“Committed to peace” Pope was a man of “outstanding courage,” says Hindu ascetic

New Delhi – In a rare praise, a Hindu ascetic has said that Pope John Paul II had an “outstanding courage and commitment to stand up for human rights and religious freedom.”

In an interview with UCA News, a Catholic news agency, Swami Agnivesh, chairperson of World Council of Arya Samaj (a revivalist Hindu sect), has said that the Pope, compared to other religious leaders, was outstanding not only in terms of facilitating dialogue but also because his voice of dissent on (certain issues such as) the invasion of Iraq. “I had expected Dalai Lama to do that but he was conspicuous by his silence. The Pope who has such a large following in the United States spoke against the invasion of Iraq. That took a lot of courage, courage of conviction,” said the ascetic, adding, however, that the pontiff had “also failed in certain respects.”

Swami Agnivesh, who has been involved with Christian leaders in several inter–religious efforts, said that the Pope could have "triggered much more reform in the world of religions."

A radical voice against orthodoxy and fundamentalism, Agnivesh recalled meeting the Pope when the latter invited him and other world religious leaders to the Vatican. In spite of “language barriers” and “his age” the Pope came across as one who was committed to peace, he said.

“The very idea of bringing together leaders of various religions, which are mutually antagonistic, shows this commitment. The very idea of inviting all of them and giving them honor and respect they deserve was a very moving gesture on the part of the Holy Father,” the ascetic said.

Affirming that the Pope was the “religious voice of Western countries” Agnivesh however felt that “organized institutionalized religions are an anachronism.”

“Particularly the Catholic structure, which is highly hierarchical and sometimes is oppressive of the voice of dissent,” he said. “What I feel is that there should be no such suppression. Perhaps I am a little heretical. Whereas religion by and large stands for conformity, particular strictures, forms and prayers, spirituality maybe means to question, to debate and, if necessary, to dissent. So it is choosing for oneself. My slogan for all people, religious or non–religious, is to be your own prophet, be your own guru. We are all immortal souls; we are gifted. We are on a long, long pilgrimage. Our goal is to achieve total communion with our creator. The Pope wants to be mediator between us and the Creator.”

“The average Indian does not know much about the hierarchy of the Catholic world. I am talking about very, very ordinary Indians. They consider the pope to be the most influential Christian religious leader, the highest leader. They don't distinguish Catholic and Protestants. Even highly educated Indians do not know about the various denominations of Christians, even within India,” explained the ascetic. “For them, the pope means the highest. Sometime there is a temptation by some of our Hindu religious leaders to equate (Hindu religious leader) Shankaracharya to the pope. They call for a Vatican–like status for (Hindu monastic center) Kanchi Kamkotti. It is very misplaced, because in the first place religion means, and should mean, direct link of the soul to the God, without any mediator. Then, in Hindu way of life, there is no place for such a hierarchy.”

“I oppose all forms of orthodoxy. I am all for radical and freethinking human consciousness. So structured and hierarchical religions, pro–life or anti–life, or in terms of sexual life, are bound to control the freedom of individual. I do not agree with his orthodoxy on abortion, condom, etc,” he continued. “Also, I do not agree with the institutionalization of celibacy. The whole of the Catholic religious order swears by celibacy, but is not able to live up to it. Scandals after scandals occur. We have to be more realistic.”

Lamenting that the Pope could have “done more,” the ascetic said that the way he was looked upon and the amount of travel he undertook, one had far greater expectations from him. “He could have triggered much more reform in the world of religions, starting with his own Catholic setup. One feels disappointed when the great potential remains unharnessed, particularly when he missed a chance for a major breakthrough to give women a place of equality in the world of religion,” he said.

About Indian Church, the ascetic said, “The Indian Church should not depend very much on Western aid, because if it takes money, it would be influenced by their agenda. The rich (Westerners) are not bothered about abolishing poverty or inequality. They just want to have a good conscience, and for them a good conscience comes from the inflated number of Christian converts. Those people in the "industry of conversion" give highly untrue and inflated numbers to get more money.”

However, Agnivesh admitted that the Church has done much to help uplift poverty.

“They are working for the poor, they want to bring people together. I am always very supportive of that,” he said.