March 2026

[EWTN News] reports that Catholic bishops in India’s Maharashtra state are demanding the repeal of a new anti-conversion bill, arguing it violates constitutional “freedom of religion” and interferes with the Church’s “legitimate religious practices,” particularly the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). The Western Regional Bishops’ Council, led by Archbishop Elias Gonsalves of Nagpur, issued a statement condemning the law as “manifestly arbitrary” and a threat to “the personal domain of conscience and belief.” Lay groups like the Bombay Catholic Sabha denounced the bill as “draconian,” warning it will be “misused against minorities, women, and interfaith marriages.” A coalition of 35 civil rights and religious groups, including Muslim organizations, also condemned the legislation as a “threat to constitutional freedom,” citing Article 25 of India’s Constitution. The bishops and their allies frame their opposition entirely in terms of natural rights, privacy, and opposition to Hindu nationalist “polarization.”

This protest, while superficially defending religious activity, is a profound manifestation of the theological and spiritual bankruptcy of the post-conciliar “Church.” It reveals a complete surrender to the naturalistic, modernist errors condemned by pre-1958 pontiffs. The bishops’ argument rests on the false gods of constitutional rights and subjective conscience, while remaining utterly silent on the absolute, non-negotiable reign of Christ the King over all nations, laws, and human consciences. Their alliance with Muslim groups and civil society activists—who worship a false god—exposes the ecumenical, syncretist rot at the heart of the conciliar sect. This is not a defense of the Faith; it is the advocacy of a relativistic, human-centered “freedom” that directly opposes the social kingship of Our Lord Jesus Christ.