Gandhi Letter Praising Christ on Sale

Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi (photo: Pixabay)
By Mei ManuelMarch 3rd, 2018

An old letter written by Indian activist and icon Mahatma Gandhi is currently being sold in the US and it praises the person of Jesus Christ.

The letter, written in April 6, 1926, was written by the activist to the American religious leader Milton Newberry Frantz. In the letter, Gandhi described Christ as 'one of the greatest teachers of mankind', but stopped short of ascribing divinity to him.

'Dear Friend, I have your letter,' Gandhi wrote. 'I am afraid it is not possible for me to subscribe to the creed you have sent me. The subscriber is made to believe that the highest manifestation of the unseen reality was Jesus Christ. In spite of all my efforts, I have not been able to feel the truth of that statement.

'I have not been able to move beyond the belief that Jesus was one of the great teachers of mankind. Do you not think that religious unity is to be had not by a mechanical subscription to a common creed but by all respecting the creed of each?'

He added: 'In my opinion, difference in creed there must be so long as there are different brains. But who does it matter if all these are hung upon the common thread of love and mutual esteem?'

The Raab Collection in Pennsylvania is currently selling the letter for $50,000 and noted it as 'one of the finest letters of Gandhi to reach the market.' It is also believed that the letter is the first one where the activist discussed Christ and the first one to be sold.

According to the president of the Raab Collection Nathan Raab in his statement with CNN, it was an American collector who sold the letter to the group and said it was 'a powerful, emotional letter.'

He also added, 'I think his message of tolerance, of not preaching only his feelings, is as important now as it was back then.'

 

related articles
LATEST FROM World