Opposition To Hindu Temples In The West

[G.Subramaniam]

This thread is to show the low level harassment that
hindu temples face in the west

Also other opposition to hindu culture

[G.Subramaniam]

http://articles.latimes.com/2004/oct/04/...me-temple4

Hindu Temple Plans Uncertain

By Hugo Martín
October 04, 2004

It was proposed as the largest Hindu temple and cultural center in Southern California, an ornate structure with the kind of religious status held by the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove and the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles.

But when a nonprofit Hindu organization selected Chino Hills farmland for the project, residents in this wealthy bedroom community of San Bernardino County protested vehemently, saying it would generate too much traffic, ruin the city’s rural atmosphere and become an unwanted regional attraction.

Objections also surfaced from opponents who said the project would turn Chino Hills into a “Third World city” and a haven for terrorists. One petition to stop the project said the temple would play a role in “changing the city’s demographics forever.”

Now, three weeks after the Chino Hills City Council blocked the project by refusing to allow the temple’s spires to exceed the city’s height limit, local Hindu leaders are struggling to decide whether to fight the decision in court or continue their four-year search for a home base for Southern California’s burgeoning Hindu population.

“Our issue was very clear: We would like to be an asset to the community,” said Govind Vaghashia, a spokesman for the project proponent, Bochasanwasi Shree Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, a Hindu branch commonly known as BAPS.

Adam Eliason, chairman of the city’s Planning Commission, supported the Hindu project, calling it an asset to the city. “It’s a beautiful building with wonderful landscaping and water features,” he said.

Hindu leaders say the project is significant not just for Chino Hills residents but for Southern California’s growing Hindu population, which hopes for a grand, beautifully sculptured temple that would celebrate the history and culture of the religion. They said many BAPS Hindus now worship at a converted union hall in Whittier.

“The Indian population is growing very big in Southern California,” said Nadadur Vardhan, president of the Hindu Temple Society of Southern California, which operates a large temple in Calabasas that serves a different Hindu branch.

Statewide, the number of Indian residents nearly doubled over the last decade to 314,819, keeping California the national leader. Census figures show that of the Asian subgroups in the state, the Indian population shot up the fastest during the 1990s. Experts estimate that nearly 85% of Indians are Hindus.

The Chino Hills temple “would be a matter of pride for most Hindus in Southern California,” said Vinay Lal, an associate professor of South Asian history at UCLA.

The fight over the Hindu temple in Chino Hills is the latest of dozens of skirmishes around the country in recent years over plans to build bigger houses of worship, land use experts say. In August, a 20,000-square-foot Sikh temple opened in San Jose after a 10-year battle with neighbors.

Chino Hills is home to about 500 Hindu families, according to BAPS officials. The 2000 Census estimates that 1,320 of the county’s 7,368 residents of Indian descent live in Chino Hills. But the city has no Hindu temple. Hindu residents must drive to temples in Whittier or Riverside to attend weekly services.

As envisioned, the 164,372-square-foot BAPS facility – including a temple, a cultural center, two gymnasiums, classrooms and living quarters for swamis – would have served Hindus throughout the region.

The battle over the temple and cultural center dates to 1989, when BAPS representatives made plans to build the project on a 15-acre parcel near the commercial center of the city. But city officials had plans to build a civic center on the same property. Under a deal negotiated between city and BAPS representatives, BAPS let the city buy the land, and city officials promised to help BAPS find an alternative site in Chino Hills.

After investigating 20 locations over four years, BAPS chose a 20-acre parcel of farmland east of the Chino Valley Freeway, near a sewage treatment facility, several industrial firms and a mobile home park.

As word spread about the project, Chino Hills residents began to inundate City Hall with letters and e-mails, most in opposition to it.

Many opponents said the project would clash with the city’s rural atmosphere. The city of 73,000 is one of the county’s safest. Itsmedian household income is $84,000, highest in the county. The city, built on gentle hills, has 30 parks, 30 miles of trails and 3,000 acres of permanently preserved open space.

Opponents also voiced concern about the potential traffic generated by the project. But a city report that included an analysis by a private consultant and a study at a similarly sized Hindu facility in Bartlett, Ill., concluded that the project would not create traffic problems.

“Anybody who keeps coming up with traffic as an issue is not listening,” said Mayor Gary G. Larson, the only member of the council to consistently vote for the project.

Some of the opponents also seemed worried that the temple would draw Hindus to live in the city. “Unless you want the current demographics to look a bit like New Delhi, don’t do this,” said an e-mail dated Aug. 9, 2003. Another letter suggested Muslim extremists might blend in among Hindu worshipers, making the temple a “hiding place for terror.”

The project generated so much controversy that a Sept. 14 council hearing was moved to a high school gymnasium to accommodate more than 1,000 people, many waving placards, cheering and booing.

During the meeting, Gary Thomas, a 14-year resident of Chino Hills, told the council that he feared the temple would “be the dominant architectural feature in the city for 50 miles.”

“It’s not our heritage,” he told the council. “It’s not our community.”

After the raucous six-hour hearing, the council voted 4 to 1 to approve the project’s permits and environmental clearances but rejected a measure to allow the temple’s spires, which would range from 52 to 80 feet, to exceed the city’s 43-foot height limit. A staff report notes that the proposed site already has two utility poles that are at least 80 feet tall.

City Council members who opposed raising the height limit said their objections were based solely on concerns about the potential traffic and visual impacts of the project.

“It’s not my desire that we have a huge draw in our community” said Councilman Ed Graham, who voted against the height exemption.

BAPS representatives have refused to reduce the height of the spires, saying the design was based on proportions dictated in Hindu scripture.

Vaghashia said local BAPS leaders will confer with religious leaders in India to decide what steps to take next.

Vaghashia said he was surprised by the council’s decision because the height of the spires was never mentioned by city staff or the Planning Commission, which approved the project last year.

“Since the inception of the project, the height has been the same,” he said.

Some project supporters believe the council was swayed by opponents, who threatened to recall or vote against council members who supported it.

“It’s a different religion,” said Anoop Gandecha, a Chino Hills resident who takes his wife and son to the Whittier Hindu temple every week. “Accepting it is going to take awhile.”

Jitendra Dave, a Hindu and five-year resident of Chino Hills, said he is most upset that some opponents described the temple and cultural center as a potential eyesore.

“It’s a place of worship,” he said. “I’ve never heard a place of worship being an eyesore.”

[G.Subramaniam]

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html...751C1A965958260

Hindu Temple Plans Stir Concerns in Community

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Published: December 30, 1993

When word got around that the boarded-up Y.M.C.A. here, complete with outdoor pool, was destined to become a Hindu temple, some residents were less than pleased.

Though the Sayreville Planning Board has moved to resolve the issue by permitting the temple if certain conditions are met, the question remains whether opposition to the temple springs from parking problems or prejudice.

"Our community has been tarnished by this," said Regina Strauss, a longtime Sayreville resident who says that traffic concerns are uppermost in her neighbors' minds.

David Frizell, a lawyer who represents the Shri Bhaktinidhi Trust, which is trying to buy the property, said critics erroneously claimed that the sect refuses to salute the American flag and presented a petition with 500 signatures objecting to the temple in part because it might encourage worshipers to relocate here. Lawyer Cites Racial Motives

"I think it would be a short leap to infer racial motives," said Mr. Frizell, adding that a nearby Catholic church "gets 3,500 worshipers every Sunday and doesn't have a single off-street parking space." The old Y has 84 parking spaces.

If the building becomes a temple, it would potentially serve some 300 families of the Vaishnav faith living in northern and central New Jersey whose nearest temples are in Queens and in Schuylkill Haven, Pa., near Philadelphia. Between 1,000 and 1,500 worshipers could attend services at each of the three major Vaishnav religious observances during the year.

Based on objections to the amount of parking available, the planning board of Sayreville, a borough of some 35,000 a few miles southeast of New Brunswick, rejected the trust's site plan on May 24. The trust then sued the planning board and the borough in Federal District Court in Newark, claiming religious discrimination. Concessions by Board

Monday night, as part of a court-brokered mediation effort, the board approved a new plan that would provide for shuttle van services on the major holy days and the creation of 60 more parking spaces, many of which would be created by filling in the swimming pool.

The trust is no longer pursuing its suit against the planning board. But it still wants the borough to cover about $100,000 of its legal costs arising from delays in acquiring the property.

Mr. Frizell said the trust has waived punitive damages, saying, "It's not in my clients' nature to pursue that."

Carmine R. Villani, the lawyer representing Sayreville, said the site plan changes made by the trust were "an acknowledgement of the sheer volume of traffic that could come to the site." He said the borough would continue to fight the lawsuit because "the discrimination claims were baseless." Traffic Problems Remain

Some townspeople complain that the traffic and parking issues still have not been addressed.

Laurie Soluri said it was difficult to drive in and out of the Post Office lot across the road from the old Y.M.C.A. "and there's nothing happening now." She said that extra traffic on Vaishnav high holy days could cause "total chaos."

Mrs. Strauss said that although some citizens speaking at Monday night's often-heated planning board meeting made "stupid" comments that might be interpreted as biased, the real issue is not discrimination.

"I'm a woman, I'm Jewish and I have multiple sclerosis," said Mrs. Strauss. "I know what discrimination is."

The issue, she said, is the narrowness of Washington Road. Even now, it sometimes takes her 20 minutes to travel the three miles to the Garden State Parkway entrance, she said.

Gurmeet Gill, an Indian-American who lives on the outskirts of Sayreville and does not belong to the group that wants to build the temple, said that parking concerns may indeed be motivating much of the opposition.

"I don't think it's discrimination," said Mr. Gill. "Washington Road with its traffic does have a problem."

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.hinduismtoday.com/archives/1989...989-03-08.shtml

Confusion and Outcry Deny Georgia Temple Use of Lands

When Ajodia Persaud went to the meeting of the Gwinnett Country Board of Commissioners on December 20th, 1988, he was reasonably confident that his society would get the special permission it sought to build a temple in this suburban area of Atlanta, Georgia. There were a large number of people at the public hearing, he noted upon entering, but he figured they were there for some other issue. It came as a great shock (one he has hardly recovered from to this day) to discover that some one-hundred irate Gwinnett county residents had shown up there to voice their "vehement opposition" to the temple. According to the meeting minutes, the chairman had only just begun the discussion when there was such an uproar in the chamber that one commissioner, Mr. Suffridge, stated, "If you are all going to be nasty, I am going to leave now."

The meeting did calm down, but the inexperienced and unprepared Hindus were overwhelmed by the homeowners' attack. The commissioners denied the temple a special use permit. It was a disastrous end to a series of disasters in public relations and land-use technicalities.

On the brighter side, the temple society has already recovered from the setback and is searching, according to Persaud, for a five-acre site which will not require special county permission for the temple. This happy ending has yet to be written, but the Atlanta experience is well worth recounting for the benefit of other temples seeking to build in local communities. This is not the first time that a Hindu temple has been denied special zoning permission in situations where there is reason to believe a more skillful approach could have brought a different outcome.

It would be easy to chalk the whole unseemly Atlanta episode up to blatant racism. This is, after all, Georgia-heart of the Deep South, buckle on the Bible Belt, where most Christian churches remain segregated into all-black and all-white congregations. Gwinnett county in particular is 95% white in a state 25% black. "Off the record" just about every local resident HINDUISM TODAY spoke with said there was a strong racist element in the opposition to the Hindu temple. But at least the Ku Klux Klan wasn't burning crosses on anyone's lawn, and it's only fair to say that a lot of people who opposed the temple did so for reasons not based on racial prejudice. Perhaps they are prejudice against what they don't know or don't understand, but that is different.

Here's how the story unfolded. Over a year ago, Ajodia Persaud found a piece of land in the Atlanta suburb of Lilburn. Thinking it would make a good home and place for a large garden, he purchased the four-acre lot and house for $135,000. According to Persaud, he cleared a portion of the land to plant a garden. Standing one day on the cleared spot with Dr. Deen Chandora, fellow member of the Greater Atlantic Vedic Temple Society, Persaud said they were inspired that this could be the place to build the temple they had so long wanted. A decision was quickly reached to lease the site from Persaud and build the temple there. Anxious to get the ball rolling and money coming in, the group hastily organized a ground-breaking ceremony to coincide with the September 11th, 1988, visit of His Holiness, Paramahamsa Swami Maheshwarananda, who maintains an ashram in Vienna, Austria. Announcements of this event were distributed throughout the neighborhood and were the first notice many local residents had that a temple was planned for the site.

This rather simple series of events effectively sealed the fate of the temple as far as the local community was concerned. To understand why, it is important to first understand American zoning regulations. These regulations vary with each locality and are designed to permit controlled use of the land. Thus, certain areas are designated for residences, others for businesses, still others for industry. Just about anything can and is specified in zoning regulations, including fencing, landscaping, building height, etc. Temples come under the same regulations as churches. In some towns, churches can be build anywhere, in most, however, specific requirements must be met or a "special use permit" issued. That permit requires a review by county officials, a public hearing and a vote by a county, and sometimes a state, commission. It's during this public hearing process that opposition can and often does occur. The typical arguments are heavier traffic and increased use of public services such as water and sewage.

The current land owners of most neighborhoods are frequently suspicious of any new development, fearful that it will lessen the value of their property. In the cases of church construction, this is often true, for land adjacent to a church is valued less highly. Much opposition stems from this property value issue. But loss of property value itself is not usually a sufficient reason to have a special use permit denied. Hence the introduction of other reasons, such as traffic.

The final shoot-out over the Vedic Temple's special use permit occurred at the December 20th public hearing. The principle opponent of the temple was the South Gwinnett Home Owner's Alliance. It is frequently involved in zoning issues such as this. Armed with a petition with 314 signatures against the temple, their representative, Mr. Randy Dresher, Jr., launched a skillful barrage of well-prepared objections: "We want you to know," he told the commission, "that applicant decimated the trees and clear-cut this property without a grading permit, and this was done prior to applying for this special use permit...The applicant has presented a number of conflicting stories which have had the effect of deceiving neighbors as to the true intentions for property use...The applicant has already clearly demonstrated little to no regard for the privacy and rights of the neighborhood...Traffic hazards would undoubtedly increase in an area already beset by hazards, curbs, steep grades and numerous accidents...Applicant's proposed 20-foot buffer is totally inadequate to protect the home-owner's interest, especially considering how the trees have been raped from the property already." Temple member Vishnu Whutemburg, who was at the hearing, said the temple representatives were "totally unprepared and complete novices," unable to answer the charges.

Seeking to understand the opposition to the temple, HINDUISM TODAY interviewed Mrs. Donna Fisher, a member of the Alliance who spoke against the temple at a preliminary Planning Commission meeting. Mrs. Fisher is a former school teacher and full-time mother of three. She minored in religion for her degree and taught at a black college for five years. Often active in zoning disputes, she was once nearly involved in filing a lawsuit against her own church for zoning violations. She told HINDUISM TODAY, "What upset me was that these people did not know enough about our laws, customs and procedures. I think it was a sad thing to happen." She admitted that the alliance "did not expect to win...If they had left the land wooded, the homeowners would have been overruled." "It was certainly not an issue of being prejudice against Hinduism," she claimed, "the temple encroached on the rights of the neighbors...Totally raped the land, cut every single tree down."

The tree clearing was a central issue and set the emotional tone of the proceedings. Since Persaud personally owned the land at the time of the clearing, and only later conceived the idea of leasing it to the temple, he was clearly within his rights to remove trees. But the local people, including the county planning department, interpreted the land clearing as a first step in the construction of the temple, a step requiring county permits. Then when the groundbreaking was held on the heels of the land clearing, the community felt they were being misled. Neighbors inquiring about the site received different answers-that the clearing was for a garden, for a family gathering or for a second house. All legal reasons, but the subsequent confusion raised a great deal of suspicion and hostility and ultimately led to the temple's defeat.

As the Vedic temple members are first to admit, they went into the proceedings blindly. Their inexperienced handling of the county regulations and public relations with the local residents left them facing overwhelming opposition. The Livermore, California, Siva/Vishnu temple and the New Jersey Swaminarayan Fellowship faced similar problems. Analysis of these experiences reveals two central rules for establishing a temple and successfully ingratiating it with the existing community.

The first rule is careful attention to public relations. Every effort must be made to meet both residents and community leaders, such as ministers. Considering the misinformed press Hindus often receive in America, it may well be necessary to re-educate people about Hinduism (perhaps with a few issues of HINDUISM TODAY!).

The second rule is for the temple to seek the advice of professionals who are experts in their area's land-use laws. One kind of expert is a lawyer who specializes in real-estate law. Lawyers cost money, but properly chosen ones will earn their own fees through sound counsel. With this expert advice, the temple can carefully plan its entire development right from the first acquisition of the land to the kumbhabhishekam.

Finally, when opposition occurs, it is easy to fall back upon cries of "racism" and "bigotry." But the long-term effect of such tactics is only to harden feelings and prevent true amalgamation with the community-if the temple is ever built. The wiser course is to follow the land-use laws precisely and to educate and make friends with the local community.

With these and other lessons under its belt, the Atlanta temple society can now more knowledgeable procure an appropriate site to build upon their community's temple.

Article copyright Himalayan Academy.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.hvk.org/articles/0304/100.html

Edison council opposes proposed Hindu temple

Author: Jerry Barca
Publication: Courier News
Date: March 11, 2004
URL: http://www.c-n.com/news/c-n/story/0,2111,923126,00.html

The Township Council has sided with residents who fear a proposed Hindu temple in neighboring South Plainfield would disrupt their quiet neighborhood.

On Wednesday night, council members cited traffic concerns, not religious denomination, in adopting a resolution in opposition to the proposed one- story, 14,000-square-foot temple on the former Coastal Oil site.

"This particular development can negatively impact, quite seriously, a neighborhood in Edison," said Councilman Anthony Massaro.

The International Swaminarayan Satsang Organization is seeking to build the temple on an area zoned for light industrial use. While the entire building would sit in South Plainfield, the lone access to the 6.7-acre plot is through Edison, namely Fleet Avenue. Members of the congregation would have to traverse Universal Avenue or Nevsky Street to reach the closest major thoroughfare, Park Avenue.

Tonight, the public will have a chance to speak about the application at an 8 p.m. zoning board meeting in South Plainfield Borough Hall.

Rick Brown, Edison township engineer, is slated to voice the governing body's concerns at the meeting.

Irene Wall, a Fleet Avenue resident, has led her neighborhood's fight to stop the proposed temple from being built.

"Our area is not conducive to this kind of development," said Wall, who lobbied the Edison council for support earlier this week.

Edison residents next to the proposed site fear cars traveling to and from the temple will disrupt their quiet neighborhood of a half-dozen dead-end streets with Fleet Avenue as the only outlet.

South Plainfield police have questioned whether Nevsky Street and Fleet and Universal avenues could handle the increased number of motorists the temple would yield, according to a Jan. 28 letter Sgt. Kevin Murtagh, of the traffic safety unit, sent to the zoning board.

But a traffic study performed on behalf of the developer by Medina Consultants of Princeton stated the increased traffic from the temple would not negatively affect Edison or South Plainfield.

"A place of worship, as I've stated before, is probably the best use for the site compared to what it is zoned for," said Dhruval Shah, director of the Swaminarayan Satsang's Central New Jersey chapter.

The area is zoned for light industrial use, requiring a variance for the temple to be built.

The Hindu group currently holds services in the Knights of Columbus building in the Iselin section of Woodbridge. The congregation of 150 people is expected to reach 250. The congregation wants to build the temple so it can have its own place to worship.

Shah believes zoning law allows the temple to be built. If his group is denied by the zoning board, Shah said an appeal will be filed.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://in.rediff.com/news/1999/may/22us3.htm

Hindu Temple Officials Wait For Their Day In Court
E-Mail this report to a friend

Arthur J Pais

Mahesh Dixit is clearly tired of the controversy that has bogged down the plans for a $ 2 million project to build a cultural center adjacent to a temple in Berlin Borough, about an hour's drive from New York.

"We have been working on it for many years, and when we were able to start the construction work, the town changes its zoning laws," he says with a heavy sigh. The cultural center was to be built on a seven acre land near the Hindu temple housed since 1982 in a former Baptist church.

Dixit, an engineer with Simon & Webster in the nearby Cherry Hill town, is one of the pillars of the Indian Temple Associates Cultural Center that manages the temple. He has officiated as a priest at the temple since its inception.

The Center bought the land for $ 20,000 and has spent about $ 100,000 in engineering and traffic studies and sent notices -- as per the law -- to property owners within 200 feet of the site in November about the proposed cultural center.

Then the murmuring started, and many residents began a signature campaign against the proposed center, and about two months ago, the Borough Council changed its mind.

The Association filed discrimination suit immediately against the Borough. And Dixit and other officials including Ghanshyam Dave, the association's president, want to have their day in the court soonest.

"If I have to look at it philosophically, I would say that I would not want anything in a vacant lot near my house," Dixit says with a sigh. But he wonders what the true motive of the opponents is. Do they fear for their tranquility or are afraid of an alien culture?

Many neighbors say while it was alright to have the temple around them, the cultural center would draw far bigger number of people and disrupt the peace, even though it was going to be built in technically a non-resident area. Several of the residents, who spoke to this reporter on condition of anonymity, said they would have opposed the Center even if a Christian organization was behind it. Others said they had run away from bigger cities, hoping for quietude. "And suddenly in God's name our peace is being disturbed," said one middle aged resident.

Dixit is quick to point out that the residents have an exaggerated fear about the noise level and the influx of thousands of people every day of the week throughout the year.

"Our people just do not have time for such activities every day of their lives," he says.

Dixit says the Borough Council did know of the opposition, but expressed no concern initially to the proposal. However, it gave in to increasing pressure and changed the zoning law.

The lawsuit contends that following signs of opposition by the residents, the council passed an ordinance removing a single sentence from the zoning ordinance -- that sentence permitted multipurpose buildings in nonresidential areas.

"They told us first it was permitted, the zoning law allowed it," Jeff Baron, an attorney for the association says. "Then there was a sudden change. That strikes us as strange." He says some of the opponents were not discussing just the fears about the noise level. They were clearly talking about a religion, another culture growing amidst them, he adds.

"The cultural centers are indeed very important to any temple in America," Dixit says. "Temples abroad function entirely different than the ones in India.

"In India, we go to a temple, pray and then go home. But abroad, specially in smaller cities and big towns, temples and the cultural organizations associated with them help us remain connected with our faith, they help the second generation keep their faith alive too. We hold religious classes, and teach our children Indian languages -- in this temple, we teach Gujarati."

There are more than 50,000 Hindus living around one hour's driving distance from the Berlin borough temple, and though only a fraction visit this temple, it has become too small to cater to their needs. "Our community has been steadily growing and the cultural center is very vital to us because we cannot hold events and religious classes for more than a few dozens," Dixit says.

While the town authorities would not comment on the zoning issue citing the law suit, an official of New Jersey Planning Officials, a non-profit group that advises municipal and county zoning boards, told reporters that New Jersey is considered a "tough state" because "the residents have a lot more to say."

"When the neighbors have a reaction, the governing body has a reaction," Joe Doyle, executive director of the Planning Officials said.

"I feel it is a case of people being afraid of something unknown, different and strange to them," says Suren Gambhir, a professor in the South Asian studies department at the University of Pennsylvania. "But such opposition is found throughout American history -- every new group of immigrants including Italians, Irish and Jews, have found some opposition or the other."

It was either the fear of the unknown or outright hatred for foreign religions that drove hundreds of families in New Jersey's Newtown a decade ago to campaign against a $ 100 million project to build a lavish Swaminarayan temple, retreat center, school and cultural center. Letters comparing the Hindus with cults such as the one that led to the mass suicide of dozens in Jonestown began circulating. Yoga was rumored to be disguised devil worship. Video tapes ranting against Hinduism, Mahatma Gandhi and yoga began to surface in many homes. The name of Shree Rajneesh's commune was invoked -- and leaflets warned of free sex associated with Rajneesh.

Upset over the overwhelming opposition, the Swaminarayanis gave up the project. But quickly they hired an American public relations firm to run a campaign asserting that the Swaminarayanis were a peaceful and legitimate religious group with an open agenda.

Most of the opposition to temple and mosque projects have risen when they were to be situated in the middle of a city or a town.

The Berlin Borough issue is one of the many controversies that have challenged the building of Hindu temples and mosques across America. Many of the objections have been over zoning laws, with the residents protesting the proposed temple or a mosque would disturb the peaceful neighborhoods.

"Some of the objections could spring from genuine concerns but some are motivated by the dislike or fear of something different," says Alagappa Alagappan, one of the trustees of the Hindu temple in New York. "Some opposition comes from purely racist minds."

And yet, in most cases the officials of the proposed temples have succeeded in convincing the people in the neighborhood that except for a few days in a year such as during the Navratri celebrations, the visitors to the temples would not cause any disruption of life

There are nearly 100 temples across the United States catering to every sect and denomination. Over $ 100 million has been spent on them, according to conservative estimates.

"The fact that others have faced the opposition and overcome the problem gives us encouragement," says Dixit. "But frankly, did we have to go to the court?"

[G.Subramaniam]

http://toronto.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTV...hub=TorontoHome

Hindu temple says funding request was ignored

Updated: Mon Apr. 30 2007 2:32:16 PM

toronto.ctv.ca

Ontario's Liberal government was being peppered with allegations again on Monday that Liberal-friendly organizations received millions in funding from immigration programs.

Members of a Hindu temple in Hamilton said they are disappointed the government ignored their desperate call for help. A post-9-11 fire bombing of the temple gutted the place of worship in a misguided act of hate.

Ram Kamath said the Ontario government was pretty well the only group to ignore pleas for help after the $1.8 million building was burned down.

The temple's outgoing president said he was angry to see reports of similar organizations receiving money, especially when it was suggested that some of those other multicultural groups had Liberal Party ties.

Federal and municipal governments gave a total of $130,000 for the temple's restoration. Almost $1 million dollars was collected through donations.

Members of the temple were told at least four times that no provincial money was available. But the government did give more than $31,000 in funding earmarked for fitness equipment.

Kamath said the government can still help by giving about $400,000 to help settle the temple's outstanding costs and debts.

He also wants the temple to be recognized by the province as a historical site, as a reminder of what the Hindu community went through after Sept. 11, 2001.

Opposition MPP Andrea Horwath said the temple's experience is proof the government deliberately ignored some multicultural groups while handing out money to other organizations connected to the governing party.

The government has faced about two weeks worth of questioning about more than $20 million in grant money distributed by the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration for multicultural groups.

Opposition parties have hammered Minister Michael Colle and Premier Dalton McGuinty, saying the funds were handed out without following proper application processes.

McGuinty defended the grants last week, saying "all kinds of year-end money" is invested in Ontario's cultural institutions in similar ways without any fuss.

The premier tried to deflect criticism, suggesting that ongoing questions from opposition parties are based on racism. His comment further enraged opposition MPPs.

McGuinty released a statement Friday night saying the opposition's questions are not racially motivated and he regretted making the insinuation.

Opposition parties tried Thursday to get all documents related to the grants sent to the auditor general but the government used its majority to quash the motion.

That means any investigation by the auditor will not be revealed until after the October provincial election.

With files from The Canadian Press

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.illinoistimes.com/gyrobase/Co...oid%3A6464

Keeping the faith
Plans proceed for a Hindu temple in Springfield, but another faces resistance in Champaign-Urbana

BY MANJULA BATMANATHAN

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Elaborate three-day pooja services are conducted by Hindu priests before the temple can be considered sacred and ready for worship.

Elaborate three-day pooja services are conducted by Hindu priests before the temple can be considered sacred and ready for worship.
PHOTO COURTESY OF QUAD CITY HINDU TEMPLE

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A dozen Hindu worshipers in the Springfield area are working with members of the local Indian community to open a permanent temple.
The group is scouting potential locations and raising money for a $1 million temple, which will serve several hundred families, says Krishna Brahmamdam, who leads the Springfield temple project.
“The time has come for Springfield’s Indian community to establish a permanent worship site,” he says.
In the past, differences of opinion and skepticism have kept the project on hold, but no more, Brahmamdam says.
“Finally we are able to see in unison,” he says.
“We have a clearer idea of what we want the temple to represent, and with strong commitment from the Indian community we are moving toward that goal.”
In April, the Hindu Temple of Greater Springfield was incorporated as a not-for-profit organization and an exploratory committee put in place to plan the initial development phases of the project.
The first step of the plan involves establishing an interim site where worship services can be conducted. A Hindu priest is expected to travel to Springfield in the coming months to conduct traditional pooja services.
“While deciding on a temporary temple location, we are also exploring available properties both within city limits and countywide as HGTS’s future home,” says Brahmamdam.
A foreclosed property — a former church building southeast of town — holds promise.
“We are looking at all available properties, including existing buildings and land, as a possible temple site,” Brahmamdam says.
The temple is expected to serve almost 400 Hindu families. Many of them now travel hundreds of miles to worship at temples in Chicago, St. Louis, and Indianapolis.
“The temple will not only serve Springfield residents but will also draw Hindus from neighboring towns, including Taylorville, Jacksonville, Bloomington, and Decatur,” he says.
Brahmamdam, a 20-year resident of Springfield, says that the Indian community has established strong roots in the city and has grown over the years, largely because of the expanding medical, software, and engineering industries.
“Establishing a temple in Springfield meets our needs for a central worship house where all Hindus can gather as a community,” he says.
Many traditional functions and religious gatherings are being held at either the Indian Association House on Peoria Road or in rented facilities.
Although Brahmamdam is confident that Springfield will embrace the presence of a Hindu temple in the area, he is also aware of the ongoing opposition to the proposed Hindu Temple and Cultural Society of Central Illinois in Champaign County.
There, Hindu worshipers have pushed for a temple for more than two years, with no success.
Led by University of Illinois professor Shiv Kapoor, the group’s first attempt, in 2005, to build a Hindu temple in Urbana was thwarted by opposition from neighbors and an unsuccessful land-acquisition effort.
Their ongoing second attempt also faces opposition from area homeowners, who have raised concerns over property values, protection of rural farmland, drainage and flooding problems, increased traffic, and preservation of the rural quality of life.
Kapoor says that the process has been frustrating, especially the recent inaction by the Champaign County Board of Appeals, because of the absence of some members, during its April meeting.
More than 70 Hindu worshipers who attended the hearing hoping for a decision were disappointed.
“Three hearings later, and the fate of the project still hangs in the balance,” Kapoor says. “We are hoping the May session will hold a positive outcome.”
Kapoor says the temple committee has been working with city planners and engineers to address suggestions that will help assuage homeowners’ concerns.
The proposed $1 million Hindu Temple would serve approximately 200 Champaign-Urbana Indian families, Kapoor says.
The group plans to purchase a 40-acre parcel near a county highway, in a development known as the Thor-O-Bred Acres subdivision, while proposing to develop just five acres, including the temple, parking, and a landscaped area.
A “special use” permit is required for the property, which is now designated “best prime farmland.”
Attorney Kevin Luebchow, representing homeowners who oppose the temple, argues that although no specific development is scheduled for the farmland, granting a special-use permit for the property could pose an array of problems for residents in the area.
During a Zoning Board of Appeals hearing in late March, Luebchow told board members that the temple could have a negative impact on residential properties in the area.
He also noted said that “there have been proposed temples throughout Illinois and the United States that have been denied zoning requests because the determination was made that the design of the facility did not comply or match the characteristics of the district.”
Kapoor is disheartened by assertions that the temple design will be an eyesore.
“I have heard such references about the temple, and it’s pretty discouraging that ignorance could lead to rejection,” he says. “We are looking to expand the Hindu community’s reach to our younger generation with a temple that not only serves as a religious hub but as a cultural center that offers more that just prayer services.”
Approximately 29 residential lots, many located next to small commercial operations, sit adjacent to the proposed temple site. Several churches are located in the area, but homeowners say the temple would change the nature of the neighborhood and constitute “haphazard development.”
Kapoor says that a Hindu temple’s functions are similar in many ways to those of a church.
“Worshipers gather, pray, socialize, counsel, educate, and celebrate,” he explains. “Lack of understanding and ignorance over faiths of foreign origin leads to negative reaction. That’s one reason why we need to foster a more tolerant society by exposing different cultures to different people.”

Hinduism, which has more than 200 temples and more than 1.5 million worshipers in the United States, is an established religion, ranking third in the world behind Christianity and Islam.
There are at least eight Hindu temples in Illinois, several with grand structures resembling India’s traditional architecture.
Kapoor says although the proposed temple in Champaign County will not be a mirror image of an Indian Hindu temple, with an intricately carved exterior and towering columns, it will reflect some Indian elements.
“After all, it’s a Hindu temple,” he says.
Champaign County Hindus are hoping that the next Zoning Board of Appeals hearing will deliver the much-anticipated approval and end their long wait.
Rock Island physician Dr. Anand Reddy understands Kapoor’s frustration, but he also knows that patience and perseverance will pay off in the end.
As a board member of the newly opened Quad Cities Hindu Temple, he has been on the forefront of the six-year effort on the part of western Illinois’ Hindu community to build a temple.
On April 28, Hindus from eastern Iowa and Illinois gathered to celebrate the grand opening of the $1 million temple with traditional religious services, consecration of deities, facility tours, and an Indian feast.
The atmosphere was joyous, with hundreds of worshipers and many non-Hindu friends of the temple gathering to mark the occasion.
“It’s a matter of pride and joy for the entire Hindu community in the area to see a long-awaited dream become a reality,” Reddy says. “The temple was entirely funded by contributions from people of all faiths.”
The temple serves more than 450 Hindu families.
Reddy says although the first phase of the 7,200-square-foot single-story temple structure is complete, plans are in the works for a $1 million addition that will feature marble and granite deities and for the construction of a gopuram, the traditional Hindu temple tower, which will distinctly identify the structure’s purpose.
Reddy says that the Quad City Hindu Temple’s success serves as a model for other Indian communities to initiate temple projects.
“There were mixed reaction among people who didn’t understand our beliefs or our culture,” he says. “There are always those who doubt, question, and even oppose our right to worship where we want to.”
Faith is the key, Reddy says.

In a wooded 25-acre neighborhood in Peoria sits the idyllic Hindu Temple of Central Illinois. Built in 1999, the temple serves as a reminder that, over time, objections turn into acceptance.
Neighbors who once opposed the presence of a Hindu temple in the area have not only come to embrace its existence but have actually have learned to reap some of the benefits the center has to offer.
“Families come for a walk on the landscaped area, utilize the extra parking lot when there are family functions, and even enjoy the extra security the temple has to offer in a secluded area,” says Prakash Babu.
Babu says there is a need for the Illinois Hindu community to establish a presence and celebrate its customs and traditions.
“After seven years in the community, we have held many functions and events and opened the facility to anyone interested in utilizing the space,” he explains. “It has served the community well, not only the Hindu population but all Peoria residents.”
Babu says that the center has brought together Indians of many beliefs under one roof.
“Despite uncertainties during the initial development, we have prevailed,” says Babu, who also shares some advice for other Hindu groups working to establish temples.
“Don’t be discouraged by small obstacles along the way,” he says. “Keep moving forward.”
Above all, he says: “Keep the faith.”

M.D. Batmanathan of Springfield is a former reporter for the Paris Beacon News. She has also written for The Sun of Kuala Lumpur and other publications in Singapore and Malaysia.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.akron.com/20071206/wsl1.asp

Hindu temple closer to building in Richfield

By Jeff Gorman

RICHFIELD VILLAGE — After months of contentious hearings, the Richfield Village Planning and Zoning Commission (PZC) approved the preliminary plan for the construction of Sree Venkateswara Temple Nov. 27.

The decision concluded the Hindu temple group’s search for a home in Richfield after two previous failed attempts. Pending final approval from the PZC, the group will build a 4,609-square-foot structure on almost 7 acres of residentially zoned property near the corner of Brecksville and Townsend roads.

According to Zoning Inspector Roger Swan, preliminary plan approval is a step in obtaining a conditional-use permit needed to construct the temple. Swan said the next opportunity the temple group could appear before the PZC with final plans is Jan. 22. The deadline to be placed on the agenda for that meeting — which will take place at 8 p.m. at the Town Hall, 4410 W. Streetsboro Road — is Jan. 8, said Swan.

The group previously tried to build the temple at the corner of Black and Boston Mills roads in Richfield Township, but that request was denied by the township’s Board of Zoning Appeals. The group then was interested in property on Hawkins Road in the village. The village’s PZC denied that proposal because the site offered no sewer and water availability and was not located on a main thoroughfare, according to Swan.

Residents attended four hearings to voice their opposition to the temple plan, but ultimately the PZC voted 4-1 to approve it. Members George Strongosky, Brenda Schult, Charles Boester and Peter Schueler voted for the approval, while Mark Kearney voted against it.

“I can’t vote in favor of this,” said Kearney before the vote. “I can’t be assured that the temple would be harmonious and appropriate in appearance. We can’t control the size of the operation.”

At the previous hearing Sept. 25, the PZC asked the temple group to conduct a tree survey and make a grading plan for the parking lot.

Village Engineer Chuck Hauber and Swan both said the group had met all of the requirements for preliminary plan approval.

Schult proposed placing conditions on the approval to ensure the site would be harmonious with its surroundings. However, Schueler said the PZC shouldn’t be dealing with future developments.

Schult replied that she wanted the temple group to know what elements the PZC would expect before granting final approval.

Another condition Schult suggested was the addition of at least 65 trees to provide landscape screening for the west side of the property. She added the lights shouldn’t be too overwhelming, but they should be enough to provide safety.

Strongosky said the conditions should be noted but not required for the preliminary plan. The plan was ultimately approved without conditions. Attorneys on behalf of both sides spoke at the hearing.

“All legal and zoning requirements have been met,” said Jay Porter, the temple group’s attorney. “We believe we have done everything the commission has asked us to do.”

“We are saving 22 of the trees in the area,” said Bill Berger, the temple group’s architect. “That represents 24 percent of the trees in our tree survey.”

Attorney Lee Cole spoke on behalf of the neighbors who opposed the construction of the Hindu temple on that site. The residents who live near the site have said they are concerned about an increase in traffic and noise and the influx of strangers into the residential neighborhood. Residents also are concerned the glare of parking lot lights would devalue homes in the neighborhood.

“You need to follow your own ruling on the Hawkins Road property,” Cole said. “A property like this is supposed to be adjacent to a park or school so they can share parking space.”

Members of the Primosch family, who own significant property in the area, traveled from all over the country to attend the hearing.

“I don’t dislike Indian people or their culture,” said Larry Primosch, who traveled from California to attend the hearing. “This is just the wrong place for it. The application doesn’t meet four of the seven standards for a conditional use nor one of the five standards for a church.”

Boester responded the PZC already had discussed those issues.

“This is a residential area,” said Beth Primosch-Malone, who lives in Arizona. “This is our second home, and there is nothing like the solitude and serenity of our place.”

Other residents spoke on both sides of the issue.

“I was there in 1974 when the Monroeville [Pa.] temple opened,” said Surinder Bhardwaj, a Kent State University professor. “It is an important cultural center for children and for numerous universities in the United States.”

“I’m disappointed that we would be adding another building and more traffic,” said Susie Scott, a Charlton Road resident. “It’s just too much.”

“Over 500 people signed a petition opposing this project,” said Beth Newcomb, a Brush Road resident. “That should count for something.”

Village Mayor Mike Lyons said he was concerned about the impact of the temple on the Hutton property to the south.

“This would put the Huttons in an untenable position,” he said. “Also, there would be no physical relationship between the temple and the nearby nursing home and doctor’s office.”

Village Council Vice President Bobbie Beshara also gave her opinion.

“I don’t think it’s harmonious with the area,” she said. “It’s a building nobody will want to look at when buying property.”

Rosemary Lassiter, a Brush Road resident, mentioned the PZC’s previous denial of the approval on Hawkins Road.

“You voted ‘no’ on this temple before on flat, clear land,” she said. “Now, you are trying to squeeze it into the back yards of residential property. We’re going to keep [attorney] Lee Cole, and this will end up wherever it has to end up.”

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/lakeworth/con...6_tim_0709.html


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Neighbors oppose Hindu temple construction
Listen to this article or download audio file.Click-2-Listen

By Tim Pallesen

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Wednesday, July 09, 2008

A proposal to build a Hindu temple on Lantana Road has sparked concerns among neighbors.

The Sevashram Sangha congregation was set to ask county commissioners this month for zoning to allow a 4,672-square-foot sanctuary plus offices to be built on the northeast corner of Lantana Road and Bentbrook Boulevard.
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But the proposal was postponed at least a month after residents of Country Lakes West voiced opposition after the congregation's architect showed them the temple plans on June 24.

"We don't care if it's Hindu, Christian or Catholic - we don't want a place of worship there," said resident Jerry Parker, an opposition leader.

The Hindu congregation has worshipped for three years in a single-family home on the 1.65-acre site that Country Lakes residents must pass to access Lantana Road.

"The owners and their worshippers already cause a traffic nightmare," Parker wrote County Commissioner Jeff Koons. "They constantly have garbage all over the property."

The congregation's pastor, Pandig Maharaj, didn't return a phone call for comment. Temple architect Christopher Barry declined to comment.

Country Lake's property owners' association has focused on traffic as its primary reason to oppose building the new temple.

"We believe this project will cause a traffic problem at the entrance to our community," the homeowners association wrote in a letter that urged residents to attend the June 24 meeting.

After the meeting, Barry asked for the zoning request to be delayed one month to address the neighborhood's traffic concern. He proposed adding a right-turn lane on Bentbrook Boulevard.

#

Colonial Lakes redesigned: A new developer is making headway with the controversial Colonial Lakes residential project on Lake Worth Road.

Greenacres and county officials harshly criticized the original Colonial Lakes request for 144 units on fewer than 10 acres as an unattractive fire-safety hazard. The county last year had given developer Jose Safdie 39 extra units to build as affordable housing.

Greenacres officials objected to Safdie's plan, citing excessive density and a fear that firetrucks wouldn't have room to gain access to the six three-story buildings.

Colonial Lakes also was blasted by a county zoning commissioner. Don DuFresne told the developer's architect: "It just doesn't look like a nice place to live. It's not pretty."

The new developer, The Richman Group, has redesigned Colonial Lakes to trim 12 units and alleviate the fire concern. "We want to make friends in Greenacres," Richman Group development associate Shannon Lee said.

The revamped Colonial Lakes proposal also will have more landscaping and amenities when it goes to county commissioners for approval on July 24.

A market study for the Richman Group showed demand for multi-family housing in the Lake Worth Road area west of Haverhill Road.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.tcgcohio.org/Numrich/CH1_CND_Hi...temple_0207.htm

[From The Church Next Door: Local Christians Face America’s New Religious Diversity, draft manuscript by Dr. Paul D. Numrich. Please do not quote or cite without author’s permission.]



Chapter 1: A Hindu Temple Comes to Town



[figure approx. here: reproduction of Beacon News headline and figure, April 23, 1985]



“Aurora could be home for the largest Hindu temple in America.” This front-page story in the local newspaper in April of 1985 informed the residents of Aurora, Illinois, of plans to build a Hindu temple named for Sri Venkateswara, a deity revered in southern India. Four days later, the newspaper’s weekly Religion section ran an article about Hindu religious practices, with a photo of a local Asian-Indian woman worshiping at a temporary altar in the former farmhouse on the proposed temple’s property. The article was positioned between regular features about Aurora Christian churches, including a column called “God’s open window” contributed by Christian clergy. The positioning symbolized the changes about to take place on Aurora’s religious landscape.

In the mid-1980s, this blue-collar city west of Chicago was home to dozens of churches and a Jewish synagogue. For Aurora, historically populated by Euro-Americans, African Americans, and Latinos, Indian Hindus represented both a new ethnic presence and an unfamiliar religious tradition. For several months in 1985, Aurora Christians engaged in a public debate about the merits of the proposed Hindu temple, citing both theological and civic positions.

The first letter to the editor of the local newspaper came from Laurie Riggs, wife of the pastor of Union Congregational Church, located in neighboring North Aurora not far from the Hindu site. She offered a biblical warning: “I, for one, am frightened by the erection of temples to other gods. When Israel as a nation did that [in the Bible], God had to chasten and bring judgment upon their land and people.” Mrs. Riggs also voiced concern about the direction of the American nation: “Are we going to be proud of something that will again take us away from the religion on which this country was founded?”

Riggs’s husband, Rev. John Riggs, was interviewed for an article in the evangelical periodical, Christianity Today, a few years later. “Biblically oriented Christians in this community were naturally afraid of the propagation of a polytheistic faith in their community,” Rev. Riggs said. “I thank God for the religious freedom we have in this country,” he continued. “But I wanted to make sure we demonstrated a strong Christian witness in this community, and point up the incompatibility of Hindu and Christian beliefs.” Quoted in a rebuttal piece to the Christianity Today article published in the Hindu periodical, Hinduism Today, Rev. Riggs reiterated his distinction between civic freedoms and theological truth claims: “I do believe in freedom of religion, but shall not give any quarter to non-Christians.”



Excerpt from Christianity Today article (February 19, 1988):

Aurora, Illinois (pop. 90,000), sits in the middle of small farms, 30 miles west of metropolitan Chicago. . . . [A]ll along Randall Road, the community’s northern approach, fields of corn and soybeans guard its rural virginity.

This pastoral calm is rudely violated as one approaches the city’s northern limits. There, rising out of the cornfields like a mountain jutting upward from a grassy plain, is a massive Hindu temple with spires that dwarf a Congregational church’s white steeple two pastures away.



Excerpt from Hinduism Today (June 4, 1988) rebuttal of Christianity Today article:

You write, “This pastoral calm [of Aurora] is rudely violated [by] a massive Hindu temple with spires that dwarf a Congregational church’s white steeple two pastures away.” The choice of words conveys not just an “out-of-place” temple, but an “intrusive, wrong, threatening” temple. After our talk, we trust it is accurate to say the temple is no more a “violation” of Aurora’s bucolic beauty than the nearby church.

(Note: The editors of Hinduism Today and Christianity Today had a phone conversation before this rebuttal appeared in print.)



Plans for the Sri Venkateswara temple came up for review by the Aurora City Council in May of 1985. A week before the hearing, Aurora resident Donna Kalita asked in a letter to the editor of the local newspaper, “Does Aurora want to be known as the ‘home of the largest Hindu temple in America,’ or as a ‘God-fearing little city in America?’” She adamantly opposed the presence of “a temple for gods other than the living God of Abraham, creator of all things.” The City Council hearing featured a stirring debate, representing what Mayor David Pierce later characterized as the best and the worst in Aurora’s citizenry. Christians took a variety of positions on the proposed Hindu temple and what it symbolized, which continued to play out in the local newspaper long after the Council approved the temple’s plans.

At least three positions can be identified among Christian participants in this public debate. The first two have already been intimated. One position, articulated by Laurie Riggs and Donna Kalita above, saw the presence of a Hindu temple in Aurora as contravening the will of God and biblical injunctions, and thus it should not be allowed by the citizens and public officials of the city. William W. Penn labeled City Council members non-Christians for “knowingly and willingly going against the Holy Bible” in making “a decision that will, if the temple is built, place Aurora in judgement according to God’s word.” Michael J. Mallette asked, “Is the God of the Bible the one, true God? If so, then we are facing a provoked, jealous, almighty God who has sworn to take vengeance on all disobedience. I, for one, fear that our city is standing on the threshold of a new and dreadful future.” In this view, Aurora would break the Bible’s commandment against idol worship by allowing the Hindu temple to be built.

A second position in the debate, expressed by Rev. John Riggs above, shared the theological evaluation of the first position that Hinduism is a false religion worshiping false gods. Nonetheless, this second position recognized the constitutional rights of Hindus to practice their faith and build their temple in Aurora, along with the Christian duty to oppose Hindu truth claims. “Christianity in its true form is a much different religion,” wrote Bobbi Rutherford. “It must not be lumped together with the others. However, the Hindu people have every right to build their temple and worship freely and peaceably—without harassment. This is guaranteed them in the Constitution of our great country.” Ms. Rutherford pointed out a theological justification to her fellow Christians, in addition to the legal one: “Christians who oppose this view should be reminded that God Himself gave man freedom of choice. No one has the right to deny another that choice.”

For Ms. Rutherford and others, the new Hindu temple in Aurora offered a missionary opportunity. Jane Jafferi considered “this temple of idolatry . . . an abomination to God and to us,” yet she called upon Christian Aurorans to “stand on God’s word to use this situation to bring Him glory and to work in us.” Although she prophesied that “Spiritual darkness shall fall on our city and all manner of evil will increase . . . both in the spiritual realm and in the physical,” she did not fear the future: “God is drawing us together as his ambassadors to these who are in darkness. . . . We need not fear, brothers and sisters in Jesus. We know how the book ends. We’re on the winning side.”

Pastor Charles Rinks of Souls Harbor Open Bible Church, located a few hundred yards from the Hindu temple property, said, “If I had my ‘druthers,’ I’d rather them [Hindus] not be here. We ought to say they’re here and to show them the superiority of Christianity.” Although Pastor Dorothy Brown of Mustard Seed Tabernacle Bible Church, also nearby the temple, viewed Hinduism as a cult, she did not oppose the presence of Hindus in Aurora. “I tell my congregation to pray for the Hindus, that their understanding be enlightened so they can see the only true God, our father Jehovah,” she explained. Rev. Stephen Miller, pastor of Christian Fellowship Bible Church, taught his congregation to support religious freedom for all, but also to stand up for the truth of only one religion, Christianity. “The more people I can affect with the truth,” Rev. Miller said, “the less people the Hindus will reach.”

Rev. Larry Hodge, pastor of Aurora First Assembly of God, characterized himself both as “an American who cherishes freedom and as a Christian who serves the Christ.” With respect to the first point, “As long as the owners of [the Hindu temple] meet the legal requirements for construction, they should be allowed to build whatever they choose.” With respect to the second point, wrote Rev. Hodge, “I must stand in opposition to the teaching and practices the owners of this property will bring to this community. Their teaching and practices produce no real spiritual hope or lasting social redemption.” Come what may, Rev. Hodge pledged “to proclaim Jesus Christ as the only hope for this world and its inhabitants.”

Rev. Paul Dobbins from the nearby town of Plano admitted that it would be disconcerting for many Christians to bump into “what the Old Testament calls a ‘foreign god,’ right in your city’s back yard.” Even so, he suggested that America’s monotheistic Judeo-Christian heritage would resist “pagan” trends like Hindu polytheism. “It will simply be more important than ever,” wrote Rev. Dobbins, “for all of us to think more clearly so that in the give and take of ideas among a free people, which we should be glad to be, the best elements of our way of life may have the best opportunity to prevail.”

Rev. Man Singh Das, a former Hindu who was converted by Presbyterian missionaries in India and then became a Methodist minister, attended the Aurora City Council hearing and came away “shocked to hear irrational viewpoints expressed by a small group of Aurorans in the name of Christianity,” including fears about rat infestation and drug abuse in Hindu temples. Rev. Das led a three-part seminar, organized by the Church and Society Committee of Westminster Presbyterian Church (USA) in Aurora, in order to present an accurate understanding of Hinduism. “We should accept the temple, not their teachings,” Rev. Das advised his fellow Christians. Ethnocentric bigotry has no place in a Christian approach: “I want to win the soul [of the Hindu]. But, before winning the soul, I want to win his heart.”

As we have seen, Christians who agreed about the falsity of Hinduism took two different positions regarding the presence of a Hindu temple in Aurora. Some sought to prevent the erection of the temple, citing biblical injunctions against idolatry and the potential for divine retribution on the city and its inhabitants, while others recognized both the temple’s legal right to exist and its members as a missionary field. A third Christian position considered the proposed Hindu temple a positive contribution to the community. “We welcome the temple as adding to the cultural and religious diversity that we all treasure so highly as Americans and as citizens of Aurora,” wrote four local Lutheran pastors in a joint letter to the editor. They also expressed chagrin over the controversy: “We suffer Christian embarrassment and deplore the bigotry that has been expressed, often by persons of the Christian faith. We see this kind of sanctimonious self-serving as alien to the faith of the church of Christ.”

Although these Lutheran pastors shared Rev. Das’s concern over the lack of Christian charity exhibited by some Christians, they did not express the missionary goals of Rev. Das and others described above. This third Christian position welcomed the Hindu temple without feeling a need to evangelize its members. Rev. Clara Thompson, pastor of First Baptist Church, deplored what she described as “prejudice raising its ugly head here in Aurora,” equating local Christian opposition to Hindus with anti-Semitism in Nazi Germany. “Aurora is not a Christian city,” Rev. Thompson argued. “It is a city that has Christians in it, as well as Jewish people, Hindus, other religions or non-believers in any religion. If Hindus should not be here because they are not Christians, how about these others, and how about people who say they are Christians, but don’t act like it?”

Some Christians advocated reaching out to the local Hindu community in formal dialogue about the beliefs and practices of Hinduism. For instance, New England Congregational Church, a United Church of Christ congregation, organized an adult study group on Hinduism and took a contingent of 50 members to tour the temple when it opened. Rev. Marshall Esty, a United Methodist minister, suggested that Christians could learn valuable lessons from Hinduism: “The reverence for life that is fundamental to the Hindu way of life at its best may prompt us to rethink our life-denying ways.” Rev. Esty also advised Christians concerned about a Hindu temple violating the biblical commandment against idol worship that Jesus had identified two other commandments as greatest of all, namely, “you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and mind and soul and strength. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” William Balek asked, “Have those who so bitterly oppose this [temple] in the name of God forgotten that the Bible teaches us that we are all God’s children?” Mr. Balek continued: “Those who deny the establishment of another home of worship in the name of Jesus seem to have forgotten that His teachings were those of love and tolerance.”

In the Aurora Hindu temple controversy, the notion of tolerance carried both civic and theological connotations. Most of the Christian participants in the debate acknowledged the importance of civic tolerance of religious diversity as guaranteed by law and established in mainstream American culture. Theological tolerance proved a complicated matter, however. A small minority of local Christians—vocal and controversial, but still a small minority—considered Hinduism’s beliefs and practices so intolerably false as to abrogate any expectation of civic tolerance. For them, the Hindu temple simply must not be built under any circumstances. Other Christians combined theological intolerance with civic tolerance—Hinduism is a false religion, but the Hindu temple had a right to be built. For these Christians, truth, not tolerance, is the highest theological consideration, and thus tolerance of religious untruth constitutes no virtue. For yet other Christians, Hinduism deserved both theological and civic tolerance—differences in religious truth claims should be respected and the Hindu temple had a right to be built. In fact, these Christians went beyond mere tolerance to express positive appreciation of Hinduism.

Back in May of 1985, on the day of the Aurora City Council hearing, the local newspaper published its stance on the controversy surrounding the proposed Hindu temple. The editorial stressed the legal and economic issues of the case, arguing that the temple made “good sense” on both counts. The editorial urged those who attended the hearing to understand that this was “not a religious issue.” But, of course, it was a religious (or theological) issue to many, in addition to being about other issues.

We will revisit the case of the Christians of Aurora, Illinois in Chapter 11 of this book, bringing their story down to the present time. For a preview, see the accompanying sidebar.



Aurora, then and now:

In November of 1985, the Aurora newspaper reported on a public forum organized by the local chapter of the American Association of University Women. The article read as follows, in part: “An Indian woman and the mayor of Aurora told an audience Wednesday what they could expect when the proposed Hindu temple becomes reality. Taken together, their message was that the temple, being built for a religion very unlike Christianity, would some day be as commonplace as the nearly 100 other churches in the city.”

The Aurora Hindu temple was consecrated in June of 1986 with the installation of the images of several Hindu deities. In March of 2003, a major addition to the temple was opened, and in June of that same year, the entire facility was re-consecrated with five days of religious ceremonies, drawing an estimated 5,000 Hindus from across the country on the final day. The local newspaper’s coverage of these activities in 2003 stimulated no public response.



For More Information

Terry Muck, “The mosque next door: How do we speak the truth in love to Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists?” Christianity Today, February 19, 1988, pp. 15-20. Written by then-editor of Christianity Today, who holds a Ph.D. in comparative religion and participates in ongoing Buddhist-Christian dialogue among scholars, this article presents an evangelical Christian perspective on the growing religious diversity in America. Muck elaborates his views in a later book, Those Other Religions in Your Neighborhood: Loving Your Neighbor When You Don’t Know How (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992).

“A friendly open letter: Inaccurate reporting on Hinduism in America prompts response to Christianity Today article,” Hinduism Today, June 4, 1988, accessible at www.hinduismtoday.com/1988/06/1988-06-04.html. A rebuttal to Terry Muck’s Christianity Today piece by a Hindu periodical.

Christian denominations take a variety of positions regarding Hinduism and other non-Christian religions. The Southern Baptist Convention, the nation’s largest Protestant denomination, emphasizes evangelism and critique of non-Christian religious truth claims. Access the SBC’s Website at www.sbc.net and type the word Hinduism into the search function to retrieve statements about that religion. The United Methodist Church emphasizes interfaith dialogue and networking rather than critique of truth claims. Access the UMC’s “Creating Interfaith Community” page at http://gbgm-umc.org/missionstudies/inter...index.html for general information; Hinduism is included under the “Faith Traditions” section. In a statement entitled “Christ and the Other Religions,” the Roman Catholic Church’s Commission for Interreligious Dialogue outlines various Hindu responses to Christian presentations of Christ; this statement is available at www.vatican.va/jubilee_2000/magazine/documents/ju_mag_01031997_p-29_en.html.

The full name of the Aurora Hindu temple is Sri Venkateswara Swami Temple of Greater Chicago; its Web site is www.balaji.org. Information about other Hindu temples in the United States can be found at www.sabarimalathanthri.com/html/hindtempleus.htm.



For Discussion

1. Discuss the theological and civic issues involved in the public debate over the presence of a Hindu temple in Aurora, Illinois. In your opinion, which of the three Christian positions described in this chapter satisfies both theological and civic claims? Which of the three positions do you think represents the majority of Christians in your community? The three positions were: a) prevent the erection of the Hindu temple; b) recognize both the temple’s legal right to exist and its members as a missionary field; and c) welcome the temple without evangelizing its members.
2. Which of the quotations from Aurora Christians in this chapter resonates most positively with you? Which resonates most negatively? What would you have written in a letter to the editor of the Aurora newspaper at the height of the controversy in 1985?
3. What do you make of the public silence over the Aurora Hindu temple in 2003? Why was there no heated debate among Christians comparable to 1985? Do you think the same positions exist today in Aurora’s churches?
4. One letter to the editor in 1985 reminded Aurora Christians of the other temple in town, Temple B’nai Israel, a Conservative synagogue established in 1904. Do the Christian positions described in this chapter apply equally to Hindu temples and Jewish synagogues? Or does Christianity’s special historical and theological relationship with Judaism make a difference?

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-40...s-Midlands.html

Europe's largest Hindu temple opens its doors in the Midlands
By ANDY DOLAN
Last updated at 19:02 24 August 2006

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The Sri Venkateswara Balaji Temple in Tividale, near Birmingham

Europe's largest Hindu temple has opened in Britain - on the site of a former rubbish dump.

More than 10,000 visitors are expected at the £6.5million Sri Venkateswara Balaji Temple in Tividale, near Dudley, West Midlands, by Sunday, the close of a five day festival of inauguration.

The complex has been built on 12.5 acres of wasteland in an industrial area close to the M5 motorway.

The temple has been constructed in the style of the ancient and sacred temple of Sri Venkateswara in Tirupati, India.

The site has been funded by a £3.3m lottery grant from the Millennium Commission and has taken more than three decades to come to fruition.

Local Hindu worshippers first hit upon the idea of building a giant temple in their part of the West Midlands in 1974.

They spent the next 20 years searching for a site and trying to secure funding.

It wasn't until 1994 that the then Black Country Development Corporation agreed to donate the site to them for a nominal sum.

Crucially, the site came with planning permission for a temple.

The group began fundraising nationwide and in 1996 they were approved lottery funding.

Work started on the site the following year and in 1999 the first of three smaller shrines adjacent to the site of the main temple was completed.

The same year, a team of 600 builders started work in India on the main temple building.

During building work, three of the founders of the temple invested £100,000 of their own money to prevent the project going bankrupt.

The concrete, granite and class structure was built in stages in the subcontinent before being shipped to Britain to be put together on site.

A team of 30 highly-skilled crafsmen and stone masons were brought over from India to work on the intricate carvings of Hindu gods and godesses that adorn mahogany doors, stone pillars and the walls and ceilings inside the temple.

One of the founders of the temple, Dr. Kandiah Somasundara Rajah, has been involved with the project since its origins in the 1970s.

He said: 'We used to have the use of another temple but then the congregation got bigger and in 1974 some of our group thought we should get our own temple.

'In spite of this we had a lot of opposition from the locals - we organised a meeting and nearly got lynched.

'But we went ahead with it anyway. It came from small beginnings and it is wonderful seeing it being celebrated. It is a dream come true for all of us.'

Thousands of visitors

Yesterday the site was filled with tents erected to accommodate the thousands of visitors who had travelled to witness the ceremonies to mark the temple's inaguration.

Organisers laid on traditional Hindu dances and songs to entertain them.

The main temple building, the largest of its kind in Europe built in the South Indian architectural style, will accommodate 400 people at any one time.

Some 15 priests have also flown in from Mauritius, India and America to perform ancient rituals in Sanskrit to call on the gods to enter the temple.

The festival will culminate with installation of a 12ft deity of Lord Krishna, the supreme Hindu god.

Dr. VP Narayan Rao, the founding chairman of the temple, said: 'The priests are trained from the age of seven to do the chanting. Only these people can do it.

'They will also climb on to the roof of the temple and pour holy water over the whole building. Then it will be a sacred building.'

A further £1m is due to be spent on landscaping the complex to transform the area into a meadow with shrubs and woodland in the style of an Indian garden.

Bimal Krishna Das, secretary of the National Council of Hindu Temples, said: 'This is great news for the British Hindu community. The opening of this great temple will be a wonderful addition to the multi-religious society of Britain, especially in West Midlands.'

Britain is home to 600,000 Hindus but the temple is expected to attract worshippers from across Europe and the rest of the world.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.christianaggression.org/item_di...S&id=1106532983

Fundamentalist Christians say Hindu temple in US raises �Third World� horror

Posted January 23, 2005
HUGO MARTI
The Telegraph, Calcutta India
LOS ANGELES TIMES-WASHINGTON POST NEWS SERVICE



It was proposed as the largest Hindu temple and cultural centre in southern California, an ornate structure with the kind of religious status held by the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove and the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles.

But when a non-profit Hindu organisation selected Chino Hills farmland for the project, Christian residents in this wealthy bedroom community of San Bernardino County protested vehemently, saying it would generate too much traffic, ruin the city�s rural atmosphere and become an unwanted regional attraction.

Objections also surfaced from evangelist opponents who said the project would turn Chino Hills into a �Third World city� and a haven for terrorists. One Christian petition to stop the project said the temple would play a role in �changing the city's demographics forever�.

Now, three weeks after the Chino Hills City Council blocked the project by refusing to allow the temple�s spires to exceed the city�s height limit, local Hindu leaders are struggling to decide whether to fight the decision in court or continue their four-year search for a home base for southern California�s burgeoning Hindu population.

�Our issue was very clear: We would like to be an asset to the community,� said Govind Vaghashia, a spokesman for the project proponent, Bochasanwasi Shree Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha, a Hindu branch commonly known as Baps.

Adam Eliason, the chairman of the city�s planning commission, supported the Hindu project, calling it an asset to the city. �It�s a beautiful building with wonderful landscaping and water features,� he said.

Hindu leaders say the project is significant not just for Chino Hills residents but for southern California�s growing Hindu population, which hopes for a grand, beautifully sculptured temple that would celebrate the history and culture of Hinduism. They said many Baps Hindus now worship at a converted union hall in Whittier.

�The Indian population is growing very big in southern California,� said Nadadur Vardhan, president of the Hindu Temple Society of Southern California, which operates a large temple in Calabasas that serves a different Hindu branch.

Statewide, the number of Indian residents nearly doubled over the last decade to 314,819, keeping California the national leader. Census figures show that of the Asian subgroups in the state, the Indian population shot up the fastest during the 1990s.

The Chino Hills temple �would be a matter of pride for most Hindus in southern California,� said Vinay Lal, an associate professor of South Asian history at UCLA.

The fight over the temple in Chino Hills is the latest in dozens of skirmishes around the country in recent years over plans to build bigger houses of worship, land use experts say. In August, a 20,000-square-foot gurdwara opened in San Jose after a 10-year battle with neighbours.

Chino Hills is home to about 500 Hindu families, according to Baps officials. The 2000 Census estimates that 1,320 of the county�s 7,368 residents of Indian descent live in Chino Hills. But the city has no temple. Hindu residents must drive to temples in Whittier or Riverside to attend weekly services.

As envisioned, the 164,372-square-foot Baps facility � including a temple, a cultural centre, two gymnasiums, classrooms and living quarters for swamis � would have served Hindus throughout the region.

The battle over the temple and cultural centre dates to 1989, when Baps representatives made plans to build the project on a 15-acre parcel near the commercial centre of the city. But city officials had plans to build a civic centre on the same property. Under a deal negotiated between city and Baps representatives, the sanstha let the city buy the land and city officials promised to help it find an alternative site in Chino Hills.

After investigating 20 locations over four years, Baps chose a 20-acre parcel of farmland east of the Chino Valley Freeway, near a sewage treatment facility, several industrial firms and a mobile home park.

As word spread about the project, Chino Hills residents began to inundate City Hall with letters and e-mails, most in opposition to it.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://indians.mibazaar.com/2008/04/canton...to-rebuild.html

Canton Hindu Temple allowed to rebuild

Despite a strong opposition from the residents of the area, the Canton Township Board of Trustees voted unanimously Tuesday (4/22/2008) to approve the rebuilding of the Hindu Temple.

The plan is to tear down the existing temple and construct a larger one in the center of the oblong lot on Cherry Hill just east of Canton Center Road. (via Detroit Free Press)

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.akron.com/akron-ohio-communit...p?aID=2517

Richfield PZC gives Hindu temple final blessing

5/29/2008 -
permalink bookmark
By Mike D’Agruma

Residents plan legal challenge

RICHFIELD VILLAGE — Sree Venkateswara Temple of Cleveland worshippers now have an officially approved facility in Richfield Village to practice their traditions — at least on blueprint paper.

The Richfield Village Planning and Zoning Commission (PZC) voted 3-2 to approve the final plan for the religious facility during its May 27 meeting. Board members Dr. Charles Boester, Pete Schueler and Brenda Schult voted for approval, with Mark Kearney and Village Council member and PZC representative John Ciolkevich dissenting.

But despite the narrow margin of victory, there could be another long battle for the temple group before a single shovel is thrust in the ground. A group of residents that neighbor three sides of the temple site who have organized under the group “Concerned Richfield Homeowners” plan to appeal the PZC’s decision in the Summit County Court of Common Pleas. The residents who live near the site have said they are concerned about an increase in traffic and noise and the influx of strangers into the residential neighborhood.

“If you make this decision tonight, [the residents] are going to have to take that back to court,” said the group’s attorney Leland Cole. “We don’t want to go to court. We never did want to go to court. That seemed to be our only option. No one seemed to be listening.”

Village Mayor Mike Lyons said the resident group would probably file a similar administrative appeal with the court as it did following the PZC’s approval of the temple’s preliminary plan Nov. 27, 2007. The temple group’s attorney, Jay Porter, said after the hearing an agreed-upon order was filed as “pending litigation” on April 18 as a result of that appeal. He said the order, issued by Court of Common Pleas Judge Patricia Cosgrove, allowed the final approval plan vote to take place but also allows the neighbors to appeal, which requires the temple to be named as a party to the appeal, and limits the issues on appeal to one (the PZC’s decision). In exchange, Porter said temple officials agree not to start construction until the appeal is resolved and a conditional zoning certificate is issued.

“As a matter of fiscal responsibility, the temple would not start incurring construction expenses until the neighbors abandoned their opposition efforts anyhow,” Porter said. “As they say, ‘it’s never over till it’s over.’”

If legal obstacles are successfully cleared, the 3,772-square-foot temple would be built on 7 acres at 4406 Brecksville Road. Since the approval of the preliminary plan, a number of changes were made to accommodate requests by commission members and residents. Even during discussion, Schult chose to introduce a number of conditions on the property (which would also be carried on to any future owners), given its residential designation and a sentiment toward preserving greenspace. The temple group agreed to the following conditions:

* no expansion of the physical structure and its surrounding parking area other than what was already proposed and with the exception of a possible addition to the priest’s house;
* no use of outdoor loudspeaker systems for worship or music at any time;
* certain parking areas are not to be graded until installation; and
* the undisturbed forested area be maintained in a sustainable forest condition.

Before the vote, Cole voiced a new concern to add to a number of previously voiced ones regarding zoning code requirements on behalf of the resident group. He spoke on a piece of legislation before Village Council that would allow it to review conditionally permitted uses approved by the PZC within 30 days of passage.

Ciolkevich asked Lyons if the legislation could apply to the PZC’s vote on the temple plan through a grandfather clause, thereby allowing Council to review the permitted use, despite the law not being in place at the time of PZC approval. Lyons said he didn’t think that was appropriate, saying it “was a bit of changing the rules in the middle of the game.”

“The concern that I think a lot of us feel is that the technical requirements are being very closely adhered to,” Cole said. “However, the fundamental basis of the zoning use — is it harmonious in the area — seems to be ignored. It’s not an engineering project. It’s a determination of whether this particular building, this temple, located in this area, in a residential area, is really harmonious.”

“I kind of grappled with harmony and kind of decided that harmony is beauty — it’s in the eye of the beholder,” Schueler said. “The fact that we conditionally permit public and parochial schools, churches and buildings of religious worship, governmentally owned and operated parks and playgrounds and so forth — we allow all these in residential areas. We’re sitting in one, an R-2 area, right now. We have determined through our zoning, whether it was right or wrong, that this is basically in harmony with an R-2 district.”

The next PZC meeting will take place June 10 at 8 p.m. at Richfield Town Hall, 4410 W. Streetsboro Road.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.ghanapathytemple.org.uk/history/history.htm

In 1979, a few Sri Lankan Hindu Saivite families, living in and around Wimbledon, began to meet together at a local hall to worship Lord Ghanapathy. They had a single statue of Lord Ganesha, hired a priest to conduct the service, and began regular Friday worship, gaining spiritual comfort that helped them to relive the happy times of religious harmony that they had once shared in their homeland. As the months went by, more and more devotees began to attend the service, and the need for a permanent, sanctified building, dedicated to Hindu worship, became a priority.

In 1980, one of the families found and bought a property in Wimbledon and offered it for community worship, and thus the Shree Ghanapathy Temple was born. It began life as an abandoned and dilapidated Christian Church, then an under-used Community Centre and, within a year, was transformed internally to become a Hindu Temple. It had its Maha Kumbabishekam in September 1981, and became the first ever consecrated Hindu Temple in Europe. The adjoining church hall was converted into a Sai Mandir - the first of it's kind in the U.K., and thus began a union of ancient and modern Hinduism that has grown from strength to strength over the past 19 years.

The Temple met with much opposition at the beginning, from the local community and, unfortunately, from certain members of our own community! The council attempted to close the Temple down on the very day of the Maha Kumbabishekam and thus began a legal battle that continued to the High Courts and beyond. However Lord Ghanapathy heard our prayers and protected his Temple and devotees. We won the legal battle and were allowed to continue our worship without restriction.

Over the next few years, we struggled to build bridges with the local community, and we did this through their children! The ILEA recommended us as the best Temple to visit to learn about Hinduism and, every year, over 3000 children and teachers from local schools would visit the Temple to learn about Hinduism, about our customs and traditions, and to dispel any fears or misconceptions they might have about us and our faith. The children educated their parents and gradually the local community grew to accept us.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://indiapost.com/article/usnews/1672/

Official's offensive remarks rile Detroit Hindus
Monday, 12.24.2007, 01:12am (GMT-7)

India Post News Service

NEW YORK: An embarrassingly derogatory remark against Hindu women by a Canton Township, Detroit official has angered many among Hindu Americans, especially the Indian community in Detroit.

Catherine Johnson, a 71-year old planning commissioner in Canton Township has now offered to resign after she asked at a public forum whether Hindu women urinate in public as part of any Hindu religious ritual. Her shocking and grossly ignorant remark, she claimed, was prompted by neighbors around the Shri Swaminarayan Mandir (BAPS Temple) told her that during the Temple's groundbreaking ceremony in 2000, several women attending the ceremonies were seen urinating behind the Temple, and so wanted to know if it was some sort of ritual.

According to The Detroit News, Johnson, who has served as a member for 27 years on the panel, said she's quitting because Supervisor Thomas Yack asked her to -- not because she said anything wrong. "It was a valid question. It was something that a few citizens contacted me at home about," she said. "I try to ask questions about what citizens in the community would want to know." The appalled Indian community said the question was an unfair characterization of their culture and a lie, and said the remark underscored stereotypes about cleanliness in India.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.ohio.com/news/break_news/19316449.html

Richfield approves Hindu temple, neighbors expected to appeal

By Colette M. Jenkins
Beacon Journal religion writer

POSTED: 11:01 a.m. EDT, May 28, 2008

The Richfield Planning and Zoning Commission on Tuesday night approved the final plans for a proposed Hindu temple to be built on seven acres at 4406 Brecksville Road in the village.

But a zoning permit cannot be issued until a resolution can be reached in court between neighbors who oppose the construction, the village and representatives of the Sree Venkateswara Temple of Cleveland.

Last month, all parties agreed to put the case on hold until further action by the commission.

Tuesday's approval of the final plans for the temple allows for the opposing neighbors, collectively known as Concerned Richfield Homeowners, to file a new appeal. The new appeal can only be based on the commission's decision to issue a conditional zoning certificate, according to an order by Common Pleas Judge Patricia Cosgrove.

Cosgrove's order also prohibits the commission from granting any zoning permits pending a court hearing.

''The temple agrees not to start construction while the neighbors are appealing,'' attorney Jay Porter, who represents the temple, said today. ''We are confident that the planning commission's decision of last evening will be affirmed by the court. Once the zoning permit is issued, construction on the temple will start.''

The attorney for the neighbors, Leland Cole, could not be reached for comment. Cole has said, however, that his clients will appeal any decision by the commission to allow construction of the temple on the Brecksville Road property.

The original appeal, filed in December by the residents, asked the court to review the planning commission's approval of preliminary plans for the temple.

Representatives of the temple had asked that the appeal be dismissed because it was prematurely filed. They argued that the appeal should not have been filed until final plans were approved by the commission.

Plans for the proposed 6,220-square-foot building include a 3,772-square-foot worship area. The building would be constructed on 1.5 acres of the seven-acre parcel.

The Richfield Planning and Zoning Commission on Tuesday night approved the final plans for a proposed Hindu temple to be built on seven acres at 4406 Brecksville Road in the village.

But a zoning permit cannot be issued until a resolution can be reached in court between neighbors who oppose the construction, the village and representatives of the Sree Venkateswara Temple of Cleveland.

Last month, all parties agreed to put the case on hold until further action by the commission.

Tuesday's approval of the final plans for the temple allows for the opposing neighbors, collectively known as Concerned Richfield Homeowners, to file a new appeal. The new appeal can only be based on the commission's decision to issue a conditional zoning certificate, according to an order by Common Pleas Judge Patricia Cosgrove.

Cosgrove's order also prohibits the commission from granting any zoning permits pending a court hearing.

''The temple agrees not to start construction while the neighbors are appealing,'' attorney Jay Porter, who represents the temple, said today. ''We are confident that the planning commission's decision of last evening will be affirmed by the court. Once the zoning permit is issued, construction on the temple will start.''

The attorney for the neighbors, Leland Cole, could not be reached for comment. Cole has said, however, that his clients will appeal any decision by the commission to allow construction of the temple on the Brecksville Road property.

The original appeal, filed in December by the residents, asked the court to review the planning commission's approval of preliminary plans for the temple.

Representatives of the temple had asked that the appeal be dismissed because it was prematurely filed. They argued that the appeal should not have been filed until final plans were approved by the commission.

Plans for the proposed 6,220-square-foot building include a 3,772-square-foot worship area. The building would be constructed on 1.5 acres of the seven-acre parcel.

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.ohio.com/news/top_stories/17964904.html

Neighbors fight proposed Hindu temple

Richfield commission could vote soon on plan for Brecksville Road; opponents appeal to court

By Colette M. Jenkins
Beacon Journal religion writer

Published on Monday, Apr 21, 2008

RICHFIELD: Mayor Michael Lyons is hoping for an amenable resolution to the controversy over the proposed construction of a Hindu temple in the village.

''This is a very polarizing kind of thing that leads to the insertion of issues (like bigotry) that have nothing to do with whether the proposal meets our code,'' Lyons said. ''I certainly hope that there can be a place where there is something that can work for everyone.''

At issue is the pending vote on the final plans for the proposed 3,772-square-foot Sree Venkateswara Temple of Cleveland on seven acres at 4406 Brecksville Road. The Richfield Planning and Zoning Commission could act on the plans as early as Tuesday, its next meeting, according to Roger D. Swan, planning and zoning director.

The commission approved preliminary plans for the temple on Nov. 27. Its decision was officially recorded on Dec. 11.

Nine days later, Concerned Richfield Homeowners, a group of local residents who oppose
construction of the temple, asked Summit County Common Pleas Court to review the commission's action.

The court has granted a stay, prohibiting the commission from granting any zoning permits for the temple pending a hearing before Judge Patricia Cosgrove. That means that if the commission approves the final plans on Tuesday, the village cannot immediately issue a zoning permit.

Meanwhile, representatives of the temple have asked that the appeal by the residents be dismissed because it was prematurely filed. They say that the appeal should not have been filed until final plans were approved by the commission.

The court could resolve the latter issue today. If the court dismisses the appeal, the Concerned Richfield Homeowners will refile if the zoning commission approves the final plans, according to the homeowners' attorney, Leland Cole.

Residential area

''My clients believe that the Planning and Zoning Commission acted improperly by permitting a Hindu temple to be built in a residentially zoned area,'' said Cole, whose clients live near the site of the proposed temple.

The residents have said they are concerned about an increase in traffic and noise. They are also concerned about the glare of parking lot lights devaluing homes in the neighborhood.

Others who have opposed the temple have voiced concerns about strangers coming into the neighborhood, prompting speculation that bigotry might be fueling the opposition. Correspondence in zoning department files ask such questions as: ''Why has Richfield become the place where all these odd religions want to be?'' ''How far do there (sic) members drive to get here?'' and ''Are these people safe?''

Currently, there is a Sikh temple in the village and there is a Jain temple in Richfield Township. All of the Christian churches in the village are in residential areas, according to Swan.

Support for Hindus

Another e-mail from a Richfield Township resident encourages construction of the temple and questions the motive behind the opposition.

The Jewish woman who writes it explains that her children were targets of ''overt discrimination'' from students in Revere schools who lived in Richfield ''many years ago.''

''I am appalled to think that a woman would actually stand up at a meeting and suggest that if (the chairman of the temple committee) lives in Bath, he should actually build his temple in Bath. Perhaps I read that wrong, but to me that sounds like the worst example of bigotry and prejudice I have heard in a long time! — We cannot let Richfield continue to be known for bigotry and hatred, but rather for tolerance and intelligence.''

Beth Newcomb, one of the homeowners who filed the appeal with the court, said the allegation of bigotry is insulting and false. She said the opposition fears the tranquility of the neighborhood will be disturbed and the zoning commission has failed to follow the code, she said.

''We are concerned about transforming this area into something other than a residential area,'' Newcomb said. ''We are concerned about an influx of people coming in, chanting and singing while we're trying to enjoy the peace and quiet of our neighborhood.

''I chose to live in a secluded area and I paid a premium to do it. Nobody from that church lives in this community. Why am I not entitled to continue living in the peace of this community?

''What they want to do mirrors commercial activity. We've suggested an alternative location in Richfield that would be more appropriate, but they don't seem to be interested.''

Expansion plans?

Newcomb said there is fear in the community that the temple will want to expand beyond a small operation.

Dr. Ram Bandi, chairman of the Sree Venkateswara Temple board, said that while initial plans called for a community hall and a small library, the proposal has been scaled back. He said the local Hindu community that worships the Sree Venkateswara deity includes a little more than 100 families and that the estimate of 1,000 devotees visiting the temple each month is based on that number.

''If you have 100 families of four that visit the temple twice a month, we count that as 800 devotees,'' said Bandi, who lives in Bath Township and has a gastroenterology practice in Cuyahoga Falls. ''Unlike some other religions, we don't have set service times. People come to the temple anytime they want to pray according to their own schedule. They normally stay about 15 or 20 minutes.''

Bandi said the temple would be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. A small house that already stands on the property would be maintained to house a priest, he said. Bandi said the lower level of the building would have a small kitchen and a place for devotees to leave their shoes.

Hinduism is the third-largest organized religion in the world, with almost a billion followers. Most Hindus are in India, although there is a growing population is the United States. The Hindu American Foundation estimates that 2 million Hindus of Indian origin are in the United States, and that there are another 1 million practicing American Hindus not of Indian origin.

Hinduism is not one religion but a collection of traditions with many variations. Hindus worship deities, which are representations of the one god they believe in. They are monotheistic, and their worship involves meditating, chanting and worshipping icons of the deities.

Bandi said he has no reason to believe that the opposition to the temple is motivated by bigotry. He said he believes if people were more familiar with Hinduism, they would understand that they have no intention of disturbing the neighborhood.

''There is nothing to fear. We are very peaceful. We don't believe in raising a big noise or commotion,'' Bandi said. ''Hindus believe that to serve humanity is to serve God.''
Colette Jenkins can be reached at 330-996-3731 or cjenkins@thebeaconjournal.com.



RICHFIELD: Mayor Michael Lyons is hoping for an amenable resolution to the controversy over the proposed construction of a Hindu temple in the village.

''This is a very polarizing kind of thing that leads to the insertion of issues (like bigotry) that have nothing to do with whether the proposal meets our code,'' Lyons said. ''I certainly hope that there can be a place where there is something that can work for everyone.''

At issue is the pending vote on the final plans for the proposed 3,772-square-foot Sree Venkateswara Temple of Cleveland on seven acres at 4406 Brecksville Road. The Richfield Planning and Zoning Commission could act on the plans as early as Tuesday, its next meeting, according to Roger D. Swan, planning and zoning director.

The commission approved preliminary plans for the temple on Nov. 27. Its decision was officially recorded on Dec. 11.

Nine days later, Concerned Richfield Homeowners, a group of local residents who oppose
construction of the temple, asked Summit County Common Pleas Court to review the commission's action.

The court has granted a stay, prohibiting the commission from granting any zoning permits for the temple pending a hearing before Judge Patricia Cosgrove. That means that if the commission approves the final plans on Tuesday, the village cannot immediately issue a zoning permit.

Meanwhile, representatives of the temple have asked that the appeal by the residents be dismissed because it was prematurely filed. They say that the appeal should not have been filed until final plans were approved by the commission.

The court could resolve the latter issue today. If the court dismisses the appeal, the Concerned Richfield Homeowners will refile if the zoning commission approves the final plans, according to the homeowners' attorney, Leland Cole.

Residential area

''My clients believe that the Planning and Zoning Commission acted improperly by permitting a Hindu temple to be built in a residentially zoned area,'' said Cole, whose clients live near the site of the proposed temple.

The residents have said they are concerned about an increase in traffic and noise. They are also concerned about the glare of parking lot lights devaluing homes in the neighborhood.

Others who have opposed the temple have voiced concerns about strangers coming into the neighborhood, prompting speculation that bigotry might be fueling the opposition. Correspondence in zoning department files ask such questions as: ''Why has Richfield become the place where all these odd religions want to be?'' ''How far do there (sic) members drive to get here?'' and ''Are these people safe?''

Currently, there is a Sikh temple in the village and there is a Jain temple in Richfield Township. All of the Christian churches in the village are in residential areas, according to Swan.

Support for Hindus

Another e-mail from a Richfield Township resident encourages construction of the temple and questions the motive behind the opposition.

The Jewish woman who writes it explains that her children were targets of ''overt discrimination'' from students in Revere schools who lived in Richfield ''many years ago.''

''I am appalled to think that a woman would actually stand up at a meeting and suggest that if (the chairman of the temple committee) lives in Bath, he should actually build his temple in Bath. Perhaps I read that wrong, but to me that sounds like the worst example of bigotry and prejudice I have heard in a long time! — We cannot let Richfield continue to be known for bigotry and hatred, but rather for tolerance and intelligence.''

Beth Newcomb, one of the homeowners who filed the appeal with the court, said the allegation of bigotry is insulting and false. She said the opposition fears the tranquility of the neighborhood will be disturbed and the zoning commission has failed to follow the code, she said.

''We are concerned about transforming this area into something other than a residential area,'' Newcomb said. ''We are concerned about an influx of people coming in, chanting and singing while we're trying to enjoy the peace and quiet of our neighborhood.

''I chose to live in a secluded area and I paid a premium to do it. Nobody from that church lives in this community. Why am I not entitled to continue living in the peace of this community?

''What they want to do mirrors commercial activity. We've suggested an alternative location in Richfield that would be more appropriate, but they don't seem to be interested.''

Expansion plans?

Newcomb said there is fear in the community that the temple will want to expand beyond a small operation.

Dr. Ram Bandi, chairman of the Sree Venkateswara Temple board, said that while initial plans called for a community hall and a small library, the proposal has been scaled back. He said the local Hindu community that worships the Sree Venkateswara deity includes a little more than 100 families and that the estimate of 1,000 devotees visiting the temple each month is based on that number.

''If you have 100 families of four that visit the temple twice a month, we count that as 800 devotees,'' said Bandi, who lives in Bath Township and has a gastroenterology practice in Cuyahoga Falls. ''Unlike some other religions, we don't have set service times. People come to the temple anytime they want to pray according to their own schedule. They normally stay about 15 or 20 minutes.''

Bandi said the temple would be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. A small house that already stands on the property would be maintained to house a priest, he said. Bandi said the lower level of the building would have a small kitchen and a place for devotees to leave their shoes.

Hinduism is the third-largest organized religion in the world, with almost a billion followers. Most Hindus are in India, although there is a growing population is the United States. The Hindu American Foundation estimates that 2 million Hindus of Indian origin are in the United States, and that there are another 1 million practicing American Hindus not of Indian origin.

Hinduism is not one religion but a collection of traditions with many variations. Hindus worship deities, which are representations of the one god they believe in. They are monotheistic, and their worship involves meditating, chanting and worshipping icons of the deities.

Bandi said he has no reason to believe that the opposition to the temple is motivated by bigotry. He said he believes if people were more familiar with Hinduism, they would understand that they have no intention of disturbing the neighborhood.

''There is nothing to fear. We are very peaceful. We don't believe in raising a big noise or commotion,'' Bandi said. ''Hindus believe that to serve humanity is to serve God.''

[G.Subramaniam]

http://www.illinoistimes.com/gyrobase/Cont...&oid=oid%3A6464

Keeping the faith
Plans proceed for a Hindu temple in Springfield, but another faces resistance in Champaign-Urbana

BY MANJULA BATMANATHAN

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Elaborate three-day pooja services are conducted by Hindu priests before the temple can be considered sacred and ready for worship.

Elaborate three-day pooja services are conducted by Hindu priests before the temple can be considered sacred and ready for worship.
PHOTO COURTESY OF QUAD CITY HINDU TEMPLE

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A dozen Hindu worshipers in the Springfield area are working with members of the local Indian community to open a permanent temple.
The group is scouting potential locations and raising money for a $1 million temple, which will serve several hundred families, says Krishna Brahmamdam, who leads the Springfield temple project.
“The time has come for Springfield’s Indian community to establish a permanent worship site,” he says.
In the past, differences of opinion and skepticism have kept the project on hold, but no more, Brahmamdam says.
“Finally we are able to see in unison,” he says.
“We have a clearer idea of what we want the temple to represent, and with strong commitment from the Indian community we are moving toward that goal.”
In April, the Hindu Temple of Greater Springfield was incorporated as a not-for-profit organization and an exploratory committee put in place to plan the initial development phases of the project.
The first step of the plan involves establishing an interim site where worship services can be conducted. A Hindu priest is expected to travel to Springfield in the coming months to conduct traditional pooja services.
“While deciding on a temporary temple location, we are also exploring available properties both within city limits and countywide as HGTS’s future home,” says Brahmamdam.
A foreclosed property — a former church building southeast of town — holds promise.
“We are looking at all available properties, including existing buildings and land, as a possible temple site,” Brahmamdam says.
The temple is expected to serve almost 400 Hindu families. Many of them now travel hundreds of miles to worship at temples in Chicago, St. Louis, and Indianapolis.
“The temple will not only serve Springfield residents but will also draw Hindus from neighboring towns, including Taylorville, Jacksonville, Bloomington, and Decatur,” he says.
Brahmamdam, a 20-year resident of Springfield, says that the Indian community has established strong roots in the city and has grown over the years, largely because of the expanding medical, software, and engineering industries.
“Establishing a temple in Springfield meets our needs for a central worship house where all Hindus can gather as a community,” he says.
Many traditional functions and religious gatherings are being held at either the Indian Association House on Peoria Road or in rented facilities.
Although Brahmamdam is confident that Springfield will embrace the presence of a Hindu temple in the area, he is also aware of the ongoing opposition to the proposed Hindu Temple and Cultural Society of Central Illinois in Champaign County.
There, Hindu worshipers have pushed for a temple for more than two years, with no success.
Led by University of Illinois professor Shiv Kapoor, the group’s first attempt, in 2005, to build a Hindu temple in Urbana was thwarted by opposition from neighbors and an unsuccessful land-acquisition effort.
Their ongoing second attempt also faces opposition from area homeowners, who have raised concerns over property values, protection of rural farmland, drainage and flooding problems, increased traffic, and preservation of the rural quality of life.
Kapoor says that the process has been frustrating, especially the recent inaction by the Champaign County Board of Appeals, because of the absence of some members, during its April meeting.
More than 70 Hindu worshipers who attended the hearing hoping for a decision were disappointed.
“Three hearings later, and the fate of the project still hangs in the balance,” Kapoor says. “We are hoping the May session will hold a positive outcome.”
Kapoor says the temple committee has been working with city planners and engineers to address suggestions that will help assuage homeowners’ concerns.
The proposed $1 million Hindu Temple would serve approximately 200 Champaign-Urbana Indian families, Kapoor says.
The group plans to purchase a 40-acre parcel near a county highway, in a development known as the Thor-O-Bred Acres subdivision, while proposing to develop just five acres, including the temple, parking, and a landscaped area.
A “special use” permit is required for the property, which is now designated “best prime farmland.”
Attorney Kevin Luebchow, representing homeowners who oppose the temple, argues that although no specific development is scheduled for the farmland, granting a special-use permit for the property could pose an array of problems for residents in the area.
During a Zoning Board of Appeals hearing in late March, Luebchow told board members that the temple could have a negative impact on residential properties in the area.
He also noted said that “there have been proposed temples throughout Illinois and the United States that have been denied zoning requests because the determination was made that the design of the facility did not comply or match the characteristics of the district.”
Kapoor is disheartened by assertions that the temple design will be an eyesore.
“I have heard such references about the temple, and it’s pretty discouraging that ignorance could lead to rejection,” he says. “We are looking to expand the Hindu community’s reach to our younger generation with a temple that not only serves as a religious hub but as a cultural center that offers more that just prayer services.”
Approximately 29 residential lots, many located next to small commercial operations, sit adjacent to the proposed temple site. Several churches are located in the area, but homeowners say the temple would change the nature of the neighborhood and constitute “haphazard development.”
Kapoor says that a Hindu temple’s functions are similar in many ways to those of a church.
“Worshipers gather, pray, socialize, counsel, educate, and celebrate,” he explains. “Lack of understanding and ignorance over faiths of foreign origin leads to negative reaction. That’s one reason why we need to foster a more tolerant society by exposing different cultures to different people.”

Hinduism, which has more than 200 temples and more than 1.5 million worshipers in the United States, is an established religion, ranking third in the world behind Christianity and Islam.
There are at least eight Hindu temples in Illinois, several with grand structures resembling India’s traditional architecture.
Kapoor says although the proposed temple in Champaign County will not be a mirror image of an Indian Hindu temple, with an intricately carved exterior and towering columns, it will reflect some Indian elements.
“After all, it’s a Hindu temple,” he says.
Champaign County Hindus are hoping that the next Zoning Board of Appeals hearing will deliver the much-anticipated approval and end their long wait.
Rock Island physician Dr. Anand Reddy understands Kapoor’s frustration, but he also knows that patience and perseverance will pay off in the end.
As a board member of the newly opened Quad Cities Hindu Temple, he has been on the forefront of the six-year effort on the part of western Illinois’ Hindu community to build a temple.
On April 28, Hindus from eastern Iowa and Illinois gathered to celebrate the grand opening of the $1 million temple with traditional religious services, consecration of deities, facility tours, and an Indian feast.
The atmosphere was joyous, with hundreds of worshipers and many non-Hindu friends of the temple gathering to mark the occasion.
“It’s a matter of pride and joy for the entire Hindu community in the area to see a long-awaited dream become a reality,” Reddy says. “The temple was entirely funded by contributions from people of all faiths.”
The temple serves more than 450 Hindu families.
Reddy says although the first phase of the 7,200-square-foot single-story temple structure is complete, plans are in the works for a $1 million addition that will feature marble and granite deities and for the construction of a gopuram, the traditional Hindu temple tower, which will distinctly identify the structure’s purpose.
Reddy says that the Quad City Hindu Temple’s success serves as a model for other Indian communities to initiate temple projects.
“There were mixed reaction among people who didn’t understand our beliefs or our culture,” he says. “There are always those who doubt, question, and even oppose our right to worship where we want to.”
Faith is the key, Reddy says.

In a wooded 25-acre neighborhood in Peoria sits the idyllic Hindu Temple of Central Illinois. Built in 1999, the temple serves as a reminder that, over time, objections turn into acceptance.
Neighbors who once opposed the presence of a Hindu temple in the area have not only come to embrace its existence but have actually have learned to reap some of the benefits the center has to offer.
“Families come for a walk on the landscaped area, utilize the extra parking lot when there are family functions, and even enjoy the extra security the temple has to offer in a secluded area,” says Prakash Babu.
Babu says there is a need for the Illinois Hindu community to establish a presence and celebrate its customs and traditions.
“After seven years in the community, we have held many functions and events and opened the facility to anyone interested in utilizing the space,” he explains. “It has served the community well, not only the Hindu population but all Peoria residents.”
Babu says that the center has brought together Indians of many beliefs under one roof.
“Despite uncertainties during the initial development, we have prevailed,” says Babu, who also shares some advice for other Hindu groups working to establish temples.
“Don’t be discouraged by small obstacles along the way,” he says. “Keep moving forward.”
Above all, he says: “Keep the faith.”

M.D. Batmanathan of Springfield is a former reporter for the Paris Beacon News. She has also written for The Sun of Kuala Lumpur and other publications in Singapore and Malaysia.