Can a true Christian be a secularist?

Pic courtesy: www.longwood.edu


This is the question that has been haunting me for months. I have tried to answer the question myself with utmost integrity, without any tendency of being bias but have not been successful until lately. I slept with the question, I woke up with the question, I went to office with the question, etc etc. I have enquired indirectly to friends and acquaintances their viewpoints without letting them know what I actually intend to. I have prayed enough prayers to God to forgive me if I have intruded on to where I should not as a believer. I was perturbed all the more so with the rise of intolerance among religions and violence in the name of religion the past few months. As a Christian, I was hurt, deeply hurt, by the persecution being perpetrated against Christians in some parts of our country. Why have we become the “unwanted” in our neighbourhood? Is it due to a political propaganda of a particular group to gain political mileage or due to our own fault? Obviously so, it is due to the former if not the latter or both together.

Communal politics have played a significant role in the rise of politicians and political parties. India was partitioned due to the shortsighted vision of a communally inclined leader who had preached chauvinistically about his religion and the need for a separate homeland, a republic based on the teaching of the religion. The consequence of the movement spearheaded by him and the political party he founded was his rise as a tall leader with an impeccable control of the community on the one hand; on the other hand, it had not only caused lost of thousands of precious lives but a scar of hatred among two communities that will no longer vanish in totality years and years to come. The scar of the partition was responsible for all the complications that arose after four decades among the two communities in Ayodhya which otherwise could have been solved amicably through dialogue not the violent way it had been. Ironically, the Ayodhya dispute has catapulted a communal political party as one of the most prominent forces in national politics today.

Christianity as a religion has its foundation laid on the teachings of Jesus Christ. It’s a religion of “love” and to love alone is its ethic based. It is this love which propels us and gives us the zeal to serve and reach out to those who need to be “served”. However, let’s have a closer introspection on “how” we have carried on this. Have we not created unnecessary ripples of suspicion among other religions due to our aggressive “missionary” works? Has not “numbers” become more important than “saved” in the minds of the church leaders which reciprocally implanted “whatever” mindset in the minds of the missionaries to yield a “good harvest”? Is it the purpose of the “call” to allure someone with worldly benefits just to let him embrace Christianity but not accept it? Let us once again be clear that we are not called to “baptise” people with water alone but to let them receive and accept the gospel. It is those people who has been allured not with the gospel but with “benefits” and has been “reconverted” to their previous religion that has spoilt the image of Christianity. It is none other than the deplorable actions of the Christians which has led to the introduction of anti-conversion bills in some states. Let us understand that there has to be a paradigm shift in our approach. We need to broaden our outlook and cultivate a better understanding with other religions by showing respect and concerns to their beliefs and teachings. Let us not chase a soul just to be dumped but earn it through goodwill and work of mercy. Let us not be the examiner to tell them what is “right” just to hurt the sentiments of the community but let them examine us and come to our fold if they find anything convincingly worthy. This will not be against any law as the person is taking his own decision and liberty in exercise of “the fundamental rights guaranteed by the constitution” and also will pose a greater challenge among Christians, not only the missionaries, in defining Christianity as a way of life not just as a religion.

The founding fathers of our country, India, were enlightened people with deep respect for all religions unlike the leaders of the breakaway fraction which became an Islamic republic. Although Pakistan was created by and for the Muslims, our leaders were not disturbed at all by the fissure that had been created by the Muslim fundamentalists in breaking the country and did not declare India as a Hindu republic although more than 80% of the populations were Hindus. The people of India were given freedom to profess, practice and propagate the religion of their choice. However, the most beautiful word in the constitution appeared only after the 42nd amendment in 1976 with the insertion of “secularism” in the “preamble” of the constitution. In the western concept, secularism is narrowly interpreted as separation between religion and state but in the Indian context, it is broadly interpreted as equality of all religions or Sarva Dharma Sambhav. Secularism acts as the balancing fulcrum between religious intolerance and fundamentalism on one side and state patronisation of a religion on the other. That means that it is the responsibility of all religions to maintain peaceful atmosphere and cordial relationship among themselves to let the state machinery function effectively. This is in consonance with the teaching of the Bible - to love our neighbour as we love ourselves - not giving due importance to self alone. As I have said, Christian ethic is based on love but not on hatred. We cannot be the source of hatred nor be the perpetrator of hatred and misunderstanding.

In the meantime, let’s not be confused with the terms “pluralism” and “secularism”. Pluralism stands for one god taking cognizance of all religions in equal footing with an emphasis on the goal i.e. god whatever religion may be the means. In that case, pluralism is out of the purview of Christianity and is emphatically against the teaching of the Bible. In other words, Christianity and pluralism are poles apart. However, secularism vis-a-vis Indian secularism does not talk about god. It pays emphasis on the peaceful coexistence of all religions with mutual respect and understanding. It underlines the importance of congeniality among men to profess the faith of their belief(s). This doesn’t bar a man from changing his faith at all. He can convert or reconvert to a religion according to his will and conscience without any act of intimidation from any party. It is here that Christianity as a way of life has to play a great role in winning souls without causing dissent among other communities. So, Christianity and secularism can go together hand in hand as much as the head and tail of the same coin. To be a secularist doesn’t necessarily mean not to be a true Christian.


(This article is written from a layman’s point of view. So, it may be futile to argue theologically – Thara Tlau)