India, Part 3, A People Counted Less Than Human

Imagine yourself living in the worst slums in India.   Picture the majority of the people around you hating you for nothing you have done but simply because of who your parents are. Every few days, one of your friends or family members are raped, murdered, robbed, or their house might even be burned down. Tomorrow that could be you.  You have very little food, clothes, or shelter. Daily, you are shamed by those of higher castes that only take advantage of you. Worse than that, every single day you have to serve those who hate you just so that you have a bit to eat and something to wear. You unclog the sewers, you bury the dead, and you are only counted worthy to do the worst jobs imaginable. No one is allowed to touch you. You are a Dalit – an “untouchable”.

           

The Dalits are an Asian people that are below the lowest of the castes. They are treated and thought of by the majority of their countrymen as less than human. They are under even the slaves. They are known as the “untouchables”.

            The only jobs they are counted “worthy” to do are the menial ones. The children are either forbidden to go to school or are forced to sit in the back. They are victims of “rape, harassment, violence and murder” - all of this simply because they are counted less than human.

            As of the mid-20^th century, the caste system was abolished, but to this day there is still exceeding discrimination. This is because the primary religion in India – Hinduism – holds the tradition of the caste, that the social status you were born into is where you must stay. Although abolished, it still stands because 80% of the population is Hindu and holds to it.

            According to Gospel for Asia,  “Every hour, two Dalits are assaulted, three Dalit women raped, two Dalits murdered and two Dalit houses burned, according to the Human Rights Education Movement of India, yet only one percent of those who commit crimes against Dalits are ever convicted.”

The Dalits are a people in great need of help, of love, and ultimately of Jesus Christ the one who alone can save and deliver them from the punishment for sin – which is far greater in comparison than the treatment they receive from their fellow countrymen.

Christians need to go to these people. First, we must show these people that they are loved – we must show them the love of Christ. All their lives they have been treated as less than human. We must communicate to them that they are more than that – that they are beautiful and most definitely loved by their Creator and Christians worldwide.   Second, we must help them.  The majority of India doesn’t have enough food, clothes, or shelter. The Dalits being thought of as the lowest people of all have even less. Being deemed “untouchable” has made it very difficult for them to get jobs, even after the new Indian Constitution dictated that nearly 25% of its government jobs should go to Dalits alone. Third, we must, above all, show them Jesus Christ and the salvation that He offers to all – which includes them.

The Dalits are a forgotten people – they are pushed aside, kicked down, crushed, and left to fend for themselves by their fellow countrymen. The Indian government is helping them, but for two sole reasons Christians too must get involved. First, there are simply too many of them for the government to effectively help them all, and second, they still need that which they truly seek for and need more than anything else - the love that every human being searches for, the love of Jesus Christ.

There are over 300 million Dalits in India alone. You can help these people today. Go to www.gfa.org to help the Indian Dalits monetarily by helping to provide for them. If you can’t do that, pray for them. Prayer is powerful because our God is powerful and He listens. He hears the cries of these people and He hears your cries on their behalf.  Don’t turn your back on these people. Don’t stop your ears and ignore their calls for help.

Will you not help this forgotten people? These people whom the world continually walks upon? These people who are indeed human, and are loved by God even though they are shamed by the world? Will you not reach out and “touch” these “untouchables”?