Bengaluru: Christians from all denominations had come out and held a rally in support of Archbishop Thomas Macvan of Gandhinagar, Gujarat. It was a historic day for Christians of Bangalore City on December 1 when they from different Christian groups including the CSI, Methodist Church, and Independent churches converged in the evening at Sacred Heart Church Richmond Road near here in support of Archbishop Macwan. This had more relevance as the Church commemorates 500 years of Reformation (in the Church).

Greg D’sa, one of the prominent lay leaders in the Catholic Church said, “the reality is that the mainstream media is completely wrong and is barking up the wrong tree”. The allegation against Archbishop Thomas Macvan that he has instigated the Catholics to be aware of the nationalists and to influence the voters is baseless, Greg D’Sa added. It only proves that no one has read the letter, he pointed out. Who is the audience?, he posed a question. It is not the mass voters. The salutation clearly reads: “Your Eminences, Graces, and Lordships”. This is a personal letter that the bishop has written to the cardinals and Bishops. The privacy of Bishop Thomas Macwan is violated and encroached upon by vested interests and a biased media has gone hammer and tongs on a routine letter that is strictly private and for internal communication only.

Advocate P M Mathew said that the Election Commission has been overzealous in issuing a Show Cause notice to the Archbishop for violating the Model Code of Conduct without a preliminary enquiry. Ms Brinda Adige, an Activist, said that the Archbishop who is a Dalit is selectively targeted by the bureaucracy and executive. She also said that nowhere in the letter any reference to the three letters ‘RSS or BJP’.

The Christians from Bangalore City cutting across all denominations joined to support Archbishop Thomas Macwan and formed a human chain and held a Candle Light vigil to express their solidarity. People gathered in large numbers for a peaceful demonstration. The Christians and Daliths from all denominations stood together. Ms Geetha Graham, a CSI Church member, felt that a defamation case should be filed against Arnab Goswami for hurting the religious sentiments of the Catholics in the Country. Ms Kamini Correa said that all this controversy was created to distract the attention of the people from the hard realities of faulty government policies.

It was edifying to see Rev. Chandraprasad, a CSI pastor, and Rev. Fr. John Solomon, a senior priest of Archdiocese of Bangalore embraced each other and stood together for a cause. This is a wonderful and unprecedented event as the laity has decided to come together on a common platform and raise their voices against forces inimical to Christians and the oppressed. Peter Morris with political, social and Church connections played a lead role in organizing the event in which people of all walks of life joined hands.

See below the link for the media coverage of the event: