A set of three seminars were organized by Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam and Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, Delhi at the Asian Social Forum at Hyderabad to highlight the need to have an interface with the growing importance of religion on what passes by its name and the polity.

This seminar held on 4th Jan, 2003 brought a good audience and a confluence of some appropriately chosen speakers. However star speakers such as Swami Agnivesh and Valson Thampu absented themselves.

ANDREAS D'SOUZA chaired the session. He started with the remark that Hindutva is an exclusive identity by itself. Religiosity and identity were later developments. Liberation Theology came into vogue in the context of South American experience and it has extensively meant freedom from slavery. We nowadays use the term in a contextual setting. Liberation theology, therefore can mean different things to different people. It could also mean pluralism and the co-existence of multiplicities in a peaceful, mutually beneficial and tolerant manner. Especially in the Indian context, the importance of liberation theology cannot be undermined, largely because not only our religious identity but our cultural, political and social identities and defined by religion in a major way even now.

GABRIELE DIETRICH, the moderator gave a specific illustration of what she meant by Liberation theology. She talked about a 'padayatra' that was undertaken from Rameshwaram for 52 days (from 8^th March 2002 till 5^th May 2002) by her organization. When it reached the interiors of Tamil Nadu it met with the adulation of the common masses in an overwhelming manner. She found that people of all faiths congregated. The march ended on God Friday. For Christians, the relevance of Good Friday was not lost. But for the organizers, it became difficult to make the general masses understand the importance of Good Friday. Dietrich felt that no amount of explanation could convey the symbolic significance of the day in general terms. Only when people started extrapolating their experience and searching from their own religions, could they understand. And they did pretty well. Dietrich felt that if theology could inculcate a depth of understanding among people who had no knowledge of it, it could also help in other fields. Theology could also lead to inferring oneself from one's bondages. Hence liberation theology could be characterized as an attempt to reach a spontaneous expression in common day life and existence, she said, that could help people relate to new facts, truths, beliefs etc, and not feel alienated from it through their idioms, religious and cultural identities.

Participants

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