Photo: Gopen Rai
One of the greatest fears currently among Nepalis is of the spread of Christianity. This is not confined to fundamental Hindus of the Hills and Madhes, but also among Kirants from the Eastern Hills, Kathmandu Buddhist Newars and your average hardly-go-to-temple-or-puja-but-still kind of Nepalis.
The radical call for a Hindu state, however, is not borne of this general fear. That movement is far more deliberate and its most dangerous manifestations have come to us through the open southern border. That movement is not what we’re talking about here. What is less discussed is the general and more common fear among non-extremist Nepalis that being ‘secular’ means an invitation to Armageddon.
When we talk about a secular Nepal, what is immediately thought about, but what most ‘liberals’ don’t like to talk about is Christian missionary activity in Nepal. Ultimately, it is the fear that most Nepalis will be converted (not convert) that explains this whole secularism debacle. It is not about Buddhism or Islam (for a change) or any other minority religion – just Christianity. The fear of Christianity is, in turn, the result of the fear of the death of age-old practices.
The reason for this fear is predominantly grounded in the fact that Christianity is big and its association to capitalism make it generally a very wealthy religion. Also, the world’s most powerful nations, while all ‘secular’, are often fervently anti-secular in practice in their favour of Christianity. There are also arguments to be made regarding the rapid secularisation of households in Europe leading to the zeal of missionary work outside the continent. And in the age of market capitalism, all other religions globally are losing out in the competition. As globalised capitalism further consolidates its grip on the world, so does Christianity.
All of this, in conjunction with the ‘civilising’ missions of the colonial powers, which morphed into ‘charity’ after World War II suggests that there is a whole lot of baggage associated with notions of secularism, the word itself being inextricably linked to Christianity.
Fundamentally, Christianity is associated with the work of missionaries in Nepal who offer people what the state or any other religion cannot give them: food, education, medicines and opportunities. These initiatives should be greeted with appreciation. But while free will regarding conversion in the wake of missionary activity is important, it is equally necessary to call out manipulative and fraudulent activities which take advantage of the lack of education and awareness of science and medicine through‘miracles’.