The question is whether mainstream religious folk accept armed violence as a legitimate means of fighting against injustice, which this form of Marxism and Liberation Theology does.
Cheers, Santosh --- On Thu, 10/29/09, Frederick Noronha <fredericknoro...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Man has often shaped god in his image > and likeness. > > Christ went from being a seen as a rebel leader of the > underdog, to > being the religious figure supported by the dominant forces > of an > Empire (the Roman one). From there, it was a short step > away to him > becoming Christ the King, a term still in use despite the > sun actually > setting on the monarchy in most parts of the planet. > > In Medieval times, he was dressed up in the finery of the > feudal > order. In colonial times, the powers of that era (Spain, > Portugal > particularly, but also Britain) were quick to deploy > Christian > religious imagery to justify their own "civilizing" and > economic > agendas. More recently, I read somewhere (don't recall the > exact > citation) references to the management styles of Christ. It > was almost > as if he was Christ the Managing Director. > > Even someone like Lal Krishna Advani has been able to > deploy Christian > imagery, when it suits his purpose, both in Goa late last > decade and > in Kerala > [http://www.samaylive.com/news/bjp-a-party-resurrected-after-crucifixion-advani/617848.html] > > If you take the sections of the Bible which talk about his > search for > justice, and against the powers that be, it's not hard to > see a Christ > the Revolutionary emerge. The Liberation Theology that > gained hold in > the jungles of Latin America is as close you could come to > a > revolutionary form of Christianity (though this was also > seen as a > counterfeit by forces both on the Right and the Left, for > differing > reasons). > > Whether Christ might have taken up card-holding membership > :-) of the > CPI (Maoists) or not is a moot point today. But Marshall > has a point > when he says he would probably be "branded a Naxalite". > Even a Seby > Rodrigues in Goa was recently! By none other than the > honourable > leader of the Opposition, Manohar Parrikar! > > Here's the New Internationalist, almost tongue-in-cheek, on > "Was > Christ a Revolutionary?" > http://www.newint.org/features/special/2008/05/01/jesus-christ/ > > FN >