Not in shrine, nor in words

[1]

Francis Gonsalves [1]

A parachutist bailed out of his jet targeted by the enemy, and landed atop a tree. Dreading that he’d entered enemy territory, he asked a passerby: “Where am I?”

The man replied, “In a parachute, on a tree, 10 feet above the ground.” The parachutist queried, “Are you a priest?” The passerby replied, “Ya! How d’you know?” Said the parachutist: “Because you’ve told me everything that’s true, but nothing that’s relevant.”
Priests, preachers and pundits are legion. We swear that we’re teaching truth. But, after the dust has settled on our yatras, the oil is spent from our diyas, and the decibels of our mantras turn mute, does life improve? Have we — priests and bhaktas — become more loving, caring, forgiving, generous and serviceable? Religionists prize reverence; what about relevance?
Dharma’s fruits can neither be measured in monetary terms nor by achieving an anaesthetising bliss that keeps us insulated and isolated from human struggles. The Bhagvad Gita teaches that the kurukshetra is the dharmakshetra. The Zend-Avesta exhorts us to strive for good over evil. The Bible sets before us “Life and death, blessings and curses” and exhorts us: “Choose Life!” (Deuteronomy 30:19). Yet, it’s not easy to make right choices from the options on offer.
Today, we debate dharma. There’s the believers’ camp and the atheists’. Then, among believers, there are religious tugs o’war with each one/group trumpeting, “Our God is bigger than yours!” Moreover, among bhaktas of the same religion there’s rivalry about who’s holier and purer. The result is, sadly, hatred and bloodshed in the name of God, whose finest attributes are love and peace.
To cling to truth as a “satyagrahi’ in a multi-religious context like ours, one must seek sincere dialogue, which can only be built upon trust. Trust must animate all our religious conversations. World religions are broadly divided into “word-religions” and “cosmic religions” referring to Judaism-Christianity-Islam on the one hand, and Hinduism-Buddhism-Jainism on the other. Beyond specificities of creed and cult, we must engage in joint ventures that promote life for all.
In an engaging encounter with a Samaritan woman — considered sinful and impure — while placing worship beyond the pale of any specific shrine and stressing that God isn’t the monopoly of anyone, Jesus says: “Woman, the hour is coming when you’ll worship God neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. God is spirit, and those who worship God must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:21-4).
“The Spirit blows where it wills,” says Jesus (John 3:8). Word religions could give greater emphasis to spirit; while cosmic religions could listen to prophetic words. Hopefully, when word and spirit wed, religion will beget truth beyond words. Then, perhaps, pundits and priests will be revered for their relevance, as well.

Francis Gonsalves is the principal of the Vidyajyoti College of Theology, Delhi.