Shenali D. Waduge

A billion dollar funded Christian Evangelical effort to harvest souls in India with the fullest support of the ‘secular’ Governments of USA and EU and right wing Christian missionary organizations in the West which is in full swing, has alarmed the public throughout India. Social media websites, newspapers, political affairs analysts and the like in India are now constantly focusing on the growing threat to the rich Hindu heritage of India from a well – organized Christian movement based in USA that blatantly demonizes Hinduism as the religion of the devil  and aims to replace it with Christianity in the fastest possible time.

 Christian Eelam

This evangelical project also includes a covert plan to create a Christian Eelam state by breaking up both India and Sri Lanka and then re- joining a dismembered Tamilnadu with the North –East of Sri Lanka in a grand move and then run the putative state on the lines of the Catholic run East Timor that would eventually marginalize and finally suppress Tamil language and Hindu culture as both are seen as impediments to a fully western dominated Christian state. The possibility of such a scenario taking place given what happened in Goa under the Catholic Church sponsored ‘Goa Inquisition’ during Portuguese rule which forbade the practice of Hinduism and converted Hindu Temples into Catholic Churches or built Churches on destroyed Temple sites, has Hindus in both Sri Lanka and India increasingly worried. This is compounded by the growing awareness that the leadership of the Tamil separatist movement in Sri Lanka is wielded by influential Tamil clergymen and church figures backed by the rancorous Tamil Diaspora overseas while a handful of Tamil Hindus are projected as front up figures to conceal the true identity of the real controllers of the separatist group.

 Manipulation of Tamils

A question that is being raised everywhere is, why is it that only the Christian/Catholic clergy function as the ‘voice’ of the Tamils both during and post-conflict phases and not Hindu clergy? This next leads to the question of the nature of the role played by these Christian clergymen given that Christianity is not an indigenous religion in the Indian sub – continent, and its centres of power and direction are in the Vatican and other western countries. The Vatican is a sovereign state with UN Observer Status. Having transferred their allegiance to the Christian West and given that even to this date Bishops and Cardinals cannot be appointed without the sanction of the Pope in the Vatican, is it morally correct for these Christian clergymen to coax the traditional Hindus who wish to live in peace with the Buddhists of this country, into a state of conflict with the majority Sinhalese and Muslims?

Sources of Funds

In exploring the nature of these Christian ‘representatives’ a closer look at the manner they have functioned and continue to function raises concerns about their true agenda. The orphanages that LTTE picked its child ‘soldiers’ were run by Christians, the suicide cadres were Christians or Hindus by name only. Dhanu, the suicide bomber who killed Rajiv Gandhi was a Catholic. The Peace Facilitating nations were all Christian Evangelical (Norway and Nordic Mission), the majority of foreign-based and funded NGOs were all Christian and had close ties to the LTTE. This leads us to seriously question the modus operandi or ‘mission’ of these religious emissaries vis a vis a bigger plan which has nothing to do with religion but uses religion as a strategic tool.

 Fifth Column

No one likes to associate a religion with terror but religious entities linked to terror/separatism and division of a sovereign state on ethno religious grounds is one that needs to be taken cognizance of. The contemporary events in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Sudan, Egypt, Syria, Venezuela and lately Ukraine are powerful reminders of what may take place in Sri Lanka and the role of a fifth column who has transferred their allegiance to a foreign sovereign in bringing about such a turn of events.

Peaceful co – existence between Buddhist and Hindus

In such a context it needs to be remembered at all times that both Hindus and Buddhists have lived in peaceful co-existence for centuries and the issues of the current conflict have developed following the arrival of colonial intruders and the division of both Sinhala and Tamil communities on the basis of religion. Thus 100% Tamil Hindus were divided into Tamil Christians/Catholics while 100% Sinhala Buddhists became divided into Sinhala Christians/Catholics. These religious barriers never existed in the pre-colonial era.

 For centuries, religious groups in the West have accompanied and financed early explorers, colonists and conquerors. These are today known as faith-based organizations and are funded by Western donor governments. This also raises the ethical nature of religious groups and their ‘humanitarian’ efforts. The accusation that these entities seek conversions and threaten indigenous beliefs and cultural practices is one that these faith-based organizations fail to respond to. The argument in essence extends to the morality and the dangers of mixing socio – economic development through religious colonialism with the monetary factor ending up silencing even Governments to inaction.

 A Boston-Globe report in 2006 concluded that more than 50,000 were awarded USAID to religious groups and it totaled $1.7billion and 98% of these organizations were Christian. How foolhardy is both India and Sri Lanka to deny patronage to the religion of the majority when that is their only line of eventual defense falling prey to secular/multicultural googlys that seek to denationalize the majority people.

 World Vision

 US may describe itself as a secular/plural/multicultural nation but almost 20% of Government funding to Faith-Based Organizations have gone to international NGOs which are all Christian. World Vision alone has an annual budget of $1.7billion (https://sites.tufts.edu/jha/archives/847 – International Religious NGOs at The United Nations: A Study of a Group of Religious Organizations).

 The final object of two Abrahamic religions i.e. Christianity and Islam, is world conquest through religion. Thus they aim to spread their religion worldwide and to convert masses to their beliefs and aligning with development when the populations of the Third World are in need of money and other essentials. It provides the perfect alibi especially when Third World Governments are unable to cater to the needs of all the populace and are also silenced into non-action when these organizations construct or expand their religious facilities (legal and illegal).

 7 out of top 10 contributing nations to NGOs are predominantly Roman Catholic. Austria, France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands are the top donors.

 University of Kent Study

A study by the University of Kent revealed that 70% of the UN’s religious NGOs were Christian. The same team concluded that UN is not religiously diverse given that Christian NGOs are overrepresented at the UN especially in the light of lack of funds limiting the work of other religious groups like the Hindus and Buddhists. Thus the team highlighted the ‘structural and historical differences” in the UN System.

 East Timor is a good example of religion-motivated development aid links with conversions.

 East Timor’s entire economy is dependent on foreign aid and receives $594.60 for every $100.00 of its own GDP. East Timor is today 90% Roman Catholic as the aid contributed to East Timor is by Roman Catholic nations. East Timor was an animistic country when Indonesia occupied it.

 We now come to the most significant question – has the ‘Tamil Eelam’ separatist movement been hijacked by the Christian lobby? – there are good reasons to ask this question. The spokesmen for Tamils throughout LTTE reign have all been Christian priests, Anton Balasingham the theoretician was a Christian, his wife Adele, and head trainer of children turned into suicide cadres and child soldiers was also Christian, many of the top LTTE leaders were Christian, even Prabakaran himself is said to have converted and many other Hindu LTTErs were Hindu by name only. Moreover, dead LTTErs were all buried. True Hindus and Buddhists cremate their dead. This is another indication of which religious group is in control of the Tamil separatist movement.  The foreign mediating nations were all evangelical Christian or Catholic, the orphanages from which LTTE picked children and turned to child soldiers were all run by missionaries, Christian fathers have been in the forefront of virtually all pro-LTTE protests and demonstrations, Christian priests have been arrested during the past for possession of arms and transportation of arms for the LTTE as well as providing safe haven to them.

 This next leads us to ask if the head quarters of these religious entities do not align with what their priests are doing why have they not denounced or excommunicated them on ground of criminal conduct?

 Father S. J. Emmanuel – Former Vicar-General of Jaffna resides in Germany.

·       He hailed Prabhakaran as “a freedom fighter who has given leadership to a movement committed to setting up the homeland to Tamil Eelam”.

·       He compared Prabhakaran to Jesus Christ

·       He called the LTTE the ‘soldiers of Christ‘

·       He called the suicide bombers as ‘martyrs of the Catholic Church’ to whom the Church provided a Catholic burial.

·       He called himself ‘Moses’ but says he is first a Tamil and then a Christian.

·       He now leads the Global Tamil Forum.

·       He has been openly campaigning for the LTTE and claims to write theology only for Tamils (does this not mean that Sinhala Christians are excluded). Is it not the objective of the Christian missionary movement in both India and Sri Lanka to disempower the Hindus and the Buddhists, similar to the success achieved by Christianity in South Korea within one generation? 

·       Why would the Church allow a separate congregation for Tamils and non-Tamils inside the Church – in a religion preaching to all equally and when all are supposed to be God’s children?

 Rajappu Joseph – Bishop of Mannar

·       He declared open the ‘Embassy of Tamil Eelam’, the Eelam House in London.

·       Rajappu Joseph allowed LTTE to operate an office from inside Madhu Church which he officially opened.

·       2012 – Rev. Rajappu Joseph with 30 Catholic priests had written to the Asian Center for the Progress of People (ACPP) which is supported by Catholic and ecumenical development agencies based in Europe, requesting to seek an independent inquiry into alleged war crimes committed by the Security Forces during the humanitarian operation. This is similar to the type of conduct that took place during the Catholic Inquisition in Europe which lasted for 600 years and was a horrendous crime against humanity.  Catholic Church used the Inquisition to indict all those disbelieved Christian dogma and convict them of heresy. An accusation by a Catholic was sufficient to establish guilt. Natural Justice principles were not followed and the punishment was usually ‘burn at the stake’. 

It is sad to see the Vatican and members of the local Catholic Church following the practices of the notorious Inquisition of the dark ages to this day, without scruples, without a sense of shame. The Portuguese brought the Catholic Inquisition to Sri Lanka during the period of their rule and places of worship of all non – Christian religions were destroyed in areas under their control. Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam were prohibited to be practiced. Punishment was severe if discovered. Their religion was more or less forcibly imposed on non – Christians. That is how adherents to their religion were gathered.

·       4 March 2012 – Rev. Rajappu Joseph and 31 Catholic priests wrote to UNHRC Head Navi Pillai on the failure of the Government to implement recommendations of the LLRC, allegations covered obstruction of human rights, hate campaigns, killing fishermen in Chilaw, criticising singing of National Anthem in Sinhalese etc. But, these same people have no qualms about singing the national anthem in the mother tongue of the majority of the people in UK, France, Canada, Germany or Italy.

·       3 Dec 2012 – Rev. Rajappu Joseph had written on his official letterhead on the plight of asylum seekers from north and east who had been deported from Australia.

·       18 February 2013 – Rev. Rajappu Joseph with 132 Catholic priests wrote to the President and members of the 22rd UNHRC session appealing for a resolution on accountability, reconciliation, human rights in Sri Lanka. The letter starts ‘As a group of concerned Christians’ and requested that the UN ‘acknowledge the international self-determination of the Tamil people’ – this directly depicts his guilt in openly canvassing for the balkanization of Sri Lanka politically if not through the LTTE as was seen in his association with the LTTE leader.

·       January 2014 – Rev. Rayappu Joseph and Rev. Thomas Saundaranayagam alleged that cluster bombs were used by the Sri Lankan army to Stephen Rapp, and to look into deliberate attacks on hospitals, places of worship and the blockade of food and medicine for the civilians trapped in the fighting.

·       3^rd March 2014 – Rev. Rajappu Joseph joined 204 Tamil Christian priests in writing to the UNHRC Members to call for an international investigation on Sri Lanka.

·       5^th March 2014 – Rev. Rajapuu Joseph joined 34 other signatories including Desmond Tutu, C V Wigneswaran, R Sambandan, Yasmin Sooka (Member of UN Panel of Experts) in a petition demanding UNHRC to set up a Commission of Inquiry on Sri Lanka

IS THIS HOW PRIESTS SHOULD BEHAVE? IS THEIR AIM TO BRING PEACE OR POLARIZE PEOPLE & COMMUNITIES?

Other instances of the Church being used for indoctrination and separatism can be cited thus:

        · Jaffna District Catholic Youth Committee under the Bishop House in Jaffna constantly carries out activities that are anti-national, manipulating peace and attempts to subvert youth.

        · The cultural event held at Thirumalai pavilion on 16 December 2012 staged 3 dramas enacted by children from Jaffna Central College, Hindu College and Vembadi Girls College highlighting torture and harassment by the GOSL and SL Army, that Eelam cause was not over even though LTTE cadres were dead (Nilavinai Kurudakka Mudiyathu) and children acting as rehabilitated cadres claiming they had been brainwashed (Kannadiyin Peyum Malai).

        · On 27 July 2013 another drama was staged and shown to over 1000 on the 13^th amendment, the Katchchativu issue – these were all efforts to build resentment against the Government.

        · Clergy involved: M V E Ravichandran (In Charge), Justin Gnanaprakasham (Committee Coordinator), Anton Jeyamsnadan (Pullopalai East Church)

        · 27 August 2013 – Catholic clergy from Vavuniya, Mannar, Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu and Jaffna together with TNA and TNPF politicians conducted anti-Government protests in front of the UN office during visit of Navi Pillay. Also participating were Rev Sebbamalai and Rev. Francis Cruz (Neru) of the Mannar Citizen Committee.

        · St. Sebastians Church in Mallavi, Wanni ran LTTE’s Voice of Tigers with Radio Veritas (run by Asian Catholic Bishops Conference) which reached an audience of 850,000 people.

        ·  Navi Pillay visiting Trincomalee had an hour long discussion with Fr. Yogeshwaran, a human rights activist of the Jesuit Novitiate,

        ·  Fr. Emmanuel Sebamalai and Fr. Francis Cruz who formed citizens committees in the North under the guise of social rights is said to have played an active role in organizing people for a meeting arranged by Brito Fernando, a Catholic.  

This next leads us to ask if the head quarters of these religious entities do not align with what their priests are doing why have they not denounced their conduct or excommunicated them?

Given that these activities are held under the auspices of the Church and their heads it is an opportune time for the local Catholic Church to realize that certain members of their clergy are advocating something that not only the Church does not advocate but the majority of people do not wish to advance as well.

Responsibility of the Church

The Church should be concerned that priests who should be promoting religion and good will are aligning with parties that are promoting discord, racial disharmony and separatism. S. Jebanesan, Bishop of Church of South India was thrown out of the Church of South India for using the Church for LTTE activities and this is a good moral lesson the Church in Sri Lanka should follow.

All that is asked of the Church is to show the people of Sri Lanka that the Church has no links to the LTTE or Tamil terrorism in general on the one hand and no desires to break – up Sri Lanka and thereafter to take disciplinary action against these Church representatives who are using the Church to realise their ulterior motives and separatist agendas.

While Christianity is protected by the West, they demand that the Third World become secular and these Governments are told to deny state patronage to the religions to protect them and remove nationalism through the UN.