Cardinal William Joseph Levada, prefect of the Congregation of the
Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican, gave the thumbs-up for the
Indianisation of the Roman Catholic Church in India.
Speaking to media persons in Pune on Friday, Levada said that it was
natural for the Roman Catholic church in India to imbibe Indian culture
in this era of globalisation.
“Indians follow their faith in
temples and mosques with a lot of fervour. It is very important for the
Roman Catholic church in India to adjust and imbibe local culture and
traditions,” he said.
The Cardinal’s thoughts have given a massive
fillip to the Movement of Inculturation (imbibing local cultures)
started in India by Roman Catholic priest Richard Desmat and nun Sara
Grant in the early 1970s.
Levada, who is considered one of the
most powerful of Cardinals in the Vatican, having taken over
administration of the Congregation of the Doctrine of Faith from none
other than Pope Benedict XVI, expressed regret at the attacks on Roman
Catholic clergy in India in recent years.