Secularism

Indifference to religion or skepticism is what one thought was the meaning of being secular.  It also means the separation of religion from civil matters or public education.  It means that moral judgments are to be without reference to religious doctrine, being neutral in matters of belief.  The state and religion are different and operate without interfering in each others affairs.  Secularism in India has a different form.  It means equal treatment of all religions by the state.  Although the Indian constitution does not define the relationship between religion and state, it does state that India is a secular nation where the people of India have the freedom of choice to believe in any faith and that it is a personal matter to which the state or the government of India has no say.

Religious intolerance in India has since 1964 picked up in momentum and persecution of Christians has been according to the Prime Minister of India Dr. Manmohan Singh, a matter of "national shame" in 2008.  Right from Jammu and Kashmir in the north to Kerala in the south, to Odisha in the east and Gujarat in the west, Madhya Pradesh in the centre - nearly all the states of the Indian Union have had anti-Christian violence without retaliation or revenge from the Christians!

What does the Bible say about anti Christian violence and persecution?  Christians, who are followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, belong to His Church.  The Church has the Lord Jesus Christ as its Head and the believers are His Body. The Lord Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:22  "Everyone will hate you because of me. But if you remain faithful until the end, you will be saved."  He also said in Luke 6:22  "God will bless you when others hate you and won't have anything to do with you. God will bless you when people insult you and say cruel things about you, all because you are a follower of the Son of Man." In John15:18  "If the people of this world hate you, just remember that they hated me first."  Christians have had a long history right from the Roman rulers down to the present, of being persecuted for following the Lord Jesus Christ.  The real followers of the Lord Jesus Christ have had no fear in facing persecutions. We know the reward of eternal life. The Bible has already told us that when the end times approach the Church will be under attack and the world will hate the Church and Christians.  We also know that love is more powerful than hate, forgiveness than violence!  "Love your enemies", said Jesus, "and bless those who persecute you."

Christian Martyrs of Nagasaki in 17th Century Japan

Christian Martyrs in Madagascar in the 19th Century 

A Young Girl Burned for her Faith in 20th Century India

Click here to watch this video.

Swiping In Those Days!

The golden age of films in India was from 1944 to the 1960s.  Music was an integral part of the films and was in the earlier time very Indian classical, influenced by the ragas and rhythms of taal.  But by the 1950s and 60s, the western influence was growing in leaps and bounds in the music of Indian films.  Before 1990, plagiarism of film stories and film music was done with impunity but now there are copyright controls in these matters.  I enjoy the music of the fifties and sixties both in the western and the Indian film settings.  Some of the few songs swiped by the Indian cinema that I was able to gather are the following:

1. A movie called C.I.D. in 1956 had a lovely song - "Ae dil hai mushkil hai jeena yahan....yeh hai Bombay meri jaan" sung by Johnny Walker in the movie.  The music is by O.P. Nayyar and the lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri. Click here to watch.

This song has been swiped from the American western folk ballad "Oh my darling, Clementine" credited to Percy Montrose in 1884 or to Barker Bradford.  "My Darling Clementine" was a 1946 western film which got its title from the theme song.  Click to watch here.

2. Dil Deke Dekho - In 1959, lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri and with music composed by Usha Khanna, her debut, had this song 'Kaun yeh aayaa mehfil mein" picturized on Shammi Kapoor and Asha Parekh.  Click here to watch.

This song was swiped from a song written, recorded and made famous by Paul Anka in 1957 called "Diana" which was inspired by his school friend and it made number one in both USA and UK.  Click to watch here.

3. Bhoot Bangla was a film made by Mehmood in 1965 with a song called "Aao Twist Karein" with music composed by Rahul Dev Burman and lyrics by Hasrat Jaipuri.  Click to watch here.

This song was taken straight almost 'as it is' from "Let's Twist Again" which was written by Kal Mann and Dave Appell and sung to be one of the biggest hit singles of 1961 by Chubby Checker. Click to watch here.

4. Gumnaam was a thriller made in 1965 starring Nanda and Manoj Kumar which had a song "Gumnaam Hai Koi" composed by Shankar Jaikishen with lyrics by Hasrat Jaipuri. Click to watch here.

Charade was a film made in 1963 with Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn whose theme was composed by Henry Mancini with lyrics by Johnny Mercer and received the Academy Award for the Best Original Song. Click to watch here.

5. Jhuk Gaya Aasman was a 1968 film with the song "Kaun hai jo Sapnon mein Aayaa", picturized on Rajendra Kumar which had Saira Banu as the female lead and music composed by Shankar Jaikihen and lyrics by Hasrat Jaipuri. Click to watch here.

This song was taken from Elvis Presley's song with words and music by Don Robertson called "Marguerita" and was part of the album called 'Fun in Acapulco' in 1963. Click to watch here.

These were all well loved songs in those times and even if the Hindi songs were plagiarized, they had a uniqueness of their own and brought much pleasure to the Indian audiences as did the originals to the western audiences.  Today's Hindi film music is multicultural and in fact there is a genre in world music called Indi Pop, a fusion of British and Indian music; also Bhangra Pop - a fusion of pop and Punjabi Bhangra rhythms; and also the Raaga Blues which is a fusion of Indian traditional raagas and Blues.

Music brings joy to all, across world boundaries!

Care Givers

Having observed from childhood, the work of caregivers, it seemed right to find out how care givers stand in the times that we live in.  A care giver is one who provides help to a dependent....one who needs care.  At some point in our lives we will be caregivers to our loved ones as they age.  The aging process and debilitating or chronic health conditions or disabilities or injuries from accidents happen all through life.  Some rely on paid assistance and some on unpaid ones. There are terms like 'voluntary care givers' or 'informal carers' which are the unpaid ones and there are the paid care givers employed specially to look after the person needing care.  Some times, care givers are family members.  Usually, the tasks of a care giver are to take care of the person who needs attention; manage medication and talk to doctors on behalf of the person needing care; help bathe or dress the person; take care of meals, household chores, making purchases, paying bills etc. for the person needing care.

For people who are aging and who have been active, their family members with whom they stay, do not recognize the need for care giving because the need manifests gradually.  But for family members who come and go with gaps of time, they can see the signs of aging and the need for care giving.  This tension creates problems in real care giving.  Proper communication between family members always helps in recognizing the need for care giving and how best to provide it. Family members need to sit together and discuss how much they are willing to spend for paid care; who in the family will take charge of care giving and make arrangements; what sacrifice of money and time is too much; what kind of help is required at the moment and what needs might there be in the future; can they adjust to having a stranger live or would they go for part-time help.  Then there are the very personal requirements of bathing and toilet activities, what kind of clothes, what kind of food, nutrition and diet, exercise, meeting friends, preference of being outdoors or alone in the room and such considerations.  Unfortunately, family caregivers, especially sons and daughters are quite often unaware of their loved ones' daily requirements of home care and this adds to the stress of proper care giving.  Meaningful communication between the care givers and the care receiver, within the family helps to let the loved one exercise their right to make choices even when we don't agree with them, and to provide effective care.

Paid care is not always available in many cities.  In some, they have institutional elderly care but by and large in India, care giving is mostly done by unskilled and untrained people.  Nursing care is expensive and geriatric care has not made itself very visible commensurate to the need in India.  In 2009, there were over 90 million people in India over the age of 60 - the age when you become a senior citizen.  Not many hospitals in India have a geriatric department.  One has to then rely on untrained people and hope for the best.

Relationships are so key in giving care.  When we treat others with respect and show meaningful concern, sometimes sacrificially, and when we know the joy of humor to ease out tensions, it makes care giving a far more pleasant experience.

  

Of Moshavim & Kibbutzim!

Not many people know what a kibbutz is and still less a moshav! A kibbutz in Hebrew means "group",  "communal settlement", "gathering" or "clustering".   In today's democratic Israel, it is a voluntary community of people who live and work together in a non-competitive manner.  Their aim is economic and social  independence, based on communal ownership of property, social justice and equality.  A moshav in Hebrew means a "village" and is a cooperative community. While the kibbutz is a collective ownership, the moshav can have individual but equal size ownership in the cooperative. The first kibbutz was called Degania in 1909 in the southern end of the Sea of Galilee.  The first moshav was established in 1921 in the Jezreel Valley and was called Nahalal.

Degania Alef - the first Kibbutz started in 1909

This way of life has created a new social system in Israel by which much of the Israeli economy functions.  These kibbutz and moshav are agricultural, factories that manufacture a wide variety of products, run guesthouses, hotels and tourist places.  There are hundreds of moshavim and kibbutzim dotted across the 27,700 sq.km territory of the nation of Israel.

Nahalal - the first Moshav established in 1921

This system has attracted volunteers from all over the world.  They come to participate in this unusual system of cooperative work ethic and stay for between three to nine months on a volunteer visa given by the Israeli government.  It is hard work to labour in these places but also there is the uniqueness of living and working alongside people from diverse cultures.  It is an inexpensive way of seeing the country and experiencing this unusual style of community living. 

Getting a Passport

Getting a passport in Bangalore was quite a feat.  A passport of ten years was going to expire and it was required for a one year valid passport to make a trip abroad.  When the regular formalities were done, it was discovered that the old passport was damaged because it had been renewed in the US and lamination had been affected. Therefore the passport could not be accepted for another new passport.  There are so many touts who will come and promise all kinds of ease with which they can get another passport and they charge heavily.  But beware!  It is better to go through the regular way because touts can only do so much....eventually you have to do the actual requirements of getting a new passport yourself.  So don't let anyone promise you that they can do all the running around for you!

To get all the information of the annexures and documentation required, you can get it from the Regional Passport Office in Lalbagh.  The damaged passport was taken care of through Annexure L.  Also, to register, you need to do this on the website www.passportofficebangalore.com or www.passportindia.gov.in.  Once all the papers and documentation are in order, you can get the passport without the help of touts.

Getting the signature of the gazetted officer is necessary and the website tells to what level a government officer's signature is valid!  The visit to the police commissioner's office was fine except for waiting.....thankful for the Bangalore weather where it never gets too hot!

Then the trip to the Koramangala branch of the Regional Passport Office, and the interview.  The last call again at the Lalbagh Passport Office and then you get the receipt and the passport came by courier.

So many proofs and checks, quite a rigmarole, but finally it was done!

Humanism

Humanism believes that there is no after life, and that the universe is a natural phenomenon; life is lived on the basis of reason by trusting scientific evidence; it places human happiness and interest as the centre of life.  Humanists deny any power or moral value superior to that of humanity, considering faith as inferior to critical thinking and evidence.  It is a system of values and belief that humans are basically good and problems can be solved using reason. There is the philosophical humanism which is the world view that life is centred on human needs and interest; there is the modern humanism, also called the naturalistic, scientific, ethical or democratic humanism; then there are the variations like secular humanism and religious humanism. Modern humanism believes that science is the best discovered method to construct knowledge and test its reliability. Secular humanism subscribes to individualism and freedom from control of family, church and state empowering the individual to live life on his or her own terms.  Religious humanism is expressing humanism within an existing religious tradition, culture and political situations - quite a paradox since self realization and not God is the ultimate!

Most of the world and its systems are based on humanistic thinking and it is a powerful worldly force today. For humanism, believing in Jesus Christ automatically excludes such people because Jesus Christ is the centre of life for believers who have faith in the Lordship of the Lord Jesus Christ.  For some humanists, Jesus was a good man who lived many years ago and he died a terrible death which has no bearing on humans today.  Humanists do not see the need for a Savior and believe that their own good works are what balances out their standing of right and wrong.  For those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, we know that before a moral and holy God, we have no right standing and we need a Savior.

We believe that God must judge evil and that this evil was judged on our personal behalf on Jesus Christ, the Sinless One Who took away the sins of the world.  He is God and Man - God Who became a Man, born of a virgin birth and He was crucified, died and was buried.  On the third day He rose again and He is alive forever more.  It is by faith we believe in what the Lord Jesus Christ did on the Cross for us believers, personally - the finished work of the Cross.  The exchange that He made was:

1) He was judged and punished so that we might be forgiven - only God forgives sin and through Jesus He has done it for us;
2)  Jesus was wounded that we are healed even today, whether it is through miracles or medically, healing is from God, not sickness;
3) Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness so that we might become righteous with His righteousness, the only time the Sinless One became sin was on the Cross when He bore the sins of all humanity, past present and future - only those who believe become righteous with His righteousness and not our own idea of right and wrong!
4) Jesus tasted death that we might share His life, that is how we have faith in the everlasting life only available for those who believe in Jesus Christ;
5) Jesus was made a curse that we might receive the blessing - the blessed life is ours through faith in Jesus Christ;
6) Jesus endured our poverty that we might share His abundance and He has given us Himself to share with others;
7) Jesus bore our shame that we might share His glory - in this world there is much shame but Jesus has promised His glory;
8) Jesus endured our rejection that we might have His acceptance with the Father, now no rejection works in us who are already accepted by our Father;
9) He was cut off that we might be joined to the Lord - He never leaves us or abandons us, He is forever with us and we can continuously relate to Him all the time!
10) Our old man was put to death on the Cross that our new man would live in Christ, we are new creatures in Christ - what a joyous thought!

Our education, our work life in this world is so coloured by humanism that only through meditating on the Scripture and doing what it says, can we renew our mind and let faith arise in our hearts to believe in what Jesus accomplished on the Cross.

Our God is a moral and a personal God and we cannot philosophize or rationalize Him.

Kodaikanal - A Beautiful Hill Resort in South India

Kodaikanal is a beautiful hill resort in the south of India. We had a wonderful trip driving from Bangalore to it.  The highway was really good and it took us about eight hours to reach there with a few stops on the way. It is on the eastern side of the western ghats in the Dindigul district of Tamil Nadu.  The ghat road from Palani upwards is beautiful and closer to Kodaikanal has pretty waterfalls along the way. 

Kodaikanal

You can click here to view this video.

 Kodaikanal is a small resort compared to other hill resorts in India.  It came into its own around 1845 because of the British bureacrats and American Christian missionaries taking refuge here from the summer heat of the plains and tropical diseases. Simla, in comparison, was a legendary hill resort which by the 1830s was famous for its balls, parties and such festivities of the British India, in 1863 it became the summer capital of the British Raj.  Mussoorie, a hill resort in Uttarkhand, established itself in 1901 or so, but was always lesser known than Simla - the Nehru family were frequent visitors here. Darjeeling, another hill resort in West Bengal, assumed its status in 1866 as a refuge for those escaping the heat. Mahabaleshwar, a beautiful hill station in the western ghats of Maharashtra, came into existence around 1829-30, also as a hill resort in British India.  In central India, Madhya Pradesh has a small hill station called Pachmarhi, another British India hill resort developed by the British around 1901. Ooty is in the Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu, a beautiful hill station which in 1830 or so became the summer capital of the Madras Presidency of British India.

It was a restful time we had at Kodaikanal and well worth the visit.

What to Say!

There are times when one doesn't know what to say!  It is not that one is speechless or dumbfounded, but the right words don't really come to mind.  The Book of Proverbs 25:23 says it well: "A man has joy in the answer of his mouth; and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!"  To say the right thing at the right time is indeed a gift from God.  That too spoken with a sincere heart, as those at the receiving end of words, can see through hypocrisy.  The Book of Proverbs are the wise sayings of the Jewish king Solomon, a man who had the gift of wisdom.  It goes on to say in verse 26 that "The Lord hates evil thoughts but kind words please Him." When we speak words that see the good in people and situations, it makes the atmosphere so much more pleasing. 

In the play "The Bishop's Candlesticks" by Norman Mckinnel, based on Victor Hugo's "Les Miserable", the Bishop is ready to give his treasured silver candlesticks to the escaped and caught convict who had anyway stolen the candlesticks, calling the convict his friend - "....he did me the honour to sup with me tonight, and I - I have given him the candlesticks."  The situation and the concerned people are fraught with tension and the matter could end in tragedy.  But the Monseigneur, the Bishop, spoke that one word and the situation changed for the better for everybody! A word fitly spoken, is like apples of gold in pictures of silver!

That's what grace is all about....speaking a fit word which becomes like apples of gold in settings of silver.  Jesus Christ did just that when He took the punishment of all humanity and said 'sorry' to God on mankind's behalf...."Father, forgive them for they do not know what they do."  What a fitting word Jesus spoke, it changed the course of humanity!  Saying "sorry" is the hardest word human beings utter, especially saying "sorry" when you have not done anything wrong.  It takes for someone who is strong to say it.  Jesus said it on behalf of humanity.

 

Selah!

It just seemed one of those words which is hard to describe when you read it in the Psalms, or maybe a Hebrew word which is relevant to the Jews.  I attended the dedication of a baby girl named Selah and that's when I started wondering what it meant! A translation says that it means to "pause and think about that".  There are some words that come unthinkingly and we speak them out.  I thought about them and found the origins of some of them and thought of pausing and thinking about it with you:

Touch Wood  To touch wood or knock on wood is a superstitious act to ward off evil or bad luck ("I've never broken a leg, touch wood"). The origin is pre-Christian and involves the spirits of sacred trees such as oak, ash, holly or hawthorn and their magical properties to prevent ill-fortune. The British version was first heard in 1899 and the American in 1905 and been Christianized to mean touching the wooden Cross in a superstitious way to prevent evil.

Shucks  To express disappointment; and/or used in a reaction to an unfortunate event, as in "Aw shucks, we've run out of eggs!"; or embarrassment in something valueless.  First heard in 1847 amongst the African American workers in plantations.

Jeez/Geez/Gee/Crikey  Actually the person is saying Jesus as a profanity and Crikey for Christ.  This is derived from saying Jesus Christ, expressing anger, disappointment, frustration, e.g. "Jeez, that was awful!". It is amazing how lightly people can use Jesus Christ or Jeez/Geez/Gee/Crikey.  Should it have been Buddha or Krishna or Muhammad or Allah, what a furore that would create.

Hell/Heck/Bloody/Damn  Profanities that have been in use since the 17th century.  Heck is a form of saying hell.  These are all part of common communication these days.  'Damn it' and 'Bloody hell' are used frequently today and this limerick brings it out humorously on the use of  'h' in the English language:
Letter aitch, in some tongues, you can tell,
Is pronounced not at all, or not well.
By the Brits it is rated
Their second-most hated,
Right after, of course, "Bloody 'ell"!

There are many such words used in our conversation today but most of them are profanities connected with the Christian faith.  In John 15:18, Jesus Christ said, "If the people of this world hate you, know that they hated me first."  To make trivial or light of that which is holy, shows the sad state this world is in, but Jesus had warned His followers much earlier.  Thankfully, Jesus taught us to love our enemies and show them that the Kingdom of God is here and all that He has said in the Bible is coming to pass.  Even the end of the age.




 

Musical Treats

A lot happens in Bangalore, in terms of music and theatre.  In the time that I have been in the city, many musical treats have been in store for us.  The Vienna University Choir under the direction of Vijay Upadhyaya was really amazing.  To hear them sing was wonderful and to be directed by an Indian from Lucknow, even more so!  Then there was a Sitar concert with an American, Paul Livingstone along with Pt. Vishwanath who performed at the St. Andrews Church on Cubbon Road. Incredible to see an American play an Indian instrument so skilfully and soulfully! The St. Andrew's Church Choir also gave a fine performance, with pipe organ accompaniment, to celebrate their 250 years.  Then we went to a Don Moen Concert at the St. Joseph's College grounds which was great.  A good one was the 100 children Glorious Choir which performed at the Richmond Town Methodist Church.  All in all, it was a grand feast! You can view it here too!

Blossoms in Bangalore

Does Bangalore weather mean that it is springtime all the year round!!!!  The beautiful greenery of Bangalore is completely overwhelming.  Old Bangaloreans however love to tell us newcomers that Bangalore was much greener than this.  When I see the old trees here, the branches are a thick network growing horizontally almost!  I went through the Indian Institute of Science, the other day, and was amazed at the thickness of the foliage - you couldn't see the sky for the trees!

Bangalore in spring is gorgeous....the lovely Cassia blossoms, all over the city, the delicate pinks, so restful to the eyes, a very pretty sight.  These are the Cassia Grandis.

The park opposite to the Magical Fountain

The Jacarandas are another of the blossoms that make Bangalore give that touch of colourful spring!  These five lobed blue to purple corollas are tropical and subtropical from the Bignonia family.

Somewhere between the airport road that comes into Bangalore

The Golmohurs of course herald the coming in of a hot summer and really blossom at the onset of summer. Gul means flower in Hindi/Urdu and Mohur means a coin.  It is near tropical and tropical and its botanical name is Delonix Regia with its orange/red vivid petals.

Somewhere in Bangalore

There are the Bouganvilleas as well, in various beautiful shades.  Springtime in Bangalore is a treat for us who have come in from the more non-floral parts of India!

God speaks to us through His creation.  How effortlessly He brings to our senses the beauty of His handiwork.  It says in Luke 12:27 - "Consider how the wild flowers grow.  They do not labor or spin.  Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these."

Oh Kolkata!

It was my first time to Kolkata...a short quick New Year trip....just the right time to be there!  Although I had never been to Kolkata, I had heard so much about the city.  Some said that it is a sea of impoverished humanity, dirty and squalorous, some said that it had an old world charm about it!  I found Kolkata, a city of great character - yes, it has its areas of filth and its old world charm, but more than that, it has an atmosphere  that defies words!

Kolkata is said to have been in existence since two millennia but it entered the history books with the British East India Company and Job Charnock is said to have been the founder of the city, around 1698 or thereabouts.  Fort William was completed in 1712.  Nawab Sirajuddaulah captured the city in 1756 and put all the British soldiers there in a stiflingly enclosed small room which became famous as the Black Hole of Calcutta.  Robert Clive recaptured in 1757 and soon after Calcutta as it was called by the British, became the capital of the Bengal Presidency.  From 1833 to 1912, Calcutta was the capital of British India. Richard Wellesley, Governor General of India from 1797 to 1805 was responsible for the development of this city and its architecture.  There was much industrial growth here in the 1850s and this led to the growth of the infrastructure.  There was the White Town around the Chowringhee area which was British and there was the Black Town in the northern part of Calcutta which was Indian. This brought about an interesting fusion of the British & Indian cultures!  In 1911, the capital of British India shifted to Delhi so Calcutta lost some of its importance.  During World War II, Calcutta was bombarded by the Japanese several times.  In 1943 there was the Bengal famine which led to many, many deaths. The partition of India brought about great communal violence in the city - Hindus versus the Muslims.  In the 1960s & 70s, the Maoist/Marxist movements came up and became known as the Naxalites.  The formation of Bangladesh in the 1971 war with Pakistan was another highlight of Calcutta.  From 1977 - 2011, the Communist Part of India (CPM) governed West Bengal, the longest serving communist government in India.  In 2001, Calcutta became Kolkata.

There are quaint areas of Kolkata worth mentioning, the Newmarket is really an interesting experience; so is the hand pulled rickshaw ride.  Trips to Park Street's Flury's, the Howrah Bridge, the Victoria Memorial and to Nizam's where the 'kathi roll' was invented, are a must!  A place where the club culture is rampant alongside extreme poverty, where communism and market forces are at play, the sports crazy Bengalis with their sweets, theatre and love for all things cultural - the opposites co-exist in a rare combination, here in Kolkata! You can view this video here.