Religious Education in Indian Contexts

A programme in Christian Education that aims at holistic transformation would need a theory that has emerged in that context. It is crucial since the kind of Christian Education that we have at present in our churches has lost its cutting edge, because its underlying assumptions are alien to our present context. Therefore, in this article, firstly, I shall highlight the contextual realities from where educational theories are to emerge. Secondly, I shall focus on the question of how a specific contextual issue could be the point of entry for theories of religious education. Thirdly, I shall attempt to shed light upon the development of theories of religious education in the course of history, so that we know where we are standing today. And finally, I shall make an attempt to highlight what should be our theological, pedagogical and practical responses to the most important contextual challenges, namely plurality and poverty, so that a relevant Christian Education for India can be worked out. Firstly, diversity and plurality are the basic characteristics of one of th