The Hindu : Karnataka News : ‘I respect them but I have my own religion’

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Friday, Sep 19, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka

‘I respect them but I have my own religion’

Sudipto Mondal

People who took help from Christian missionaries say there is no pressure on them to convert

Save a Family programme has helped over 600 non-Christian families
Underprivileged families are helped for five years under the scheme

— Photo: SUDIPTO MONDAL

LIVING IN FEAR: Geetha and her son Manoj live in constant fear of Hindu activists because they took help from Christian missionaries.

MANGALORE: “I will remain a Hindu till I die,” declares Tanyaru (60), a Dalit woman belonging to the “Muger” Scheduled Caste.

Her family is one of the hundreds of beneficiaries of the “Save a Family” programme run by the Dakshina Kannada Rural Development Society (DKRDS) — a social service wing of the Catholic Diocese of Belthangady Taluk.

The St. George’s Church in Ujjire that belongs to this Diocese was desecrated on Wednesday, allegedly by Sangh Parivar activists.

Tanyaru and her three sons live in a dilapidated hut on the outskirts of the Ujjire town of Belthangady. She has known Fr. Thomas K.C, Director of the DKRDS, for over three years.

“Neither I nor my sons have ever been to a church. Never has Fr. Thomas or the sisters spoken to us about Christianity,” she says. On the other hand, her sons are constantly given advice on issues of health, education and money matters by the priests.

All are one

At present there are 74 Hindu, 18 Muslim and 128 Christian families that are being helped under the Save a Family programme. “Poverty does not differentiate between a Christian, Hindu or Muslim, neither do we when we help somebody in need,” says Fr. Thomas.

“In this programme, we look after one underprivileged family for a period of five years,” he says. The DKRDS helps the family become self sufficient by setting up small sustainable businesses and also by funding the education of the children.

“In the last 10 years, we have helped over 600 non-Christian families. Not one has converted to Christianity,” Fr. Thomas says.

Sheelavathi (38), a widow who works as an attendant at the St. Mary’s school in Laila village of Belthangady, has been helped by the Save a Family plan. She says the priests provided free books and uniforms for her three school-going children. When her husband died four months ago, the priests helped her get this job, she says.

“The only time I went to church was to attend a function where the priests handed over the keys of the house we live in. They spent over Rs. 35,000 to build the house,” Sheelavathi says. She says that she has never received help of any sort from the local authorities.

She says that though she feels deeply indebted to the Christian missionaries “that does not mean I will convert to Christianity. I love and respect them but I have my own religion.”

Threats

Ten km away lives Geetha Gowda with her sons Manoj (12) and Mahesh (7). A widow and beneficiary of the Save a Family project, she now lives in constant fear as Manoj has of late been taunted and threatened by some local people.

A construction worker who earns Rs. 40 a day, Geetha is a staunch Hindu. “If I had to convert to Christianity I would have done so long ago. But the locals do not understand. They being instigated by some politicians,” she claims.

Fr. Thomas says that he has turned down many requests from Hindus asking him to convert them to Christianity. “I tell them that if they follow the teachings of Hinduism they automatically become good Christians and good Muslims. The code of ethics is the same in every religion,” he says.

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