Christians have a special task in
India – to promote interfaith dialogue at all levels, he said in an interview
to ucanindia.in
By
Ritu Sharma
New Delhi: Fr. Thomas Sequeira, who recently stepped down as the deputy secretary general of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI), says being a minority is a blessing in India.
Christians should not entertain a minority complex but
consider their minority status as an invitation to join the majority community
for the nation building, said the priest who was part of the Catholic Church’s
interaction with socio-political and religious leaders for the past six years.
At a function on June 1, Fr. Sequeira handed over the
charge of the CBCI Centre in New Delhi to his successor Fr. Joseph Chinappan.
In an interview with UCAN India a few days earlier,
the 59-year-old priest said he leaves for higher studies in the United States
with a note satisfaction that the Church has taken seriously its role in the
nation building.
Christians, he said, have a special task in India – to
promote interfaith dialogue at all levels.
For this, the Church has to engage all its pastoral
structures to form human communities where people of all religions work
together for common good.
He considered it a matter of pride and privilege to
live in a multi-religious, multi-cultural, multi-linguistic and multi-ethnic
country.
“We are proud fellow pilgrims in this cradle of many
religions and the only way forward for us is to engage in inter-religious
dialogue,” he added.
However, inter-faith dialogue should not become only
occasional meetings among religious leaders, but instead it should take place
at all levels.
The priest cited examples from his native state of Goa
to show how people in villages think beyond their religious consideration to
work together for the common good.
“Dialogue of life really takes place in panchayat
(village council) where people come together to resolve problems of
electricity, water and urbanization,” he noted.
Such efforts could be well harnessed if Church allows
its parish structures to form small human communities. A parish should think of the welfare
of all people under its area, he added.
“When we deal with people of other religions we have
to respect and accept whatever is truthful and noble in their traditions,” he
asserted.
What he has seen from the national capital is a
greater sense of tolerance among India, despite occasional aberrations created
by some sections of people.
According to him, religious fanatics are found in all
religions, including Christianity.
Recent cases of Christian persecutions have not
discouraged the Church to carry on with its work among the poor and the
deprived.
However, Christians have to work to remove the
perception among certain sections of Indians that the Church indulges in
conversion works. “No one
will deny us the right to strengthen our country,” he added.
Although the Church is in the forefront of education,
healthcare and social development, it has to improve the quality of its service
and commitment of its workers, he said.
“We have great potential and we have to utilize it for
the welfare of the national by joining hands with people of other religions,” he
added.
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