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Pope Benedict XVI publicly condemned the violence in India during mass on Sunday, an act that was welcomed by India’s Catholic clergies while opposed by Hindu nationalist politicians who accused the Vatican of interfering.
"The pope's comments draw international attention to the problems of a minority which cannot defend itself on its own," said Father Dominic Emmanuel, spokesman for the Delhi Catholic Archdiocese on Monday, according to Agence France-Presse.
Likewise, Father Thomas Sequeira, the director of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India, called the pontiff’s comments “very appropriate and proper."
"We stand by what the pope said. We don't care what others may say," Sequeira said.
However, the pope’s comments angered Hindu nationalist political party BJP, which told the pontiff to not interfere in India’s internal affairs.
"India is a sovereign country and I do not think any religious head should say anything," said BJP spokeswoman Sushma Swaraj.
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Unprecedented levels of anti-Christian violence began in mid-August in the eastern state of Orissa after the death of a Hindu fundamentalist leader.
In Orissa state alone, some 50,000 Christians are said to be displaced from their homes by the violence. Hindu militant mobs have torched thousands of homes, churches, Christian-owned businesses, and faith-based orphanages in the state.
The violence, which has spread to more than 4 other states, is said to be the worst anti-Christian attacks in the 60 years of India’s independence.
More than 30 people, mostly Christians, are said to have died because of the attacks, according to secular media. But Indian Christian groups say the death toll is well over 50.
The Archbishop of Orissa, Raphael Cheenath, argues that the pope has a right to condemn the persecution of Indian Christians.
"The pope has got every right to speak for those of us hit by violence of the worst kind," Cheenath said. "His words were a great consolation to the suffering Christians in Orissa and elsewhere in India.”
Christians have held rallies in India and the United States to protest the violence and urge the Indian government to do more to stop the attacks.
On Tuesday, a rally organized by the All India Confederation of SC/ST will be held in New Delhi to protest the anti-Christian violence.
