Dear Merwyn, I know that in order to become a Christian one gets him/herself baptized. In order to become a Hindu too one goes through certain ceremonies. (I don’t know what they are, but have read that people who have "reconverted" to Hinduism have gone through some such ceremonies.) So, how does one become an Atheist? Does one perform/undergo certain ceremonies? Or does one just stop performing/participating in some activities which s/he did as a Catholic/Hindu/ .....? Does eschewing such activities automatically make one an Atheist? Else, how does your neighbour know that you have converted to Atheism? We must note that caste discrimination (positive or negative) is performed on you by others who must necessarily know your caste. To my mind, Casteism, like Atheism, is an attitude of the mind. My reading is that the caste system might have originated/evolved as an adjunct of Hinduism, but caste discrimination, or casteism, is not a necessary part of the Hindu faith; one may devoutly practice the Hindu religion without being a casteist and one may renounce the Hindu faith yet retaining the casteism.
And I, a Catholic of Goan parentage (born and brought up outside Goa and blissfully oblivious of the practice of Christianity in my parents' parish in Goa) but settled abroad proudly declare: "I absolutely deplore the mention and use of The Hindu Caste System wrt Christianity, be it for subjugation OR for the purpose of gaining special privileges by way of Reservations." [Perhaps this was the stance adopted by the Christian members of the Constituent Assembly too.] Denying admission into the major confraria to a dalit is certainly not subjugation, but that admission, when granted, would certainly be a special privilege to a dalit since this has never been available to him. Now, would you say that, with my stance, I am tacitly supporting my father's relatives who are denying that admission to a dalit? It is not that the Vatican is unaware of the type of Christianity that is being practised by the Catholic Church in India. Please see: http://www.dalitchristians.com/Html/dclm%20memorandum.htm http://www.dalitchristians.com/Html/dalitaccusation.htm These are nearly 14 years old; what steps has the Vatican taken, in the meanwhile, to correct the situation and with what success? Your Greek and Egyptian might debate the issue to their heart's content, and until the cows come home; but would this bring any solace to the slave? Please give it a thought. What is meant by "a cultural Hindu"? Is the culture of an Ayyangar identical with that of a Rajput, both being Hindu? Sebastian Borges On Fri, 6 Sep 2013 Mervyn Lobo <mervynal...@yahoo.ca> wrote: Sebastian Borges, While caste is a truly cruel practice, one that affects (whether they admit it or not) all those in India, sitting here in Toronto I can only view what you have written above in amazement. It is almost like time travel. It is like I have been transported back 400 years. Reading the above is also like reading a debate between an ancient Greek and an ancient Egyptian on who treated their slaves better. It is only of academic interest to the reader. To the person on the receiving end though, slave treatment, or in this case, near slave treatment is terrifying.? My question, and this is to any brave heart here, is: Does a person still retain his/her caste when s/he becomes an atheist? ? Or does one remain a cultural Hindu forever..... Mervyn .......................... Sebastian Borges