Participants: Jon Wood
Series Code: IFF
Program Code: IFF000012
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00:17 I'm trying to get in shape for my trip to India.
00:20 Christ said to go into all the world and preach the gospel 00:25 to every creature. 00:26 The problem is we have no idea who they are. 00:32 How are we supposed to effectively communicate 00:34 the gospel to a people we know nothing about; how they think, 00:37 what kind of pressures they have in their daily lives. 00:41 Come with me and lets meet India Face to Face. 01:07 Welcome to the Hindu city of Palani. 01:11 It took us about eighteen hours to get here from Madras 01:14 by train and bus. 01:15 When we got here we found a city dominated by a Hindu temple 01:19 on top of a big hill. 01:32 Despite the warnings, I couldn't help but grab my camera 01:35 and wander around like a silly tourist. 01:37 Did you cut her hair? 01:38 Up there? 01:39 Okay. 01:40 Are you going to climb all the way up? 01:42 Wow, strong legs! 01:45 I kept thinking that somebody was going to get upset 01:47 and kick me out of here, but I just kept smiling 01:50 and wandering around. 01:51 I really wanted to climb up to the top, but I didn't think that 01:54 was even possible. 02:02 But in spite of the warnings I thought I'd wander over to the 02:04 entrance to the stairway up to the temple mount. 02:07 Macomb curiosity seemed to be driving me. 02:09 I'd read so much about ancient Israel's fascination with this 02:12 kind of stuff. 02:14 About one sixth of the earth's population today is Hindu. 02:18 That's about a billion people. 02:20 The majority of them live here in India, but Hinduisms 02:25 teachings and philosophies are becoming popular in Western 02:28 societies also. 02:30 Why did God dislike idol worship so much? 02:33 Well, here we go! 02:35 The entrance is lined with old kings that have died 02:43 and become deified with their wives standing dutifully 02:46 behind them. 02:47 The first thing you see on the inside is this giant 02:50 steel peacock, the vehicle of the god Mérida. 02:53 Concession stands line the walkway, even though this is 02:56 the off season. 03:02 I can't believe I actually made it in! 03:04 They even invited me! 03:06 Of course, I had to take off my shoes. 03:11 I think the Lord wants me here so we can see just what we're 03:14 calling these precious souls out of. 03:19 Idol worship has a super powerful grip on the people 03:22 that is not easily broken. 03:24 And we're about to witness just how strong this grip can be. 03:28 But I have to warn you before we go any farther that you're 03:31 in danger. 03:32 You may not believe in a devil, but that doesn't mean 03:35 he's not real. 03:36 And you're about to witness the manifestations of his spirit 03:38 in this video. 03:43 So please quickly claim the protection of Jesus 03:46 to protect yourself. 03:47 These dear people have very little protection from the evil 03:51 spirits attacking them. 03:52 Just about anyone can hire a sorcerer to send a demon into 03:56 someone's life and ruin them. 03:57 They think if they can do something to appease the god's, 04:00 if they can get some sense of forgiveness, then the god's 04:02 won't bother them. 04:03 But Jesus Christ has died to give them just that forgiveness. 04:08 And he's the only one that is willing and able to protect them 04:11 from those evil spirits. 04:14 Don't they deserve to know about it? 04:24 Here's a procession coming along similar to the one that woke me 04:27 up this morning. 04:28 There are two instruments here, that obo thing and the drum. 04:33 This is worship music and is designed to bring the spirits 04:36 into the hearts of the worshippers. 05:20 They stop every so often along way, listen to the music, 05:23 and head on up the stairs. 05:35 It's obvious that some people are into it deeper than others. 05:39 They all, however, feel that this is a holy place. 05:42 If I told them that these gods they worship are devils, 05:45 they would be really insulted. 05:46 Better to just present a better way. 05:58 Okay, notice the lady on the left. 06:01 The one with the dreadlocks. 06:03 You'll be seeing her again in a few minutes. 06:07 Those are peacock feathers because the god Mérida uses the 06:10 peacock as his transport vehicle. 06:12 The thing he is carrying is shaped like a mountain 06:14 reminiscent of when this mountain was carried by Saba 06:17 on his shoulder. 06:20 Check out this guy. 06:21 His load's so high that he had to wait for somebody to come 06:24 and lift that rope that's going across the walkway. 06:27 How are you this morning? 06:30 Morning. 06:31 We're coming up to a little shrine. 06:33 This priest thinks he's going to get a big tip. 06:35 I brought no money. 06:46 I actually did leave all my money in my hotel room 06:52 Even the idea of cleanliness is a Christian principle. 07:02 Wow! 07:19 Very good. 07:20 I didn't bring any money, Sir. 07:22 Thank you. 07:23 What? 07:24 Thank you. 07:34 Hello. 07:37 The bell is supposed to wake up the god and let him know 07:39 that I'm here. 07:44 That's a little strange. 07:48 How can he help me if we have to tell him that I'm even here? 07:50 I don't know. 08:03 I don't have any money. 08:04 I didn't bring any money. 08:11 But see, I don't... I didn't bring... I left it in the hotel. 08:16 Sorry, sorry, sorry. 08:20 Thank you. 08:21 These guys seemed a little bit disappointed that I didn't come 08:23 up with a large offering. 08:52 Many people in America today do not believe in a devil. 08:56 I'd like to take them to India where the Devil has had free 08:59 play for centuries, and isn't masked by 09:02 intellectual skepticism. 09:04 Contrast the look on this ladies face with the Bible verse that 09:08 says the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, and peace. 09:18 We're approaching the top now. 09:20 I'm not quite sure what to expect. 09:21 I'm thinking it'll be a really huge idol or something up here. 09:26 Instead I find this policeman. 09:28 He points me off to an office. 09:30 I didn't take any video in that office, but this guy that sat 09:33 behind a big desk just completely ignored me, 09:35 so I walked out. 09:37 Hi, I'm John. 09:41 John. 09:42 I'm Regis. 09:43 Regis? 09:45 Glad to meet you. 09:46 And your name? 09:47 Sunnu 09:48 Sunnu. 09:49 Very good. 09:50 Kevin, glad to meet you. 09:51 Acheron. 09:52 Okay, alright. 09:55 One of the advantages of not going with the big tour group 09:58 is that you get to meet people like these young college 10:00 students out on a field trip. 10:05 Only English man! 10:14 Alright! 10:15 Thank you. 10:16 Good to see yah. 10:17 Have a good trip. 10:19 See you again. 10:20 Okay. 10:21 See you again someday. 10:22 The first thing I find on top of the mountain is a 10:24 large open courtyard... 10:26 Oh, very cute. 10:27 surrounding a temple complex in the center. 10:29 One thing I appreciate about India is the love and pride they 10:33 take in their children. 10:37 Notice the sacred thread tied around this man's torso. 10:40 He's from the highest caste of Brahman. 10:42 This lady is performing a specific act of penance 10:45 proscribed for her in the Hindu writings in order to atone for a 10:49 specific misdeed that she has committed. 10:59 This is one of several shrines placed in the courtyard. 11:02 In a sense, these dear people are buying their way to heaven. 11:06 Instead of being dependent on God, they depend on their 11:09 performance of a whole list of tasks. 11:11 So instead of peace there is only tiring labor. 11:34 Here's the big sign that we saw from the hotel last night. 11:37 The green letter is Om, which means god, and the red letters 11:40 say Durga, the name of the god that lives here. 11:42 That big red thing is a weapon of defense, and is the symbol 11:45 for Hinduism like the cross is the symbol for Christianity. 11:49 Beneath it are images of gods and rulers that became gods. 11:52 On the top is this dragon like creature that is everywhere 11:55 in Hindu art. 11:56 I've gone nearly all the way around the courtyard, 11:59 and here's the entrance to the temple. 12:00 Let's go in. 12:04 That gold thing is over the most holy place. 12:07 I don't have the heart to go in there today, so I'll just stay 12:10 out here with the monkeys. 12:27 As I was leaving I wondered, who will tell this boy? 12:33 Who will tell these young hopeful girls of the better life 12:36 to come? 12:40 Must the millions perish without a hope? 13:02 Well, here we are at the big temple in Palani. 13:06 This is the seat of Hinduism in this entire state. 13:10 I've been able to go all of the way inside and come back out. 13:14 They actually invited me. 13:16 My people here said that there's no way I could take a video 13:19 camera in; I might get beat up. 13:21 But being a silly foreigner, I guess they gave me free rein. 13:28 So it's been great. 13:30 It's been interesting. 13:31 And it's hard to believe that people would accept this 13:36 as for real. 13:39 Hello. 13:42 So why does God hate idol worship? 13:43 Maybe because it takes so much away from the people, 13:47 and gives them nothing in return. |
Revised 2014-12-17