Juxtaposition of Mercy: William Carrey, Mother Theresa and Kali

Dear friends,

Dr Ashish Chripal (our Overseas Council Regional Director for Asia) and myself have made a brief stop-over on our way to Northeast India for a mini-Institute for the 8 Baptist seminaries in that remote district.  But, in Kalkota (the current spelling of the name), the ground has proven to be spiritually dry and hard.  Kalkota is the largest metropolitan area in all of India, with 20 to 25 million people (give or take a few million!).  This is the city where the “Father of Modern Missions,” William Carey labored for seven years before seeing the first convert.  Mother Theresa served Kalkota’s poor and marginalized.  Despite centuries’ of Christian witness, in word and deed, those who follow Christ make up less that 1% of the city’s residents.

Photography by Jessica Samples

Yesterday Ashish and I had the opportunity to visit one of several places where Mother Theresa served.  It’s a modest two-storey colonial style building with the name “Home for the Sick, Dying, and Destitute” painted above doorway.  It doesn’t stand out, buy you’ll also see a three-foot crucifix above the building, off to the side.  Here Hindus would bring those at the very bottom of the social ladder, the sick and destitute who had no hope for medical care. Here the Sisters of Mercy care for them in the last days of their earthly, caring for them and treating them with dignity, as those who are also share in God’s image.

In remarkable contrast, the adjacent compound is the temple to the goddess Kali, one of millions in the Hindu pantheon.  Kali is known as a blood-thirsty deity, and every morning goats and chickens are sacrificed as offerings, the blood brought to the idol and placed on her long tongue.  In our afternoon visit we were caught up with a jostling crowd of hundreds of devotees passing through the six-foot wide hallway to get a glimpse of her image and throw flowers as offerings.  Her worshippers hope she will be satisfied with these offerings, because then she will bless them with health and wealth.  She may give the barren woman a child, or protect the accused in court of law.  Basically, she is a “god in my pocket,” as Ashish described it, there to do my bidding if only I can satisfy her.

The juxtaposition is like day and night.  In one building, there is a display of Christian love.  The crucifix reminds us of the true God who satisfies His own righteous and holy demands, at His own great cost, by the offering of His son.  We can bring nothing to the table – our God has done it all on our behalf, at the same time displaying His love and satisfying His justice.  The Sisters of Mercy, in imitation of God’s love, care selflessly for the sick and dying, who bring nothing in their hands and will never be able to repay the kindnesses freely given to them.  On the other hand, in the temple next door, worshippers bring their blood offerings, hoping to placate a fitful goddess, who might repay their sacrifices and offerings with health, wealth, protection, or whatever other desire might be within her power to grant.

Pray for us, over the next few days, that in our gathering of seminary leaders from Northeast India, that the Lord will be working in our midst.  Our aim is to see a stronger working partnership between church and seminary in the training of Christian leaders for India – leaders with vision, integrity, and competence.

Warmly in Christ,

Scott

(Dean of the OC Institutes)