DEADLY CHRISTMAS BLASTS IN NIGERIA

NIGERIA CHURCHES HIT BY BLASTS 
DURING CHRISTMAS PRAYERS

www.bbc.co.uk - A series of bomb attacks in Nigeria, including two on Christmas Day church services, have left almost 40 people dead and many injured. The Islamist group Boko Haram said it carried out the attacks, including one on St Theresa’s Church in Madalla, near the capital Abuja, that killed 35, and another explosion hit a church in the central city of Jos.  Yobe state has been the epicentre of violence between security forces and Boko Haram militants.  Three attacks in Yobe left four people dead. Two hit the town of Damaturu, and a third struck Gadaka.  President Goodluck Jonathan, who is a Christian, said the attacks were an “unwarranted affront on our collective safety and freedom”. The White House condemned what it described as “senseless violence” and pledged to assist Nigeria in restoring peace.

Boko Haram - whose name means “Western education is forbidden” - often targets security forces and state institutions.  The group carried out an August 2011 suicide attack on the UN headquarters in Abuja, in which more than 20 people were killed.  Nearly 70 people have died this week in fighting between Nigerian forces and Boko Haram gunmen in the country’s north-east.  National Emergency Management Agency (Nema) spokesman Yushau Shuaibu told the BBC that the latest Abuja explosion had happened in the street outside the church.  He said the church - which can hold up to 1,000 people - had been badly affected by the blast.  Officials at the local hospital said the condition of many of the injured was serious.

Islamist extremists brought Christmas carnage to churches across Nigeria and have threatened more bloodshed in the days to come.  In all there were five bomb blasts. The most deadly was at St Theresa’s Catholic Church in Madalla on the outskirts of the capital Abuja.  The radical religious sect Boko Haram - which wants sharia law in Nigeria - has claimed all the explosions.  Despite the words of peace, if there is no interfaith acceptance, there will be more fights between religious groups.

WHAT DO THE VEDIC TEACHINGS TELL US? 

Interfaith is directing devotees of different faiths to know and understand the philosophies, rituals, and teachings of each other. By this, the people become more friendly and cooperative, instead of being hostile and antagonistic. Indeed, they soon realize how, in essence, all religions have more in common. The basic teachings are remarkably similar. They also complement the knowledge of their own religion to make it more broad-based and complete.  Indeed, each religion has a special spiritual value of its own, which is not to be found in any other. ... For Hindus, interfaith is a sacred heritage.  In fact, it is incorporated in the ancient teachings of the Vedas and Upanishads: Ekam Sat, Viprah Bahudha Vidanti - there is only one truth; sages call it by different names.

Dr. Hiro Badlani:
“Hinduism - Path of the Ancient Wisdom”
Chapter 55: “Hinduism and Interfaith
The Future Trends in Our World”
http://hinduismpath.com/
http://hinduismpath.com/book-contents/chapter-55/