SUBALTERN AND SACRED: A POSTCOLONIAL CRITIQUE OF CHRISTIANITY IN KERALA
Authors: Thomas Mathew Varghese
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17406970
Published: January 2024
Abstract
<p><em>Spivak’s definition of subaltern most suitably resonates with the life experience of Dalit Christians. They are so sidelined that they are without any access to the lines of upward social mobility. Fate has made them Christians converts. Though it was a springboard for social mobility initially, it turns out to be a harrowing choice. Though the Church has taken some decisive initiatives the subaltern condition of the Dalit Christians have not improved much. They are battling poverty, debt and social stigma. The negative attitudes towards the cause of subaltern Christian by some sections of the society have adverse impact on Dalit Christians. Abandoned by all, they are stuck in the dungeon of suffering. Locating the position of the Dalit Christians in the society, and among the Syrian Christians, the paper tries to trace the history of caste system among the Christians and its fault lines and the unsuccessful efforts by the Church to cast aside the caste garb to accommodate the oppressed. The paper also recommends some solutions to the predicament. The most important of them is the necessity of the Dalit’s own sincere efforts to discover their own capacity to speak and act</em></p>
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