Theologizing as dialogue : Christianity’s dialogue with the cultures, religions, and peoples of Asia

Abstract

“The history of the Church in Asia is as old as the Church herself, for it was in Asia that Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit upon his disciples and sent them to the ends of the earth to proclaim the Good News and gather communities of believers.” However, Christianity is often treated as a Western religion, not only by many in the West, but also by many Asians, forgetting the fact that Christianity had its origin in Asia. In many Asian countries, Christianity is treated as a foreign religion. The images and categories used, and the issues often discussed, are of those of the West. For example, some of the fundamentalist groups in India argue that Christians in India should go to Europe, otherwise they should become Hindus. They do not remember or conveniently forget that Christianity is basically an Asian religion and that it was present in India almost from the time of its origin. And, conveniently such groups want to forget that they came from foreign countries, for example, from the Middle East, but claim to be the original people of India. That is, attempts to present Christianity as foreign to India/Asia, and to present some other groups/religions as indigenous, though contrary to truth, are part of a political game, which, unfortunately, continues to beget more political games. [extract]