Just two months after a temple vandalized in Washington State, another heinous attack took place in North Texas, where the vandals wrecked a temple with vulgar Graffiti painted on its walls. The attack was the third in three months. This comes nothing, but as revenge to the recent Church vandalisms in India.

So, where are we heading to? When shall we learn?

When Barrack Obama visited India in January, he received a warm welcome from our Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Both exchanged talks, gifts, and views in accord. Before winding his three-day visit, Obama even urges for a global peace, where people can live without ‘fear’ (the word graffitied on the temple wall?).

While the ‘World’s largest and oldest democracies’ are trying to mending the fences, some narrow-minded people or rather crooked minds are attacking the religious freedom and liberty of people, which is truly uncalled for. This is truly lack of awareness on religion and its values.

Neither Hinduism nor Christianity preaches ‘eye for an eye theory’. Moreover, the ‘religious intolerance’ only fuels the hatred feelings and jealousy. Whether it is in India or in US, people who are practicing their respective religions over the generations, doesn’t see the temples and/or Churches just as places of worship, but also as platforms to let their children stay connected with their roots.

Though Obama celebrated Diwali at White House last year to spread the message among Americans, the ethos and values are ‘to-be’ reached and well-understood by them.

Also the Indian politicians and media have to be faulted and to be blamed for the Church attacks in India. Each time an attack happens, ‘our pseudo secular ‘leaders’’ promise to secure the religious identity and conveniently ignore the issue afterwards. Adding to the woes, media also spotlight the incident when it happen and didn’t highlight the aftermath.

- Manohar