Indian dowries

A very interesting thing took place one evening after the service. A young lady, maybe 16 or 17, came to talk with us.  She was a Christian and a member of one of the local churches that Dr. Kumar and other local pastors serve. The reason she came to talk with us was rather surprising. Her parents had decided it was time for her to get married and had found an acceptable young man. She and a young man were planning to get married, but the young man and his family were demanding a $20,000.00 {US dollars} as a dowry! This is very common in India.  It puts great pressure on families with girls, especially families of modest means.  To my way of thinking this does not make any sense at all. After speaking with her for a short while and sensing her quiet, pleasant manner it made less and less sense.  If anything the payment should go from the man and his family to the young lady and her family!

The young lady currently serves as a Sunday School teacher to these children.

 This concept of dowry is one of the reasons the Word of God is needed in India as well as every other country on the face of this earth.  This concept of dowry puts pressure on couples who are expecting a baby to determine the sex of the unborn very early. Many people who learn that their baby is a girl decide to abort their little one for financial reasons. 

Please pray for us as we proclaim the Word of God, that the Spirit will reveal the things of Christ to all who hear it. Paul explains that in the Kingdom of God there is neither Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male nor female.  How much this makes me praise God for what we have been taught from our childhood, concerning respect for all who have been created in the image of God. When Lori and I were expecting our children it didn’t matter to us in the least if our newborn was to be a boy or a girl. We put all of that in the hands of God who knows everything we need, and we can look back with more praise in our hearts and on our lips when we see that he does all things well. 

God’s  Peace.  Tom Lappi