Today on 17th of December the former Bishop of the Diocese of Amritsar Most Revd. Dr. Anand Chandu Lal passed away in the age of 88 years.
Together with his family and the people in the Diocese of Amritsar, we in the Protestant Church in Hesse and Nassau (EKHN) mourn the loss of a long-time companion in our partnership with the Diocese. He is considered the father of this partnership with EKHN and the present deaneries of Giessen and Wetterau. Since 1995 I have met him again and again, we have been on the road together in India, have had theological discussions about the understanding of mission and the interreligious dialogue and he was always a welcome guest in my house.
„’Holistic’ concept of mission takes seriously not only the ‘sin’ located in individual persons but also ‘systemic sin’, I.e., sin located in and powerfully active in social, religious, cultural, political and economic structures. Holistic mission seeks the salvation (redemption / liberation) not only of individuals but also of society, social structures / system / religions and of the whole creation (cosmos, cosmic salvation).“ wrote Bishop Chandu Lal 1994 in The North India Churchman (April Edition, page 4).
I remember his remarks on the three evangelical principles in the context of a worship service during a partner consultation of the Evangelical Development Service (EED) 2001 in Bonn:
„Faith, which testifies that the world is God’s creation;
Hope, which acts in the certainty of the coming of the Kingdom of God, in which justice and peace will kiss each other; and finally,
Love, which encounters its Lord just in the poor and in those realities where the Earth and all her creatures are deprived of their rights.”
In 2019 his Memories have been published under the title “Bishop of the Road. Memories of the Journey” (Good Word Communication Services Pvt Ltd, New Delhi). There he wrote about himself: „I am not a Christian; I am a follower of Christ”
May he rest peacefully in the divine presence!
