Indian Franciscan Sisters Worship a Hindu Idol
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The ten-hour live-streamed event consisted of chants from various religions for a statue called the Shiva Lingam in the centre of the temple.
The Shiva Lingam is an abstract representation of Shiva, one of the main deities of Hinduism. Depending on the tradition, Shiva is the Supreme Being and the Destroyer.
Shiva Lingam statues usually consist of three elements: a short cylindrical pillar-like symbol of Shiva, a flat horizontal element designed to allow liquid offerings to drain, and a snake.
The column is a phallic symbol of creation, regeneration and "cosmic masculinity".
Christian missionaries in the 19th and 20th centuries were shocked by the iconography of the Lingam, describing the cult as obscene, corrupt, licentious, hyper-sexualised, childish, impure, demonic - producing a culture that was too feminine and licentious.
At the recent interfaith celebration, the cylindrical statue was decorated with flowers and candles.
The nuns performed during a section called "Christian Offering". They sat cross-legged on the floor in their habits and chanted repetitive texts. Meanwhile, some people walked around the Shiva Lingam statue with candles and folded hands.
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