Today we all attended a service celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Diocese of Durgapur, Over 1000 people attended in a huge marquee, along with guests from partner churches across the world, from neignbouring Bangladesh to as far away as Australia and Canada. It was a strange mixture of the familiar and the exotic, with the bible processed into the centre of the congregation on a huge flower-decorated drum, and familiar hymns given a haunting Indian flavour. It was moving to hear the prayers of the congregation spoken simultaneously in different languages, the sound of devout humanity united despite it's surface differences and strangenesses to one another..A recurrent theme was thanksgiving for the way this diocese has been turned around in recent years. This is thanks largely to the dynamic Bishop Probal Dutta's leadership. There are now numerous projects really making a difference to people's lives especially the poor, the sick, the excluded and the vulnerable. There are many challenges facing the Church here, corruption, violence and discrimination are all part of the 'background noise'. The sermon compared the Diocese with a boat making its way through rough waters, and encouraged us all to always focus on the face of Jesus Christ, and his loving promise to us all, rather than getting dragged down by worrying about the storm around us. The focus is now on the future, wihile still honouring the roots of the Church here, including its Methodist Roots. The Church in India has a chance to be a radical force for good as India becomes more developed. Perhaps it can help the country avoid the pitfalls of Western capitalist culture with its greed and individualism. India can teach us a lot about what community really means.
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