Hundreds of Christians were displaced by the violence in Kandhamal, and many are still in various relief camps set up by the state government.
Orissa is ruled by a coalition of the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party and the Biju Janata Dal party.
Christians make up 2.4 percent of Orissa’s population, or 897,861 of the total 36.7 million people.
END
Home / blogs / Dr. Sajan's blog / India’s national shame
http://www.mercatornet.com/articles/indias_national_shame/
Attacks on impoverished Christians in the northeastern state of Orissa have shocked the nation.
China and India may be keeping the world economy ticking over with their phenomenal growth rates, but their human rights records lag far behind. China’s treatment of Tibet, its cruel one-child policy and its persecution of independent religious groups is well-known. But India has its own problems with human rights and savage religious persecution which are being ignored by the world media. In the latest eruption of religious violence in the poor northeastern state of Orissa, impoverished Christians have been the target of horrific violence.The respected newspaper The Times of India says that "many believe Orissa has brought religious hatred in India to a new low". It quotes Asit Mohanty, of the Global Council of Indian Christians, who describes recent incidents as "the worst-ever attack on the Christian community in the history of independent India." They have been described as a "national shame" by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.The violence began on August 23. Eighty-five-year-old Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four of his followers were gunned down at a school in the Kandhamal district of Orissa. Guruji, as he was known, was a fanatical Hindu nationalist. One of his objectives was to wipe out Christians and Christianity from Kandhamal and its environs, because their numbers had increased over the past 30 years. He attributed this to force and fraud by Christian missionaries. "The sooner Christians return to the Hindu fold the better it would be for the country," was his feeling.A local TV channel reported that the murderers had left a note declaring that this was a revenge killing for attacks on Christians last Christmas. Who really killed him? Guruji had many enemies. The most likely suspects, say local police, are the Maoist guerillas who still infest the jungles of Orissa. But it was Christians who were blamed by local Hindus.On the following day, a meeting of leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of Orissa, the Hindu nationalist party, Rastriya Swayam Sevak (RSS), a Hindu militant organisation, and other groups, decided on immediate retaliation.In the violent aftermath at least 25 people have died and about 50 churches and 4,000 Christian houses have been destroyed. The violence is spreading to the nearby states of Chattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.On August 25, FatherThomas Chellan was dragged out of a house in Kandhmal where he and a nun had taken shelter. A mob of about 50 men armed with clubs, axes, spades, crowbars, iron roads, sickles mercilessly thrashed him and kerosene was poured over him to burn him. They were paraded half-naked for half a kilometer.Another priest, Father Edward Sequera, who was running an orphanage in Kandhamal was beaten with spades, sickles and iron bars for more than an hour. After that his room was set on fire. Fortunately he escaped death by locking himself into the bathroom. But his attackers scaled the roof of the orphanage where Rajani Majhi, the 19-year-old caretaker, had locked herself in along with the 20 children. They entered the room, dragged her outside, tied her hands together and burnt her alive. Rajani was a Hindu.More than 400 churches, 500 houses and many Christian institutions have been gutted. Many Christians have fled to the jungle for safety. Similar incidents have happened throughout Orissa. Even in its capital Bhuvaneswar, Christian schools have been ransacked. Raphael Cheenath, the Catholic archbishop of Cuttack-Bhubaneshwar, says that it is clear that "the fanatical forces of Hindutva want to eliminate Christians from Orissa".Hindu fanatics are even invading the camps set up for the 50,000 Christians in relief camps in Kandhamal. There are credible reports of groups going to the relief camp and threatening people to reconvert to Hinduism. In one relief camp, two extremists were caught by a security guard trying to poison the drinking water.Sadly, none of this comes as a surprise. On Christmas Eve 2007, more than 40 churches, convents and 700 Christian houses were burnt down. Christian villagers hid in the jungles for weeks. In 1999, an Australian evangelical missionary and his two sons were burnt to death by a mob.What is the truth of Hindu accusations of forced conversions to Christianity? Nearly all of them are absurd. An anti-conversion law recently came into force in the state of Gujarat, on the western coast of the sub-continent. Missionaries convicted of "forcibly converting" someone could face up to three years in prison. However, there have been only three complaints of "forcible" conversions in Gujarat in the last 10 years, and only two of those concerned Christians.The fundamental rights of freedom of conscience and freedom of religion are enshrined in Article 25 of the Indian Constitution. Officially, India is secular. However, outside of the capital, New Delhi, the state ideology of secularism quickly runs out of steam. In fact, the BJP has managed to pass anti-conversions laws in five of India’s 28 states. In 1967 Orissa became the first state to legislate against religious conversion -- with an act bizarrely named the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act.The upshot of this is that in some of the BJP-ruled states, this fundamental right to practice and propagate one’s religion now almost ceases to exist -- especially among the poor dalits, or untouchables, and aboriginal tribal peoples.The violence against the Christians in Kandhamal is linked to the empowerment of the dalits and tribals. Through education dalits and tribals have been achieving dignity freedom from oppressive traditions of caste-based discrimination and slavery. This has sometimes been violently opposed by dominant castes, who could no longer rely upon them for cheap farm labour or bonded labour.As Telesphore Toppo, the Cardinal of Ranchi -- India’s first tribal cardinal – has said, "Suppressing and restricting the freedom of religion and conscience is the worst kind of slavery. The dalits and the tribals have suffered as they are deprived of freedom by opportunists who are raising the issue of conversion for their own political mileage".The Guruji’s followers remain adamant, claiming they will "do everything possible to protect the Hindu faith in Orissa." Kabi Chandra Nath, his successor, says ominously, "We are not converting anyone. We are simply bringing misguided followers back to the fold."Catholic authorities have asked the Supreme Court and the National Human Rights Commission to investigate the violence against Christians in Orissa. But it is unrealistic to expect much support. After the December riots, government compensation for damage to Christian property was meagre. "This paltry amount given by way of compensation is also the reflective of the will to secure justice for the Christians, more seriously", said Archbishop Cheenath. "No serious action was taken against the perpetrators of the December violence and the culprits are emboldened by their freedom."Like China, the Indian government will not accept any interference in its internal affairs. But without pressure from overseas, it is unrealistic to expect the central government to take firm steps to quench the violence. There is not much sign of that at the moment. A spokesman for the British High Commission in Delhi, almost yawned. ‘‘India is viewed as a diverse place and the country has made a success of diversity,’’ he said. "A few incidents cannot mar the image of the country." What is needed is a world action, like the "Free Tibet" campaign which has galvanised people around the world. Otherwise, it is absolutely certain that more impoverished Christians will die for their faith.Anjalee Lewis is a freelance journalist writing from Mumbai.

Brown's Daily Word 9-9-08

Good Morning,
In the light of blatant and brutal persecution of Christians in Orissa India I am reflecting on the lives and the testimonies of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, as recorded in the book of Daniel. I am also enclosing some of the lead stories from Orissa, India at end of this devotion. Please take some tome to read and pray for the persecuted Christians.
The story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego was painted in the catacombs by believers persecuted by the Romans and has been an inspiration to all who have been oppressed. It is a story of rugged faith and uncompromising faithfulness to God. We first meet Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in chapter 1 where, as colleagues of Daniel, they refused to defile themselves with tainted royal food and wine. Now their commitment was again to be challenged. Perhaps this tells us that one spiritual victory is not the end. Every day we may be tempted to deny the Lord whom we love and serve. We can find help and encouragement in focusing our attention upon these brave men who honored the Lord in their time of fierce testing.
Proud King Nebuchadnezzar had set up a golden image. It was a huge monument, 90 feet high and 9 feet wide. Everyone must conform. All the high officials of the Babylonian empire had been summoned to the dedication ceremony, a great orchestra was raising the emotional temperature. But here at Nebuchadnezzar’s big occasion there was also fear, for evil was in the air. I wonder where Daniel was? For some reason not recorded he was not present - perhaps he was absent on a state mission. I expect his three friends missed him terribly - they were on their own. They had to make their own stand without the guidance of their acknowledged leader. It is good to have senior friends in the Lord but we must not be over-dependent on them for we never know if a situation will arise when they are not there to help. The scene was set for a great cultural and religious spectacle. Yet there was something sinister about it because, as a last resort, Nebuchadnezzar had imposed the sanction of death by the fiery furnace to deal with a possible lunatic fringe of anti-social cranks. The pride of the ruthless dictator would tolerate no opposition, for refusal to obey would be an affront to Nebuchadnezzar’s dignity and an insult to his god. This was a challenge the three young men simply had to face; it was a problem that would not go away. A choice had to be made there and then. Choices have to be made by all of us at some time. The poet James Russell Lowell put it like this, "Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide; Some great cause, God’s new Messiah, offering each the bloom or blight; Parts the goats upon the left hand, and the sheep upon the right; And the choice goes by for ever, ’twixt that darkness and that light." Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to bow down to the gigantic statue. They refused to renounce God and his commands. They refused to follow the crowd. They were determined to stand out against this evil thing and to be faithful to the Lord at any cost. Here was courage of the highest order, for they were prepared to face a fearful death rather than dishonor their God. But the story does not end there because the Biblical account tells us that Nebuchadnezzar offered them a second chance. Nebuchadnezzar ordered the rebels to be brought before him. He recognized them as the Jews he had recently honored and was prepared to give them the benefit of a doubt in his mind that they had made a mistake. He assumed that it could not possibly be their deliberate intention to defy him and so he would give them a second opportunity to conform. What a temptation! In a multi-faith society, surely it is reasonable just to bend the joints of your knees as an appropriate act of respect for the king’s wishes? Why not just go along with it and humor him? Surely it would be seen as ungrateful to publicly oppose him after he had showed such kindness? In any case, we can almost hear the tempter whispering in their ears, "it’s a long way from Jerusalem"! As Spurgeon said, "character is what you are in the dark". Yes, it is easy to compromise - on morality, honesty, faithfulness to the Scriptures - to cut a few corners. But Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would have none of it. With great courage and dignity they told the king that they were not going to argue with him. The three young men made no attempt to excuse themselves. They refused to save their situation at the expense of their consciences; they were prepared to defy their king rather than offend their God. It took courage to stand out, to be among the three out of, say 300,000, who refused to bow the knee and yet this is a marked characteristic of the faithful. God’s people are not called upon to go out of their way to be martyrs, but they have to be ready to make their stand if need be. Nebuchnezzar threw down the challenge, "Who is the God that shall deliver you out of my hands?" They made a classic reply, "The God we serve is able to deliver us from the fire, and will rescue us from your hand, O king" (17). God was their God, and they were his. They felt secure for their hope was based on a deep covenant and personal relationship. Their faith in their God was so strong that they could not imagine any ultimate harm at all coming to them at the hand of a mere pagan emperor. How could God possibly forsake those who are his? The faith of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego was unquestioning; their God was omnipotent. Flames and kings meant nothing to Him; He could deliver. They based their confidence on their trust in God. Had He not delivered the Israelites from Pharoah’s clutches and provided for them throughout their forty years in the wilderness? Had he not fed Elijah in a time of famine and drought? When we’re up against it, we need to recall these wonderful deeds of our God. He has not changed. This is the kind of knowledge that builds up faith for the day of testing. The young men also had confidence in the purposes of God. Here we have some magnificent words, "Our God can deliver, but if not..." (18). What they are saying is this: "God can deliver, and if it is his will, he will deliver us - but he may not! It may be his will to let us suffer and die. We do not know what his will is, and we do not mind, for his will is best." What a statement to make! They felt that loyalty to God was of greater importance than life itself. One of the bishops in the century following the church of New Testament times had a similar experience. Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna, was brought before the Roman authorities and told to curse Christ and he would be released. He replied, "Eighty-six years have I served him, and he has done me no wrong: how then can I blaspheme my king who saved me?" The Roman officer replied, "Unless you change your mind, I will have you burnt." Polycarp said, "You threaten a fire that burns for an hour, and after a while is quenched; for you are ignorant of the judgement to come and of everlasting punishment reserved for the ungodly. Do what you wish." We know that God is able to save. He is able to heal. He is able to deliver from temptation. He is able ... but we have a God who may not save. This is a hard saying, and yet faith in God is more important than faith in his works. Ultimately, faith must rest in the character of God irrespective of what he does or does not do. This story from the book of Daniel is an important reminder that faithfulness to God may result in problems. Refusal to conform to this world’s pattern may well involve trouble and loss, but surely it is better to accept the narrow way that leads to eternal gain rather than follow the way of the world which will result in eternal loss? True faith is a readiness to trust God to fulfil his purposes whatever that might be, and to say, as Job did, "though he slay me, yet I will trust him" (13:15). The steadfast refusal of the young men made the king furious, and he commanded the furnace to be heated again and again, and they were thrown into the fire. What a terrible experience! Yet, what a wonderful experience it turned out to be. The three young men were in the fire, but they were not alone, for the Lord was there with them. Nebuchadnezzar was filled with amazement. He could hardly believe what he saw. He had expected their bound bodies to be incinerated within seconds but, to his astonishment, in the middle of the blazing flames men were walking up and down, unhurt by the fire and quite unaffected by their fearful surroundings. He could hardly believe his eyes and had to seek confirmation from his ministers that it was only three men that had been cast into the fire. He looked again. "Look, I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods." One thing is perfectly clear - if God had not delivered his servants from the fire, he had delivered them in the fire. For their sake he had deliberately suspended his natural laws and had performed a miracle. Further, in the hour of his people’s trial, he had strengthened their commitment by his presence in a physical form. The Lord was with them in their fiery trial. If God is omnipresent, he must also be the God in the midst of our burning fiery furnace, whatever form that might take. God is omnipresent in pain and his presence makes faith possible. C S Lewis said, "God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pains." Nebuchadnezzar openly acknowledged that the three young Jews were "servants of the Most High God" and he called on them to come out of the furnace. They emerged from the fire completely unscathed. Not a hair had been singed and there was not even a smell of fire on their clothes. The king and his courtiers were amazed. The message is clear. Believers need to grow in the grace of God so that when they are faced with a challenge to faith there will be no compromise on Christian principles. Yet, when the fire of pain, disappointment or disillusionment comes, God will be with us for the God of deliverance is also the Lord of the furnace.
In Jesus,
Brown
Lead story - Tuesday September 09, 2008
INDIA: INCIDENTS IN TWO STATES SHAKE CHRISTIANS
With Orissa still reeling, violence in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh shocks believers.
NEW DELHI, September 8 (Compass Direct News) – Still reeling from violence in Orissa state, India’s Christians suffered major blows in two other states over the weekend.
As the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC) revised its estimate of deaths from the last two weeks of violence in Orissa state from “more than 100” to 53 today, Christians in Ratlam, Madhya Pradesh were shocked when suspected Hindu extremists yesterday burned down the 86-year-old St. Bartholomew Church of North India.
Christian leaders said suspected members of the Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP) burned down the venerable church after parishioners had elaborately decorated it for its 86th anniversary. VHP members are also responsible for ongoing violence in Orissa state following the killing of a state VHP leader, Laxmanananda Saraswati, and four of his associates in Kandhamal district on August 23.
Thousands of houses, churches and institutions have been damaged or destroyed in the violence that began after VHP members led a funeral procession of Saraswati’s body to stir up anti-Christian sentiment. Maoists have since claimed responsibility for the murders, but the Hindu extremist groups continue to blame Christians.
Damages to the St. Bartholomew church building in Ratlam were estimated at US$18,000. It was the only English-language church in the district, with most of its members senior citizens and retired railway employees.
VHP and Bajrang Dal leaders have denied the allegations against them, claiming the church building caught fire due to a short circuit. But local Christians said a short circuit could not have led to a fire of the more than five hours needed to burn down the entire structure.
“The entire episode was planned and carried out by the VHP and Bajrang Dal,” Lalu Stephen, district president of the Madhya Pradesh Isai Mahasangh, an umbrella body of Christian organizations, said in a statement. “We have no doubt about their involvement in the entire episode.”
The investigating officer in Ratlam, Manish Agarwal, said police are investigating the church building fire and do not know whether the VHP or Bajrang Dal are involved.
Christians were further stunned when police presented the watchman of the church, Noel Pare, before media late at night accepting blame for the crime. The mother of the watchman, Rosy Pare, subsequently stated in an affidavit that her son, daughter-in-law and grandchild were sleeping at home when the incident took place.
She further said in the legal document that it was police who woke Noel Pare to inform him that the church was on fire. Pare, along with his wife, was taken to the police station for questioning, with his wife later released. After a few hours, local Christian leaders were called to the police station to be told that the watchman had accepted responsibility for the crime.
Rosy Pare claimed that police concocted the scheme to protect the real culprits.
Father Anand Muttungal of the Madhya Pradesh Catholic Bishops Conference of India said the conference will set up an independent committee headed by a retired High Court judge to include journalists, social activists and leaders from various religions to investigate.
“The members will be declared soon,” he said. “Police are trying to save the culprits and put the blame on the Christian community. We will not tolerate this attempt by the police.”
According to the police’s own report, at least 200 liters of kerosene were used to burn the church building.
“It cannot be the work of one man only,” Fr. Muttungal told Compass. “Clearly the police are trying to hide the facts here. The arrest of the church watchman is an attempt to malign the community. Every time it is done, and this time it was planned.”
Hindu extremists have a history of violence in the area. Most recently, on August 15, VHP and Bajrang Dal members attacked a youth meeting in Ratlam after a neighbor complained, said pastor Jose Mathew of Ratlam.
“They beat up many participants,” including a pastor, his wife and the district manager of World Vision, Mathew said. “Later the police without any enquiry charged them with attempted forcible conversion.”
Nuns Assaulted
In Chhattisgarh state, on Friday (September 5) about 20 Bajrang Dal extremists boarded a train at the Durgh railway station and took four babies no more than 2 years old from two nuns of the Missionaries of Charity and from two women helpers. Subsequently the Hindu extremists beat a nun and a driver sent to help.
The nuns and two women helpers on the train were taking the babies from Raipur to the Shishu Bhava charity center in Bhopal when the Hindu extremists forced their way into the train shouting anti-Christian slogans. Christian sources said the extremists snatched the babies and left the train, with the nuns compelled to come after them.
Accusing the nuns of forced conversion, the Hindu extremist mob handed them over to the Government Railway Police (GRP). When one of the two sisters, identified as Sister Mamta, requested that she be allowed to make a phone call to get legal help, police flatly refused. After much pleading she was able to make a phone call to the archbishop from the mobile phone of a visiting officer.
The archbishop promptly sent two nuns in an ambulance along with a driver to the Durgh railway station to assist the nuns. But before they could reach the station, they were sighted and surrounded by the Bajrang Dal mob outside the railway station.
One of the arriving nuns, identified as Sister Laboure, and the driver of the ambulance were mercilessly beaten in public view by the mob. The Hindu extremists continued to shout anti-Christian slogans even as they were beating and threatening to kill the nun and driver.
Subsequently the GRP took the two arriving nuns and the driver into custody, and they were kept in the police station for five hours, with the wounds and other injuries of Sister Laboure and the driver unattended. The next morning police escorted the nuns to their respective convents. Reportedly Sister Laboure was later admitted in a hospital for treatment of her injuries.
The babies were not returned to the nuns but rather taken to a government hospital, where they remained at press time.
Fr. Muttungal said local newspaper Hari Bhoomi later covered the incident of the beating “and used very derogatory language, which is quite insensitive.”
In Orissa state, the GCIC confirmed that on August 25 VHP extremists killed three Christians at a place known as Jarginaju: Pastor Fitham Nayak, 62; Madan Nayak, 62; and Nathura Nayak, 60. The GCIC reported that before killing them, the Hindu extremists asked them to reconvert to Hinduism, killing them when they refused.
Karnataka
In Karnataka state, Christians leaders reported that about 30 attackers on motorcycles and in an SUV stormed into a church served yesterday and abducted pastor R. Babu.
After disrupting the service in Mulbagal, Kolar district by tearing up Bibles, hymnals and curtains and beating church members, the attackers carried Pastor Babu to a temple about five kilometers (three miles) away and forced him to observe Hindu rituals.
They released him only after he gave a written declaration in front of the police at Mulbagal police station stating that he would not go back to the village or continue any church activities.
Orissa Burning
The sinister Anti-Christian pogrom in Orissa. What the mainstream media isn't telling you about ongoing torture and killing of Christians there.
Thursday, September 4, 2008

"'Father They Are Going to Burn Me": Rajni's Last Words
Rajni' Death is a Deep Wound in my Heart
Fr. Edward, Survivor of Arson in Orissa Recalls How Rajni Was Burnt to Death
Fr. Edward Sequeira SVD
Fr Edward Sequeira, one of the victims of the violence committed by Hindu radicals in Orissa, does not hesitate to call them "terrorists". Groups connected to Sangh Parivar seized him, beat him for more than an hour, and then shut him inside a room that they set on fire. Fr Edward was able to save himself by taking shelter in the bathroom. Before he passed out, he heard the screams of Rajni Majh, who was tied up and thrown into the flames, where she was burned to death.Initial reports said that she was a sister, then a lay missionary. Fr Edward explains that the girl was one of the many orphans he had rescued, and that she lived and worked in the orphanage he had founded.Fr Edward is unable to hold back the tears, and begins sobbing when he talks about her. The crowd of fanatics may have thought that Rajni was one of the many people they believe have been forced to convert through "Christian proselytism". "'She was only a simple Hindu girl", the priest says, "studying in the plus 3 class. I can still hear her voice, 'Father they are going to burn me', these were her last words to me, after this I lost consciousness". Her death "is a deep wound in my heart".Hindu fundamentalists have long been conducting a campaign against conversions to Christianity, and against evangelization. For Fr Edward, 58, missionary activity is something that upholds the dignity of the person. He spoke to Asianews:
"I have been working among lepers in Padampur in Bargarh district for the past ten years. I realized that, given the preference for a male child in rural Indian communities, parents many times have more than 4-5 daughters before a son is born - and unfortunately, these girls are rarely sent to school, they are made to graze cattle or even sent at early age as domestic workers or to the landlords, and many girls suffer from malnutrition."So I started a very small hostel-orphanage for girls, to give them opportunity and dignity through education and vocational training."One such girl in my orphanage was Rajni Majhi, who was born to Hindu parents who already had 5 or 6 daughters, and they gave her up for adoption to a Hindu tribal childless couple. Sadly, when the adopted parents after a few years conceived biological children, they began ill-treating and discriminating against Rajni, and in this reality she came to my orphanage four years ago. Within a few months, she was bubbling with life, the younger girls called her “Nanni’ (big sister), and besides studying in college in her 13th year, Rajni would be like a governess to the children."All the development programmes for these leprosy patients and the other dalits have all been for Hindus. More than 25 years I have worked in Orissa, and not a single person have I converted to Christianity".Hatred of Christianity and personal development is what drives radical Hindu groups to try to wipe out the presence of Christians and their institutions. "Who says that terrorists are only those who plant bombs and carry guns? This was a terrorist attack on Orissa. What about these Sangh Parivar members, who have been given the license to kill, destroy and plunder their fellow citizens? This was sheer terrorism unleashed on the Christians in Kandhmal district".Fr Edward explains what happened to him: "On Monday August 25th, around 1.30 pm, as I was having lunch, there was a knock on the door. When I opened it, a huge crowd of more than 500 people were outside and asked 'Who is the priest?'. This is nothing strange, as often people come requesting my help, for my vehicle to drive them to a hospital or other such emergencies. As soon as I identified myself, they raised their arms holding all the weapons - axes, shovels, spades and iron rods.They took me outside in the courtyard and began hitting me, screaming abuses at Christianity and shouting 'Bajrang Bali Ki Jai; Yesu Christi Murdabada; Hail Lord Hanuman (editor's note: a Hindu god with the face of a monkey), destroy, eliminate Jesus Christ', beating me on my head, back, all over my body."The extremists thrashed me for nearly an hour (editor's note: Fr Edward still has bruises all over his body, and five wounds on his back)."Then they entered my room, collected all the clothes and books and whatever they laid their hands on and piled it in the centre of the room, threw some kerosene on the pile, and some crude oil, and threw some gelatine sticks which they had brought with them and lit the fire and threw me into the flames and locked the door from the outside."Somehow, I was not frightened, there was definitely the divine presence in the burning room, and I went into the bathroom and locked myself in and shut all the windows. The whole room was engulfed in thick smoke and flames."The attackers were shouting Bajrang Bali Ki Jai; Yesu Christi Murdabada, and hurling abuses. They went to the garage and burned the vehicle, I could hear some of them on the roof setting fire from the top. Thick smoke was in the bathroom, where I was hiding, it was dark and full of thick smoke, and as I inhaled the smoke my only concern was for the children.
Rajni Majhi Who Was Thrown into the Fire by the Mob"In the meanwhile, the children and Rajni, who witnessed the mob assaulting me, took the children inside their own orphanage room which is next to mine and bolted the door from the inside. The men who had climbed onto the roof entered the room and dragged Rajni outside with the children - some of the children escaped. They brought her outside my bathroom window. I could hear the cries of Rajni, and the mob was cheering and shouting through the window. These criminals tied her hands together - they made a huge bonfire in the orphanage room and threw her onto the fire. They used sickles, shovels and other weapons to prevent her from running away, these extremists did not allow her to even move from the burning flames".See Separate Story: How 20 Year Old Rajni Was Burnt to Death by a Cheering Mob
Posted by Orissa Burning at 7:23 PM
Labels: first hand stories, news and analysis, pictures

Brown's Daily Word 9-8-08

Praise the Lord.
Jesus is Lord. He reigns. He rules. He hears our prayer. He hears our cries. He comes down to be with us. He is a man of sorrows acquainted with our grief. By stripes we are healed.
The Lord blessed us with a beautiful week. Janice, Jeremy, Micah, and Simeon spent a few days with us, as did our friend Linda. We took Micah and Simeon to Taughannock Falls State Park for a morning walk on Friday. This was the first visit to Taughannock for Micah and Simeon. Simeon got his first hair cut on Saturday; he looks all grown up.
Sunita has safely arrived in South Africa. She has written to us that she is doing well. Laureen will be starting her new job at Lourdes today.
It was a great blessing to be in the Lord's house yesterday worshipping Him with His people. Our friend, Rev. Sushant Naik, one of the leaders from Phulbani, Orissa, the epicenter of persecution of Christians, spent the week with us. He shared during the Sunday School hour yesterday. 50 thousand Christians could not go to a church building in Orissa yesterday. Their church buildings have been burned and destroyed by the Hindu Militants. In the midst of the sufferings of His saints we turn our hearts to the Lord. May the Lord of the church make us steadfast and faithful to Him. May we become relentless in serving Him, for He is worthy of all our praise. A story is told of a woman took her husband to the doctor. After the exam, the doctor said privately to the woman, "Your husband is suffering from a serious illness. But there is hope. You just need to reduce his stress. Do all the cooking. Do all the cleaning. Never yell at him. And most importantly... do whatever he asks you to do. If you can do this for your husband for the next 12 months, I think your husband will make a complete recovery. But if you don’t do this, he’s going to die. Later on, the husband asked, "What did the doctor say?" His wife replied, "He says you’re going to die!" If the truth be told, there’s a 100% chance that someday, we’re ALL going to die. Rick Warren, in his book "The Purpose Driven Life "; writes, "Today the average life span is 25,550 days. And so one of the things we need to do while we’re alive is to discover WHY we’re alive! What is God’s purpose for my life? Why did He put me on this earth? What does He want me to do with the years He has given me? In his book "The Purpose Driven Life", Rick Warren elucidates that we are shaped to serve the Lord. We are saved to serve the Lord. Augustine said, "O Lord, Thou hast made us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless until they find rest in thee." The book of Ecclesiastes wrestles with all these questions. Solomon is saying “There has to be more to life than working and partying. There has to be more to life than saving all your money so that you can die and leave it for someone else. The main theme of Ecclesiastes is that life is meaningless without God. And it takes Solomon all of two verses to figure it out. In Ecclesiastes 1:2, he says “Meaningless, Meaningless, utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless!” The Hebrew word translated ‘meaningless’ appears in Ecclesiastes 35 times. It refers to the fruitlessness and the futility of all human enterprise and endeavor apart from God. Throughout the book of Ecclesiastes, you can feel Solomon’s frustration as he tries to figure out the meaning of life. In Ecclesiastes 1:8, Solomon says, "All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, "Look! This is something new"? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time." Then, in chapter two, he tries to find meaning in life by experimenting with earthly pleasures. He says "I thought in my heart, "Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good." I tried cheering myself with wine.... I undertook great projects. I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. I amassed silver and gold for myself. And then he goes on to say in verse 11 “Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun.” In other words, Solomon expressed the same thing that so many alive today would say, "I’ve done everything possible to fill the hole in my life. And the hole is still there! I feel so empty on the inside! Something’s missing from my life!" The apostle Paul felt the same way before he was saved. In Philippians 3, he talks about all the cool things that happened to him before he became a Christian. But then, beginning in verse eight, he says “I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ, 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. 10 I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.” Paul is saying “I’ve had a lot of experiences in my life. But nothing is more satisfying than having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ! Nothing is more wonderful than knowing the Creator of the universe and having His resurrection power in my life!” Likewise, after years of futility and frustration, Solomon finally discovers the meaning of life, and he shares it with us in chapter 12. In Ecclesiastes chapter 12:1, he says “Remember your Creator in the days of your youth.” The word for remember means “to recall something so that you continually keep it in the forefront of your mind.” The same word is used in Psalm 63:7, where it says “On my bed I remember you. I think of you through the watches of the night.”Solomon is saying “I want you to remember the Lord so that you will continually be thinking about how you can serve Him with your life.” And Solomon says “Remember your Creator before the days of trouble come.” Some people ignore God for 35 years, and then when something bad happens, all of a sudden, they say “Oh, God! I need you so much! You have to help me get out of this situation!” And Solomon is saying “Remember the Lord BEFORE situations like that happen! The people who lean on God are better able to handle the ups and downs of life than the people who don’t lean on God. And in Ecclesiastes 12, verses two through five, Solomon uses metaphorical imagery to drive home the importance of remembering the Lord early in life. He says “Remember the Lord before the sun and the moon go dark. Remember the Lord before the doors close, before sound of grinding fades.” And then in verse six, it says “Remember the Lord before the silver cord is severed or the golden bowl is broken.” (he golden bowl was a hanging lamp connected to a silver chain. If even one link in the chain snaps, the bowl crashes to the ground.) Then he sums everything up in verse 13: “Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”

In Christ,
Brown
HYDERABAD – September 6, 2008 – Seven United States members of the House of Representatives sent a letter on Sept. 4, 2008, to India’s Ambassador to the U.S., Ronen Sen, expressing concern about attacks on Christians in Orissa state. Also, on Sept. 3, 2008, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom called for action to stop the violence and accountability within India.
There are still sporadic reports of anti-Christian attacks from the eastern state of Orissa. The violence has entered its 15th day despite the emergency deployment of Central law enforcement troops. Attacks began on Aug. 23, 2008, after the murder of a controversial Hindu swami by unknown assailants.
Dr. Joseph D’souza, President of the All India Christian Council (aicc) said, “The global community is alarmed at the breakdown of law and order in Orissa, and rightly so. The widespread, continuing attacks on innocent Christians and violations of their human rights is unprecedented in India’s history. We welcome the concern of US politicians and all global citizens who believe in freedom of religion. As a proud Indian, I’m grieved that our democratic ideals are being hijacked by religious extremists.”
The seven American legislators were: Trent Franks, Chris Smith, Bill Sali, Robert Aderholt, Bob Inglis, Mark Souder, and Joseph R. Pitts. Excerpts of the letter:
“We unequivocally condemn the murder of the Swami, yet we are also appalled to see how mob violence has taken root so quickly once again… The reports of brutal killings and the widespread destruction of property…are extremely disturbing and we strongly urge the Government of India to maintain a strong security presence to guarantee the protection of vulnerable communities which are facing the immediate risk of violence and death. …We urge the Government of India to take immediate steps to investigate these events and bring justice for the victims of the violence. In order to prevent future attacks, it is imperative that the government also address the climate fostering these attacks. India, with its great religious diversity, faces considerable challenges with communalism, but a democratic government must work to ensure the security and freedom of all its citizens.”
Past international condemnation includes last week’s statement by the Italian government and the Vatican as well as a joint letter by Human Rights Watch, Christian Solidarity Worldwide, and Dalit Freedom Network to the U.K. Foreign Secretary, U.S. Secretary of State, French Foreign Minister, and European Commissioner for External Relations. “We also welcome the condemnation of the riots by civil society Hindu leaders like Swami Agnivesh, President of the World Council of Arya Samaj, and Mahesh Bhatt, noted Bollywood film producer, and others,” said D’souza. On Friday, Sept. 5, 2008, Swami Agnivesh returned from a fact finding trip to Orissa and told reporters in Delhi that the attacks on Christians were “very similar” to the 2002 violence against Muslims in Gujarat.
On Thursday, Sept. 4, 2008, India’s Supreme Court instructed the Orissa government to control the violence, and the Orissa authorities promised to halt a procession by the VHP (Vishwa Hindu Parishad or World Hindu Council) on Sept. 7, 2008. However, VHP leaders told Indian journalist they still planned to hold the “Shraad Yatra” on the 16th day of the swami’s death, a traditional funeral rite performed by Hindu sadhus. Previously, Christian leaders from all major denominations and church networks called for a day of prayer and fasting across India on Sunday, Sept. 7, 2008.
The Supreme Court was hearing a case filed by Roman Catholic Archbishop Raphael Cheenath of Cuttack-Bhubaneswar seeking a Central government investigation into the riots. The Central government publicly approved the idea, but the Orissa state government must initiate a request for the probe and has, so far, declined. The only other way to start an investigation is through a court order.
On Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2008, Minister of Home Affairs Shivraj Patil visited the epicenter of the violence, Kandhamal District, and promised compensation for the victims.
Lakshmanananda Saraswati, a Hindu swami and VHP leader, was killed by unknown assailants on Aug. 23, 2008. VHP leaders publicly blamed Christians and mobs attacked Christians in at least 12 of 30 districts in the eastern state of Orissa. Christian leaders reported, as of Sept. 3, 2008, at least 4,014 Christian homes destroyed in 300 villages, an estimated 50,000 people displaced, two pastors and 24 other Christians killed, one nun gang raped, and over a hundred churches burned. See dedicated webpage at: http://indianchristians.in/news/content/view/2332/45/
From Dec. 24, 2007-Jan. 2, 2008, attacks in Kandhamal district killed at least four Christians and destroyed over 100 churches and 730 Christian homes. Most of the victims were Dalits, formerly known as untouchables.
The All India Christian Council (www.aiccindia.org), birthed in 1998, exists to protect and serve the Christian community, minorities, and the oppressed castes. The aicc is a coalition of thousands of Indian denominations, organizations, and lay leaders.