The Humanist: May 2013

Thursday 30 May 2013

Synopsis of Yudas Mar Iskariathos Thirumeni

Yudas Mar Iskariathos Thirumeni (Malayalam)

by George Emmanuel.

Publishers: Mudra Books, Delhi, 2013.

Pages: 358, Price Rs. 250/-

It is a drama (fiction) based on the story of Jesus as narrated in the New Testament as well as the history of Christianity.

The protagonist Judas, the religious reformer enters into an ideological conflict with his leader, Jesus the social reformer. (Surprisingly, Jesus does not appear in the drama). Having fed up with Jesus, Judas manipulates the business lobby to get Jesus killed. Once his opponent is gone, Judas the reformer turns into a founder of a new religion called Christianity.

The second part is about how Judas uses the name of Jesus as a Brand name to propagate his new religion .This part is constructed with images both from the present and past history of Christianity as a whole. This exercise necessarily involves harsh and sometimes unsavoury criticism of Christian beliefs and practices. Having found himself as the founder of the most corrupt religion Judas, the Bishop who is the secret head of the church commits suicide. The story ends with the assumption of a successor to Judas.

Wednesday 29 May 2013

Aided Schools - Symbol of Social Injustice

Social (In)Justice in Kerala: A Unique Example

Kerala is unique in many ways- from the genetic codes of the populace to the general economy.

We may congratulate ourselves as the heirs of the first democratically elected communist government: a sign of the sense of social justice among the public. But does it afford us to be claimants of social justice ? The most outstanding example of social injustice is the socially accepted practice called 'Aided Schools.'

While the teachers are selected and appointed by the 'management' they are paid by the government,ie by the public. Is there any justice in it? For example, a school run by a Catholic 'management ' gives priority to catholic students in admissions and appoints almost exclusively Catholics as teachers. But the money spent on the school and its teachers comes from the taxes paid by the general public, ie Hindus , Muslims , Atheists ,etc etc. How can anyone justify such a system? There could be thousands of lame excuses for the continuation of this practice; but the fact remains that it is the biggest social injustice being perpetrated in the modern world.

Surprisingly, we put up with this gross injustice without any prick of conscience while we shout out about inappropriate allocation of public lands, corruption (even in sports),etc ,etc. It has become something like caste system; continuous practice has made it morally acceptable to the majority.