India Mainline Churches Must Address Christian Fundamentalism

(August 14, 2008) A communication expert has urged mainline Churches in India to counter growing fundamentalism in Christianity. Christian fundamentalism has grown in India as neo-conservative Christian sects mushroom, says Pradip Ninan Thomas, associate professor at the School of Journalism and Communication at the University of Queensland, Australia. He was analysing the church situation in India with UCAN. The India-born scholar says these groups, which now monopolize Christian broadcasting in India, support narrow understandings of Christianity, and demean other religions and lifestyles, and their content includes anti-Hindu and anti-Islamic sentiments. In his view, the new sects give many Christians the certainty they want in an uncertain world and have "admirable" pastoral outreach programs that the mainstream Churches lack. The sects, he said, provide answers to the needs of people arising out of globalization. According to Thomas, Christian fundamentalism is relatively harmless in contrast to its Hindu and Islamic counterparts, and they focus on conversion, church-planting, public rallies, involvement in politics, ideological warfare through broadcasting, the Internet and Christian mission. He also suggested mainstream Churches use the media more, recommending interdenominational and interfaith broadcasting channels to counter religious fundamentalism in India. Christians in India should acknowledge that Hindus now have a heightened sense of identity, he added, and an appropriate Christian approach in such a situation would be to learn to live with people rather than fight them.