Readers’ comments: ‘Comparing IAF strikes to immaculate conception is hurtful and unecessary’

IAF strikes

How did the author, in his infinite wisdom, find the concept of immaculate conception and the IAF strikes in Pakistan to be similar (“Why seek proof of IAF strike damage? If a virgin birth can be taken on faith, why not virgin deaths?”)? It just proves that his mind is a bit warped when it comes to the Christian faith and he seems biased against people of the faith.

More than two dozen members of my extended family in the Armed Forces, so if the IAF says it has carried out an operation, I believe them with eyes closed. And since he seems to be someone who can’t figure out between the concept of creation (immaculate conception) and intolerance (the Pulwama attack that led to the IAF strikes) I strongly suggest he does some Socially Useful Productive Work to increase his grasp on the subjects and on the sensitivity of using religious beliefs to get mileage for an article. – Joshua Stephen

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Why draw from Christian faith to sell your story? This is highly objectionable and would have been even if another religion had been used for the analogy. Also not just Catholics but all Christian sects believe in the virginity of Mother Mary. Muslims also believe in it and it is spoken about in the Quran. The author is choosing to hurt the faith of and insult 400 crore people in the world. – Simon Daniel

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I strongly condemn this anti-Catholic post. Please remove it immediately. – Reny Vincent

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Why bring religious beliefs into a discussion about a country’s military strategy? Every religion is based on faith. Such analogy simply inappropriate and can hurt the religious sentiments of others. – Cephas Everard

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Has the author lost his mind? It’s boorish and foolish to make such a comparison. Does he know anything about the payload used? Can he infer everything from satellite images? Don’t ape others or display foolishness by writing such a debased article. Write something with substance. – Gokul Kumar

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I want to understand the idea behind comparing the Indian Air Force strike and the birth of Christ. I would like to believe that there were many other ways to come up with an attention-grabbing headline. How did the author see so many similarities between religious beliefs and India-Pakistan politics? – Noel Dass

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Don’t spread such false information. The air strikes are confirmed by the US defence authority. No photos or news is required to prove its authenticity. Please end such misinformation campaigns. – Anand Velu

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I am hurt by this kind of journalism that draws parallels between my faith and the Balakot air strikes. Why does the author have to pick out dogmas of my faith? Am I forcing my dogmas down his throat? He needs to draw parallels between politics and politics, not a religious faith and politics. – Ivan D’Souza

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The beginning of this article is in extremely bad taste. Comparing the Christian belief of immaculate conception to the success of the air surgical strike is totally uncalled for. – Rose Martin

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This story comparing the air strike to the virgin birth of Jesus is detestable and hurtful. The two cannot be compared. – Savio DSouza

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Can you be a little more sensitive to other religions? – Abhinav Jay

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I am writing to you to express how derogatory this article is. I do not understand why the author tried to draw a comparison between the virgin birth and the air strikes! The birth of Jesus Christ of virgin mother Mary is fundamental to our religious belief and we regard it with utmost respect and holiness and it is deeply hurtful to see this article. I request that you take necessary action and remove this article from public domain immediately as a respect to our religious beliefs and faith. – Joseph Sheelam

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The information in this article is fine but the analogy – repeated twice – is inappropriate. It is shocking that a respectable and supposedly secular news source has indulged in an unnecessary, provocative, disconnected comparison. This is just baiting. – Rowena

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The article published by your budding news agency reeks of unprofessionalism. Not only is it narrow minded but is also devoid of any journalism. Girish Shahane demonstrates a lack of ability and it’s pretty startling this was published. A journalist must seek to report facts or at the very least, drive an educated debate. It’s a rather sorry state you must find your readership in given that your editor has to rely on such religion-themed opinionated articles to lure readers. I must confess the headline did draw my attention for a fleeting moment and the article prompted me to compose this email but only to let your agency know that it was, to be rather crass, something a Class 10 student could have written better.

How can you compare an incident, mythical or factual, that happened almost 2000 years ago to a much-publicised claim that at the moment seems to be nothing more than a political stunt? The article in question seeks to polarise your readers and in essence makes your rather bad attempt at headline-grabbing all the more pathetic. I take solace in the fact that not many people read your blog, newspaper or whatever you want to call it hence not will find your polarisation of a certain fundamental of a religion offensive. – Calvin Fernandes

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Please do not use sacred texts for this worldly matter. The author even got the details of the virgin birth all wrong.
Don’t try to compare and link these matters. The birth of Jesus was a heavenly experience for Mary and something that only a person of god can explain according to the Holy Bible. – Leonard Scott

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Modi has been vilified since 2002. Misinformation is spread against him, so much so that even the security of our nation is in peril. Who is to be blamed if you are called a traitor? Modi will come back with more than 410 seats. – Vinodkumar Padmanabha

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Shame on this article. Is the author trying to mock my religion because elections are approaching? What did my faith have to do with the evidence he was arguing for? A journalist is supposed to spread peace and goodwill, not make fun of anyone’s religion. – Mary Joby

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What does Christianity have to do with this article for the author to talk in such a debasing manner? As a news website, you have the responsibility to be more mature rather than indulge in talks that are bound to inflame people of certain communities. Such a travesty. I for one will refrain from reading any of your articles. If you feel the need to talk about hymens, please use your own religion as a reference, Mr Shahane. – Febi Eapen

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Is the author a journalist? Journalists work with facts, but he has none, just like he accuses the Indian government of having none. Even an apprentice in my department has more common sense than him. He is comparing the Balakot attack to Virgin Mary. That is not journalism. As a journalist, he can believe that there is no evidence of the IAF strike or claim it be a botched operation. But he has shown that he is anti India and particularly anti Modi by writing all this supporting Pakistan.

He is trying to claim that Pakistan, which is run by its military, would have kept quiet if the target was missed. Pakistan did not have the guts to allow journalists to the site. He can be a fiction writer, not a journalist. – N Shankar Narayanan Pillai

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The author wants to prove that the Indian Air Force has done a good job and we appreciate that. The topic of evidence for the strikes has been mired in politics. But then why attack the Christian faith with his satirical view on virgin birth? For a believer, god is omnipotent. He can do anything, from making man out of mud to creating a zygote in Mary’s womb. The historical narration of the New Testament has proved to be 99.5% accurate. It is not a fiction written overnight. May God forgive his ignorance. – Ilavarasan Kannaiyan

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Why use Christianity as an example? Mother Mary is not as weak as the author. Relating her to this attack suggests that the author never went to school. He needs to stop writing nonsense using other religions. – Paul Lepo Kunnamkudath

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Is the author Indian? He is suggesting that Indian Air Force would have bombed schools and claimed that those killed were terrorists. He is suggesting that Masood Azar has become a saint and is imparting knowledge. Please do not troop too low in the guise of intellectualism. This is rubbing salt on the wounds of soldiers who have sacrificed everything for their nation. – Kishori Yadav

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The analogy of virgin birth with the Balakot attacks is fanatic talk. It is utterly disgusting only shows how disrespectful Girish Shahane is to the Christian faith. He could have compared to Karna’s birth in the Mahabharata. It appears this is a Hindutva element news portal. – Chinnappa V

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I don’t care if the Indian Air Force missed its target. It would be great if it destroyed the structure with some terrorists in it. But I am glad the IAF and government took action and delivered a message loud and clear: that terrorists aren’t safe inside Pakistan and the country should not sponsor terrorist organisations. It also brought the attention of the world to Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. And though its not very nice of you to question if indeed Air Force pilot Abhinandan Varthaman shot down an F-16, I do believe it happened and I am glad with how the IAF responded in this instance of his capture too and I am glad the international pressure on Imran Khan compelled him to release our pilot within days. These events prove that we cannot go easy in our dealings with Pakistan and we should give more importance to the country’s defence. I am happy with a government that takes action. – Rico Shae

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I respect the fact that Girish Shahane is concerned about the cruelties of war and has chosen not to believe the administration’s nationalistic narrative. But what concerns me is how he chose to describe the birth of Jesus with filthy remarks. Imagine a similar description about someone you love. Would anyone have tolerated such remarks? What he believes or doesn’t believe about the attacks doesn’t bother anyone, but how he chooses to address the faith of billions of people does. – Mohammed Ismail

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Why is a Christian belief being drawn into questioning the authenticity of the IAF strike. The virgin that the author refers to is one of the most revered figures in Christianity. Why is a minority group being dragged in? Why doesn’t he refer to his own religious myths? Please refrain from such unnecessary media content. – Vinod Lawrence

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The ability to express one’s opinion is protected and enshrined by our Constitution and fundamental to a democracy like ours. However, misusing that opportunity to be vindictive and irreverent towards the beliefs of a faith is highly immature. The article is blatantly insulting, especially considering that there is not the slightest of correlation between a minority community’s belief in Mary’s conception and our national security concerns and the political manipulation of the same.

We Catholics are generally a tolerant lot, believing that forgiveness is the key to our own salvation and to risk that salvation by responding in anger or violence to an immature provocation is simply not worth it. However I am sure that the author will appreciate the temptation to retaliate to a descriptive detailing of our spiritual Mother’s female anatomy.

This tolerance and our recent flaws as a Church have made us a soft target and the author is clearly aware of that , why is why he did not dare to use our country’s major faith nor our neighbour’s majority faith in his article. The piece serves no purpose and is poorly written. The article is highly inflammatory and is what one would expect from a mainstream news channel today and would definitely call into question my preference of your news source as being unbiased and secular. – Georgie Erumeda

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All religious beliefs are sacrosanct and I would like to believe that literate adults would tread carefully around each other’s religious beliefs.

The author says, ‘”If only all conflicts were faith-based, with citizens believing every word their governments fed them, it would remove the need for actual messy, cruel wars. Most literate adults are aware of the Christian belief that the mother of Jesus was impregnated while a virgin. The Holy Spirit penetrated Mary the way light penetrates glass, leaving her hymen intact. Less well known is the Roman Catholic dogma that she stayed a virgin through Christ’s birth and after. The Son of God came forth into the world causing her no distress, and the cloister of her womb remained sealed during the process.”

Without going into details, anyone “literate” who is reading this will realise that it’s a pot calling the kettle black. Will the author use analogies from the religion he practices or was born into rather than pointing at another religion’s beliefs, which people hold sacrosanct? It’s a shame and if he does not understand this I don’t think his so-called ‘’education’’ and degrees have done him any good. – Leena Abraham

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While the article is well written in an age where journalism has become more of speculation without investigation or verification of facts, I think it would be right to take due cognisance of religious sentiments. All faiths believe in certain things however impossible they may seem. This is the basis of their faiths and religions. It is incorrect to get such matters involved in current daily happenings just to try and make a point. – Hansel Sequeira

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What a trash article by Girish Shahane! Why would I read or subscribe to Scroll.in for such convoluted and substandard reads? – Sheba George

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I am a regular reader of your website, but this article bothered me. I felt very disturbed with the headline. Why hurt religious sentiment? I lost respect for you for your decision to publish such an article. – Arul Elisa

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The summary of Girish Shahane’s article is: 1. Government’s claim of the Indian Air Force strike is a hoax; what else can it be, since Narendra Modi is prime minister and not Rahul Gandhi? and 2. Modi used RAW to find out when Jaish-e-Mohammad would repair their buildings and then announced that the Air Force had carried out strikes! – Raja Balakrishnan