The Bible has become very dear to so many Nepalese in so short a period of time. Even until the latter part of the 20th
century, Bible was a forbidden book in Nepal and Christians were persecuted,
tortured and imprisoned for reading their Bibles. For centuries, ruthless dictators were fearful
of this book. They used Hindu religion
as a weapon to subjugate not only the Christians but also the Buddhist and
other native religious groups who were living in Nepal long before the arrival
of Hindus.
The advent of democracy in the 1990s and subsequent Maoist revolution brought
about some relief to Christian minority.
But all other religious groups for centuries had been forced to accept
Hinduism as their main religion. Even
Islam in Nepal had become very syncretic with Hindu rituals and practices in
order to avoid persecution in the hands of the rulers and religious
zealots.
Christianity however remained a unique faith in spite of severe
persecution from the state. During those
days of government persecution, the Hindu neighbors were very hospitable. Except in some isolated cases, the Nepalese Hindu
society at large was very tolerant and kind to differing faiths and religions.
When the state sanctioned persecution ended in the 1990s, Christians were
able to breathe a sigh of relief. They
were able to worship freely and even practice their beliefs and religious
rights in public. For the first time,
Hindu neighbors came in proper touch with the Christian community and were able
to read the Bible for themselves.
As many as Nepalese began to read the Bible, they found it to be an
amazing book that talked about life, liberty, peace, prosperity and human
dignity. They even found the wonderful
solution to the age old problem of human sinfulness; “Jesus Christ became the Lamb
of God to take away the sinfulness of man!”
They heard the Bible declare that all human beings are made in the image
of God and are worthy of respect and service; so much so that God became man to
die for them to save them from their sins.
For centuries, Nepalese rulers had used Hindu religion to suppress human
freedom. But reading the Bible opened
the eyes of the Nepalese as it did to the Europeans in the 15th
century after the protestant reformation.
Age of enlightenment swept across Europe and the western civilization
reached its zenith. Quality of life,
learning, science and human advancement found their roots in the fertile ground
of Biblical knowledge. But the rest of
the world remained in bondage to power hunger rulers who used religions to keep
people in the dark.
Nepal is now at a cross road again.
The democratic government needs the help of the majority in order to
remain in power. Nearly 80% of Nepalese
consider themselves to be Hindus. In
order to gain their support, politicians in Nepal are now sowing the seeds of
hate among the Hindu majority against the religious minorities. They are pitching the peaceful Nepalese one
against the other in the name of religion; particularly against the Bible. In addition to the power hungry politicians,
the naive Nepalese media is trying to explain the rise of Christianity in Nepal
as if this was some kind of western conspiracy to colonize Nepal.
In fact, the rise of Christianity in Nepal has become a mystery to
politicians, journalists and academicians.
The only explanation they can come up with is “money”. Even some of the respected journalists and
thinkers are not afraid to demonstrate their ignorance by declaring that all
these Nepalese are turning to the Bible because money is coming from some
mysterious nations trying to colonize Nepal.
If only they could visit a local church on any given Saturday would be
sufficient for them to see their blatant folly they consider wisdom. Any person with some common sense can see
that the only nation in the 21st century with some interest in colonizing
Nepal is none other than India or possibly China. Is Prime Minister Modi or President Xi giving
money to these Nepalese to read their Bible?
The Bible is a wonderful book not only for an individual, but for any society,
nation, and civilization. Wherever the
Bible is read, the quality of life is remarkable! Though late, Nepalese have begun to read
their Bibles and no one can stop them now.
The sooner these politicians, journalists, and academicians read the
Bible the better our beautiful nation of Nepal will be.
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