Guwahati: Northeastern Christian leaders representing all the Churches of the region gathered at Guwahati and expressed great anxiety about some of the painful developments in our society these days.
The leaders represented the Council of Baptist Churchs in North East India, Church of North India, Presbyterian Church of India, North East Christian Council( All Protestant Churchs), Evangelical Fellowship Of India(All Pentecostal Churchs) and Regional Catholic Bishops Conference of North East India (All Catholic Churchs of NEI).
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A statement said that they saw in the “alarmist news” that was being spread among people in connection with the issue of “conversion”.
They said that the topic or the issue was nothing but an effort to malign the Christian community which has “rendered yeoman service” in the field of education, health and social development to all sections of society irrespective of caste, creed, or ethnicity.
“We have been the first to denounce any sort of ‘forced’ conversion. At the same time, we also affirm the right of every citizen to choose any religion of his/her own choice that the Constitution guarantees, see Article 25-28”, the statement added.
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They further said, “We consider it very wrong to make false allegations of ‘conversion’ by force, fraud or inducement with the intention of humiliating our community. We feel that such accusations are made with the deliberate intention of dividing our society.”
The statement added, “What we feel embarrassed about most is that it is the very identity and cultural ethos of the North-Eastern region and of Assam that are being eroded by people who seek to take their models from those areas of our country, where, unfortunately, communal violence has found ideological acceptance. North-eastern society has always been open-minded and liberal, with an eagerness to promote enlightened thinking and refined relationships.”
“People in the Northeast have always vigorously opposed the imposition of value systems, divisive thinking and narrow-mindedness that are totally alien to our collective ethos. We have always believed in harmony and cooperation and warm-hearted relationships. Our mind has always been inclusive”, they added.
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The statement further added, “In this context, we express our pain at the unpleasant incidents that have happened at the inter-state borders and express our solidarity with all those who are trying to settle the problems amicably. We appeal to all parties of goodwill to approach the entire matter with a sense of history and fair-mindedness.”
“What we want more than anything else is that an atmosphere of peace, collaboration and mutual assistance prevails among us in these days of growing political and economic anxieties. United we shall never fail”, the statement concluded.