I am appalled at the rampant insensitivity in most Indian-Christian responses to the gross human rights violation in Orissa. In 1999, We didn’t know how to respond to the attacks against the Church in Gujarat. It’s been almost a decade now and We still haven’t learnt to respond to attacks against hapless tribal christians. We can only view it ‘religiously’. We speak about the glories of martyrdom. We resort to jingoism and claim it to be signs of an impending explosion of churches. We moralize and ask our brothers to forgive the perpetuators. We treat these ghastly acts as events that would bring revival. Sadly, we do everything but stand alongside our brothers and sisters in Orissa.

It’s strange but it nevertheless true. We get to meet everyone in Church except Jesus. Worse, we still haven’t recognized it as yet. Tamil-Christian Churches have become places were cultural and/or caste identities are forged and reinforced. It is all about – “who we are” and “where we come from” – rather than “who we are’ in Christ. Anything other than the tried – tested and trusted – evangelistic methods are a dilution of the gospel. So much so, Tamil-Christianity is all about do’s and don’ts. Religious language accords certain authority and even helps to legitimize them as bench marks for spirituality.

In Passion of the Christ, Jesus appears helpless – a victim of religious hatred and intolerance; a victim of social power-play between religious orders clamoring for a shrinking social space in the face of alien occupation; and a victim of a Roman governor who reflected his own insecurities of political failure, nonetheless different from the Empire he represented in the troubled Roman outpost. Why couldn’t God help Jesus? Where was God when Jesus was falsely accused and unjustly punished with a death penalty? It hurts to see BAD things happen to GOOD people. Even today, there are many whose right to life itself is crushed by forces of systematic evil, which constantly re-invents itself and continues to threaten hope for new life. Jesus’ pain and powerlessness and his consequent death raise a question, ‘Where is God when it hurts?’

The primary call for the Indian-Christians is to make the gospel relevant to Indians. The gospel needs to be 'situated' in our language and culture if it has to be 'acceptable' to Indians. What is worrisome is the uncritical 'Americanization' of the gospel if not the McDonaldization of the gospel – 'same gospel everywhere'. We trust the 'tried' and 'tested' American gospel to work a miracle in India. Do not get me wrong. This is no smear campaign. There's nothing wrong with American Christianity itself. It is its uncritical application in the Indian context that causes me to raise the alarm. The point I am making is that 'localized' flavor is essential to reach out to a larger audience. It is important to be sensitive to local 'tastes' and 'preferences' and serve local needs. Indian curry is popular in England but one finds curry served in London 'less-Indian' than what is normally served in India. It is cooked to 'please' British taste buds.

The commercialization of Christmas is here, and it is here to stay. I do not know if you listen alot to Christmas music and got drifted into the Christmas jingle, or in fighting your urge to splurge you felt small at the shopping mall or you may have even faked a smile if your friend had asked about your plans for Christmas. We are increasingly overpowered by the commercialization and it takes a lot of insight and spiritual discipline to recognize (and to re-discover)the Christ event . . . Obedience to God might take us through embarassment, ridicule and public disgrace. And doing the right thing is to look for an easy way out. But that may not be the RIGHT thing to do. The strength of what we believe in is measured by how much we are willing to suffer for it. O Come all you faithful” , O come to Bethlehem and come let us adore him - Jesus born in Bethlehem for us.