NCCI Condemns the Brutal Murder of Courageous Outspoken Senior Journalist Ms Gauri Lankesh

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Gauri Lankesh ( Photo Credit : Hindu , Source: www.hindu.com /news)

National Council of Churches condemns the brutal murder of a senior gusty, outspoken journalist, editor  and activist Ms Gauri Lankesh.  Ms Gauri Lankesh  was very critical about the fascist ideologies,  fascist forces in our country and right wing. Lankesh, with dauntless courage, even challenged political leaders and corruption. She was also a theatre person and a film maker, an artist who used her talent to expose truth and injustice.

Gauri was known for advocating freedom of the press.  She worked as an editor in Lankesh Patrike and and ran her own weekly called Gauri Lankesh Patrike

Ms Lankesh  was openly critical of the caste system. In 2015, some Brahmins accused her of criticizing the novelist S.L.Bhyrappa and Brahminism during the 81st Kannada Sahitya Sammelana (Kannada literary conference) held at Shravanabelagola.  On 19 February 2015, protesters from the Hassan Zilla Brahmin Sabha (“Hassan district Brahmin Association”) organised a rally against her, urging the police to register a First Information Report against her.

According to Ms Lankesh “My Constitution teaches me to be a secular citizen, not communal. It is my right to fight against these communal elements. I oppose the caste system of the ‘Hindu Dharma’, which is unfair, unjust and gender-biased.”

The defamation cases filed against her did not deter her fearless spirit or  stop her from speaking out against corruption , fascism and different forms of violence.

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Indian Missional Conversation

National Council of Churches in India – Unity and Mission

Indian Missional Conversation on

‘Journeying Together: Prophetic Witness to the Truth and Light, in Asia’

 

The Indian Missional Conversation on Asia Mission Conference – 2017 on the theme ‘Journeying Together: Prophetic Witness to the Truth and Light, in Asia was held in Ranchi, Jharkhand from 23rd to 24th August, 2017. This conversation was facilitated by the National Council of Churches in India – Unity and Mission (NCCI) along with the  Diocese of Chotanagpur, Church of North India – (DCN-CNI), National Missionary Society of India (NMSI), India Missions Association (IMA), Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) and Christian Service Agency (CSA).

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Supreme Court gives India a Private Life

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A landmark decision was made by the Supreme Court on 24th August 2017. Here is a report from The Times of India, Ranchi Edition of 25th August 2017: 

 SC GIVES INDIA A PRIVATE LIFE

63-Yr-Old Judgement Overturned

by Dhananjay Mahapatra & Amit Anand Choudhary TNN

New Delhi: Propelling India into the ranks of progressive societies that ensure privacy of their citizens, a nine-judge Supreme Court bench unanimously ruled on Thursday that privacy is a fundamental right, protected as an intrinsic part of the right to life and personal liberty and as part of the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution. In a historic judgment, the bench headed by CJI J S Khehar — which included Justices J Chelameswar, S A Bobde, R K Agrawal, R F Nariman, A M Sapre, D Y Chandrachud, Sanjay K Kaul and S Abdul Nazeer — upturned a 63-year-old ruling of an eight-judge bench that had refused to recognise privacy as a fundamental right. The 547-page ruling set up many landmarks to outline what constitutes a dignified life and the obligation of the state to help its citizens lead one.

It emphasised the value of dissent and tolerance, besides the rights of minorities, including sexual minorities, clearing the way for the possible voiding of the SC’s controversial order to reverse the decriminalisation of consensual gay sex by the Delhi high court. It also boldly delineated the limits to the state’s intervention in the lives of citizens. (emphasis added)

However, the bench was alive to the challenges thrown up by technology and recognised that a balance needs to be maintained between the right to privacy and the right of the state to impose reasonable restrictions on it for legitimate aims such as national security, prevention and investigation of crimes and distribution of welfare resources.

What stood out was privacy being declared intrinsic to right to life and that it formed part of the sacrosanct chapter on fundamental rights in the Constitution, which has been regarded since 1973 as part of the basic structure, immune from Parliament’s interference. The unanimous verdict was “Right to privacy is protected as an intrinsic part of right to life and personal liberty under Article 21 and as part of the freedoms granted by Part III

The NCCI is committed to work towards just and inclusive communities. In the spirit of the Constitution of India, we affirm the fundamental rights of all, and in the context of the above SC ruling, the right to dignity of life for all.

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Memorandum submitted to the Governor of Jharkhand to repeal the proposed religious freedom bill and the amendments to the land acquisition bill.

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Bishop Johan Dang (Moderator, GEL Church), Bishop Dular Lakra (NWGEL Church), Rev. Dr. Roger Gaikwad (General Secretary, NCCI), Mr. Pradip Bansrior (Executive Secretary, Dalit & Tribal / Adivasi Concerns, NCCI), Mr. Joy Tudu (Secretary, Santalia Council of Churches), Rev. Arun Barwa (Secretary, Jharkhand Council of Churches), and Rev. Ashisan Bage (Women Representative).

These leaders submitted a memorandum to the Governor of Jharkhand to repeal the proposed religious freedom bill and the amendments to the land acquisition bill.

 

Text of the memorandum:

To

Her Excellency,

Shrimati Draupadi Murmu

Governor of Jharkhand

Raj Bhawan, Ranchi – 834001

Jharkhand

Subject: An appeal to Repeal the Jharkhand Freedom of Religion Bill2017 and Jharkhand Right to Fair Compensationand Transparency in land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Ammendment) Bill 2017by the Jharkhand Vidhan Sabha on 12th August 2017.

Honorable Governor Shrimati Draupadi Murmu,

We, as citizens of India and on behalf of National Council of Churches in India, Jharkhand Council of Churches and Santalia Council of Churches bring our greetings of respect, love and joy to you. The Jharkhand assembly on 12th August 2017 passed the Jharkhand Freedom of Religion Bill2017 and Jharkhand Right to Fair Compensationand Transparency in land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Ammendment) Bill 2017 brought by the BJP-led government. During the debate on Religious Freedom Bill 2017in theassembly, a figure was presented by the BJP led government, which states that in 2011 there were 10,90,283 Christians in Jharkhand which rose to 14,18,783 in 2017 which means in the last five years an increase of 30 percent in the population of Christian religion. According to Indian government census report it was 4.1 percent of the population who accepted Christianity in 1951 in Jharkhand, which rose 4.3 percent in 2011, i.e. an increase of just 0.2 percent of the population of Christians in 70 years. Your Excellencyan increase of30 percents in just five years is just impossible; it is only a politically motivated inflated figure.In India, as per the government census the Christian population in the country was 2.33 per cent in 1951; 2.44 in 1961; 2.60 in 1971; 2.44 in 1981; 2.32 in 1991; 2.34 in 2001 and 2.30 in 2011. The growth rate is almost static. Jharkhand has the same kind of scenario too. Though the State was formed in 2000, yet for a larger picture the Christian population was 4.12 in 1951; 4.17 in 1961; 4.35 in 1971; 3.99 in 1981; 3.72 in 1991; 4.10 in 2001 and 4.30 in 2011. Here too the growth rate is stagnant. The census occurs once in every ten years. How could the Jharkhand government introduce its figure on Christian population percentage to the assembly? The BJP led government has misled the assembly by introducing fake figures. Is this not a travesty of democracy?

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INTERFAITH ROUND TABLE ON ‘DISABILITY’

National Council of Churches in India 

Indian Disability Ecumenical Accompaniment

Nagpur Inter-Faith Round Table on Disability,

7 – 9 Aug 2017, Nagpur, India.

 All Faiths Commit to work towards Inclusive Communities.

The Indian Disability Ecumenical Accompaniment (IDEA) is an Ecumenical Initiative of the NCCI. The  IDEA aims to facilitate the Member Churches to be disabled-friendly and accompany the Persons With Disabilities (PWDs), theologically, ministerially and diaconally.

From 7 to 9 August the NCCI – IDEA organised an Interfaith Round Table on Disability in Nagpur, India by joining hands with the World Council of Churches – Ecumenical Disability Advocates Network (WCC -EDAN),  Spalding Trust, Church of Ireland, World Vision India and Christian Service Agency. There were  seventy representatives including those with Disabilities (PWDs) hailing from eight different faith backgrounds,  as clerics, theologians, academicians, practitioners representing the traditions of Baha’i, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Indigenous community, Islam, Jainism and Sikhism.  The round table conversed  on how religions look at PWDs, deliberated upon the status and place accorded by Holy Scriptures to such persons, what is God’s view on PWDs in different faiths and also on how faith communities look at PWDs. We discussed about the role of faith communities in promoting and inculcating the culture of inclusion in faith communities and in society.

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INDIAN MISSIONAL CONVERSATION

Indian Missional Conversation on Asia Mission Conference – 2017

Theme:

‘Journeying Together: Prophetic Witness to the Truth and Light, in Asia’

The Christian Conference of Asia is organizing the Asia Mission Conference (AMC)  in Yangon, Myanmar from 11 – 17 October 2017 along with its Diamond Jubilee Celebrations (for details please visit www.cca.org.hk).

At this juncture, the NCCI – Unity and Mission deems it important to have an Indian Missional Conversation on the AMC theme: ‘Journeying Together: Prophetic Witness to the Truth and Light, in Asia’,  so that we, as Indian Churches and Mission Boards, could share our Indian Missional concerns and contribute to the AMC deliberations. Therefore, the NCCI – Unity and Mission joins the National Missionary Society of India (NMSI) and India Missions Association (IMA) and the CNI Diocese of Chotanagpur in organizing an Indian Missional Conversation from 23rd to  24th August 2017 at  CNI – HPDC, Church Road, Ranchi, Jharkhand.

On behalf of the organizers, you are genially invited to be part of this Conversation and  enlighten the discussions with your ministerial and theological experiences.

For details, please read the Concept Note.

Soliciting your prayers.

Contact:

Executive Secretary,

NCCI – Unity and Mission

<mission@ncci1914.com>

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Independence Day 2017 – Open letter to The Prime Minister of India

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To,
Shri Narendra Modi,
The Prime Minister of India.

Dear Prime Minister,

Greetings!

On Good Friday 14th April 2017 (The Day commemorating the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ, instigated by the communal minded right wing religious and political leaders of the time), I had written an open letter to you expressing my concern as an Indian citizen about the state of affairs in the country. Perhaps you were too busy to respond to that letter or you thought it unnecessary to respond to an ordinary Indian citizen’s mann ki baat (which I could not transmit on national communication systems).

This time I write to you as an Indian spiritual seeker of God’s reign of justice, love and peace in our beloved country India.  As all Indians go on to celebrate Independence day on 15th August 2017, and as we keep on hearing statements which stereotype Christians as being aliens or as being people whose patriotism is questioned, I would like to draw your attention to a very strong statement (with my added emphasis) made on “Church and State in Post-War India” by the National Council of Churches in India (an ecumenical body of Indian Protestant and Orthodox Tradition churches representing around 14 million Christians today) in its Council meeting in 1944[1]:

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Jharkhand Church and Civil Society Leaders condemn Advertisement of Government

12th August 2017, Saturday

Press Statement

Issued by Jharkhand Solidarity Forum, Religious Organisations and Civil Society Organisations

We the members of Jharkhand Solidarity Forum, Religious Organisations, and Civil Society Organisations, protest and condemn the advertisement issued by the Information and Public Relations department of the Jharkhand government, published on 11th August 2017, on the front pages of Prabhat Khabar, Hindustan, Dainik Bhaskar and other newspapers.

This advertisement is an attempt to disrupt and damage the religious harmony and brotherhood between various communities and the Adivasi community by accusing the Christian community of conversions and using the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi, without understanding the context.

Mahatma Gandhi, the father of our nation, believed in all religions and was strictly against dividing people on the basis of religion. Using his name to divide people is an insult of the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi. Along with this, it is also a conspiracy by the state government to divide the people on the basis of religion. Together, we warn the state government that we will not let any such attempt by the state, to be successful.

We are against forcible conversions and we believe that the state government should not indulge in the politics of dividing people using forcible conversions as an excuse. We believe that religion is a matter of a person’s individual faith and belief and that the state should not unnecessarily intervene into that domain. Secondly, we also believe that all citizens have the right to profess, practice and propagate their religion according to their conscience as provided by the constitution.

This is a first incident of its kind where a state government is dividing people on the basis of religion especially Christians and minorities. Whereas it is the duty of the state to unite people, this government is misusing government machinery and public money to divide people. We strongly protest and condemn this step taken by the government, which is a hindrance in obtaining a peaceful and democratic society.

Released in Public Interest by Jharkhand Solidarity Forum, Religious Organisations and other Civil Society Organisations.

 

Kendriya Sarna Samiti Jamiatul Ulema e Hind Jharkhand Alternative Development Forum
All Churches Committee Jharkhand Nagrik Prayas Adivasi Mahasabha
Jharkhand Solidarity Forum Sikh Fedration Jharkhand Dahar Womens Front
Sajha Kadam Sajha Manch Youth Revolution Ulgulan
Adivasi Youth organisation Lok Seva Samiti United Mili Forum
Farmers Struggle Front Aadivasi Intellectual Forum Sarv Dharm Samanvay Parishad, Ramgarh
Association for Protection of Civil Rights and other religious and social organizations
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Consultation cum Workshop on ‘Food and Migration’

World Council of Churches – Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance

National Council of Churches in India – Unity and Mission

Student Christian Movement of India (SCMI) and

Christian Service Agency

Consultation on “Food and Migration”

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Workshop to Develop Worship Resources for Churches’ Week of Action on Food

The week between 10 – 17 October is  an important week for the all the Global Ecumenical Movements, Community Based Organisations (CBOs) and Faith Based Organisations (FBOs) since they collectively involve and participate in a campaign for Food-Justice. The World Council of Churches – Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance has declared this week as “Churches’ Week of Action on Food”.  It is a global campaign tool to advocate Food-justice ‘OF’ all – Food Justice ‘FOR all. This is part of the WCC -EAA’s global Campaign on ‘Food for Life’.

This is an invitation to several thousand congregations around the globe to observe this week meaningfully. Hence, this week includes the ‘International Day for Disaster Reduction’ (13 October), ‘International Day for Rural Women (15 October), World Food Day (16 October) and International Day for Eradication of Poverty (17 October). In fact the UN’s FAO Committee on Food Security meets between 11 -16 October every year in its head quarters in Rome, Italy. The WCC – EAA invites churches to observe the Sunday falling during this week  as ‘Food for Life Sunday’.

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Black Day Observance in Delhi

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Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims observe

10th August as a BLACK DAY

In Delhi, Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims observed Black Day on August 10th 2017 at Jantar Mantar. We  expressed our dissatisfaction over the discriminatory paragraph 3 of the Presidential Order of 1950 and demanded SC status for Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims. It was organised by National Council of Churches in India (NCCI) Delhi Office and Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) Office for SC/BC. Around 100 members participated in the protest. We  also submitted a memorandum to the President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind.

Samuel Jaykumar,

Executive Secretary, NCCI

 

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