CHURCH'S RESPONSE TO THE COMMON MINIMUM PROGRAMME OF THE UNITED PROGRESSIVE ALLIANCE: THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

By Dr. K. Rajaratnam


Open up, ancient gates!
Open up, ancient doors
And let the King of Glory enter.

Who is the King of Glory?
The Lord strong and mighty,
The Lord, invincible in battle (Ps. 24: 7-8)

As a servant of the Cross of Jesus Christ, I am approaching you to take a new look at the task entrusted to us in terms of the Commission of Jesus Christ to us, his disciples.

There is a chorus of Praise in the entire country of ours, that only the Divine Hand should have worked out the political miracle of keeping away from political power, the foes of God's Kingdom: thanks to the God's angel Sonia Gandhi's successful campaign and Renunciation, a classic phenomenon of India's history that reminds us of Ashoka!

During the dark days when God's servants, missionaries and Pastors were brutally murdered, nuns were inhumanly treated, buried servants of God were exhumed and desecrated, the Sacred Bible was burnt, Churches were burnt, Christmas Services were obstructed, during these days, both the CBCI, under the powerful leadership of late Bishop Alan de Lastic and NCCI, under my leadership, gave a powerful demonstration of the strength and power of the Church in India to the Government and to the entire country.

Above all the Unity of the Church was amply demonstrated in many ways.

Now, God has shown us his power to all those who suffered and the Unity of Secular forces in the country, is the new hope, which the Church, being God's agency, must recognise and respond to the new challenges and visions of the new dispensation.

Common Minimum Programme of the Government of the United Progressive Alliance is born out of the anguish of an ancient nation that suffered under the heel of crude religious intolerance of an upstartish ruling coalition. The Christian Church over some centuries has contributed to the emergence of a new society in India, whose values coalesced with ancient Indian values and modern Christian liberal values - that all members of the society, are equal deserving of one another's love and sacrifice for common welfare. Born out of this context Common Minimum Programme must become the manifesto of the future India. The church must assume a new role in Indian society, in rediscovering and re-enacting the construction of the society with the same faith, commitment and zeal as the Church did when it was the first to penetrate into the remote villages of rural areas and population with primary education and primary health care.

We, the Church in India, must therefore respond to the new opportunities represented by the new political scenario. The Common Minimum Programme of the United Progressive Alliance is also placed before the Church. The Church should translate the Common Minimum Programme as 'Good news to the Poor' and express through action Ministries Christ's Solidarity with the Poor. This could be the new role of a pro-active Church.

The Common Minimum Programme also holds out hope and vision for the minorities. My appeal is, while we may readily take advantage of minority rights and privileges, we should not confine ourselves to the minority rights only but should go beyond and respond to challenges of development of the Poor: the small farmers, agricultural workers, Dalits, Adivasis, Tribal people and all the peoples of the North East and strengthen the economy and polity, especially of rural India.

It is my appeal to you to visualise the great power and strength, the Church has, if only we believe and respond to the new challenges. Only in our faithful response to these challenges we will experience the power of the Cross-and the reality of resurrection.

In responding to development challenges, we need not merely depend on foreign funds as sources of our response, but believe and plan response with our own resources, which, believe me are enormous and endless.

To mention a few, our resources are:
1. Our Faith
2. The Gospel, our mandate
3. The history of Indian Church's engagement in social service and action
4. Our Institutions of Service: Education and health and the institutions for the indigent such as lepers, blind, deaf.
5. Our Institutions of Training for Ministries, seminaries and others
6. Our Immense properties that are being frittered away in many Churches
7. Our vast highly motivated human resources: the laity
8. Our intellectual leaders, Bishops, Theologians, Sacrificial Social Workers.
9. Above all, Church Councils, the Synods and Dioceses and their Councils
10. Our Pastors
11. Our local congregations

And we have Apex organisations like CBCI and NCCI; Once we engage them in service of the nation, Church acquires new power.

These apex organisations, should take on the new challenges - organise new programmes, studies, training - workshops and consultations - as to how best (1) To strengthen the Ministry of the Church (2) To engage in action oriented social ministries in new areas of the polity and economy of the country.

We need to wait on deputation on the -

- Prime Minister
- Mrs. Sonia Gandhi
- Home Minister
- Minister of Rural Development
- Social Justice and Welfare Ministry
- Human Resource Development
- Panchayat Raj
- And other relevant Ministries

We should request the Home Minister to recognise the CBCI and NCCI as referral apex bodies of Christians in India, with reference to visas, other national programmes and events.

We should also promote and recognise our reputed Professional Colleges - and Minority Universities, as service agencies for the minorities. The NCCI already this year has very thoughtfully restructured its various ministries into five new Commissions. In addition to the old ongoing concerns of Mission & Evangelism and Peace and Justice, three new Commissions have been introduced such as -

- Transformation of Society
- Polity and Governance
- Dalits, Adivasis and Tribals
- And concerns of North East

These new Commissions provide the new focus and impetus to respond to the new goals and opportunities.

It is hoped that the NCCI leadership will 'lift up its gates' to let the King in and let the new visions guide their commitment to the Church and Society in India. A paradigm shift in focus is needed on the part of national apex Church bodies.

Our New Vision is:

The apex organisations, especially CBCI and NCCI, to take upon themselves a new role to play in the development of weaker sections of India, a job we are already engaged in a small way but do so in future with more open and bolder commitment to the Society, Economy and Polity in India.

Affirm as Christian Minority our rights and concerns as well as our duties to the nation, especially to the weaker sections.

We were very successful during the time of Fundamentalist attack on us, when CBCI and NCCI jointly responded to these challenges and jointly represented ourselves at the Government of India and State Governments. Let us now take initiative as to where and how we start.

We now lift up our visions jointly or separately, to strengthen the Church's rights and Church's duties to serve the whole society.

DR. K. RAJARATNAM
Former President of NCCI
A believer in the Cross of Jesus


Reference:
Nazareth Manifesto - Luke 4: 18-19;
UPA Government Common Minimum Programme