NEWS FROM NEPAL

Christians Plan Missionary Campaign. There are little more than 600,000 Christians in Nepal, less than one percent of its population, yet according to a Christian publication, Christianity Today, Nepal has one of the fastest-growing Christian populations among Asia’s 51 countries. A recent meeting of more than three dozen senior Christian missionaries at “a quiet resort just outside of the capital city” was devoted to forming “overarching strategies for the Himalayan region [Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan]” to encourage this growth. These included targeting “people not yet reached”; establishing a presence in the “neediest geographic areas”; and encouraging and promoting an indigenous Nepali missions movement. The areas of Nepal that were deemed to need most attention were its northern Tibetan Buddhist districts, the far west, and some districts in the Terai. As part of this campaign, the missionaries hope to “place personnel in national organizations or in government-sponsored positions.” They aim to establish churches on several different levels, from primary to discipleship, and give the missionary movement a “bi-vocational” character by combining its “church planting vocation” with projects that give it a “credible presence in the country,” such as hospitals. They recommend that their members seek non-tourist visas for entry into the country since “we believe it is easier to live and work in the Himalayan region as a resident expatriate.” Student visas that later could be converted might be considered as an opening option. Nepal, the world’s only official Hindu nation, allows freedom of worship but forbids proselytizing. The International Hindu Federation strongly condemned the Christian missionary plan after news of it was released, stating that any activity aimed against the national religion is a serious crime. The Christian effort may have been inspired by Pope Paul II’s call for greater evangelization in Asia and a need for “aggressive conversion” there. (Kathmandu Post, January 10, 14; February 10)

Sacrifing to the Wrong Goddess. For many years, locals have been sacrificing goats, buffaloes and chickens before a statue of the goddess Durga in Dev Daha Bhawanipur in Rupandehi district in south central Nepal. Recent excavations have revealed that the image is not that of Durga at all, but of Maya Devi, the mother of Lord Buddha. Buddhists, who are opposed to the taking of life, have tried to stop people from sacrificing animals there, and although the practice has decreased, it has not totally stopped. With its newly discovered identity, the statue has become the second most important place of Buddhist pilgrimage in Nepal, after Lumbini. “We tried to stop animal sacrifice at Dev Daha,” complained a leader of the local government, “but our efforts have gone in vain. We sought help from the District Administration Office and the Department of Archaeology but to no avail. Now we have formed a struggle committee to fight the evil practice.” (Kathmandu Post, January 20)