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WHDL - 00017309

Hindu Fundamentalism and Christian Response in India

Shadakshari T. K.

Resource Types

Article

Resource Languages

English

Institutional Repository

Didache
WHDL

Description / Abstract

One of the purposes of religion, humanly speaking, is to enable people to live a
responsible life. One desire is that religious people may not disturb the harmonious life; rather,
they may contribute towards it. Today, religions have become a source of conflict and violence
in many Asian societies. This is very evident in India where the inter-relationship among
religions is breaking up. The contemporary problem in India is the question of nationalism and
the issue of marginalized identities. Christians are caught between two: participation in the
nationalism in the one hand and commitment to the cause of the marginalized on the other.
There is an awakening of nationalism, which bears strong religious stamp, which is strongly
promoted by the Hindutva ideology. At the same time there is a strong awakening of the Tribals
and Dalits. In this context, the question comes to our mind: how do Christians in India serve
both nationalism and marginal groups when both of them are opposing each other? I am not
promising the absolute answer for the question raised. However, this article provides some clues
by analyzing the historical development of religious fundamentalism and suggesting an
appropriate response for Christians. Though there are several religious fundamental groups in
the history of India (including Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, and others), this article limits its study
to the religious fundamentalism of Hinduism. The importance of Hindu fundamentalism lies in
its very contemporary and nationalistic scope, compared to other, more regional expressions.
Therefore, this article analyzes the ideological development of Hinduism to bring India under a
monolithic cultural nation namely Hindu-India, its fundamentalist tendencies, and its postcolonial
expressions. The text begins with a working definition of fundamentalism, the writing
reviews the rise of Hindu fundamentalism and its relationship to a post colonial India, and closes
positing a response in light of this broad, diverse, yet nationalistic movement.

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Publishers

Research Institute for International Education (RIIE)

Publish Year: 2002

Subject Index

Copyright Notes

CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/

KeywordsNationalism, Identity, Outreach, Marginal groups, Service

Periodical TitleDidache

Periodical Year2002

Periodical MonthJune

Periodical Volume Number02

Periodical Issue Number01

Periodical ISSN1536-0156

Peer Reviewed?No

Place of PublicationKansas City, Missouri

EditorDean Blevins

Pages22

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Didache Volume 02, Number 01

10 Resources

English

This edition offers a broad range of educational as well as theological writings. With so many of our writers dedicated to the Global Theology Conference in Guatemala this time, we thought this edition might offer a bit more on cultural influences and education. Our section on “Insights into Educational Practice” may be a misnomer since the articles include excellent research concerning shifts in educational theory.