The Chemistry of Religions

Today our group visited St. Xavier's College in the morning, then in the afternoon we watched student debates at the Cathedral & John Connon School. In both settings, I heard and learned more about the complexities of pluralism in India. 

The more I learn, the less I understand. 

Does this make sense?

                                      

                                                  St. Xavier's College, Mumbai

                                                       Pic by Chris Gibson

Diversity is just a fact of life.  I think we can all agree on this. And as long as there is diversity, there will be conflict. There's no escaping conflict. 

So what about religious pluralism, or any kind of pluralism for that matter?

I think pluralism is the positive end-product of what we do to address our diversity. 

Unfortunately, pluralism is NOT guaranteed.  At best, pluralism might be well-established within a region; it might be localized in small pockets of communities;  it might be something that is just intermittent. 

Now, I have some more questions. For instance,  what happens when religion becomes politicized? 

What does a politicized religious/cultural landscape look like? 

In this instance, could religious pluralism even  possible here?

We have just 24 more days left in India, and I hope to answer some of these pressing questions by then. 

Thank you for dropping by. Namaste!