Religion Roundup
Indian Leader Denounces Attacks on Christians
Associated Press
October 2, 2008
NEW DELHI - India's prime minister is denouncing the attacks on Christians that have swept his predominantly Hindu country in recent weeks as "acts of national shame."
Manmohan Singh , who met with President Bush last week at the White House, insists that India is "a secular state" and "a multireligious, multicultural nation."
But attacks by Hindu mobs have left dozens of people dead, scores of churches destroyed and thousands of people homeless and hiding in thick forests until they could make their way to safety.
Hindu hard-liners believe their nation's true religion is being undermined by Christian missionaries willing to resort to bribery and coercion to win converts. The missionaries deny that, but conversion to Christianity does offer a partial escape from the stigmas of the Hindu caste system.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
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