You are invited to our first meeting of the quarter co-sponsored with the Global Christianities workshop:  Thursday, April 2, noon– 1:20 pm at Swift 200.  

Elsa Marty (Ph.D. student, Theology) will present her paper entitled The Nemha Bible: Christians and Censorship in India

Delicious lunch will be served.

Abstract:

India’s laws that infringe on freedom of expression enjoy widespread support in the country. Many people believe they have a right to not be offended. Christians are no exception, demanding that the government ban The Da Vinci Code, bringing blasphemy cases against miracle debunker Sanal Edamaruku, and protesting the use of the word Hosanna in a Bollywood song. But Christians have also been the victims of these laws. In 2008, followers of a traditional tribal religion called Sarna objected to a translation of the Bible into their language, because they interpreted a passage from the book of Deuteronomy as a call for the destruction of their religion. In this paper I describe the case of the Nemha Bible in more detail and discuss arguments that the Lutherans who published the bible translation might use to influence their co-religionists to work for greater freedom of expression.

Persons with disability who would request assistance, please us “contact us” form