Christianity is a loud, colourful, frenzied affair in India. This is a Catholic cathedral in Tamil Nadu decorated in thousands of fairy lights for a ten-day, pre-Christmas festival. It looked like Blackpool illuminations. An effigy of Virgin Mary, looking rather dark skinned and wearing something akin to a sari, was navigated through the happy crowds on the shoulders of half a dozen young men and locked safely inside a glass cabinet near the altar. Crowds surged forward, hands and mobile phones aloft, anxious to get to her.
Many of the southern states, particularly Goa, have large Christian populations. Goa was ruled by Portugal until 1961, after all. It reminds me that India is a secular state, with many religions co-existing happily. The extremists are the exception: Hindus, Muslims and Christians, and many others in between, accept each other without a thought. I've met many young non-practising Indians born into several faiths and what defines them, they say, above all else is that they are Indian.
No comments:
Post a Comment