I was reading a few blogs- blog hopping actually… I don’t even know where I started…
But anyway came across this blog. Cool posts she has. And I started checking out the archives as I usually do when I like the style of writing and the content interests me.
But then I came across this post.
It has upset me beyond measure. Not just the post. But also the comments of which there are 70. I gave up reading halfway thru. It was just getting me too hot under the collar.
I don’t know what to feel. I mean. I am Christian. Not just Christian but Indian Christian. In a country with a majority population of Hindus, I’ve never found it hard to survive. Christians are a minority. Yet, I have always found it quite satisfying to have Hindu friends… thinking about it, most of my good friends are Hindus. It has never bothered me. I go to temples. I attend their festivals. More than I go to church which is never. I am big fan of the epics and I think I know the stories better than a lot of my Hindu friends.
There have been so many instances when my friends have criticised Christians and Christianity. I have tried to stand up for my religion but most of the time I find myself agreeing with them. The coercion, the conversion- it all strikes me as wrong and leaves a bad taste… why should someone be forced to change their beliefs? Why should someone even try to change someone else’s beliefs?
Am I untrue and disloyal to my religion when I make these statements? I know it’s not right what Christian missionaries do. But the point is, they are not following what the religion really preaches. Christ was not an aggressor. He believed in passivity and making people understand – which explains His words went unheeded by most at that time.
Recently someone told me that the reason why Hindus find the Christian way of worship weird was because we wear chappals into the place of worship and cover our heads and just sit there listening to the preacher. Even taking into account that this someone doesn’t have much brains (she gave her thaali to her friend who lost it) and spouts nonsense most of the time, I began thinking if there was something fundamentally wrong with the religion. But I quickly decided if there was, it must be something very small, or 75% of the world’s population wouldn’t be Christians.
And on one of the blogs I read related to this topic, the blogger talks about how ridiculous he found the whole Sunday worship thing. Shit. That hurt. I am not an avid fan of Sunday church going routine, but that really cut me to the quick.
I am signing off.
PS- Chet and Channu chech, if you read this… now would be a good time to start commenting… please…
13 comments:
Hi Anna,
I am really sorry that I hurt your feelings. I apologise for it. But I was just explaining just one church meeting in one remote corner of Chennai and my experiences and feelings about it. I did not mean to hurt you or any christain for that matter.I feel that bad my blog entry has hurt you. I apologize.
- Venkat
@freaky chakra
it is definitely not. i agree with you on that... but i am definitely a bit taken aback when people expect me to defend christianity against Dan Brown's claims in Da Vinci Code...
but i take it all in the game... after all its part of being one of the few christians in my coll...
:-)
@Venkat
i am really sorry for making you feel bad... its just part of my identity crisis. a few posts ago i felt clueless of whether i belonged in kerala or chennai... i just realised the point of view of others when i read your post. and i guess it seems ridiculous... thats why i don't go to church!!! but it justsort of hit me when i read your blog. its ok... :-)i'm over it now..
@ both of you.. thanks for visiting.. :-) keep coming back!!!
it's important in life not to take your religion too seriously. because after one point of time you get sucked into its nitty-gritty's and there's no getting out of it. And when that happens relgion ceases to be religion. it becomes a way of life. your life. and for most hindus, hinduism is a way of life.
and anna girl, i know for a fact that you're open to most criticism on christianity. we've had so many discussions ourselves.
don't mind what people say. at the end of the day, everyone's entitled to their own opinion
Hey Anna, I have nothing against Christianity. My best friends are Christian and Ive gone to Sunday mass several times and Ive loved it. I was only talking about the coercion by 'some' Christian groups ,namely the guys who cornered me and my main jist of the post was about the representation of Hinduism in the West.
And Anna, no organised religion is perfect. Look at Hinduism. It has so many ridiculous and baseless rituals, it makes my blood boil.
So cheer up mate!
Megha
anna, i seriouly do feel that religion is not something that we should get driven by or even matter to us the least...
@divya
do you think you can ever not take religion seriously ?
and thanks for the support, divs.. :-)
@Megha
I ony said that your post and more importantly the comments confused me..
and people, please, i am not upset or anything.. i tend to exaggerate a bit on my blog.. :-)
@sush
you are an atheist. given that, you prob say it doesn't matter in the least to you. diff btw us is, it does matter to me. i may not go to church buti def think about GOD.
lols, babe..new post, yet ?
@megha
irresistable new post.. i know i have comented enough there, but still can't help saying i think i've missed out a lot not being a regular reder of your blogs till now... :-)
great going...
i am NOT an athiest! i am not. I think of god,, the basic difference is i dont thinbk of him when i know i can do something about a particular situation or event..
I think of god, when i know i am not in control.
thats my idea...
anna whats that cat all about????
faith in a religion as far as i think, or let me put it this way, for me is something that gives me strength when i need it,
when i was in engineering, there were a total of 4 of us in a room, one guy was a muslim and the other two were christian. i was the only hindu guy, that made no difference or made me feel any different. i used to do pooja in the room everyday and my room mates never had a problem with that either..
my opinion is, even if you dont like a few things about a certain religion, you should learn to respect the person following the religion. it is upto him to decide if what is religion is odoing is good or not.
coming to the post by megha, she was only trying to tell us what she experienced... or maybe her opinion... coming to the comments on the post, i think you shouldnt really take too much notice of them...
why for example i dont know you, i have only read a few posts on your blog and i post comments when i think i realte to something u post about...
there might be a lot of people who post random shi*, that shouldnt get you annoyed!
Very true nina.....all organised religions in their essence are quite similar..... and all organised religions have pitfalls....its part of the baggage which comes with religion.
Cheers!
Megha
@sush - you are kind of an atheist... or you were- till shar converted you? and the cat is a cursor chaser... you click on it and it will follow your mouse.. get it ?
click again on it, for it to go back...
@freaky chakra- i know dan brown is so full of shit. but try telling that to a class full of hungry man-eating, we-love-arguing-journalists to be...
but i still love u, guys.. :-)
@aytida being a lone christian doesn't affect me most of the time.:-) just hit me suddenly that so many people didn't like christianity... and i didn't find much to be upset abt in megha's post...in fact i was not upset... just confused...:-)
@nina- three words... you are MAD!!!
Hey did you get the cursor kitty from my blog?...:P:P:P
Isnt it a dear?????
Cheers!
Megha
yes i did... :-)
and the pen minded webband as well...
the kitty is cute....
but i wish they had a puppy as welll..
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