Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Fourty-nine, Future Faith

Temples in the US are worried as they watch their supporters age and their children don't come in for any services. The growing number of priests watch in consternation as slowly the supplicants start filling in with white faces. Faces whose blood has never been to India, never seen a Hindu puja outside of videos of either friends' marriages or YouTube. Priests are taught the ancient rites for the different gods and goddesses, not the process of bringing in newcomers to Hinduism, especially with the language barrier.

I have often been pointed out as an example of a pious member of the younger generation. I used to be proud of this. Nowadays, I am indifferent. I either ignore it or I smile and duck my head at the attention if it's from multiple people. My faith is important to me because of the hope it gives me. The hope that I think everyone has and needs. The world is not an easy place to live in but all of us do. Somehow, we do. And my belief is that a large part of what makes it bearable is hope.

The Hindu Temples of the future will be filled not with people from India, but with Americans--Indian or otherwise--who see hope through the help of any of the gods and goddesses (or avatars) represented by this religion. Already, a large part of the bigger temples in the US are Caucasian Americans. And whether they come to a temple, church, synagogue, or another place of worship, they all seek the same thing.

Hope

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