The Indian nationalist prime minister Hindu, Narendra Modi, honored the memory of the recently deceased Pope Francis duration an event on Friday, stating that the late Catholic pontiff “will always inspire me.”
Modi made the duration of the comments an event in the Indian state of Kerala, home of the largest Christian population in the country. Christians in Kerala believe that they were among the first people of the world in being evangelized overcome by the Holy Land when San Tomás visited the southern region of India and began to spread the gospel.
Modi recognized this story in his comments, a bigger speech to inaugurate a sea port in the state, praising the Kerala community for being “the land of harmony and tolerance.” His comments were a marked contrast with the violent persecution facing Christians throughout the country, at the hands of supporters of Hindu nationalists Modi who reject religious freedom for their co-nationals. Christian persecution experts often highlight cases of violence of the Hindu mafia against Christians throughout the country who persist as the Modi government takes little action to address the issue.
While recently to protect Christians at home, and standing accused of exacerbating violence against Christians and other religious minorities by Hindu nationalists, modify or claims to support diversity and religious tolerance on the world scenario. When asked about the violence of the Anti -Christian mafia in his country, Modi has claimed to be “surprised”, denying that he presents any significant threat.
Modi did not mention any Conerns about the Christians of India who last his comments on Friday, but took a moment to recognize the rich history of Christianity in Kerala.
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“We lost to Pope Francis a few days ago. Our honorable president, Draupadi Murmu Ji, was there to attend his funeral about being Being de India. Our colleague of Kerala, our minister, Mr. George Kurien too, also with her,” hey note. “I also, once again, from the land of Kerala, I offer my condolences to all involved in this pain.”
“Friends, the world will always remember Pope Francis for his spirit of service and his efforts to give everyone a place in Christian traditions,” said Modi. “I consider that it is my good fortune that every time I had the opportunity to meet him, I had the opportunity to talk to him in detail about many issues.”
“I noticed that I always had a special affection of him. I made discussions with him about issues such as humanity, service and peace. His words will always inspire me,” Modi recalled.
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The city of Vatican announced the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday, April 21, after a battle of months with respiratory diseases. The Pope had made a surprise appearance in the Plaza de San Pedro the previous day to celebrate Easter, the most sacred celebration of Christianity, and did some official duties, such as meeting with vice president JD Vance. Vance, a Catholic whose wife, the second lady Usha Vance, is Hindu, later traveled to India to meet with Modi and visit a Hindu temple while she was there.
India is a disproportionately Hindu country; Almost 80 percent of the country identifies as Hindu. In comparison, around 2.3 percent of the population, Christian and 14.2 percent are Muslim. It is estimated that the Christian population is around 34 million people. Indian Christians, the PEW Research Center pointed out in a 2021 study, “disproportionately are identified with lower castes (74%), including 57% with scheduled castes (SC) or programmed tribes (ST),
Much of the Christian population in India focuses on Kerala due to its old connections with faith. Local historians believe that San Tomás the apostle arrived in Kerala in 52 AD.
“Then, in 1498, the famous Basque Portuguese explorer da Gama sailed to Kerala to open the first route of the Sea of India Europe. Imagine his surprise when he found the Christians,” “” Smithsonian The magazine observed in 2016. “Two years later, Captain Pedro Álvares Cabral followed him, bringing eight Franciscan priests, eight chapellanes and a major chaplain. He left some behind, who introduced Latin, read the Roman Catholic.” “
The Indian newspaper The Hindu He observed the death of Pope Francis this month that India “has more Catholics than Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Eastern Timor and Singapore combined.”
Modi himself had a much more modern connection with Christianity through his relationship with Pope Francis. The head of Indian government visited the Vatican in 2021 to meet with the Pontiff, extending an invitation to visit India. While Pope Francis accepted, hey not living enough to schedule the trip. Modi with Pope Francis for the last time in June 2024, Gate of the G-7 summit organized by Italy that year.
Despite Modi’s public respect for Christianity outside his country, India remains a dangerous place to practice faith. The humanitarian Christian organization opens doors classified India number 11 in its world surveillance list of countries that are more fiercely to Christians in 2025.
“In India, Hindu extremists see all Christians as strangers and aim to clean the nation of Islam and Christianity, or the use of extensive violence,” the doors open in their report. “This hostility is driven by Hindutva, a Hindu nationalist belief in and enaudation among some extremists that the Indians should be Hindus, and no other faith will be tolerated.”
“The converts of Hinduism to Christianity face the hardest persecution. They can be pressed to return to Hinduism for the family, the community and the extremists who carry out reconversion campaigns such as Ghar Wapsi (‘Homecoming’),” he said.
When asked in 2023 at the White House about Christian persecution under his government, Modi said he was “really surprised” that anyone would consider his country intolerant.
“Our government has tasks of the basic principles of democracy. And on that basis, our Constitution is carried out and the whole country is executed in that: our Constitution and Government,” said Modi. “We have always shown that democracy can deliver. And when I say, this is independently of caste, creed, religion, gender. There is absolutely no space for discrimination.”
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