“The families are still solid; communion, fidelity and respect between husband and wife are considered important, but separations are increasing because of work”. This is the situation of the family in the India of economic boom, at least in the words of Fr. Michael Peters, Secretary of the Commission for the Family of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, whom Sir met in Milan at the 7th World Meeting of the Families, which will run until June 3.
After marriage. The activities of the pastoral care for the family in India are quite lively, although Roman Catholics are only 2.1% of the population, distributed in 13 regions and 128 dioceses. In almost every local church, in fact, there are family centres with their own secretaries “who especially work Fr. Peters says – to safeguard the welfare of the families and help them live out their faith through catechesis, meetings and courses of preparation for marriage”. Special care is given to the after-marriage activities, with meetings held once or twice a year for couples which have been married for three, five, ten or fifteen years: “The courses are centered on their lives and their family relationships, and they are aimed at helping them renewing their marriage vows and refreshing their mutual commitment”.
The problem of mixed marriages. The State does not help the families in financial terms, and in some regions the practice of taking many wives is still common, although “multiple cohabitation is not widespread”. One of the problems is that working places put in contact young men and women of different religions with each other, and it may happen that if a “Christian woman marries a Hindu man, or conversely, they might lose their faith”.
“Subtle” persecutions. Fr. Peters observes that Christians are no longer the object of violent attacks in his country, but persecutions have become more “subtle” and take the form of discriminations, especially in the workplace. “There are minority groups – says the priest which are politically biased and follow the climate of hostility towards the British, manifested in forms of hostility towards the Christian religion, which is considered ‘Western’: they want to create tension by using religion”. As a matter of fact, though, “the Indian people is very open; in our country there are Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, Christians and others who live together peacefully. Unfortunately, the tolerant character of the Indians is gradually disappearing due to the action of these groups working for division”.
(01 June 2012)
