The civic reception hosted by Archbishop Filipe Neri
Ferrao on the occasion of Christmas is not just a get-together.
It is an event of significance. It could also be
construed as a political event by some although the
intention is to meet, connect and express the feelings
of the church on issues concerning the laity and State. Many
might have expected the Archbishop to blast the government,
but it did not happen.
Taken as a whole, the address of the Archbishop bears the
stamp of honesty and clarity. For perhaps, the first time a distinction
has been made between what is happening outside
Goa and within. And it would seem that while the church is
still very concerned about the spate of attacks in other parts of
the country it is relatively pleased with the state of tranquility
in Goa. In a way, it reflects the chief achievement of the BJP
government which is rule from the centre instead of the right.
This idea was pushed to the point where it resulted in a split
in the RSS, yet the government held
on to its education policy of giving
grants to English primary schools
run by the Diocesan Society for Education.
The Archbishop pointed out the
contribution of the church and its
members to nation building, but
lamented that despite this input it is still viewed with suspicion
and accused of using charity to convert. The question
posed is how can a tiny three percent present a threat to the
integrity of the nation? Goa has been relatively peaceful under
the BJP government but the same cannot be said about the
rest of India and the Archbishop was right it in expressing this
feeling.
As far as the land issue is concerned, no one denies that it is
a significant issue, but the manner in which this government
dealt with it was not inspiring. Five years have passed and the
regional plan is yet to be finalized. This lack of urgency in finalizing
a plan for protection of land resources is the biggest
failure of the government.
The Archbishop sought to deflect criticism from some quarters
of the Church’s interference in the electoral process by saying
that the guidelines issued before the polls focus on electing
the right people to the Assembly. This is where the line separating
religion from politics tends to blur a wee bit and the
Lastly, the Archbishop attempted to explain that if some party
comes to power due to the advisory of the church it does not
follow that the party was canvassed for by the church. Truth is,
one cannot have it both ways. If the Church chooses to guide
its flock then it cannot run away from the consequences of the
guidance issued.
