Evolution of Dalit Theology

Dalit Theology as a new strand of theology emerged in the Asian theological scene in the early 80’s
when A. P. Nirmal, then a faculty member at the United Theological College, Bangalore floated the
idea of a “Shudra Theology”. This was followed by a series of attempts and initiatives to systematically
articulate the faith in the context of the newly emerging Dalit aspiration for liberation. Along with A.P.
Nirmal, James Massey, M.E. Prabhakar, M. Azariah, K. Wilson, V. Devasahayam and F.J. Balasundaram
are some of the prominent figures in this theological movement. As theology predominantly became
a vehicle to serve the elite interests, marginalizing the Dalit’s faith, Dalit theology manifested itself as
a counter-theology movement. Re-formulation and re-visioning were the objectives rather than
reconstruction and deconstruction. Both the European Missionary movement and the traditional
Indian Christian Theology of the 20th Century were rejected as metaphysical speculations having
nothing to do directly with history and existence of the marginalized majority within the Indian Church.
Indian Christian Theology in the name of contextualization used Brahmanical concepts from the Vedas
and the Upanishads for theologization. Dalit theology challenged this by saying that the theological
task of India need not be the preserve of the “Brahmanic Tradition” within the Indian Church. Dalit
theologians were of the opinion that the theological and cultural domination of Brahmanic traditions
within the Indian Christianity, ignoring the rich cultural and religious experience of the Dalits had to
be ignored, if not rejected completely.[4] One may think that this was a very narrow approach. But
one has to bear in mind that the sacred texts of the Hindu Religion such as Vedas and mantras were
not accessible to Dalits as a rule. They could perceive the same tradition continuing within Christianity
in theology. Therefore the Dalit theological movement was intending to be a corrective to the
institutionalization of inequality and inaccessibility within the theological field. The author wishes to
sum up by this section by quoting A. P. Nirmal. “Whether it is the traditional Indian Christian Theology
or the more recent third world theology, our theologians failed to see the struggle of Indian Dalits for
liberation, a subject matter appropriate for doing theology in India. What is amazing is the fact that
Indian Theologians ignore the reality of the Indian Church. While estimates vary, between 50 and 80
percent of all the Christians in India today are of Schedule-caste origin. This is the most important
commonality cutting across the various diversities of the Indian Church that would have provided an
authentic liberation motif for Indian Christian Theology. If our theologians failed to see this in the past,
there is all the more reason for our waking up to this reality today and for applying ourselves seriously
to the task of doing Dalit theology.[5]

Thus Dalit theology evolved as a liberation action in itself, in the sense that it’s coming into being
created space for a development of a Dalit Christian Voice.

Basic Premises of Dalit Theology

Before understanding the categories of Dalit theology one needs to be acquainted with its basic
premises which will help one to comprehend the logic and thought of the Dalit theology. It is as
follows.

a) Theology is Contextual

Dalit theology affirms that all theologies have emerged and reflected particular contexts in spite of
claims to the contrary. Theology starts from an analysis and reflection of our own contexts and seeks
to interpret the word of God in relation to this context. Christian theology is rooted in the event of
Incarnation and therefore, it needs to be rooted in the particular contexts of its emergence. Dalit
Theology affirms that the contemporary context is one of oppression and theology should discern not
only the mechanism but also the root causes of oppression. In this regard caste is an oppressive
institution and therefore no theological method is adequate if it does not recognize caste as the
contextual reality and a major structure of oppression.[6]

b) Theology is Reflection of Human Experience

Human life is the focus of theology. Theology is primarily concerned, not with either religious
metaphysics or ritual, but with the human person. The individualistic, soul-oriented, lacking concern
for totality of humanity, theology has to be rejected. Theology should reflect on contemporary forms
of human experiences and life, all of which must be related to, relativized and humanized by the
concept of God. Dalit theology recognizes the Dalit pathos as the starting point of theology.[7]

c) Theology Is to be Undertaken from the Perspective of the Oppressed

No theology is neutral and all theologies have bias, however much one tries to overcome his biases
perspective. The earlier Indian Christian formulations were undertaken from the elitist perspective.
Here the elitist experience and perceptions of reality were held as normative of the human experience
and the human perception of reality. The masses were considered to have no significance as far as
this reflective activity was concerned. Dalits have not been subjects of history. On the contrary the
dalits were the victims of literary tradition. Even in theology Dalits were denied a name and face and
were hidden under the general rubric of the “poor”. Theologizing should affirm the oppressed,
particularly the dalits, as the subjects of theology and undertake the theological tasks from a Dalit
perspective.[8]

d) Theology is Logos about God

The term theology comes from the two Greek terms theos and logos and means either word of God
or word about God. The concept of God is the object of interest for Dalit theology. It is God who is the
ultimate authority and point of reference for the Dalit theologian. The concepts related to scripture,
creed, and humanity are secondary and derivative from the concept of God. God or the concept of
God must be related to all aspects of Indian reality. The observation of Dalit theology is that the Indian
Christian theology attempted to relate the religio-philosophical dimensions of the elites to the concept
of God while the Marxian influenced liberation theologies have made the economic and political
dimension of Indian reality interface with the concept of God. However the unique Indian social
system, the one that provides the atmosphere for human life and relationship in India has not been
brought into encounter with the concept of God. Dalit theology attempts to expose the conspiracy of
silence by relating to and critiquing the caste system from the perspective of the Christian
understanding of God.[9]

Contributions of Arvind P. Nirmal for the Development of Dalit Theology

Any breakthrough in theology is associated with its daring pioneers. When one talks about Liberation
theology, the man associated with the epoch is Gustavo Guttirez while when one studies Black
theology the name of James Cone as a pioneer stands unparalleled. Congruently when one discusses
about Dalit theology, Dr. A. P. Nirmal becomes synonymous to it. As we have seen there are many
contributors of Dalit Theology but the scope of this paper allows us only to look at the contribution of
A.P. Nirmal and to analyse his theological categories. One needs to keep in mind that Dalit theology
emerged on the basis of a need where the Indian Christian theology and the emerging liberation
theology seemed inadequate to counter the problems of the religiously sanctioned practice of Caste.
It is in such a context that one needs to place the works of A.P Nirmal. The primary task of theology
according to Nirmal, is to aid people; and the people who need to be aided in the Indian context, as
identified by him are the Dalits. Informed by the vision of the New Man in Christ, he tried to be relevant
in the Indian context by articulating the Dalit theology. Let us now concentrate the premises and
theological categories of Dalit theology according to A.P. Nirmal.

a) Pathos, the Basis of Dalit Theology

Nirmal defined Dalit Theology as a theology by, for and of an oppressed people: it is a people’s
theology. In doing Dalit Theology he had taken the social and sociological dimensions seriously. Unlike
the classical Christian theology as the most adequate medium for communicating Christian theological
truths, Nirmal advocated the importance and the use of sociology. He said that Dalit theology is more
concerned with peoples and their life- life with all its absurdity, illogicality, inconsistency and
incoherence. Dalit theology serves the interests of Dalit people because they are an oppressed people.
It does this by empowering them in their liberation struggle.[10] Dalit theology is based on views from
the “bottom” and also from the “inside”. Dalit theological affirmations are grounded in people’s
experiences. It is a theology from below and therefore it is more interested in the horizontal relations
than in the vertical revelations. Nirmal contended that pathos was the basis of Dalit theology. Dalit
thelogy affirms the basic unity between thelogy and practice, thought and action. All knowing is
praxeological, but then it affirms that pathos is prior to praxis. “To suffer is to know” and Nirmal
asserts that at the heart of dalit people’s experience is pathos or suffering. He contends that the dalits
know God in and through their suffering. So for a Dalit theology pain or pathos is the beginning of
knowledge. It is in and through this pathos that the sufferers know God. This is because the sufferer
in and through his/her pathos knows that God participates in human pathos.[11]

b) Dalit Theology and Methodological Exclusivism

Nirmal in outlining a Dalit theology calls for a methodological exclusivism. This does not mean
community exclusivism or that the Dalits must not be open to and receive help from all possible
sources. What he means is that all dominant theologies have a tendency to accommodate, include,
assimilate, and finally conquer other theologies. This is the danger that Dalit theology has to guard
against. Dalit theology is a counter theology and, in order to play the role of a counter theology, Dalit
theology must adopt a exclusivist stance and shut off the encroaching influences of dominant
theology. This methodological exclusivism, according to Nirmal, was considered necessary for
maintaining the distinctive identity of a Dalit theology.

c) Dalit Theology, a Theology of Identity

Nirmal was of the opinion that all people’s theologies are really theologies of identity. Dalit theology,
liberation theology, Black theology, etc., are all theologies which try to seek to express the distinctive
identities of these people. These are the people who are denied their distinctive identities by their
oppressors. In the case of the Dalits, historically, it was the Brahmins who inflicted double injury on
them. They subjugated the Dalits in order to subjugate their labour. They denied them worshiping
rights by using the exploitative doctrine of Karma samsarato make them believe that their status as
Dalits, was determined by their karma in their past lives.

While the oppressors’ theologies are imposed on the oppressed as normative everywhere, in
India, it is the Brahmanical theological tradition which imposed itself upon the Dalit Christian majority,
and therefore, the question of the distinctive identity of Dalit theology is inseparably linked with the
identity of the Dalit people. But then one may ask, how are oppressor’s theologies forced upon the
oppressed? Nirmal cites examples. He opined that the suppression of the holistic tribal vision was
done in the name of national integration and the mainstream culture. The subjugation of the American
Black theology by the theology developed by the Whites is another example to show that the
oppressors’ theologies functions as normative and that they suppress and deny identity to the
oppressed people.[12]

d) Dalit Theology and History

Nirmal spoke about Dalit identity because the question of identity is the question of the concerned
people’s roots and their historical consciousness. History is important for Dalits. But the current
prevailing historiography is not their side because it demands historical sources, particularly written
sources of archaeological findings. The Dalit people have no written historical traditions. Their
histories are oral histories based on historical traditions. Dalits were a conquered people so much so
that their history and culture have been systematically destroyed by their conquerors. So Nirmal has
been appealing for a historical scholarship that is interested in Dalit issues and to accept oral traditions
as “alternative historical sources.” He suggested that family histories of Dalit be attempted. He also
said that the rituals, rites and festivals of Dalits also need to be researched. He emphasises that Dalits
and tribals are/were the original inhabitants of India and therefore their history and culture are not
onlt per- Aryan but also pre- Dravidian. So his contribution for a new historiography based on oral
traditions is a significant source for formulating a Dalit theology.[13]

e) Dalit Theology and Liberative Vision

It is not enough to identify the pathos and rewrite the history of the Dalits. Nirmal underlined that it
is important to see a transforming liberative social vision. He cited Dr B.R. Ambedkar’s liberative social
vision, which was based on the principles of liberty, equality and fraternity. Ambedkarian vision, one
needs to note, places man and human dignity at the centre of his philosophical and sociological
thinking. His writings that are integral to the Dalit Sahitya, are a protest against social inequality and
social injustice. Thus the basic theme in Dalit Sahitya is total human liberation.[14] What one needs to
realize is that Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar and his writings were central to the methodology of Dr.
Nirmal.

f) Historical Consciousness, the Source of Dalit Theology

As we have seen above, the historical Dalit consciousness is the primary datum of a Christian Dalit
theology according to Dr. Nirmal. But one may wonder what is Christian about Dalit theology? Nirmal
opines that “It is the Dalitness which is Christian about Dalit theology.” In other words, the Christian
for this theology is exclusively the ‘Dalit’. What this exclusivism implies is the affirmation that the
Triune God- the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit- is on the side of the Dalits and not of on the non-
Dalits who are the oppressors. He thinks that the Common Dalit experience of Christian Dalits along
with the other Dalits will help shape a Christian Dalit theology. But then what is the common Dalit
experience that fosters a historical consciousness? What is unique about Nirmal is that he uses his
own experience as well as the experience of his Dalit mothers and fathers. His Dalit foreparents were
outcastes. The Dalits were and are always on the outskirts of the Indian village. The historical Dalit
consciousness in India depicts even greater and deeper pathos than is found in the Deuteronomic
creed as they could not unclean footprints, could not spit out their spittle, and could not learn Sanskrit.
They were not only “no people” but also “no humans”. They were the outcastes, the avarnas, people
who were outside the caste system, and not human. Nirmal explained this very powerfully. He said
“My Dalit mothers and sisters were forbidden to wear any blouses and the savarnas feasted their eyes
on their bare bosoms. The savarnas denied my dalit ancestor any access to public wells and reservoirs.
They denied him entry to their temples and places of worship. That my friends, was my ancestor-
mainly in Maharashtra.”[15]

Dalit historical consciousness is a story of afflictions, bondage, the harsh treatment and the toil and
tears of the Dalits. This is just not a past experience of Dalit foreparents, but it is also a present reality
which is rooted in their psyche and in society. He says that Dalits should be aware of their historical
Dalit experience. “We are not just Dalits, we are Christian Dalits. Our exodus from Hinduism to
Christianity or rather to Jesus Christ is a valuable experience. It has enabled us to recognize our
Dalitness and also the Dalitness of Jesus of Nazareth and the Dalitness of His father and our God.”[16]

g) The Dalit God

Let us now turn our attention to Nirmal’s understanding of God. He raises two important questions
with regard to the understanding of God: what kind of God are we talking about? What kind of divinity
does Dalit theology envision? He observes that the exodus of Christian Dalits in India meant the
rejection of the non-Dalit deities. The God to whom the Dalits turned, the God whom Jesus Christ
revealed is a Dalit God. He is a servant. A God who serves. Who can reject this Dalit God? This God is
in midst of the liberation struggle of the Dalits of India. The God, whom Jesus Christ revealed and the
prophets of the Old Testament spoke, is a Dalit God.[17]

h) The Dalit Jesus of the Gospels

Who is this Jesus that we talk about in Dalit theology? Nirmal has read the Gospels with Dalit eye and
from a Dalit perspective. He recapitulates for us some of the features of Jesus’ Dalitness which is a
great contribution towards Dalit Christology. He says that among the ancestors of Dalit Jesus, there
are a few names, that should scandalize us (Matthew 1:1-17). They are Tamar, the daughter-in-law
Judah, who outwitted her father-in-law by sleeping with him and conceiving by him a child(Gen. 38:
1-30); Rahab the harlot who helped the Israelite spies (Joshua 2: 1-12); king Solomon who was an
illegitimate Child of David. These minute details of Jesus’ ancestry suggest his Dalit conditions. He was
also a “carpenter’s son”, whose father’s profession was looked down upon. Further Jesus used the
title “Son of Man”. While this title is used in three different ways, the second way in which the Son of
Man is used is indicative of Jesus’ present sufferings and imminent death. These sayings speak of Son
of Man as encountering rejection, mockery, contempt, suffering and final death. (Mark 8: 31; 9:12;
10:45). He underwent these dalit experience as the prototype of all Dalits. This Dalit Jesus of the
gospels is totally identified with the Dalits of his day (Mark 2: 15-16). He is accused of eating and
drinking with publicans, tax collectors and sinners of His day. He loved and cared for Samaritans, the
Dalits of his day. The Dalit Jesus of the Nazareth Manifesto in the Gospel according to Luke, speaks
about for him his liberation is meant. The two illustrations he uses indicate that the liberation he is
talking about is meant for the Dalits and not for non-Dalits: the reference to Zarephath, is the widow
in Sidon to whom Elijah was sent, though there were many widows in Israel; and it was only Namaan,
the Syrian, the leper, whom Elisha cleansed. Thus the Dalits were set out against ‘Israel’. Convinced of
this, Nirmal proclaims: The Gospel that Jesus brought was the Gospel for the Dalits and not for non-
Dalits nor for Israel. The Nazareth manifesto really a Manifesto for the Dalits.[18]

Further, the Dalit Jesus’ attempt to cleanse the temple (Mark 11: 15-19) is a very important
highlight for Dalit theology. Here Nirmal says that Jesus the messianic king restores to the Gentiles
their religious rights. This he sees in the context of Dalits who had to struggle for temple entry rights.
The Dalit Indians know what it means to be denied the right to pray and worship. In His act of
restoration of the Gentiles’ right to worship, we see a prefiguration of the vindication of the Indian
Dalit struggle for their prayer and worship rights. Above all these, it is the cross of Dalit Jesus that
attracts Nirmal very much. Jesus on the Cross, was the broken, the crushed, the trampled, the torn-
Jesus here was the Dalit in the fullest possible meaning of that term. Jesus cry of dereliction on the
cross shows how the son of God feels God forsaken. That feeling of being God forsaken is the heart of
Dalit experience and Dalit consciousness in India. It is the Dalitness of the divinity and humanity that
the cross of Jesus symbolizes.

i) The Dalit Pneumatology

Nirmal has not worked this out in detail. This is in a way is his weakness. However he makes use of
metaphors and images to bring out the beneficial activity of the Holy Spirit. He refers to the story of
the valley of the dry bones in Ezekiel 37. The important question which this passage raises is: Can these
bones live? The bones refer to Israel, but it is under Dalit consciousness- dead, dry and lifeless. The
Holy Spirit revives them, gives them life, unifies them and makes them an army. Nirmal says “For us
Dalits then, the Spirit is the life giver, unifier and the empowerer for the liberation struggle of Indian
Dalits. But in our Dalit experiences, He is our comforter. He groans along with us in our sufferings.”[19]
We need to be aware that Nirmal highlighted the empowering role Holy Spirit and the other aspects
were not paid attention to. But within the scope of Dalit theology this focus is justifiable.

A Dalit God and Jesus the Dalit

The Christian God is a Dalit god, affirm Dalit theologians. This God who is revealed in the Old
Testament and Jesus who sided with the Dalits of the world are the liberative paradigms for the doing
of Dalit theology. It not only helps them to come to terms with their historical consciousness, which is
submerged in pathos and protest, but also to comprehend a God who in Jesus restores "humanness"
to Dalits.

The Exodus liberation paradigm which had tremendous implications for liberation theologies in Latin
America has extensively influenced the thinking and articulation of Dalit theology in India. A.P. Nirmal
particularly depended on the Deuteronomic account of the affliction, toil and the oppression of the
foreparents of the Israelites to expound the movement of Dalits from a "no people" to "God’s people."
Using the Deuteronomic Creed as model, Dalit theology can construct the historical Dalit
consciousness which has to do with their roots, identities and struggle for human dignity and "for the
right to live as free people created in the image of God." Nirmal says:

The historical Dalit consciousness in depicts even greater and deeper pathos than is found in the
Deuteronomic Creed. My Dalit ancestors did not enjoy the nomadic freedom of the wandering
Aramean. As outcasts, they were also cast out of their villages

When my Dalit ancestors walked the dusty roads of his village, the Sa Varnas tied a branch of a tree
around his rest so that he would not leave any unclean foot prints and pollute the roads." Nirmal
concludes,

The Dalit consciousness should realise that the ultimate goal of its liberation movement cannot be the
‘land flowing with milk and honey’. For Christian Dalit Theology, it cannot be simply the gaining of the
rights, the reservation, and the privileges.. The goal is the realisation of our full humanness or,
conversely our full divinity, the ideal of the Imago Dei, the image of God in us. To use another biblical
metaphor, our goal is the ‘glorious liberty of the children of god."26

For Dalit theologians God is clearly a Dalit God. God, who reveals himself, both through the prophets
and Jesus Christ, is a God of the Dalits. The servant God, a God who identifies with the servant-hood
of Dalits, is perceived by Dalit theologians as Dalit God. The servant role that the ex-untouchable
played in India was indeed a participation in this "servant-God’s ministries." Thus, Nirmal says, "To
speak of a Servant-God, therefore, is to recognise and identify him as a truly Dalit deity ,27 For Dalit
theologians Jesus is the ultimate Dalit, the servant God whom God reveals. However, it may be noted
here that some of the recent theologians underplay the use of this servant’ imagery as it evokes
extremely painful memories. Moreover, they feel, this will only help perpetuate structures of
domination and subservience within which Dalits are caught up even now.

Jesus’ tilt towards the poor and the marginalized, tax-collectors, prostitutes and lepers, according to
Dalit theology, portrays Jesus as God incarnated as a Dalit. Devasahayam reflects as follows on Jesus’
image from a Dalit perspective:

Jesus reveals a free God, who is uncoopted and uncontained by those identified with religion This God
is free to hear the cry of the outcasts against the guardians of religious society This God is not under
the power of Brahman but is free to hear ones against Brahmans and other upper castes and side with
the Dalits, who are ousted from the Temples and who are denied the right to study the Scriptures.28

The Cross has a special meaning in Dalit theology. Both the liberative praxis and the Dalitness of Jesus
culminates in the symbol of Gurukul, 1992.

"On the Cross, he was the broken, the crushed, the split, the torn, the driven-asunder man," revealing
his Dalitness.29

The vision of a new community under God is also envisaged by some Dalit theologians. Here the
emphasis is on the invitation of Jesus to a new fellowship in which all equally and fully participate.
"The focus is not merely on the oppression and God’ option for the oppressed, but on the new
community of freedom and fellowship, love and justice, which is the new people of the reign of God
to which God calls all’ peoples."30 Theologians like Wilson feel that God’s plan is to transform Dalits
into a community which liberates not only themselves but also their oppressors and thus gives a
liberative dimension to their very dalitness.
The use of the Bible in Dalit theology needs a special mention. Dalit theologians entirely depend on
Bible and Biblical examples. Dalit theologians are not essentially different from liberation school of
theology. However, there is a conscious and deliberate attempt on the part of Dalit theologians to re-
read the Bible from the perspective of the experience of the victims.

God- Talk: God-talk simply means the concept of God developed by various theologies in accordance
with their particular/own situations and with their understanding of God. A Series of attempts and
initiatives began in the early eighties to systematically articulate who God is in the context of the newly
emerging theologies. As such, A. P. Nirmal, a Dalit theologian, claims that the Dalit aspiration for
liberation and Pathos (suffering) is the context and starting point for Dalit God-talk.[3]In the same
tone, Devasahayam puts it across as- The term theology comes from the two Greek
terms theos and logos and they mean either ‘word of God’ or ‘word about God’. The concept of God
is the object of interest and concern of theology. It is God who is the ultimate authority and point of
reference for the theologians. The concepts related to scripture, creed, humanity are secondary and
derivative from the concept of God. The God of the Bible is the God who is in relation to all else.
Theology strives hard to bring out God’s relation to all other reality. God or the concept of God must
be related to all aspects of Indian reality.[4]

2. Re-imaging the images of God-

2.1 God of Liberation

i) Root & identities in the Exodus Liberation: The Exodus liberation paradigm which has tremendous
implications for liberation theologies in Latin America has extensively influenced the thinking and
articulation of Dalit theology in India. A.P. Nirmal particularly depends on the Deuteronomic account
of the affliction, toil and the oppression of the fore-parents of the Israelites to expound the movement
of Dalits from a "no people" to "God’s people." Using the Deuteronomic Creed as model to construct
the historical Dalit consciousness which has to do with their roots, identities and struggle for human
dignity and "for the right to live as free people created in the image of God."[5]

He (Nirmal) further says, “The Deuteronomic creed not only speaks about the root and the historical
nomadic consciousness but also about the changed status of the people of Israel and their
thanksgiving. The nomadic experience is brought to memory, but so also is the exodus experience.
Few in numbers are now a nation, great mighty and populous. No people are now God’s people. Let
Christian Dalits also affirm their own exodus experience. We should be aware of our historical Dalit
consciousness, and so we should also be aware of our present Christian consciousness. So we are not
just Dalits, we are Christian Dalits. Our exodus from Hinduism which was imposed upon us, to
Christianity or to rather Jesus Christ is a valuable experience. It has enabled us to recognize our
dalitness and also the dalitness of Jesus the Nazareth and the dalitness of his Father, our God. The
Dalit theology should be doxological in character.”[6]

Nirmal also says, “The historical Dalit consciousness depicts even greater and deeper pathos than is
found in the Deuteronomic Creed. My Dalit ancestors did not enjoy the nomadic freedom of the
wandering Aramean. As outcasts, they were also cast out of their villages. Nirmal concludes, “The Dalit
consciousness should realize that the ultimate goal of its liberation movement cannot be the ‘land
flowing with milk and honey’. For Christian Dalit Theology, it cannot be simply the gaining of the rights,
the reservation, and the privileges. The goal is the realization of our full humanness or, conversely our
full divinity, the ideal of the Imago Dei, the image of God in us. To use another biblical metaphor, our
goal is the ‘glorious liberty of the children of god."[7]
ii) Dalitness of Liberating God: The exodus experience of the Dalit has enabled them to recognize the
dalitness of Jesus and his Father (sic). This recognition means that they have rejected non-Dalit deities.
A non-Dalit deity cannot be the God of Dalits. This is why Dalit have rejected Rama-the deity whom
millions of Hindus worship and pray to. He is described as Purushottama and Maryada Purush but
Dalits have rejected him. The story goes that Rama killed Shambuka- a Dalit because Shambuka had
undertaken ‘tapashcharya’- a life of prayer and asceticism. The dominant religious tradition denied to
the Dalit the right to pray. Therefore, Rama simply killed Shambuka and performed ‘dharma’ a
religious act. This is why Dalits have rejected Rama. For Dalits he is a killer god- killer and murderer of
Dalits.[8]

But the God whom Jesus Christ revealed is a Dalit God. He is a servant God, God who serves. Service
of others has always been the privilege of Dalit communities. Unfortunately this word ‘service’-
ministry of diakonia has lost its cutting edge. Originally the word diakonia was associated with the
dining table, the servant therefore means a waiter. Therefore, the Dalits are prepared to say that ‘my
housemaid, my sweeper is my God.’ It is precisely in this sense that God is a servant God. He is a
waiter, a dhobi, a bhangi. Traditionally, all such service has been the lot of Dalits. To speak of a servant
God, therefore is to recognize Him and identify Him as a truly Dalit deity. The gospel writers identified
Jesus with the servant of God of Isaiah- who was utterly faithful in his service to God (Is. 53:2 f). The
language used is language full of pathos- that is the language used for God- the God of Dalits, the Dalit
God. For Dalit theologians God is clearly a Dalit God. God, who reveals himself, both through the
prophets and Jesus Christ, is a God of the Dalits. The servant God, a God who identifies with the
servant-hood of Dalits, is perceived by Dalit theologians as Dalit God. The servant role that the ex-
untouchable played in India was indeed a participation in this "servant-God’s ministries." Thus, Nirmal
says, "To speak of a Servant-God, therefore, is to recognize and identify him as a truly Dalit deity.[9]

Nirmal further asserts putting the meaning for the term ‘Dalit’ as manifested and displayed because
it is precisely in and through this people that God’s saving glory is manifested or displayed because
brokenness belongs to the very being of God. He is one with the broken. He suffers when His people
suffer. He dies in His people’s death and He rises again in their resurrection. He weeps when they
weep and laughs when His people laugh.[10]

2.2 Creator God- the Dalit God

i) Equality before the Creator God: Devasahayam points out that the whole created order is the family
of God and therefore humans and non- human creation have equal access to God. He is thus, both
creator and sustainer of all the creation.[11] Jesus Christ is the revelation of this creator God and
through our belief in him we are conceived as the family of God. Moreover the whole humanity is
created in the image of God and He breathed into human beings His Spirit. Hence, there is a sense of
divinity contained in all human beings, and we all are partakers in the divine life. Through this
interpretation he challenges the popular Hindu theology that Dalits have no part in Brahman, and in
upper caste. The biblical God calls the whole humanity to participate in God's creation, hence the
whole humanity is called to preserve and enrich the whole created order. Aided by the Spirit, They are
to work in such a way that perfect renewal of the created order is brought out where no one stays
isolated, suffering and uncared. This profound renewal would be a result of working humans inspired
by the empowering God.[12]

iv) Dalitness of Creator God: The God who addressed Jesus as his Son is a Dalit, getting himself dirty
in the hard-work of making this world out of nothing. God was not creating some spiritual pie-in-the
sky, he was making mud and dust, water and steam, animals and birds, coal and petroleum, sun-moon
and stars, man and woman. After six days of work and labour, God rested on the seventh day.[13]
2.3 Shepherd God: God was known by the name El Shaddai to those Shepherds whose forefathers
were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; who were abhorrent to those who cultivated the fertile fields of Egypt
worshipping their fertility deities. This is that God, who addressed Jesus as his Son, revealing himself
through the Prophets of the Old Testament as Dalit – the One who serves, a servant God. This is, for
instance, manifested in the four Servant Songs in Deutro-Isaiah.[14]

2.4 God of Empowerment: Reflecting on the valley of dry bones (Ezekiel 37:1-10), Devasahayam
points out the similarities between God's empowering act and Ambedkar's threefold strategy for Dalit
liberation, Unite, Educate and Agitate. He points out that, the coming together of the displaced bones
is an inspiration for the Dalits to unite under a common concern transcending their divisional
boundaries. This would only be possible, if the Dalits are educated of their needs and aspirations and
also that they share commonality in social stratification, subjugation and alienation. This would help
the Dalits to rise collectively and equally for their liberative cause and their struggle for liberation
would be a means of empowering themselves, being empowered together by God just as the displaced
bones.[15]

2.5 The Warrior God: For Nirmal, in order to combat against the classical Indian Christian Theology of
the Brahmanic tradition, he suggests that ‘signs’ and ‘wonders’ are not enough. We need a ‘mighty
hand’ and an ‘outstretched arm’ and a certain measure of ‘terror’. In short, we need an activist
struggle for liberation, a movement informed by its action towards its action towards its theological
reflection. Our pathos should give birth to our protest- a very loud protest that the walls of
Brahmanism should come tumbling down.[16] Hence, the God who delivered His children from the
Egyptians was a warrior God. Through His might and power He crushed the enemies as mentioned in
the book of Exodus. The Psalmist also declares that it was God’s right hand that protects and triumphs
over the enemies who will do the same to bring down the walls of Brahmanism.

Ex 15:6- “Your right hand, O Lord, was majestic in power. Your right hand, O Lord, shattered the
enemy.”

Ps 18:35- “You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me…”

Ps 44:3- “It was not by their sword that they won the land, nor did their arm bring them victory; it was
your right hand, your arm, and the light of your face, for you loved them.

Critical Evaluation: As it has been pointed out, the first Dalit theologians formulated their theologies
out of their experience, which was their pain-pathos. And this was the mold that molded their
understanding of God. But a dispassionate reader of their theologies would find incoherencies and
irrelevances which can be seen in the following -

Firstly, inspired and influenced by the liberal theologies, Dalit theology has taken the Exodus event to
construct historical Dalit consciousness- their roots, identity and struggle as well as their liberation.
This is incoherent for the fact that the Israelites were altogether craving for their liberation in one
voice whereas among the Dalits, majority of them are not even aware of that powerful God who
delivered His people. Here a potentially more relevant narrative has been suggested in terms of the
return of the Jews from the exile. But this is still argumentative since most of the Jews exiled in Babylon
refused to go back, hence the Diaspora Jews. Therefore one needs to ask- does the liberation called
forth include all the Dalits irrespective of religion? And secondly, they were led to the Promised Land
with signs and wonders which was a real motivating factor to cling on to their faith and belief. But as
to our present context it is vital to ask ourselves the question- Does God still work with signs and
wonders? Thirdly, it may not be quite relevant to depict God who has to deliver His people as the God
who suffers, as it suggests a weak and incompetent God. Almighty God has always been presupposed
to be mighty and transcends everything. Another problem facing the Dalit theology is the use of
metaphors of God, like Warrior God, Shepherd God etc. Even though metaphors are the expressions
used to describe the character of God, but the fact is that they always leave the imageries and
impression that God is really equipped with such qualities and characters. Thus it may not be effective
to the mass to depict God as a warrior who literally slays the enemies, a hostile and violent God. And
also a shepherd belongs to the lower class of the society and trades his sheep through their meat,
milk, wool and by-products. So depicting God to be a Shepherd would just ring a bell of a lower-class
farm man's life.

But at this juncture, Clarke has given in a sentence, concise but complete… God of Creative Dalit
Consciousness is saturated in Dalit-pathos but strong enough to Save.[17]

Thus, the God who was active in the Old Testament, and made Himself identical with the oppressed,
suffering and the cast-outs, was the God who liberated, empowered and shepherded. Consequently,
the Lord in the New Testament, manifested in the person of His son, Jesus Christ, is obvious of the
purpose of his coming and the ends of his ministry. Throughout his life and ministry, we find him being
identical with the suffering or the sufferer. Thus, Clarke emphasizes saying that the pivotal point of
Dalit theology should be Jesus Christ. He who hung on the cross and suffered to liberate man is still
the same figure suffering along with us, offering the hope of liberation.[18] Hence, our next venture
will be the Christology as expressed by the Dalit theologians.

Dalit Christology: As mentioned above, Dalit Christian theologians look Christ from their condition of
wretchedness, they find in the life and ministry of Jesus a number of conditions corresponding to their
own. Clarke sees two dimension contained in Christ that guides our efforts of arriving a relevant
contextual Christology. The first dimension tries locating a divine meaning applicable at all time and
situations and the second, endeavors to locate the impact of Jesus of Nazareth on believers of His
time.[19] Therefore, Christology from a Dalit perspective suggests an attempt to see Jesus' life and
ministry, death and resurrection in the light of the experience of Dalits. In this manner, the Dalit
Christian theologians endeavor to construct a Christology that is contextual and meeting the needs
and aspirations of the Dalits.

Nirmal supplements saying, Dalit Christology means first of all we proclaim and affirm that Jesus Christ
whose followers we are was himself a Dalit- despite his being a Jew. It further means that both his
humanity and his divinity are to be understood in terms of his Dalitness. His Dalitness is the key to the
mystery of his divine human unity.[20]

4. Christ as the central figure (Historical Jesus), his Dalitness-

4.1. Genealogy: Dalit Christian Theologians look at Jesus’ root and find that among Jesus’ ancestors
were people who had undergone painful experience similar to those of Dalits. The first name is that
of Tamar, the daughter-in-law of Judah. She outwitted her father-in-law by sleeping with him and
conceiving from him (Genesis 38:1-30). Secondly, there is Rahale -the harlot who helped the
Israelite spies (Joshua 2:1- 21). Thirdly, there is the King Solomon. We should not forget that Solomon
was an illegitimate Child of David. These small details of Jesus' ancestry should not be forgotten as
they are suggestive of his Dalit conditions.[21]

4.2. Background: He is also referred to as a "carpenter's son". That sounds like looking down upon his
father's profession.[22]In Mt. 13:55, the tone as to which Jesus was referred to resonances the offense
and insult as coming from a lowly class of the society, which reads as- "Isn't this the carpenter's son?
Isn't his mother's name Mary, and aren't his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas?

4.3 His self-attested title: The title that Jesus preferred to use for himself is "The son of Man". The
title is used in three different ways, so say the New Testament Scholars. Firstly, it simply means man
in an ordinary way. For instance, in one place when a scribe wanted to follow him, Jesus said, "Foxes
have holes, and birds of the air have nest; but the son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." (Matt
8:20). The second group of the Son of Man sayings is indicative of Jesus' present sufferings and
imminent death. The third group of the Son of Man sayings is called the Eschatological Son of Man
sayings. The second group speak of the Son of Man as encountering rejection, mockery, contempt,
suffering and finally death. Let us look at a few of these sayings:

"And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the
elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again". (Mark 8:31)

"And he said to them, 'Elijah does come first to restore all things; and how it is written of the Son of
Man, that he should suffer many things and be treated with contempt." (Mark 9:12)

"For the Son of Man also came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many."
(Mark 10:45)

These sayings indicate that Jesus as the Son of Man had to encounter rejection, mockery, contempt,
suffering and finally death. He underwent these Dalit experiences as the Prototype of all Dalits.[23]

4.4 His life: Another noteworthy feature of Jesus' life is his total identification with the Dalits of
his day. Again and again Jesus is accused of eating and drinking with publicans, tax collectors and
'sinners' of his day (Mk 2:15-16). His approach and attitude towards Samaritans, the Dalits of his day
and has demonstrated that Jesus loved and cared for the Dalits.[24]

4.5 His Preaching: In the Nazareth Manifesto what is generally overlooked is to its significance
for a Christian Dalit Theology, when Jesus quotes the passage from Isaiah and declares, "Today this
scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing, we read that "all spoke well of him, and wondered at the
gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth." But then Jesus goes on to tell his audience for
whom his liberation is meant. His two illustrations indicate that the liberation he is talking about is
meant for the Dalits and not for non-Dalits. In his first illustration he speaks about Zarephath the
widow in Sidon to whom Elijah was sent. But he also makes the point that there were many widows
in Israel, but Elijah went to none of them. Similarly, it was only Namaan the Syrian, the leper whom
Elisha cleansed. Of Course, there were many lepers in Israel, but they were not cleansed. The 'Dalits'
were set over against 'Israel'. The gospel that Jesus brought was the gospel for "Dalits" and not for
non-Dalits not for Israel. The whole situation changes at Jesus' explosive words and we read, "When
they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and put him out of the
city, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw him down
headlong." (Luke 4:16-29) The Nazareth Manifesto then is really manifesto for Dalits.[25]

4.6 His ministry: Although many of his ministerial events, in terms of healing and teachings, can
be related to the Dalit identity, one of the most significant incidents for a Christian Dalit Theology is
that of the cleansing of the temple. Not to rule out the various interpretations given by New Testament
scholars, Light Foot’s interpretation gives the best relevance for Christian Dalit Theology. He maintains
that the incident must be understood in terms of its implications for the Gentiles. All the buying and
selling and money exchanging took place in the part of the temple precincts which were reserved for
the Gentile worship was the Gentile Court. On the other hand the gentiles had no access to the inner
precincts where the Jewish worship proper was conducted. The bazar that was held in the Gentile
court thus effectively prevented them from conducting their worship in a peaceful and quiet manner.
Jesus the Messianic King thus restores to the Gentiles their religious rights. Light Foot’s interpretation
makes sense to the Indian Dalits who had to struggle for the temple entry rights and we know about
temple entry legislation in the various states of India. We the Indian Dalits know what it means to be
denied the entry to the temple and to be denied the right to pray and worship. Ambedkar and his
followers had to agitate for the entry to the Kala Rama temple in Nasik. We know about many such
temple entry agitations. In his act of restoration of the Gentile rights to worship, we see a prefiguration
of the vindication of the Indian Dalit struggle for their prayer and worship rights.[26]

Another instance is Jesus’ washing of his disciples’ feet. Massey comments John 13.1-15 as Jesus
shows forth to the world his precise nature of servanthood.

"Do you know what I have done to you? You call me teacher and Lord and you are right, for that is
what I am. So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's
feet. For I have set you an example that you also should do as I have done to you".

Massey further expounds from this pericope that those who are humbled by the world are lifted in
dignity in the sight of God.[27]

4.7 His suffering and death: There are many other examples of Jesus' sympathy for the Dalits
of his day. But his Dalitness is best symbolized by the cross. On the cross, he was the broken the
crushed, the split the torn, the driven as under man - the Dalit in the fullest possible meaning of that
term. "My God, my god, why hast thou forsaken me?" he cried aloud from the cross. The Son of God
feels that he is God-forsake. That feeling of being God-forsaken is at the heart of our Dalit experiences
and Dalit consciousness in India. It is the Dalitness of the divinity and humanity that the Cross of Jesus
symbolizes.[28]

Thus, to summarize Jesus as a Dalit we can infer from the comments of different theologians as
follows-

Deepti Sukumar, while reflecting on safaikaramcharis in the body of Christ, points out that Jesus
through His birth in an environment of poverty, alienation and discrimination indentified himself with
Dalits.[29] Maria Arul Raja also points out that the crucified Christ consciously indentifies Himself the
Dalits which would liberate them." [30] Jesus consciously drove himself to the Cross, and sacrificed his
life. This self choice attests to the two intentions of Jesus, firstly, his obedience to God and secondly,
his absolute solidarity with oppressed and the marginalized. Thus through the self sacrifice of Jesus
Dalits are challenged to obey Jesus and disobey the caste hierarchy and empty themselves to be in
deep solidarity with co- Dalits. It is thus not only birth, but even to the point of death that Jesus
identifies himself with the Dalits. The intention of his identification is to inspire the Dalits in the quest
for their liberation. Therefore Christian Dalits and all Christians, need to have a renewed vision which
would make them active participants in God's saving activity in the world and empower themselves
to take the responsibility of their own deliverance in Christ's name, and deliver all others under
oppression.[31]

Critical Evaluation: Jesus of History truly identified himself with the poor and lower class people of his
time. But the story of Jesus Christ does not end with the Jesus of History, but there is more about the
Christ of Faith who had resurrected from death and sits beside the Father’s throne and will come back
to take away the righteous with him and judge the evil. In this light, Dalits who have been identifying
their sufferings with Jesus’ can now claim an eschatological (immanent and imminent) that their place
is being built by Christ and will return judge the injustice and evils and lead his people to eternal
liberation.

Conclusion: From the above Theology/Christology and the evaluations, we can sum up that Dalit
theology, as a liberation theology, is a moving theology which is not rigid but flexible and floppy. It has
begun yet still in the process, foundation has been laid yet construction is still executed. Thus, as Clarke
says, doing Dalit theology involves methodological exclusiveness and theological inclusiveness.[32]

Counter Theology

A Counter-Theology

A Series of attempts and initiatives began in the early eighties to systematically articulate the faith in
the context of the newly emerging Dalit aspiration for liberation. A.P. Nirmal, James Massey, M.E.
Prabhakar, M. Azariah, K. Wilson, V. Devasahayam and F.J. Balasundaram are some of the prominent
persons who figure in this theological movement.13 As theology predominantly became a vehicle to
serve the elite interests, marginalizing the Dalits’ faith, Dalit theology manifested itself as a counter-
theology movement. Re-formulation and re-visioning were the objectives rather than reconstruction
and deconstruction. Both the European missionary movement and the traditional Indian ‘Christian
Theology of the 20th Century were rejected as metaphysical speculations having nothing to do directly
with the history and existence of the marginalized majority within the Indian Church.

Dalit theologians felt the need to consciously reflect upon the oppressive situation of Dalits in India.
"Thus, when Dalit theologians speak of Dalit theology," says James Massey:

they are in fact making an affirmation about the need for a theological expression which will help them
in their search for daily bread and their struggle to overcome a situation of oppression, poverty,
suffering, injustice, illiteracy and denial of human dignity and identity. It is these realities of Dalit life
which require the formulation of a Dalit theology. The highly philosophical schools of thoughts such
as Gnana Marga, Karma Marga and Bhakti Marga were of no liberative and theological value to
Dalits.

Many felt that the theological task of India need not be the preserve of the "Brahmanic Tradition"
within the Indian Church, which had always used "intuition, inferiority oriented approach" to
theologising.14 Dalit theologians were of the opinion that the theological and cultural domination of
Brahmanic traditions within Indian Christianity, ignoring the rich cultural and religious experience of
the Dalits had to be ignored, if not rejected completely. 15

It is relevant to note here that sacred texts of the Hindu religion such as Vedas and Mantras were not
accessible to Dalits as a rule. They could perceive the same tradition continuing within Christianity in
theology. In that sense Dalit theological movement was also an expression of appropriating a sacred
mode from high caste theology. Thus Dalit theological movement was a corrective to the
institutionalization of inequality and inaccessibility within the theological field. "To sum up, then,"
Nirmal says;

Whether it is the traditional Indian Christian theology or the more recent third-world theology, our
theologians failed to see the struggle of Indian Dalits for liberation a subject matter appropriate for
doing theology in India. What is amazing is that fact that Indian theologians ignore the reality of the
Indian Church. While estimates vary, between 50 and 80 percent of all the Christians in India today
are of scheduled-caste origin. This is the most important commonality cutting across the various
diversities of the Indian Church that would have provided an authentic liberation motif for Indian
Christian theology. If our theologians failed, to see this in the past, there is all the more reason for our
waking up to this reality today and for applying ourselves seriously to the ‘task of doing theology’.16

Thus, essentially, Dalit theology was a liberative action in itself, in the sense that its coming into being
created space for the development of a Dalit Christian voice.

Major Affirmations and Features

The primary affirmation of Dalit theology is that it is a theology about Dalits, for Dalits and originated
from them; "the theology which they themselves would like to expound."17 They alone are the authors
of this articulation. Almost closely following the Dalit literary movement, Dalit theology promotes an
exclusiveness in the doing of theology. Defending this methodological exclusivism, the chief architect
of this theology writes, "This exclusivism is necessary because the chief tendency of all dominant
traditions - cultural or theological - is to accommodate, include, assimilate, and finally conquer others.
Counter -theologies or people’s theology therefore need to be on guard and need18 to shut off the
influences of the dominant theological traditions.

fact it is the very Christian character of "Dalitness" which will justify this primacy given to Dalits and
the methodological exclusivism. Some Dalit theologians say Dalit theology can be done only by the
Dalits who have experienced sufferings and who understand the pain of people.

However, not all Dalit theologians accept this approach of virtual exclusion of others from doing Dalit
theology. Balasundaram, a departmental colleague, says, "Dalit theology is not and can’t be exclusive.
A theology that is exclusive can’t be Christian. Dalit theology is pursued for others’ liberation
also."19 Further, acknowledging the very inclusive structural nature of sin, in this case the caste system,
and the role both the oppressed and the oppressors have in this., K. Wilson challenges the exclusive
methodological approach. Non-Dalits’ expression of solidarity with Dalits also is seen as an inevitable
component of the ultimate liberation of Dalits. K. Wilson expresses it is as follows: " Christian Dalit
theology does not forbid Christian Dalits from working with non-Dalit authentic Christians, the
renascent Hindus, the reformed Muslims and humanistic forces from various other faiths and
ideologies, on a common human platform and thus hasten the process of establishing a human and
humane culture which is why the Word became flesh.

Due to influence of the ‘secular’ Dalit movement in India and the liberation theology from Latin
America, Dalit theology began the movement by accepting Marxian analytical tools. However,’ caste
is now seen as the major socio-economic formative force in shaping and understanding the history of
Dalits. Moreover the over-arching impact of Ambedkarism on all Dalits further seems to enhance the
process of accepting caste as the sole source of the suffering of Dalits. Ambedkar was very forthright
in declaring the separateness of Dalits from the caste system as the means of their liberation. Dalit
theology seems to be totally in conformity with this position.

Goal of Dalit Theology

The ultimate function of Dalit theology is two fold: to act in solidarity and to act for liberation.
Liberation is envisaged as liberation of Dalits from the historically oppressive structures both religio-
cultural and socio-economic. Hence, theological articulation is not only a faith expression but also a
means for liberation. According to this school of thought, any theological expression that will not lead
to action and the resultant liberation is futile.
The concept for solidarity has also emerged in this school of theology. Christian values of sacrifice,
charity and commitment to others are all intertwined in this profound understanding of solidarity.
Transcending one’s creed, ideology and religion a Dalit is invited "to lose oneself for the sake of the
other." Incarnational theology is the basis of such a two-sided solidarity with God and with fellow
Dalits. According to James Massey the core of the act of the incarnation of God in Jesus was God’s
"acting in solidarity with human beings, particularly the oppressed of this world."23 Massey sees in this
solidarity of God with human beings a challenge for Dalit solidarity:

The model of solidarity we find in God’s incarnational act in history challenges us Dalit Christians to
follow it, so that the experiences we share with the Dalits in general should become the basis of an
authentic Dalit theology. . . . Being in solidarity with our fellow Dalits of different faiths and ideologies
is a demand which the God of the Bible, through his own act of incarnation, places on Dalit Christians.
This is an important factor for the’ authenticity of Dalit theology, enabling it to become an instrument
of destroying the social and religious structures responsible for the Dalits’ historical captivity.24

4) It is not merely the enslavement of the Dalits by the dominating groups which comes under the
critical scrutiny of Dalit theology but also the enslavement of the Dalit psyche or "the inner nature of
Dalitness." James Massey describes it as "a self-captivity" of the Dalit community. Dalit theology seeks
to liberate people from this slavery of "self-captivity," "a slavery from which it seems almost
impossible to be liberated."25 The psychological dimensions within the Dalit theological movement are
far more significant than we see at the surface. This should be recognized as an important aspect of
Dalit theology.