an appeal from the hearts of many

CHENNAI: At the centenary celebrations of the Sacred Heart Matriculation and Higher Secondary School, Church Park, on Monday, the Archbishop of Madras-Mylapore, A.M. Chinnappa, made an impassioned appeal to the people of India to stand up and speak out against the atrocities on Christians in Orissa and elsewhere.
“The little people, the poor Christians, the Dalits … are being massacred, their little property, which is worth almost nothing, is being ransacked and burnt to ashes. This is a sad thing,” he said. “The saddest part is that the whole country is keeping quiet and watching the fun,” he added, alleging that the Central and State police in Orissa, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala were “remaining mum and just watching the whole show.”Calls for action
The Archbishop called for action, saying “everybody sympathises and sends messages, but to no avail.” He said India had become increasingly incapable of handling crisis situations. “When it was the tsunami, we could handle it because the money came from outside … But who is giving money for the little people, the poor people in Kandhamal?”
A number of Church Park’s well-known alumni, including several politicians, joined the Archbishop in condemning the violence and pointing to the school itself as a bastion of Christian education and secular values.
“For me, the first foundation of secularism was laid in this convent school started by Irish nuns,” said Jayanthi Natarajan, Congress spokesperson and Rajya Sabha member, reminiscing how she and her classmates overheard Muslim prayers at the neighbouring Thousand Lights mosque, repeated Hindu chants in the Hindi class and ran to the church to pray for help at examination time.
Fellow Rajya Sabha member Kanimozhi added her memories of the principal reading from the Bible, the Upanishads and the Koran during school assembly and the nuns dressing up in the spirit of Onam, Diwali and Pongal. “We need to stand up and say, do away with caste, community and stand for secularism as we were taught in this school,” said Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development D. Purandeswari.
Rachel Chatterjee, Principal Secretary to the Andhra Pradesh government, said the school had taught her to identify with the powerless. “Especially in the context of today’s disturbances, it is important for the ethos of the classroom to reflect secular values. Children must be taught to speak up even when the majority are not for it.”
“We have a lot of things going for us, but secularism is the oxygen without which India and India’s civilisation cannot possibly survive in the way we want it to,” said N. Ram, Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu. “At this time when the bogey of conversion is being raised, I want to join you in proclaiming the contribution by this small group of people across the country,” he said, adding that he had studied in Christian institutions through his school and undergraduate college years, starting at Church Park.
The Prince of Arcot, Nawab Mohammed Abdul Ali, urged the political leaders on the dais to speak up in Parliament and the Assembly and condemn all atrocities committed in the name of religion.