Hi Folks... thanx for looking at this issue.

In many ways it becomes like the fog of war to decipher the origins and who did what and when in cases like this.

FH.. I tried to look at the link you gave but it didn't work..can you try another please?

I've seen quite a bit of Hindu propoganda out there. Most of it seems to derive from the following sources.

1/ The radical Hindu's (a definite minority) are feeding this monster with outright lies. "The Christian terrorists murdered our dear beloved Swami" (when it was publically documented to be a Maoist)

2/ The Christian missionaries are 'forcing' the tribes people to convert.

The testimonies of some Hindu's who temporarily embraced Christianity are quite instructive. One said "They promised to make me a priest, but when they didn't I converted back to Hinduism"
So.. whatever this mans motivation was.. it surely was not sincere..but about self aggrandizement.

It appears the worst 'sins' of the Christians is simply 'being' what they are. "America is Christian, China is Chinese..India is a Hindustan" said the leader of the radical Hindu's.

This area is close to where there has been a lot of Hindu Muslim strife in the past.

ONE LESSON which can be drawn from this for the Christians.. is.. 'keep a low profile'.. there is no real need to build Church buildings.. a network of house churches is quite adequate.

WOBBLES.. I note you skepticism about the Collosseum experiences.. and that you also have grave suspicions about many other major incidents in world history. 9/11 etc.

Interestingly, at a recent gathering of Christians at a large stadium, 1000 extra Sikh and Hindu troops were needed to keep the peace. Many of them brought their families along on the last day to hear the message.
Halelujah.

It would have been smarter, Boaz, for you to have provided a less one-eyed perspective of this sad event.

But that would have detracted from your objective, which was to draw attention to the persecution of Christians, just like "during the early days of Acts and the Roman Emperors"

You should accept that some people are offended by your proselytising, and understand that the reaction might occasionally be violent.

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1698533,00.html?xid=feed-cnn-topics

"Proselytizing as Christians and Muslims do is, by its nature, un-Hindu, which makes a looming battle for Indians' souls look "very asymmetrical," says Nandy. For Hindu nationalists, the fear of Hindu conversions to Christianity "is a kind of humiliation that is being rubbed in," he says. Ironically, of course, Hinduism's acceptance of other religions is used by extremists as an excuse for hostility towards other religions."

Presenting one side of a story invites ridicule. It would be more constructive to try to understand the underlying causes, by presenting a more balanced view. Sensationlization, and claiming instant victimhood, is not an intelligent way to approach tragedies of this nature. Refusing to accept some responsibility is also a sure way to guarantee it will happen again.

It seems to me that it is religious fundamentalism - from both Hindus and Christians - that is to blame for these very unfortunate events. If ordinary people's fears weren't manipulated by unscrupulous politicians and arrogant missionaries, they'd have to organise their social campaigns around more rational ideologies.

The supposed parallel with the persecution of Christians by the Romans is at best tenuous. Next we'll have Porky combing through the Vedas or the Bhagavad Gita for incriminating snippets of myth that will justify the vilification of all Hindus.

My husband agrees with Pericles on this one.

We should present a more balanced view, and
find out more about the root causes of the
situation in Orissa.

Of course we're all horrified at the mass killings, but
it's perhaps too easy to just blame fundamentalism,
as I've done in my first post on this thread.

Fundamentalism may only be part of the problem.
The issue perhaps goes deeper than that.

I'm not familiar with the background of this area.

If anyone knows, could they give us its history...

We need to learn about the history of the place,
and what caused the lead up to these events.

Poly and wobbles,

Christians did kill other Christians during the Crusades. Likewise, the Pope and the French king committed genecide against the Jews, to clear their debts, a practice also used stealth the wealth of Knights Templar. The German and Italian fascists were also Christians. Hitler was a Christians. The Russian czars whom turned armies on the own people. Joan of Ark. The Spanish and English wars. The Amercian War of Indepedence (Revolutionary War) was between Christians. The British & Amercians Civil Wars. Several scientists. The list goes on and on. Poly, there are haps of examples. Poly, my friend, just reflect for a moment.

When Christians were not killing each other, we have wars aginst the Moors, colonisation & invasion of many lands and the opium wars in China.

And domestically inquisitions and witch hunts.

Also, Poly your haven't adddressed by questions on the suicide thread. Did Juses commit suicide, Does Yaweh stated God wants mercy and love, and sacrifice (Hosea 6:6)

Well said RObert.

It is of course awful when minority religious groups are persecuted by majorities no matter where it occurs. We also saw this with Christians in Iraq. Persecution of those with differing beliefs is not new and is all the more reason that secularism might be embraced.