India, Jan. 12 -- Many Christians could not celebrate Christmas last year. They were not all in remote villages or small towns. Even in metropolitan cities, some fellow believers spent a day in a police station on New Year's Day. But hope is of the essence; it is vital to acknowledge the gravity of recent years without surrendering to despair.

Researchers studying the situation of the Christian community in India seek the community's roadmap for democratic engagement, drawing strength from the Constitution, the moral leadership of institutions of Hierarchy and the common people, and the quiet courage of ordinary citizens.

And perhaps more, it seeks empathy from the state and the majority communities, even as it extends solidarity with t...