JAN 26TH TRAGIC LINK BETWEEN INDIA-AUSTRALIA
by Julian Fox
SUVA(Fiji): Jan 26th -- January 26th is normally a day of celebration both in India and Australia - Republic Day for the former and Australia Day for the latter. But Christians in both countries today mourned the tragic death of Mr. Graham Staines (58) and his two sons Philip (9) and Timothy (6), burned to death in Orissa, India, by a slogan-shouting mob of Hindu fanatics. The Staines were long-serving Baptist missionaries. Staines himself had worked as caretaker of a leprosy home since 1982 and had worked in India since 1964. He is survived by his wife and daughter. At the funeral held today, his young daughter said: "Praised be the Lord for considering my father worthy to suffer for His name".
Christians constitute only 2.5% of the Indian population of 975 million. The vilification of minority groups such as Christians does not discriminate between Protestant or Catholic. The Salesians, who often work amongst tribal groups, are themselves at times the subject of many forms of discrimination by Hindu people who resent the inroads made by Christianity. 'austraLasia' will be asking Salesians in some of the affected areas to comment on their own reacttions and circumstances.
