Syro-Malabar Church synod worried for women in Kerala

Pixabay

Synod of the Syro-Malabar Church recently pointed out that Christian girls in Kerala are being targeted and killed in the name of "love jihad," reports from the Times of India said.

According to Syro-Malabar media commission secretary Fr Antony Thalachelloor, "many are even scared to use the term 'love jihad' but the synod has now come out and said the exact words."

"There are reports of Christian girls getting converted and taken abroad. They are not living an ideal pious life either. They are made to live with more than one person and some are even pushed into becoming sex slaves," Fr Thalachelloor explained.

Sources within the church said that the church is determined to start a campaign through Sunday schools to make Christian youth cautious about the "threat."

Fr Thalachelloor said that the church is worried for the women in the state as there are incidents where women, especially Christians, are being sexually abused and blackmailed to convert to Islam religion.

"It has also come to our notice that a Christian teenager was brutally stabbed to death after getting lured into an affair. Love affairs used to happen earlier as well, but the church cannot overlook girls, especially Christian girls, getting targeted and later murdered on the pretext of 'love,'" the Christian leader said.

The state synod is worried if movements like "love jihad" gets stronger, it will only disturb the communal harmony in Kerala.

The synod also pointed out the fact that about half of the 21 youths who were recruited to IS from Kerala were Christians. "It is a concern that several girls who are not accounted for in official records are being used for terrorist activities through love jihad. Statistics show that love jihad is not an illusion. It is a sad fact that police are not taking appropriate action in complaints," the synod said.

The synod wants the state authorities to take effective steps to monitor and control the love jihad movement, which otherwise can have a negative impact on the society.