Is money used to convert people to christianity? If yes, is it legal?
Yes it is legal, in most states and it may be anything, not necesarily money, but how do you make a law against it...
...without infringing on the right to religon, a subject that has occupied this country since its inception. We have as many religons as we do currently because everyone got converted or were free to choose at some point in time
Whether its ethical is lot more clear, it isn't, as it takes advantage of ppl and isn't something religon is to be used for.
But that's also a very narrow way of looking at it and assumes there is no net benefit to the practioner, that it is necessarily, always, net bad, which if were true would not allow the movement to spread very far, that they would eventually run out of followers.
I think ppl don't willingly convert, assuming we are talking about the poor here, unless there is a perceived advantage, whether it be social, economical, medical, educational, perhaps even spiritual.
Therefore there is an advantage to doing so, and they are always free to leave on their own volition in the future if they choose to. Naturally it comes with some degree of ostracism as would happen with any religon but one would already have endured that whilst getting converted in the first place.
Other than that, No one is being trapped in any way i think.
However I do feel that the disproportionate reactions to it in Orissa & Karnataka are just using it as a 'pretext' to prepare for the upcoming polls as it's one of those grey areas which can be manipulated for political advantage.
Religon is always useful to anyone with an agenda
Are christians using any unethical or illegal practices to convert people to christianity? Are unethical practices legal?
Is this true?
First be aware there are 3 types of Christian in this country, Catholics, Protestants & Evangelicals. The first two have strict guidelines on how they operate and don't indulge in such aggressive practices as they have been established for several hundred years more than the third category which is the evangelicals (Baptists, Pentecostals & others).
It's this third group that is allegedly using these sorts of practices, then again there are so many different groups within, that using a general term like evangelicals isn't doing the subject justice either.
Instead of painting in broad strokes it would be more accurate to say certain types of evangelicals are using these methods.
Agreed, yes they are unethical but as stated above are not illegal. In fact previous attempts to legislate against over the years have failed for lack of support. Education is certainly a way to combat it, but who will put up the funding for it or ensure said funding effectively reaches the right ppl. I think in many ways its this 'lack' that is being exploited by both sides of the debate.
My view on the subject is the consitution gurantees its citizens, freedom of religon and any more amendments are just that, attacks, on our rights.
:rofl: