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Inter-faith Dialogue: Unveiling of postmodern evangelisation

George Augustine Published on 10 February, 2012
Inter-faith Dialogue: Unveiling of postmodern evangelisation

“Dialogue” according to Merriam-Webster, is “a discussion between representatives of parties to a conflict that is aimed at resolution”. Other definitions of “dialogue” are unacceptable as religious terminology is used and the event is promoted as “interfaith” dialogue and not just a chat between two friends. Hence the questions: what is the motive and purpose behind layman Rajiv Malhotra’s “Hindu-Christian dialogue” with Francis X. Clooney, a Reverend of the formidable Society of Jesus; and does it fulfil its purpose?

In this “interfaith” dialogue, it is unclear whether there is a dispute or a reconciliation. Had the title of this dialogue been “Malhotra-Clooney dialogue” rather than “Hindu-Christian dialogue”, there would not have been any doubt on anybody’s part, let alone an argument. Furthermore, Hindu-Christian dialogues, if any, should be first directed towards the resolution of their existing conflict. As such, this dialogue cannot be dismissed like a coffee house chat. This is necessitated because the track record of one of the parties represented here is horrendous in terms of aggression and predatory tendencies that are inherent in its dogma and basic principles. Do leopards change their spots? To satisfy the world at large, some questions have to be answered by both the partners:

1.      What according to the two dialogue partners is the purpose and motive of this dialogue?

2.      Are these two dialogue partners true representatives of their respective religious viewpoints?

3.      Malhotra says this is a “new kind of dialog”, how is it different from the old?

Hindus who feel their religion is threatened by Christians are justified in demanding correct answers to these questions. So do others who doubt it is kosher for Christians to dabble in Hindu mysticism and on the sly go all out on a conversion binge.

So our next step is to find out how Malhotra or Clooney answer these questions as much as can be deduced from this dialogue and their statements available in the public domain. Before we move on to that, here is a brief introduction to the two dialogue partners. They are well known in their respective circles and are well versed with each other’s arguments. They know each other for over a decade.

Rajiv Malhotra has been a regular blogger and spokesman for years of at least a small section of the migrant Hindu community settled in the US, besides being a successful and respectable entrepreneur. Malhotra is also an author of books and his writings have been characterised so far by their persistence in pursuing his goal of achieving a status for American Hindus on par with his white Christian fellowmen, without succumbing to the arrogant ministrations of a savage religion[1]. He was noticed in India recently after he co-authored a book with Aravindan Neelakantan entitled “Breaking India”, a book detailing mostly American Christian cultural demolition work conducted in India.

Francis Clooney is a Jesuit priest and heads the Faculty of Divinity at Harvard University. Considering the role the US government plays all over the world as well as what Harvard means in the American intellectual lexicon, Clooney is, so to speak, the global headmaster who teaches the whole academic world what “divinity” is, or at least that is the pretext. After the most intelligent Christian laity with some goodness left in them said goodbye to their abominable religion, it remained for extra-clever servants of the Christian god like Francis X Clooney to stake a claim to global “divinity”. Clooney is termed “the Father” of “Comparative Theology”[2], a discipline which is his brainchild in its current shape after he came upon “Hindu theology”[3]. He has many Hindu followers and advisors, one of whom is Rajiv Malhotra[4].

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