Date: Sun, 28 Dec 2008 10:26:32 + (Hora padrão de GMT)
From: Teotonio R. de Souza teodeso...@netcabo.pt
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/28/us/28priest.html?
pagewanted=1_r=2themc=th
Excerpt:
But in another church, a parishioner had only one question: How dark is
his skin??
Mario responds:
One parishioner had one question? Wow! What percentage of the parishioners
was this one parishioner? Does this mean anything significant statistically
that anyone should be concerned about?
BTW, in the USA, almost every Indian is dark in comparison with most of the
population.
Excerpt:
Some of the foreign priests had confided their apprehensions to Father
Venters. They had studied American history in school and knew about
racism, the civil rights movement and the Ku Klux Klan. I told them
that, as much as I hated it, there is prejudice but it's nothing like
when I was growing up Father Venters said.
In a parish that received an Indian priest, five older couples asked to
leave, objecting to his accent. In the end, only three changed parishes.
Mario responds:
To begin with, if I could not understand the priests's accent I would leave the
parish, too. This is simple common sense, not racism.
How is it that these foreign priests who studied American history did not know
that the US is one of the least racist countries in the world today? Why did
they not know about the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or that the Ku Klux Klan has
been virtually put out of business, primarily by white Americans? In the
meantime, Hidutva and the RSS and the VHP still function legally in India.
Why did they think there were millions of non-white immigrants clamoring to get
American residency and citizenship, and coming into the USA in droves, legally
or illegally?
Does the author or Fr. Ventners know that there is far more racism and
communalism in India today than there is in the USA? Why did Fr. Vintners not
point out to the foreign priests that there is now a black US President, on top
of numerous big city Mayors, legislators, athletes, entertainers and
businessmen and women who are non-white in America today?
Why did he not know that Indians today are one of the most respected ethnic
communities in the USA, and that the son of an Indian immigrant is the elected
and very popular and respected Governor of the State of Louisiana? Why did he
not tell them that President-elect Obama has appointed an Indian woman as one
of his top economic advisers?
Were these foreign priests and Fr. Ventners so incredibly ignorant as the
author makes them out to be, or is the author biased and dishonest? Given that
this is a writer for the New York Times, my guess is the latter.
In Detroit near where I live, there are four parishes where the Parish Priest
is an Indian. Not one of them have complained of any bias - just the opposite
- their white American parishioners are sad when they leave.
I have met numerous Indian priests serving in American parishes, and almost
invariably the local Americans, mostly white, have raised money to build
churches, community centers, schools, hospitals and/or health clinics for the
villages of these priests in India.
