{"id":1195,"date":"2025-11-07T08:19:38","date_gmt":"2025-11-07T08:19:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ambedkarsociety.org\/assa\/?p=1195"},"modified":"2025-11-13T08:44:07","modified_gmt":"2025-11-13T08:44:07","slug":"india-dalit-liberation-sunday-the-jubilee-of-hope-begins-at-the-margins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ambedkarsociety.org\/assa\/india-dalit-liberation-sunday-the-jubilee-of-hope-begins-at-the-margins\/","title":{"rendered":"INDIA: \u201cDalit Liberation Sunday\u201d: The Jubilee of Hope begins at the margins"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The \u201cDalit Liberation Sunday,\u201d which the Catholic Church in India celebrates on November 9 under the auspices of the Catholic Bishops\u2019 Conference of India (CBCI), in which the bishops of the Latin, Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara Rite, is \u201ca sacred moment of remembrance, repentance and renewal, reminding us that God is a Father who loves all his children equally, without distinction of caste, skin color or class,\u201d Capuchin Father Nithiya Sagayam OFM Cap, Secretary of the Commission for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes in the Bishops\u2019 Council of Tami Nadu and national coordinator of \u201cDalit Liberation Sunday\u201d, told Fides. \u201cTo call God \u2018Father\u2019 means affirming that every person is our brother or sister, precious, equal, and endowed with the same dignity,\u201d he emphasizes. \u201cThe Indian Church has chosen the theme \u2018The Jubilee of Hope Begins at the Margins\u2019 for this day because we want to remember that God always begins his work of salvation at the margins, with the oppressed.\u201d
The Secretary explains the reasons for the celebration to Fides: \u201cThe caste system in India, so deeply rooted in our social structures, continues to distort our relationships, our worship, and our Christian witness. It divides the Body of Christ and silences the cry of the poor. It contradicts the Gospel and denies our equality as baptized Christians and children of God.\u201d For this reason, he notes, \u201cIndian Catholics celebrating \u2018Dalit Liberation Sunday\u2019 unite their hands and hearts with all our Dalit brothers and sisters who have lived through generations of pain, struggle, and faith.\u201d
\u201cTheir perseverance,\u201d he adds, \u201creminds us that God hears the cry of the oppressed. Every Eucharist celebrated in every church in India seeks to affirm that the Church is a family, not a hierarchy of privileges; it is a community of disciples who walk together in the spirit of truth and love.\u201d The theme is indeed \u201can invitation to conversion and courage: to dismantle discrimination, heal divisions, and build a Church that truly reflects the Kingdom of God, where \u2018there is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free, but all are one in Christ Jesus\u2019 (Gal 3:28).
\u201cIf Saint Paul were among us today,\u201d says Capuchin friar Sagayam, \u201che might add: \u2018There are no Dalits and non-Dalits, for you are all one in Christ.\u2019 This is the spiritual truth that the Church must live. And yet, the commission of Judge Renganath Misra documented in 2007 that Dalit Christians continue to face discrimination not only in society but also within the Church itself.\u201d
He cites several examples: \u201cThere are incidents of Dalit segregation during church services, with separate seating for them in some churches, especially in rural areas of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Or there are separate burial plots for Dalits in cemeteries. Sometimes Catholic schools and universities favor students and staff from higher castes, or Dalit students are bullied, neglected, or excluded from leadership positions. The hiring of Dalit teachers or administrative staff is also rare.\u201d
Even within the clergy, there are \u201cvery few bishops, provincials, or superiors of religious orders from the Dalit caste. Dalit priests and religious are often transferred to remote or poor parishes, and Dalits are rarely represented on pastoral councils or diocesan bodies.\u201d Furthermore, \u201ccaste-based marriage is still practiced and even encouraged in some Catholic families,\u201d and it happens that \u201cCatholic believers from higher castes refuse to share meals, homes, or relationships with Dalit Catholics.\u201d
Fr. Sagayam recalls \u201cthe prophetic call of the Church: Indian bishops have promoted the emancipation of Dalits by calling caste discrimination a \u2018grave social sin,\u2019 and remind us that 65% of Indian Catholics are Dalits. To celebrate \u2018Dalit Liberation Sunday\u2019 without taking action would be hypocrisy. The Church must not only preach liberation, it must also practice it. Every parish, every diocese, and every religious order must ask itself: \u2018Who is being excluded here? Whose voice is missing? Whose pain are we ignoring?\u2019\u201d
The Capuchin concludes with a quote from the Apostolic Letter “Dilexi Te,” in which Pope Leo XIV reminds us that faith cannot be separated from love for the poor. He translates it as follows: “Inspired by the Pope’s letter, let us say with courage: Faith must not be separated from love for the Dalits.\u201d Therefore, the \u201cJubilee of Hope, a time of equality and renewal, begins not in palaces or cathedrals, but on the margins of society, among Dalit Christians and all the oppressed.\u201d
The caste system in India originated as a division of labor in ancient Hindu society and evolved into a strict social hierarchy of Brahmins (priests), Kshatriyas (warriors), Vaishyas (merchants), Shudras (servants), and finally the Avarna, or \u201cuntouchables,\u201d who were later called \u201cDalits.\u201d
Currently, it is estimated that between 50 and 75% of Indian Christians are Dalits, but this figure is not officially recognized in government data. A 2008 report by the National Commission on Minorities estimated the number of Dalit Christians at 2.4 million, but many experts believe the number is much higher.\u00a0

Source: Fides<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The \u201cDalit Liberation Sunday,\u201d which the Catholic Church in India celebrates on November 9 under the auspices of the Catholic Bishops\u2019 Conference of India (CBCI), in which the bishops of … 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