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But it wasn’t totally unexpected. I was sure that this person will talk religion one day or other.
Its part of them, people who are too much into religion. They might bring religion between everything, even between friendships. May be such people keep their kind of people around them.
It all started like this
“do you celebrate Christmas?”
And I answered by asking another question, since she knew that I am not a Christian.
“why should we?”
Then comes this
“why not” and
“Christmas is about Christ and Christ is God……….”
She also added:
“you celebrate your birthday right? and during Christmas we remember God's reincarnation, God becoming human being”
Nicely put but to a wrong person, I think. I was a person who used to spend my Christmas with my Christian friends and I have never negated celebrating it. What I did not like is the attitude of imposing it on to people of other faith. Had she invited me to celebrate it, I would have been sooo happy to hear that.
During my childhood, I used to buy and send lots of Christmas cards. Many a times, a Christian friend of my mom used to bring a cake for us. Then Christmas became my best friend’s first festival. Thus Christmas always was part of me.
But when I asked
“do you celebrate Krishna jayanti?” , I did not get any answer. When I mentioned Rama, Krishna, Shiva, Vishnu etc. She asked
“did he/she became human?”
This question definitely shows how much she knew about my culture. Is ignorance bliss? Not in this context.
(Btw, if I get a chance to celebrate Christmas with her, I would definitely do that, but I did not tell her that ..hehehehe… I have another reason – long ago I wrote that I wish to spend this Christmas with somebody but that person rejected that offer)
If I say there exists a place called ‘Ulsoor’ , in what way my foreign friends should react? I expect
“I don’t know” and NOT “No, there can’t be such a place”.
You does not knowing something doesn’t mean that there is no such thing. The second answer shows ignorance.
I had touched the subject religion in some of my earlier blogs. But that person hesitated to read my blogs. She even hesitated to know about other religion and its scripture (I think this would have given a better idea about Jesus). The typical expression from a staunch religious person.
If Christ can be God, why cant Krishna? Why not Allah? Why not Buddha? Whats wrong with the Jewish God?
And there is a common thing about all religions. If an atheist asks:
“Can you prove that God exists?”
None of us can prove it, including those who are in the miracle creation business.
I started writing this blog in the noon and had lots of thing in mind to write about. I even did some research.
But am I angry with that friend of mine? Not at all. Its coz her that I did some research, and in that process I had to read Bible. So, in fact I am thankful to her.
It is believed that Jesus did visit India and practice yoga. If Jesus visited India (He did not visit my friend's country), he should have some reason. He might have heard of its spiritual richness. His style of telling parables is just like our Upanishads, which originated thousands of years before Jesus.
As I said, I had lots in my mind but that time another friend of mine said ‘Hi’ to me. She too was from the previous friend’s country and she too was a Catholic, just like her. We happened to talk abut Christmas. Better put, I dragged this subject to find out her view. She too asked same question.
“why you don’t celebrate Christmas?”
I said, “ you people don’t celebrate Krishna Jayanthi, the birthday of Krishna, in the same way, we don’t celebrate Christmas”
She just said “ I see”
Then I asked why didn’t she go further (than ‘I see’) and her answer was
“ I respect other people’s faith”
She is not too much into religious activities. She believes in Jesus, she reads Bible, she goes to church, and she attends mass. But what I saw was maturity. I had seen a similar maturity even from a teenage friend of mine too. But the common thing was she too was not too much into religion.
To understand Jesus, there is no need to become a Christian by birth, there is no need to get converted, there is no need to attend mass, there is no need to attend meetings and gatherings and spiritual boost-up camps. But you need one thing for sure, a heart!!! (well, not just a physical organ)
Heart symbolizes love and Jesus speaks that language.
Now, can my ‘religious’ friend tell me why Jesus shows that hand symbol? Is that his way of saying hi?
I wish to post this today itself and its getting late. So I wish to end this post with the following quotes from the Bible, which I happened to read today.
“This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you”
“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends”
John 15:12-13
(And after a few verses later comes a greatest secret reveled by Jesus and of course through symbols)
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