News - Vedantic Christianity

by Life Positive

The cover of the Bible at the extreme left, and India-based illustrations from it That acknowledges the rich spiritual and cultural tradition of this country? Who could be this far-minded?None other than Mumbai's Catholic Church, which has emerged with a radical new Bible, called The New Community Bible (Catholic Edition) For India. Unlike other Bibles, this one has commentary running along it which is where the Indian references come in. It also has calligraphy and illustrations that evoke the Indian context by a late priest, Christopher Coelho. "This translation takes into account the aspirations, culture, ethos – the identifying marks of the Indian. It helps people relate the sacred text to local context," says Bishop of Vasai, Fr Thomas Dabre. "It is a contextualised Bible," agrees Rev (Dr) Augustine Kanachikuzhy, of Society of St Paul and general editor of the book. Ever since Vatican ll gave the go-ahead to the Catholic Church, some discerning members of the clergy has been attempting to weld Christianity and Indian spirituality together. Many priests conducted masses dressed in Indian clothes and aarti was often performed. There are several Indian-style ashrams in India, notably the Anjali ashram in Mysore and the Sachidananda Ashram in Tamil Nadu headed by the late Bede Griffiths, a Benedictine monk from England who lived in India, and who himself did everything in his capacity to bring the two together. For all lovers of Christ and India, this is a most desirable coming together for there is no reason whatsoever that the teachings of Christ cannot exist in the background of the Indian ethos. After all, many of Christ's words strikingly echo Vedic wisdom, leading the discerning to conclude that these are but two paths to the same truth. Such ventures would also help separate religion and culture, and integrate Indian Christians better with other communities when they are no longer expected to dress in Western clothes, or call English their mother tongue. The architects of this new Bible need to be warmly congratulated for their visionary and courageous step.