Loving Rascal

A lack of foolproof historical evidence doesn't mean that the historical person never existed or that an event never happened. It means we don't have sufficient evidence of their existence through archaeological findings or reliable ancient literature. If we say a character is mythical, it doesn't mean they weren't historical. Many myths are constructed around historical characters. For instance, ancients have made mythical stories around their famous Kings, such as Akbar-Birbal, Vikram-Betaal, Krishnadevaraya-Tenali Raman. We know Akbar, Vikramaditya, and Krishna Devaraya did exist. Mythical stories about them do not disprove their existence.  Likewise, Ramayana may be mythical, but Ram may have existed. Similarly, the Bible contains metaphors and illustrations that did not happen. It also contains real events, skillfully articulated to convey the theological point. The authors have selected and arranged their material to convey their theological point. The Bible is th...

How can we feel free if even the name of our country is foreign? Article one of our constitution states, "India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States..." Bharat is the name of our country. Officially, it is called India. The British gave us the name India. The Persians called us Hindustan. However, the Sanskrit name of our country is भारत (Bharat). The name is probably derived from King Bharat, not from any female goddess. Nevertheless, metaphorically, we may designate our country as Bharat Mata, as Paul calls Jerusalem the mother of all believers (Gal 4:26). According to historian Roshen Dalal, the mention of the divine goddess Bharat Mata representing Bharat happened only in the late 19th century. Mahatma Gandhi inaugurated the Bharat Mata temple at Varanasi in 1936. Dalal defines Bharata in five ways. 1. The Rigveda king and the patriarch of the Bharata clan. 2. Dushyanta and Shakuntala's son in the Mahabhārata. 3. Rama's brother in Ramayana. 4. The first Jai...

When we learned medicine, they taught us to save and serve the patient. They taught us to treat the rich and the poor alike. Today's medical world is corrupt. They charge exorbitantly so that, without cashless insurance, nobody can afford treatment. I pray that the government of Bharat will not allow medical science to become a completely commercial endeavour.  Many senior citizens who need quality treatment cannot afford it because of this commercialization. May God end the evil scam of commercialised medicine plus insurance companies. No senior can go back in time and do cashless insurance. They may have done well in life, but they still cannot afford quality treatment without medical insurance. If insurance companies cannot provide cashless insurance to those who need it most, they must put an end to this crooked business. (Selah) Where are medical ethics in this matter? Where is the outrage of doctors in this matter? The government subsidises doctors' education. Therefore, ...

To Christ-followers, drinking cow urine is a sign of bad hygiene and religious insanity. However, to many North Indian Hindus, it is an act of devotion. Years ago, I visited my uncles in Rajasthan. We went to the temple of Kal Bhairava, our maternal grandfather's favourite deity. My maternal uncles played key roles in the temple management. One day, a sacred act of cow worship caught me off guard. It was early morning. I was the first one, early to rise and early to bed, to wake up. My younger brother was fast asleep. The moment I stepped out of my room, still rubbing my sleepy eyes, I saw my maternal uncle standing behind a cow and collecting its urine. I was stunned.  Then, my uncle drank some of the urine even as he recited some mantras. I felt like throwing up as I saw it, but my mother placed her hand on my shoulders to pacify me. I was angry because he mixed some of the urine in the charn-amrit, the fluid the priests offer people to drink. I stopped drinking it from that day ...

As we celebrate Diwali, the festival of lights, let us remember that the most profound and irreversible darkness is death. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world (John 8:12).” Further, he declared, “I am the resurrection and life... He who believes in me will live even if he dies (John 11:25).” The light of the world came to reverse the darkness of death by his resurrection and a promise of future resurrection for all who believe in him. Resurrection is the only known cure for death. Homoeopathy, Allopathy,  or Ayurveda cannot reverse death. Only resurrection can reverse death. Jesus cured death. He also cured hatred with his love. That is why no religion or philosophy has defeated the gospel even after two thousand years of Jesus' advent. Martin Luther King Jr compared love to light and hatred to darkness. He said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”  [1]   Love is light. Jesus is that loving ...

When you demean others, it comes back to you in some form, someday. I am not saying it about Donald J. Trump, but about the Nobel Committee. You shouldn't have demeaned a senior man, a president, who has done much for world peace. I know you are insulting him because he, unlike others, openly expressed his desire to win a Nobel Peace Prize. However, we, Conservative Christians, now understand that the criterion was never merit. Perhaps the main criterion is the fake outward humility you expect from apparently gentle and humble men. Jesus Christ himself would never qualify for such a Nobel Peace Prize. He proclaimed boldly: I am the Way, I am the Truth, I am the Life (John 14:6). He also said, "Evaluate my works or analyze the words in your books" (John 5:36-41). I am God in a human form. Still, the religious Jews found him arrogant and offensive. I look at Trump's work, not theatrical acts of false humility. Imagine Trump saying, "Oh God, not me, I don't dese...