Interreligious Dialogue Concern

for National Integration

FR. DE. JOHN ROMUS"
National Integration Perspective
It is generally assumed that a people of homogeneous race,
language, culture and common history living in a compact
geographical territory provide ideal conditions favourable for
the growth of a well integrated nation-state.
l
This kind of
nation-state or national integration is alien to India. The past
history and the present circumstances in India favour the
growth of a particular type of nation-state and national
integration. It would, probably.- go for a "federal"2 model of
integration, understood more in the attitudinal and emotional
sense than in the political sense, which would promote a
national culture that ensures for various communities freedom
to maintain and develop their own self-identities so long as
they are not detrimental to general welfare of the people and
the unity of the nation.
But what constitutes the essential condition for national
integration is the general will of the people to be a nation
without which, no matter how homogeneous the people are,
no nation-state or national integration is possible. The
Constitution of India enshrines that "solemn resolve"3 of the
people to be a nation. The fact that during the past 50 years
the people of India have endorsed it through 12 general
elections based on universal adclt franchise proves its validity
and vitality for integration of the people into a nation-state.
What is required, however, at all times is the conscientious
effort by all citizens to put into practice the potential for
national solidarity contained in that "solemn resolve" as
enshrined in the Constitution.
"'Fr. De. John Romus is a Professor of Systematic Theology & Philosophy of
Religion Morning Star College, Barrackpore;
Visiting Professor, Department of Interreligious Relations, Madurai Kamaraj
University, Madurai
72 INDIAN JOURNAL OF THEOLOGY
The people who solemnly resolved to constitute India into a
"Sovereign (Socialist Secular) Democratic Republic"4 have been
endowed with plurality of community identities such as
religious, cultural, ethnic and linguistic. Hence, in our search
for a national ethos that is promotive of national integration,
it is of fundamental importance to acknowledge and respect
the multi-faceted plural nature of our people. This must become
part of interreligious dialogue endeavours concerned with
national integration.
For, any attempt to create, under pretext of national unity,
a'mono-identity based on religion or otherwise is an ideological
manipulation and suppression of the value heritage proper to
the plural identities of the people of India. On other hand,
national integration is a legitimate unity of the India body
politic founded on the fundamental human values that lie
behind each community identity as a human community.
National integration stands for the formation of a national
community of diverse community identities and concerns. In
our pluralistic scenario, those identities specify and concretise
the particular human character of each community in its
specified and concretized form is essential for sustainable
process of national solidarity.
Communalism weakens Integration
Social analysts say that among the forces of disintegration
rampant in the country, religious communalism seems to be
the most destructive factor against national solidarity, the
most difficult conflict to handle on account of its. emotional
appeal and the most frequent occurrence paralysing the life of
the nation. It has been reported that from 1947 to 1980,5000
cases of communal riots have been recorded.
5
The Ayodhya
disaster has heightened the communal trend in the country
whose fall outs are not going to be settled down in the
immediate future.
6
Communalism is corruption of community, specially the
religious It is mobilization and politicization of
the religious groups and communities organized on the basis
of powerful religious symbols to fight for narrow goals on vested
interest. As religion touches the deepest aspirations of persons,
INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE CONCERN 73
the very ground and ultimate goal 'of existence, it is prone to
evoke the most powerful emotional responses. When religious
sentiments go astry, it turns up to be the most potent demonic
forces for destruction. While religions have inspired the most
heroic deeds, acts of unsurpassed generosity, the greatest
refinements of art and highest achievements of human
endeavour in every sphere, it has also provoked the worst
type of bigotry, fanaticism, violence and oppression.
It has been acknowledged that religious and cultural or social
and economic differences as such do not result into organized
communal conflicts. The communal passions of religious nature
flare up when latent tensions of these sectors are exploited by
vested interest. These may be religious leaders who want to
maintain their hold on their followers. More often it is the
political interest which uses religious groups and communities
in their power struggle.
7
While communal parties appeal to
theIr particular communities on the need to protect their
interests, the so-called secular parties see in them vote banks
to be exploited. Communalism enters the choice of candidates
and party workers. Subtle hints and at times open promises
are made regarding issues which deem to have communal
concerns. The tension, at times, is aggravated by the press
which provides detailed analysis of the communal make up of
each constituency. Elections turn into communal battles. When
power brokers play the communal card, the electorate are
sUbje'ct to manipulation and democracy is not seldom reduced
to mockery.
It is generally the poor who suffer the most and have to
bear the brunt of the periodic bouts of violence let loose by the
forces of religious communalism. The rich and the powerful
incite violence, but do not take an active part in mob violence
and, therefore, do not have to suffer from the attack of rival
groups or security forces. The poor must be conscientized not
to fall prey to the machination of vested interests who put on
the facade of defenders of religions.
8
People need to understand
that communalists are anti-people because they work against
the general will of the people to be a community, to be a
nation. They are also anti-religious because they do not respect
the spiritual values of religious traditions except when religion
is needed for material gains,
74 INDIAN JOURNAL OF THEOLOGY
The Place of Dialogue for
It is inevitable in India that the people will have to learn to
live with religious pluralism. Studies show that no amount of
secularization and modernization willmarginalize religion from
people's life.
9
For, most of the religions of South Asian origin
have a totalizing world-vision in which the "secular is
encompassed by the sacred"lo and this attitude will stay on for
generations to come. Moreover, most of the world religions are
very much alive and thriving all over India as one sees all
kinds of religious symbols dotting the country's landscape.
And India lives still in the villages. A nation of villages has
more emotional attachments to temples, mosques, churches
and gurdwaras etc., than to civil and secular institutions.
ll
We must also remember at the same time communal riots
and blood bath on account of religious hostility challenge the
"solemn resolve" of the people of India to be a nation. So, the
challenge posed to believers is this: Is religious pluralism as
guaranteed and protected by the Constitution supportive to
national unity and promotive of harmony among believers of
various religious traditions or a cause for communalism and
national unrest?
Legislation and coercive power of the State may temporarily
abate the forces of communal hostility and render some
measure of harmony to civil society. However, enduring emity
and understanding among multi-religious communities can
only be built on spiritual and moral. values and attitudes.
These are to be cultivated and nurtured but cannot be
reinforced by the State. DQ believers of various religious
traditions have the spiritual resource and moral concern to
promote a national culture of amity and harmony? This
precisely is the question a secular democratic society
would ask believers lesson as as those engaged in
interreligious activities. The activities of interreligious
enterprise should include in its agenda to search, preserve
and promote through dialogue and collaboration such spiritual
and moral values found among religious traditions for
understanding among religious communities and for national
solidarity.
INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE CONCERN
The Context of Dialogue
75
It is of primary importance that in a vast country of multi-
religious community identities, motives and objectives, the
interreligious dialogue which wishes to respond to the
challenges of communalism and national integration, must be
situated in the context of" certain definite value heritage
expressive of the goal and objectives of the people's will to be
a nation. In India they have provided in the Preamble as of
the Constitution. In fact, in their resolution, the members of
the National In"tegration Council underlined the Preamble the
basis for integration.
12
Commenting on the place of prominence
accorded to it in the body politic, the former Chief Justice of
India, Mr. Hidayatullah said, "It is the soul of our Constitution
which lays down the pattern of our political society ... It
contains a solemn resolve which nothing but a revolution can
alter."13
In articulating the "solemn resolve" of the people to be a
nation, the Preamble and most of the significant articles of
Part III and IV of the Constitution emphasize that its positive
and constructive goal is to create a welfare state on the
egalitarian concept of human person and community of
persons. 14 To achieve this goal, the Constitution has committed
itself to provide appropriate secular, democratic and socialist
structures and institutions to the political society in order to
secure to all its citizens the fundamental rights. The
Constitution also proclaims its solemn desire to create a mighty
solidarity of amity among all its citizens so as to promote a
civil ethos conducive to human dignity and to preserve the
unity and integrity of the nation.
In enunciating the people's will in matters of religion, the
Constitution guarantees religious pluralism as an integral
aspect of national policy. The Constitution believes that religion
gives meaning to people, though not for all, and hopes that
the Indian society can be built as a community of plurality of
communities where the religious communities with their
specific identities have a rightful place in the society. Hence,
subject to public welfare and other fundamental rights
guaranteed to all, all religions in their community, group and
sectional identities are respected and protected under the law.
15
76 INDIAN JOURNAL OF THEOLOGY
The secular provisions of the Constitution do not privitize
religion in its practice and marginalize it from our national
culture. The constitutional policy is one of respect and non-
discrimination in responding to the religious needs of the
citizens.
I6
However, the kind of pluralism of religions
guaranteed by the Constitution is not for mere co-existence of
religions, a kind of nomadic conglomeration of private belief
systems in the society. Pluralism means that the religious
communities contribute to the national community the richness
of their convictions, inspirations and spiritual and moral values
in their specificities in such a manner that they operate as
principles of respective community identities as well as provide
common spiritual and moral force to strengthen the national
fabric of a pro-hum an-egalitarian national community
committed for the integral welfare of all.
I7
The Nature of Dialogue
The nature of the interreligious engagement which takes in
its ambit the concern for national integration consists in (a) a
sincere effort by believers of good will to purify their knowledge
of religious traditions from prejudices and historical distortions;
(b) cultivation of attitudes conducive to pluralistic culture so
that various religious communities may learn to grow in
amiable interaction expressive of mutual reverence based on
human dignity and solidarity in diversity; and (c) a sustained
attempt by all to arrive at a pragmatic consensus on spiritual
and moral values and perspectives which may be responsive
to religious aspirations and constitutional objectives as well
as relevant to contemporary concerns of the nation.
Aim and Objectives of Dialogue
The proposed nature of the dialogue contains its aim and
objectives. Its aim is not to win over the partners in dialogue
as it were in a debate but to understand and acknowledge the
believers of various religious traditions in their otherness in
order "to bridge the gulfs of mutual ignorance and
. misunderstanding".I8 The prerequisite needed in a dialogue of
this type is that doctrinal foundation of each religious tradition
may be studied critically but value judgements need not be
INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE CONCERN 77
required. The reason is that ina secular society, each religion
has the right to be what its followers claim it to be, subject,
of course, to public order and the citizens' fundamental rights.
Moreover, as Zaehner opined, the basic faith-claims of one
religion are not so easily interpreted from the standpoint of
another
19
In his book, An Historian's Approach to Religion,
Toynbee had this to write: "One's ancestral religion is bound
to have so much the stronger hold upon one's feelings that
one's judgement between this and any other religion cannot
be objective. "20
Dialogue requires, therefore, a certain measure of
understanding of and receptivity to the beliefs and practices
characteristic of various religions. But it is presumptuous to
hold that this can be easily achieved. The relation between
believers of various religions are generally conditioned by
emotional barriers influenced by historical factors than
theological claims. For example, the communal polarization of
the Hindu and Muslim communities by political parties which
took place during the Independence movement and the
traumatic experience of the Partition of our country, has been
sustained to date by feelings of hostility. Suspicion and
insecurity.21 To be realistic in dialogue engagements, these
historical and psychological factors which block the process of
understanding and receptivity between these two major
religious communities of our country must be honestly
encountered, dispassionately examined and not passively
tolerated, but amiably transcended which involves forgiveness
and compassion. Surely, this cannot be achieved overnight
but dialogue must hopefully aim for it.
Another important objective of ihtereligious dialogue is to
promote the true value of religious pluralism. Interreligious
efforts intended to promote the culture of communal harmony
and nation-building process is incompatible with any attempt
either to suppress or displace or even to absorb one religion by
another with a holy embrace. Hence, the objective of dialogue
cannot be, as Dr. Radhakrishnan proposed, to evolve a
"featureless unity."22 Nor its concern is to create a "universal
religion", some kind of a "common denominator" religion as
suggested by Herberg.
23
78 INDIAN JOURNAL OF THEOLOGY
The aim of dialogue is not the change of creed but to change
of attitude towards believers of other religions. Believers of
various religions while being faithful to their own religious
affiliations, should be able to discuss matters of religious
concern and of other public interest in the dialogue forum and
be able to interact with each other in their social life on non-
sectarian terms.
The kind of pluralism to be nurtured through dialogue is
one that accepts the legitimacy of all religious traditions and
treats their followers as equal partners in religious and secular
affairs of common human concern in the political society.
Christians interpret this legitimacy theologically basing it on
the universality of God's saving will and unicity of God's plan
for all as they see it in their faith in Christ.24 Morally, the
legitimacy accorded to all religious communities is founded on
the dignity of the human person and, therefore, built on the
inalienable right to freedom of conscience and free exercise of
that conviction. And legally the democratic constitutions
protect, it as a fundamental right.25 Through interreligious
participation, affirmation of these values of heritage inherent
in religious pluralism and by creating public awareness on
these values, religions can support to strengthen the forces of
national integration and harmony in the society.
People's Dialogue for Integration
In a nation of multiple diversity, national integration is a
people's movement which, in its process, responds to the values
of human rights, solidarity and welfare. It is a dynamic
movement which transcends the narrow fixations of caste,
creed and class that divide citizens into groups and
communities. It is rooted in the basic bond of humanity
which makes all men and women equal and assures to each
citizen and community of citizens, rights and privileges
guaranteed in the Constitution. 26 A value based integration of
the people of diverse backgrounds respects plural'ism on the
basis of human dignity and supports to ensure a more
equal, just and humane order in the socio-economic and
political as well as socio-cultural and religious structures of
the society.
INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE CONCERN 79
In this context, the interreligious dialogue responsive to the
process of communal harmony and national integration cannot
function as an escoteric exercise of elite clubs with little or no
influence on the religious, ethical, cultural and social values
and attitudes of people. It must come forward to assist the
process not through elite club activities and attitudes but
by its active participation in the national issues affecting
people's lives.
27
It must become a people's dialogue in the sense
that the interreligious dialogue engagements should be an
integral part of people's movement towards nation-building
programs.
Seen in this frame, dialogue has got a vast potential for
interreligious community collaboration and co-participation in
the local, regional and national levels in solving citizens'
problems. Some of these areas where the dialogue collaboration
can bear much fruit are interreligious action in social service
and social action, education and developmental projects, joint
struggles against all forms of oppressions and exploitations of
the people, joint commitment of the believers to protect the
sanctity of human life and to preserve morality in the public
life etc.28 In fact, in these joint endeavours, the prophetic value
heritage of the religious traditions will be put into action to
shape the nation in the path of justice, equality and fellowship
which are fundamental values for communal harmony and
national integration.
The Role of Church
For the Church in India the task and the mandate of inter-
religious dialogue at all levels are ethical imperatives founded
on the demand of the Gospel-vision of human person and
community and of the existential context of the pluralistic
heritage of our country. The vision of hllIIlan life and the
destiny of human history as embodied in the Gospel of Jesus
Christ and His message of God's reign of redemptive love are
the foundational inspirations for social responsibility and
interreligious collaboration. Indifferentism to socio-political and
economic, cultural and religious realities of human life has no
validity in the value heritage of Christian faith. For, the
practice of Christian faith-vision demands ethical values of
80 INDIAN JOURNAL OF THEOLOGY
co-existence, co-participation and collaboration with all peoples
of God's family.
The affirmation of the dignity of every human person and of
community of persons is a sign of God's Reign in our society.29
By her respect and defense she offers to the value heritage of
freedom of conscience as a foundational value of the dignity of
the human person and of community of persOIis
30
The Church
wishes to exercise her service to the secular society. This she
does it not alone but through dialogue and collaboration with
believers of various religions
31
which is integral to the preaching
of the Gospel of Christ.
32
The mission of the Church through interreligious dialogue is
relevant and needed in the context of the value heritage of the
pluralistic India struggling to achieve the objectives of
communal harmony and national integration which are implied
in the solemn will of the people of India to be a nation. The
constitutional guarantee of religious freedom needs to be
compatibly lived in a spirit of interreligious relations, harmony
a n ~ amity.
In our Indian moral ethos, rights go with duties. The right
of religious freedom goes with the duty to promote interreligious
harmony and understanding. These are important factors for
nation building process.
Conclusion
National integration is a process towards a healthy national
life founded on constitutional values regulated by rights and
privileges common to all citizens. It involves fostering fellow-
feeling and solidarity, establishing good will and adjustments
among diverse groups and communities in the body politic which
is grounded on the will of the people to be a nation state.
In a nation of multiple diversity and plurality of religious
community identities, religious harmony is an essential
requirement for national integration. Sustainable harmony and
national solidarity among citizens can only be built on
permanent ethical values which protect human persons in their
dignity as moral subjects and social beings. These values are
given in the fundamental rights guaranteed in the Constitution
of India and its secular democratic polity.
INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE CONCERN 81
Religious pluralism itself is protected by these constitutional
values and norms such as human dignity, freedom, justice,
equality, fraternity, duty to maintain public order and morality,
and respect for fundamental rights, etc. These values should
find proper emphasis in the agenda for interreligious dialogue
programs and policies. Through interreligious dialogue
participation . and collaboration, the spiritual resources of
religious communities should be put into action to empower
believers to protect and nurture these ethical and moral values
among the citizens. In this way the interreligious dialogue
engagements would get into mainstream political and
democratic process for the growth of a humane social order
which is constitutive of national integration. The Christian
community's commitment to dialogue is based on their faith-
vision of God's Reign inaugurated by Jesus Christ and on the
ethical demand of being citizens of the political society which
is-religiously plural. God's Reign offers a vision of society which
is a new humanity freed from all forms of slavery and violence
and bonded together in solidarity with fellow-humanity of all
citizens. Commitment to these values are already a sign of
God's Reign in action.
Notes
1. On the development of the concept "nation" and "nationalism", see the
works of B.C. Shafer, Nationalism: Myth and Reality, New York, 1955;
B. Chandra, Nationalism and Colonialism in Modern India, Orient
Longman, Delhi, 1979; "Religion and Nationalism" in Concilium (special
issue 1995/6), SCM Press, London, 1995.
2. AB.Husain, The National Culture of India, NBT India, Delhi, 1956, p.4.
3. See the Preamble of the Constitution of India.
4. The words in bracket are substituted for the words "Sovereign Democratic
Republic" by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976.
5. AR. Desai, "Caste and Communal Violence in post-partition Indian
Union", in Communal Riots in Post-Independence India, (ed.), AA
Engineer, Sangam Books, Bombay, 1984, pp.10-41.
6. See various reports, analysis and comments on communalism and its
political consequences: A Arulsamy, (ed.), Communalism in India: A
Challenge to Theologizing, Claretian publ., Bangalore, 1988; G.Sarvepalli,
(ed.), Anatomy of a Confrontation: The Babri Masjid-Ramjanmabhumi
Issue, Viking, Delhi, 1991; T.N. Madan, "Religious Fundamentalism", in
The Hindu, November 29, 1993; A Beteille, "Secularism and Intellectuals",
in Economic and Political Weekly, March 5, 1994, pp.559-566; J.
Tharamangalam, "Indian Social Scientists and Critique of Secularism",
82 INDIAN JOURNAL OF THEOLOGY
in Economic and Political Weekly, March 4h 1995, pp. 456-461; P. Swamy,
"A Life in Parivar", in Frontline, May 31, 1996, pp.12-13; S. MuraJidharan,
"The Fall", in Frontline, June 4,1996, pp.4-7; V. Ramakrishnan, "Ayodhya:
Towards A Temple", in Frontline, July 3, 1998, pp.130-134.
7. A.A Engineer, "Communalism, its Facts and Roots", in Main Stream,
vol.24, no.43, June 28, 1986, pp.15-19.
8. B. Chandra, "Nationalism: The Antidote to Our Problem" in The Telegraph
. Supplement, August 15, 1991.
9. Y. Singh, Modernization of Indian Tradition, Thomson, Delhi, 1973, p.214.
10. T.N. Madan, "Secularism in Its Place", in The Journal of Asain Studies,
vol.46, no.4, November 1987, pp.747-59.
ll. V.K. Shina, "The Process of Secularlzation and Indian Democracy", in
Seminar, no.1M, August 1977, pp.22-25.
12. Cf. P.B. Gajendragadkar, Secularism and the Constitution of India,
University of Bombay, 1971, pp.166-70.
13. M. Hidayatulla, Democracy in India and the Judicial Process, p.51 (loc.cit.,
in V.D. Mahajan, Constitutional Law of India, Eastern Book Comp.,
Luclmow, 1984, p.36).
14. G. Austin, The Indian Constitution: Cornerstone of a Nation, Clarendon
Press, Ozford, 1966, pp.54, ll5.
15. The Constitution of India, Articles, 25;26;30(1).
16. P.C. Jain, Law and Religion: A Comparative Study of the Freedom of
Religion in India and The United States, Mohan Printers, Allahabad,
1974, pp.97-100.
17. The Constitution of India, Articles, 25(1); 25(2)b ..
IS. R. Panikkar, The Inter-Religious DiaWgue, Paulist Press, New York, 1978,
xxvii.
19. R.C. Zaehner, The Comparison of Religion, Beacon Press, Boston, 1962,
p.16.
20. A Toynbee, An Historian's Approach to Religion, Ozford University Press,
London, 1956, p.296.
21. AR. Desai, op.cit., pp.10-4l.
22; S. Radhakrishnan, Religion in a Changing World George, Allen & Unwin,
1967, p.134.
23. W. Herberg, Protestant, Catholic, Jew, Doubleday, New York, 1960, p. 77.
24. Vatican Council II,Gaudium et Spes, no.22; NostIa Aetate, no.1; Ad
Gentes nos.1, 3.
25. L. Janssens, Freedom of Conscience and Religious Freedom, (trans.
Lorenzo, C.F.x.), St. Paul's Publ., New York, 1966, pp.75-82.
26. M. D'Cruz, Indian Secularism: A Fragile Myth, ISI, Delhi, 1988, p.79.
27. For a semiJial reflection on the ethical imperative of inter-religious
dialogue to pay attention to the political reality of India refer to: F.
Wilfred, "Inter-Religious Dialogue as a Political Question", in Vidyajyoti,
vol.LX, no.6, June 1996, pp.361-74.
28. D. S. Amalorpavadass, "Theology ofEvangeJization in the Iildian Context",
NBCLC, Bangalore, 1973, pp.35 tT.
29 .. S. Arokiasamy, "Religious Pluralism & Secularism - Ethical and
Theological Perspective", in Secularism in Indian context, JPD, CBCI
Centre, Delhi, 1994, pp.64-65.
INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE CONCERN 83
30. Vatican Council 11, Dignitatis Humanae, nos.2-4.
31. Ibid., Ad Gentes, DOS. 11-12, IS, 21, 41; Nostra Aetate, nos. I, 3; John
XXIII, Encyclical Letter Mater et Magistra (1961), no.157; Paul VI,
Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi (1975), no.3; John Paul 11,
Encyclical Letter Redemptor Hominis (1979), no.16.
32. Dialogue and Proclamation. Pontifiool Council For Interreligious Dialogue,
Vatican City, 1991, no.44.