58 SOCIAL SCIENTIST Having stated the 'philosophical position9, Kurian turns his attention to the lessons from Indian Church history. He brings out the collaborative character of the Church hierarchies during the imperialist period and the support they have been giving to the ruling class after independence. At the same time he refers to the positive features of Church activities like spreading medical and educational facilities.5 So far, so good. But a careful reading reveals certain attempts at revising and even distorting Marxism-Leninism. One also comes across certain inconsistencies in logic. Moving from the philosophical position to the lessons of Indian Church history, and then on to the present-day Christian world, we find this remark: "The characterization of religion as the 'opium of the people'—which Marx made in his day—is still broadly valid. This observation by Marx can be rewritten by the Christians only, by their own practice as authentic participants in the revolution in the days to come73.6 Religion as Marx Sees If One begins to wonder whether Kurian has understood the Marxist philosophical position on religion. First of all, he seems to grant only a broad validity to Marx's characterization of religion as the opium of the people. Secondly, this broadly valid characterization can be rewritten by Christians, by becoming "authentic participants in the revolution in the days to come59. "Religion is the opium of the people" is one of the best known sentences from Marx. He characterizes religion as an opiate to help oppressed humanity to escape from the frightening reality of an alienated existence: "Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, just as it is the spirit of a spiritless situation.'97 This is Marx in his formative period. What is sometimes termed as the mature Marx does not depart from this position substantially. He only develops and furthers his understanding of the "spiritless situation" with his critical insights into political economy as expressed in Capital, This development is true to the logic of accepting historical find dialectical materialism as a framework of analysis. Likewise the concept of alienation, too, has to be developed and understood on the basis of political economy. This was done in the famous section on the "Fetishism of Commodities" in Capital.6 Therefore approaching the "opium" characterization of religion on the basis of Marx's mature writings, the "spiritless situation" refers to all class societies where the human being is alienated, In such a situation, or class society, religion provides the spirit. This spirit is, so to say, ersat^\ hence the derisive term opium. The 'more the alienation, or the more spiritless the situation the more necessary becomes religion, spirit, or opium for the alienated. And historically the worst form of alienation is under capitalistic relations of production. Thus as society moves away from feudalism into capitalism, alienation increases and religion becomes more and more the opiate of the-masses. Of course^ Marx did not consider the effects of this opiate as