tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138624.post116103977920732943..comments2023-03-17T14:45:50.282+00:00Comments on Exploring the Purpose of Things: Religious ConversionRichard Veryardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04499123397533975655noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6138624.post-1168884165736957352007-01-15T18:02:00.000+00:002007-01-15T18:02:00.000+00:00Richard:The article inaccurately says Gujarat has ...Richard:<BR/><BR/>The article inaccurately says Gujarat has reclassified Buddhism and Jainism. In India, Buddhists and Jains have always been considered Hindus for legal purposes. (India has different civil laws for people of different religions.)<BR/><BR/>Also, the article speculates that this is an attempt by the BJP to prevent its vote bank from eroding. This is impossible since the classification existed before the BJP political party was formed.<BR/><BR/>What is possible, though, is that the BJP has introduced the ant-conversion law (or more accurately, the freedom of religion law) to protect its vote bank.<BR/><BR/>However, religious conversion in India is a complex issue. The process of conversion often has a lot to do with grand promises and marketing and very little to do with belief in Jesus or Allah. Governments are concerned that well-funded religious organizations are performing large-scale social engineering on uninformed people and enact laws to temper this process. The religious organizations then find it convenient to accuse the government of stifling religious freedom.<BR/><BR/>Changing faith often does not lead to any change in the living conditions of the people. In India, many Christians and Muslims also have castes (derived from their original Hindu caste).Armchair Guyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03834195406816335480noreply@blogger.com