INTRODUCTION
Christianity is sometimes described as a “Western Religion,” meaning that it has been influential primarily in the West that is, Europe and North America. Indeed, as the beginning of this 21st century 64% of all Christians lived in Europe and North America. Even today Asian Christians now make up only 10% of the world population of Christians. And in their own countries Asian Christians represent a more 3.5% of the population of Asia. So in the most Asia, Christianity is minority religion submerged in other cultures. But didn’t Jesus teach that the Gospel was for the whole world? Well then what about the Asia? As we dig into it, we find that the Gospel has a long, noble, and interesting history in Asia. Missionary and historian Dr. Samuel Moffett in a recent book tells us that “The church began in Asia. Its earliest history, its first centers were Asia. Asia produced the first known church building, the first New Testament translation, perhaps the first Christian king, the first poets, and even arguably the first Christian state. Asian Christians endured the greatest persecutions. They mounted global ventures in missionary expansion the West could not match until after the thirteenth century.” However, when the Moslem Arabs conquered large portions of Asia beginning in the seventh century, it became illegal for Christians to evangelize or actively seek converts to their faith. The Christian communities already established in India, Persia, and Mesopotamia clung to their past and became ghettos in an Islamic cultures and society. Early traditions and liturgies continued for centuries, even when the original languages used were longer intelligible to the participants.
- Christianity in Asia
Christianity began in Asia! It was in Rome Asia that Jesus Christ was born (Luke 2: 1; Acts 11: 26). Jesus spent all of his earthly life in Palestine, on the continent of Asia, and the early church had its strongest congregations in Asia Minor, (which, conquered by Islam, has became modern Turkey.) when the church began on the day of Pentecost there were plenty of Asians there, people from Persia (now northeastern Iran and the Southern Russia to the Afghan Border), Media, and Mesopotamia (Modern Iran and Iraq), Capoadocia, Pontus, Phrygia and Pamphylia (modern Turkey), Acts 2: 9-10. Some of these Asian were undoubtedly among the three thousand who were baptized that day. They returned to their homes with much to tell about Jesus. The apostle Paul first went to the cities of Asia Minor. Galatians, Ephesians, and Colossians were epistles written to Asian Chruches. The churches of Revelation 2-3 (Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum etc,) were all in Asia Minor.
Antioch continues to be the great missionary center from which Christianity spread to the west, north and east. Eastward from Antioch the gospel spread to the small city state of Edessa (Present day Turkey). Its king was converted in cirea 200 AD, becoming the first Christian state. Here we find the first Christian church building mentioned, and the first translation if the Gospel from Greek into another language; Tantian’s Syriae harmony of the gospel around at 168 AD. The gospel reached the region of Adiabane, near the upper reaches of Tigiris in about AD 100. The growth of Christianity was rather slow for several years. Even in the twin city of Seleucia/Ctesiphon (Present day Iraq), the chief city of Mesopotamia (Present day Iraq and Iran), the Christian population was small for many years. However, churches in this region were missionary minded, and by 225 AD, they had considerably expanded, to more than 20 bishoprics.
Christianity centered to Annenia (Present day Republic of Armenia, between 1920 and 1922 it was a part of Soviet Union and became independent in 1991) both from Asia Minor and Edessa (in present day both Asia and Edessa belongs to Turkey). A peoples’ movement began under Gregory the Enlightener, who won over its king in cirea 300 AD. Armenia then became the first nations to make Christinity as its national faith, idols were destroyed, temples made into churches, and even some of the priest came over to the service of the new religion. The Bible and other Christian books were translated into Armenia. Paganism persisted only in the mountain regions. But the church in Armenia did not sail on smooth seas. It became formal and dry as a result of rapid conversion. However, under the leadership of Nerses, a descendent of Gregory, Christianity deepened and purified. In the fifth century, Armenia was dominated by the Persian Empire and its rules tried to impose Zoroastrianism (Ancient Pre-Islamic religion of Persia-Iran). Many suffered martyrdom. But by the end of the fifth century, the church breathed more easily.
- Persian-Iranian Asia: In the first millennium, Christianity spread east from Palestine to Iraq, and on to India and China, becoming a global religion accepting of, and accepted by, other faiths. But with the Mongol invasions of the 13th century, Christianity’s eastern journey came to an end.
Across the Euphrates, Jews and Christians found refuge from Roman persecutions in Persia, which is better called Iran today, in the time of Christ Iran was ruled by the Parthians (or Arsacids as they called themselves), the third in an impressive series of imperial dynasties that had made Persia the center of the world, surrounded by Rome to the west, China to the East, and India to the South.
Some have painted the Parthian Period; the first Dynasty, the Achaemendis (549-330 B.C) were the Medes and the Persians of the Bible. The second Dynasty, the Seleucids (313-283 B.C) was Greek. As the heirs of Alexander the Great, conqueror of Persia, they turned back the flow of history and threatened for a time to westernize all Asia. But the Greek lost its territories to the Romans (Asia Minor, Syria, and Judea). The third Dynasty, the Parthians (247 B.C-A.D. 226), took Persia back from the Greeks and made it Asia again. It was in Parthian Persia and its Roman Asia that Asian Christianity as distinguished from Western Christianity grew and began to develop a related but eventually separated existence, (Eastern Orthodox, since I 1054, the Eastern or Greek Orthodox church was separated under the leadership of the Patriarch (the highest ranking Bishop-Archbishop) of Constantinople, while the West under Pope. Worship of image of the saints and the adoration of relics was more general then in the west. Allow its clergy to marry before ordination).
Some have painted the Parthian period as an Iranian “Dark Age” between the golden age of Achaemendis and the high Greek culture of the Seleucids, on the other hand, and the Persian renaissance of the Seleuid dynasty. That is partly true. To the Greeks, the Parthians remained warriors and barbarians to the end. But it was in their time and under their rule that the Christian faith moved beyond the Roman Empire into Oriental Asia. The weakness of the Parthians, in fact, may have been another preparation of the gospel like the Roman peace. Their relative lack of identity, their nomadic indifference to all but war, the hunt, and the tribal intrigue, the absence of a strong and predominant religion among them, all these factors, instead of impending the progress of Christian faith, seems to have given it better opportunity to plant in Persia some of the first roots of an Asian Christianity. Their capital, Seleucia-Ctesiphon, on the Tigris river north of old Bebylon and just south of later Baghdad, became the ecclesiastical center of the church of the east, which we called Nestorian (Focus more on the human nature of Christ as created being, and denied the theory of Theotokos. They do not recognize the supremacy of Pope like the west).
- Chiness-Sinic Asia: The third center of power in Asia at the time of Christ was China. Two hundred years earlier an empire builder, Ch’in Shih Huang-ti (221-210 B.C), re-organized the scattered or divided kingdom Chinese into an imperial unity. He secures it against attacks from nomads outside the empire by building the Great Wall and tried to suppress dissent/rebel from within by rigid suppression/control of free thought. It is fruitless to speculate how history might have been changed had Christianity entered China with any effective impact in this crucial, formative period. China was not beyond reach in the apostolic age, as is sometime supposed. But there is no record that Christian missionaries vertured to traverse that Old silk Road in the other direction, eastward to China, for another six hundred years. The later legend that St. Thomas pushed on heyond his mission to India into China is not taken seriously.
The land route for the Romans to reach China was through Parthians territory, but it was close by war or polities. However, as the east explored the West, so also the West reached out in inquiry toward the East. The wide edges of continent came closer together. Probably it was said that sometime in the first century AD Macedonian trader named Maes Titianus sent agent East to reconnoitet/explore the silk Road to China. On the Chinese side of the Pamin and edge of the Tarimbasin they watched Syrian caravaners transfer goods to the camels of the Chinese or Mengols. It was the first recorded personal contact between subjects of Rome and China.
So the road was open in 102 AD. But the road was in those critical early years of the Christians church, it was Bubhist missionaries from India who used it, not Christians from Jerusalem or Antioch or Edessa, and the missionary faith that flowed along it, putting down deep roots in Eastern Asia, was not Christianity but Budchism. This may be why Buddhism, not Christianity, is now more often called the “most purely Asian of the great religion,” and the “first of the missionary religion” the Christian missionary from the Persia reached for the first time in China in the 17th century that was 400 years after the arrival of the Buddhist missionary.
It was said that during the Tang dynasty (618-907) of China hospitably received foreigners at its court; among these were a large number of Nestorian Christians. Please of Scripture, including the Sermon on the Mount, were translated into Chinese, and the "Gloria in Excelsis Deo” was also used as a Chinese hymn of praise. Even into the ninth century, Arab traders visiting China recorded the Chinese emperor's knowledge of Noah, the prophets, Moses, and Jesus.
It may just be the greatest botched apportunity in all church history. In the 1260s, Polos, an Italian merchant family, journeyed to China and were well received at court of the great Kublai Khan. Before they returned to Italy in 1269, Kublai Khan requested them to ask the pope to send 100 teachers of science and religion to instruct the Chinase in the learning and faith of Europe. The Pope only managed to send two dominican friars with the Polos in November, 1271; but a war frightened the two frars, and even they turned back. Polos including young Marco, continued their journey to the Chinese emperor without the requested religious teachers. How might the history of Christianity in Asia been different had this incomparable opportunity been seized.
2. Christianity in Indin in the First Century A.D. : Geaeral Background
Firstly let's see the relationship between Roman and the Indian. Strabo (whom А.С. Perumalil describe as the apostle to India, in his book The Apostle in India) who live during the time of Augustus, makes reference to trade between the Roman Empire and India during 5 A.D describing that one hundred and twenty ships sail from Myos-Hormos (Egypt) to India. Pliny the Elder (24-79 A.D.) also mentions voyages from the Roman Empire to India and the pepper trade. Pliny said, it is quite surprising that the use of pepper has come so much into fashion, seeing that in other substance which we use, it is sometime their sweetness, and sometime their appearance that has attracted our notice; whereas pepper has nothing in it that can plead as a recommendation to either fruit or berry, its only desirable quality being a certain pungency (strong flavor); and it is for this that we import it all the way from India.
Coming to the Christianity in India, the historical self-understandings of Christian communities in India, like those royal communities of India, trace their origin from the ancient times. They have their own hallads (a narrative poem, often of folk origin and intended to be sung, consisting of simple stanzas and usually having a refrain) and bardic (a person who composed and recited epic or heroic poems) songs, their own oral or literary traditions, and their own copper or stone inscriptions and palm-leaf documents, as well as their artifacts. These tell them how the Apostle arrived at the court of Gondaphar, the Indo-Greek who ruled the upper Indus (A.D. 19-45) how he landed in Malabar, how he healed the sick, won converts, established congregations, and undertook missions to China: and , how he end, he died as a marnyr in Mylapore.
2.1. Origin of Indian Christians and the Apostle Thomas
At St. Themas Day celebration in New Delhi on 18 December, 1955, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the President of India said, St. Thomas came to India when many European countries had not yet become Christian, and so those Indians who trace their Christianity to him have a longer history and a higher ancestry than that of Christians of many of the European countries, It shows that Christianity in India did not come initially from Europe (West).
In the Indian sub-continent, the Aryans eame between 2000 and 1500 B.C., the Persians in the sixth century B.C., the Soythians- a Greek designation and an ancient group of people from Central Eurasia, such as: Bactrians, Parthians, Sakas, during the second and first Century В.С., the Greek in the fourth Century B.C. the Khusans (a tribe on the Central Asian frontier of China) in the first Century A D.. the Huns in the fifth Century A.D.. and the Muslims, from the twelfth to eighteenth century AD, so the history of North India can be said to be history of the conquests of outsiders who came through the North-West. There has been a continuous relationship through North West trom 516 B.C, to 220 A.D, during this period much give and take had happen. Apart from Romans, Egyptians, Arabs, Syrians and Persians traded with India, this also led to a let of give and take, religiously, culturally and socially.
In the Indian sub-continent, the Aryans eame between 2000 and 1500 B.C., the Persians in the sixth century B.C., the Soythians- a Greek designation and an ancient group of people from Central Eurasia, such as: Bactrians, Parthians, Sakas, during the second and first Century В.С., the Greek in the fourth Century B.C. the Khusans (a tribe on the Central Asian frontier of China) in the first Century A D.. the Huns in the fifth Century A.D.. and the Muslims, from the twelfth to eighteenth century AD, so the history of North India can be said to be history of the conquests of outsiders who came through the North-West. There has been a continuous relationship through North West trom 516 B.C, to 220 A.D, during this period much give and take had happen. Apart from Romans, Egyptians, Arabs, Syrians and Persians traded with India, this also led to a let of give and take, religiously, culturally and socially.
2. 2. Bartholomew Tradition
According to the great historian of the early church Euscbius of Cuesaria (263-340), Pantaenus of Alexandria, the head of the Catechetical School in Alexandria went to India to preach Christianity (c.190 AD ) and, there he found a copy of Gospel according to Mathew written in Hebrew left behind by St. Bartholomew, one of the disciples of Jesus Christ, and Pantaenus took it back to Alesandria. St. Jerome (340-420) strenghens the Bartiolorew tradition, saying that it was Demetrius, Bishop of Alexandria who sent Pataenus to India.
However, this tradition cannot be fully trusted, as it does not mention to which part of India did Bartholomew and later pantaenus came to propogate the Gospel. How long did they spend? Were there Hebrew speaking people in ndia at that time? Such questions are left unanswered.
2.3. St. Thomas Tradition
Under the tradition of St. Thomas on founding of the Church in India, we will see three major traditions. They are as follows;
A) Matabar/ Indian Tradition: The Malaber tradition which is also known as the Indian tradition has been handed down from generation
to generation by words of morth among the Malabar Christians of St. Thomas and to some extent among their non-Christian neighbours.
The tradition says that, St. Thomas came by Sea, landed at Cranganore (Kerala) in about the year 52 A.D. converted a few high caste families and visited Coromandal Coast (Tamil Nadu), making some converts and crossed over to china and preached the Gospel; returned to India and organized the leading families he had converted and erected a few public places of worship. Then he moved over to Coromandal coast and suffred martyrdom near the litle mount, on what is now as the St. Thomas Mount. His body was brough to the town of Mylapore (Tamil Nadu) and was buried in a holy shrine he had built, As the tradition goes, Christians from Malabar, West Asia
(Middle-East; Syria. Iraq, Iran, Turkey etc. ) and even from china used to go on pilgrimage to Mylapore and venerate the tomb.
B) North Indian/Punjab/Western Tradition-Acts of (Judas) Thomas: The Acts of Thomas deals with another tradition which is generally known as Westen Tradition. The tradition says, St. Thomas following the well established trade routes, reached India, sometime in the middle of the first century. He preached the Gospel in Parthia (Ancient persia-Iran) and India, converts many to Christianity including members of the royal families, suffered martyrdom in India, and was buried there: later his mortal remains were transfarred to the west (Edessa) where they were deposited paying due respect and venerated.
A) Matabar/ Indian Tradition: The Malaber tradition which is also known as the Indian tradition has been handed down from generation
to generation by words of morth among the Malabar Christians of St. Thomas and to some extent among their non-Christian neighbours.
The tradition says that, St. Thomas came by Sea, landed at Cranganore (Kerala) in about the year 52 A.D. converted a few high caste families and visited Coromandal Coast (Tamil Nadu), making some converts and crossed over to china and preached the Gospel; returned to India and organized the leading families he had converted and erected a few public places of worship. Then he moved over to Coromandal coast and suffred martyrdom near the litle mount, on what is now as the St. Thomas Mount. His body was brough to the town of Mylapore (Tamil Nadu) and was buried in a holy shrine he had built, As the tradition goes, Christians from Malabar, West Asia
(Middle-East; Syria. Iraq, Iran, Turkey etc. ) and even from china used to go on pilgrimage to Mylapore and venerate the tomb.
B) North Indian/Punjab/Western Tradition-Acts of (Judas) Thomas: The Acts of Thomas deals with another tradition which is generally known as Westen Tradition. The tradition says, St. Thomas following the well established trade routes, reached India, sometime in the middle of the first century. He preached the Gospel in Parthia (Ancient persia-Iran) and India, converts many to Christianity including members of the royal families, suffered martyrdom in India, and was buried there: later his mortal remains were transfarred to the west (Edessa) where they were deposited paying due respect and venerated.
Acts of Thomas is an apocryphal book in Syriac at Edessa about the middle of the third century. It describes the activities of St. Thomas in India during the time of King Gundaphorus, a king of North India or Parthia. He sends Abban the merchant to buy a carpenter... Misdacus the king's captain slew Thomas for betraying the king.
C) Mylapore/Coromandel Tradition: The Mylapore tradition is also known as the “Coromandal Tradition" and was given much
prominence as a separate tradition by the Portuguese. According to this tradition, St Thomas after his fruitful ministry in the Malabar Coast of Tamil Nadu, crossed over to the Eastern Coast and preached the Gospel there. As in Malabar, he had converts, especially from the high castes. Being infuriated by his success, his antagonists (enemies) made attempt of his life. On one such occasion when he was chased by them, he took shelter in a cave near the little Mount, and when he was about to be captured, he escaped from the place through the hole in the roof or the cave, and took shelter in the shrine he had built at the top of the St. Thomas Mount. His pursuers caught him there and speared him to death while he was clinning on to a stone cross inside the said shrine. Later his disciples or followers came and took his slain body away and buried him on the sea shore in San Tome, Mylapore.
prominence as a separate tradition by the Portuguese. According to this tradition, St Thomas after his fruitful ministry in the Malabar Coast of Tamil Nadu, crossed over to the Eastern Coast and preached the Gospel there. As in Malabar, he had converts, especially from the high castes. Being infuriated by his success, his antagonists (enemies) made attempt of his life. On one such occasion when he was chased by them, he took shelter in a cave near the little Mount, and when he was about to be captured, he escaped from the place through the hole in the roof or the cave, and took shelter in the shrine he had built at the top of the St. Thomas Mount. His pursuers caught him there and speared him to death while he was clinning on to a stone cross inside the said shrine. Later his disciples or followers came and took his slain body away and buried him on the sea shore in San Tome, Mylapore.
3. European Colonialism and the Christian Mission
The concept of Colonialism is very old one. Yet it is intimately linked to the global expansion of the Western Christian nations in the Modern period. Colonialism emerged in the late 15th century as a quest for finding new lands. The colonial period normally refers to the late I5th to 20th centuries. Many motivations pushed Europeans towards colonizing foreign lands. Primarily, nations established colonies to gain economic profits. The late 13th to early 16th centuries, Industrial Revolution of the country like Great Britain need raw materials to uphold the new industries, they depend on their colonies for raw materials to be used in their factories, so that they could produce a growing number of manufactured goods. They then hoped to sell the manufactured goods to their colonies, which served as new markets. In addition to the desire for economic profits, nationalism also served as reasons for colonization. After French Revolution of 1789-1799, European nations had a strong sense of national pride, and felt that in order to prove themselves as a strong world power; they would need to gain control of other countries. By obtaining power over foreign lands, they were also able to strengthen their military power, which further increased their status as a world power.
Colonialism in India refers to the areas of Indian sub-continent under the control of European colonial powers, through trade and conquest. It was Vasco-da Gama the Portuguese sailor in the late 15th century to re-established direct trade with India. Trading rivalries brought other European to India in the early 17th century.
3.1. The Portuguese: It was Portugal which undertook sea-voyages during the period of the Portugal Prince, Henry the Navigator (1394- 1460). Portugal being a Roman Catholic country hed the blessing of the Pope in sea-voyages endeavors. Soon the Spanish joined in encouraging "discoveries" of new lands. Though such voyages had an element of adventure they had mixed motives, such as: motives of crusade curiosity, Commerce, conquest, colonization, and conversion. On the other hand, the capture of Constantinople by the Turks in 1453 which block the trade routes to India by land can be said to be the immediate cause for Portugal and Spain to take up in a serious sea-voyages, which they felt would enable them to find a sea-route to India. and other countries.
In 1456, Pope Callistus II gave to Portugal the right to dominion and commercial monopoly in the land "discovered" and to be “discovered’ as the Bull of the Pope says (Bull is an edict issued by the Pope). Spain which was also a Roman Catholic country was also given a similar privilege. In response to the Pope's order, both the rulers were asked to take the responsibility to send missionaries, support them, established churches (Church is a word that generally refers to any building set aside in perpetuity for the public exercise of Divine worship), chapels (Chapel is a very broad term, and can apply to anything from a section of much larger church or cathedral, to small building) not monasteries and the like. So, in view of this, every ship which left the shores of Portugal or Spain carried not marchants but also miltary and monks.
Very soor there arose a biter rivalry between Pontugal and Spain. In order to settle their rivalry Pope Alexander VI in a famous Bull of 1493 divided the world between Portugal and Spain; the Westem Coast of Atlantic ocean (South America, Africa etc ), and the Eastern Coast and the land beyond to Portugal. The Bull prohibited other foreigners from entering into those lands without license from those kings.
Vasso d agams, a Portuguese landed near Calicut on 17th May 1498 with trade as its motive and missionizing as the hidden agenda. The second Portuguese expedition was under Pedro Alvares Cabral which reached Calicut on 13th September 1500. The Portuguese moved to Cochin soon and found it more congenial/pleasant. Here they came into contact with the Mar Thoma/Malabar Syrian Christians too. In 1510 Affonse de Albuquerque, the second governor of the Portuguese possessions in east capture Goa from Sultan of Bijspur, and thus Goa was made the centre of Portuguese administration and the capital of all setlements in Asia. In obedience to the command of the pope, the Portuguese colonizers got engaged in missionizing their territories in India by a diverse way, Affanso de Albuquerque encourages mixed marriage, he asked his men, both merchants and military personnel to marry Indian woren. This was to built up a body faithful to Portugal. The Portuguese administration in India also offered jobs to Christians only. The Portuguese government prohibited in it's territories the public worship of Hindus and Muslims. Moreover, only Christians were given the power to own the lands and possessions and others were asked to leave the area or to embrace Christianity. Thus, Christian faith was spread by force conversion and on the other hand, by direct evangelism too.
3.2. The Dutch (Holland or Netherland): The Dutch East Indin Company like others was a mercantile compary and as primarily trade. The Dutch capture Cochin from the Portuguese in 1663 and brought the rule of the Portuguese to an end in that region. They being Protestants (Reformed Tradition) from Netherland or Holland were very particular to vacate all the Portuguese (of being a Romn Catholic) including the clergy from the areas they had captured from Portuguese. They were not intreseted in mission, but they having a dislike for Roman Church converted the church built by the Portuguese in Cochin fort, Nagapattinam and Tuticorin into Protestant Churches. The Dutch were on the other hand, a blessing for the Malabar Syrian Christians who wanted to throw away the yoke of Roamn Church which was forcibly thrust upon them by Archbishop Alexis de Menezes especially through the synod of Diamper. Apart from this the Dutch never took any step to establish Protestant Christianity in their territories, though they had militery chaplain. The Dutch had Cochin in their hands until 1795, when the British took it.
3.3. The Danish: The Danish East India Company settled at two places in India: Tranquebar (Tarangambadi) in 1620 and Serampore 1678. Like the Dutch company the Danish too had trade as their primary consideration. The Danish were Lutheran (Luther was the first voice of the Protestant Reformation and are the oldest Protestants), but they too refused to allow any missionaries in their territories under their jurisdiction since they saw them, as a threat to their commercial interests.
However, it was King Frederick IV of Denmark, a Lutheran who first conceived the idea of sending protestant missionariss to India. He selected two German Lutherans, Bartholomew Ziegenbalg and Henry Pluetschau for the venture and sends them to Tranquebar as "royal missionaries". They both arrived at Tranquebar on 9th July 1706.
However, it was King Frederick IV of Denmark, a Lutheran who first conceived the idea of sending protestant missionariss to India. He selected two German Lutherans, Bartholomew Ziegenbalg and Henry Pluetschau for the venture and sends them to Tranquebar as "royal missionaries". They both arrived at Tranquebar on 9th July 1706.
3.4. The British: The British East India Company (E.I.C) a private trading company started its mercantile activities with India from the beginning of the seventeenth century, it was company incorporated under a Charter Granted by the British parliament. The E.C.I had commercial motive of making profits as its solemn aim, they refused to allow any Christian missionaries in the territories under their jurisdiction atleast in the early period. It fears that the missionaries may be a treat to their commercial interest. In the beginning stages the E.C.I. had only a few trading centres in India, but as a result of Battle or Plassey on June 23, 1757 (between British East India Company and Nawab of Bengal and his French allies), the E.C.I, established its rule, having Calcutta as its headquariers. By the end of eighteenth century British rule was frmly established in three presidencies of Bengal, Madras and Bombay. The E.CI. a commercial organization thus becomes a colonial government.
In the middle of the eighteenth century. Britain was going through many changes. There was an awakening among the Chrisian community and a religious revival was sweeping through the land. Some of the notable religious leaders of this time were; John Wesley, Charles Wesley and George Whitefield. Interest in mission was growing. A group of people who came to be named ‘Evangelicals’ spearheaded the cause of mission; their atention was drawn towards India. The British missionaries began their evangelistic work as permitted by the Charter of 1813.
4. The Portuguese and the Indian Church (Syrians) and the Synod of Diamper 1599
When Portuguese first came to India and there meet the Syrian Christians, relationship were at first very friendly. They aecept each other as a fellow Christions. But as mutual knowledge increase, it became more and more apparent that there were difference between them; Portuguese ecclesiastics, who were Western Catholics, and believed that the Roman Church was the only true form of the Church, it's doctrines and practices the standard for all Christians and the Pope as the Universal authoritative, could not help the feeling that in many ways the Syrian customs were unsatisfactory and needed to be corrected.
So, Aleixo de Menezes, the newly appointed Archbishop of Goa, summoned a synod of the entire church at Udaymperur-Kerala (Diamper) on June 20, 1599, Reform decrees were carefully prepared by Menezes to replace local Syrians by Roman customs; they were passed and signed by all present. With these decrees. the ancient church of St. Thomas Christians, as an indenendent church had simply ceased to exist. The scope of the synod of Diamper was define in clear and comprehensive term· "to treat of all such matters convenient for the honour of God, the exaltation of the holy Roman catholic faith and divine worship, the good of the church, the extirpation of vice, the reformation of the Christians of the said diocese, and the profit and peace of their souls.”
So, Aleixo de Menezes, the newly appointed Archbishop of Goa, summoned a synod of the entire church at Udaymperur-Kerala (Diamper) on June 20, 1599, Reform decrees were carefully prepared by Menezes to replace local Syrians by Roman customs; they were passed and signed by all present. With these decrees. the ancient church of St. Thomas Christians, as an indenendent church had simply ceased to exist. The scope of the synod of Diamper was define in clear and comprehensive term· "to treat of all such matters convenient for the honour of God, the exaltation of the holy Roman catholic faith and divine worship, the good of the church, the extirpation of vice, the reformation of the Christians of the said diocese, and the profit and peace of their souls.”
5. Madurai Mission of the Jesuits
Madurai province (city in Tamil Nadu), a renowned culture and literary centre, is the oldest province in India. Jesuits presence in this land of Tamil Nadu began since the time of St Francis Xavier. After Xavier came Antony Criminali (1520-1549) who was killed by the Badagas in a raid near Vedalai, Rammad District Tamil Nadu. Henry Henriques (1520-1600), Goncalo Fernardez (1541-1621). Robert de Nobili (1577-1657). However, we will see only two personalities, such as Francis Xavier and Robert de Nobili and will learn their missionary methods.
Madurai province (city in Tamil Nadu), a renowned culture and literary centre, is the oldest province in India. Jesuits presence in this land of Tamil Nadu began since the time of St Francis Xavier. After Xavier came Antony Criminali (1520-1549) who was killed by the Badagas in a raid near Vedalai, Rammad District Tamil Nadu. Henry Henriques (1520-1600), Goncalo Fernardez (1541-1621). Robert de Nobili (1577-1657). However, we will see only two personalities, such as Francis Xavier and Robert de Nobili and will learn their missionary methods.
5.1. St. Francis Xavier: The first man to be chosen bears a famous name in the history of Christianity in Asia, St. Francis Xavier, one of St. Ignatius Loyola's closest friends and an original founding companion of the Society of Jesus, is most honored by the Catholic Church, other Christian churches, and the Jesuit order for his missionary accomplishments particularly in India, Southeast Asia and Japan. While studying at the University, Ignatius Loyola, who was a fellow student, became an increasely important influence on Xavier. So much so that, despite early reluctance, Xavier made the spiritual exercise under his direction. In 15th August of 1534, he joined Ignatius and five other companions in pronouncing vows on poverty and celibacy. Then they planned to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. After travelling across Europe by foot to the port of Venice, they could not findnd a ship to take them to Palestine. When they were waited for the ship at Venice, they worked in the hospial, ministered to the sick and needy and even did manual work. At Venice both Xavier and Ignatius were ordained priests in 1537. In the following year, Xavier went to Rome to share in the discussions that led to the formal founding of the Society of Jesus. Upon approval, Xavier served as the secretary of the Society until leaving for India in 1541.
San Francsico de Xavier, Jesuit missionary and saint, commonly known in English as St. Francis Xavier and also called as the “Apostle of the Indies" was retained by Ignatius at Rome until 1541 as secretary to the Seciety of Jesus. Meanwhile John III, king of Portugal, had resolved on sending a mission to his Indian dominions, with his request to the ambassador in Rome Francis Xavier decided to send along with him another priest, Faul De Camerino also volunteered. They sailed from Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, in April 1541 and landed at Goa on the 6th of May 1542. However, in the sixteenth century a fairly rapid voyage to India took five to six months; but because of a late start and unfavorable wind Xavier's voyage took thirteen months. Xavier spent a great part the voyage; laboring sacrificially among the sick people in the ship, not refusing even the sweeper's work, ministering to the living, preparing the dying for death and burying the death and by the time he landed Goa he was a reputed saint.
5.1.1. Mission among the Paravas: After paying his respect to the Bishop of Goa. Xavier devoted himself to visiting sick in the hospital and the prisoners in the jails and gathering together children and others in one of the churches for elementary Christian teaching. Then at the instance of the Viceroy, Xavier went to work among the Parava converts who lived on the southeast cost opposite to Ceylon. Taking with him three Indian Christian helpers, two of them deacons, the other in minor orders, he travelled by sea to what is now the district of Tinnevelly, where he found the Paravas living in thirty villages between Cape Comorin and Tuticorin. Those Paravas are Christian are ignorant of faith and without proper church service of any kind. After making a rapid tour through the villages, during which he baptized all the anabaptized children and babies he could find. After sometime he arrived at Tuticorin and began to visit Christian villages. He appointed catechists who received a stipend from funds provided by the Portuguese Government and Administered by their agent at Tuticorin.
5.1.2 Missionary Methods: Xavier's mission method was simple. He lived and worked in whatever hospital or poor house for incurables he could find as the earliest members of the company had done. He also had a litle bell which he rang and did a kind of Pied Piper thing by using the equivalent of today's rap artistry to teach prayers and the creed. He would ask the children to teach these to their parents as well. When he found someone who would say they believed the articles of the creed, their catechumenate was over and he baptized them. He usually then sent his converts out to destroy every Hindu image they could find and rejoiced when they did so. Xavier
was especiaily happy to be able to baptize dying babies, believing that he gave them a better life after death in doing so. He agonized over those whe did not know Christ and vacillated between asking for help of Jesuits from the least intellectually capable among them to the most learned who were "wasting their time" in Europe in university discourses with all these souls in Asia needing them! Brodrick says he eventually changed his mind about wanting Jesuits who were strong of body but weak of mind.
Xavier wore a cassock that was almost falling off him. That would not change until Japan. But no matter where he went in Asia he laboriously translated prayers into the local language, and attempted to speak it no matter how badly in order to "go in their door that they may come out ours".
was especiaily happy to be able to baptize dying babies, believing that he gave them a better life after death in doing so. He agonized over those whe did not know Christ and vacillated between asking for help of Jesuits from the least intellectually capable among them to the most learned who were "wasting their time" in Europe in university discourses with all these souls in Asia needing them! Brodrick says he eventually changed his mind about wanting Jesuits who were strong of body but weak of mind.
Xavier wore a cassock that was almost falling off him. That would not change until Japan. But no matter where he went in Asia he laboriously translated prayers into the local language, and attempted to speak it no matter how badly in order to "go in their door that they may come out ours".
5.2. The Madurai Mission (1606-1623): Robert de Nobili: Since 1595 a certain Fr. Gonacalo Fernandez had been staying at Madurai and looking after the spiritual needs of about 100 Paravas and Portuguese Christians who were either living there or used to go there for reasons of trade, but he was unable to exercise any influence over local people. However, in 1606, Robert de Nobili (an Italian Noble family) arrived in Madurai; in the mean time he investigated the causes which had rendered the missionary work of Fernandez. He found out that the chief reasons was the contempt which the Indians had in general for the Paranghis or Portuguese, who did not wash or bath frequently, who ate beef, drink liquor and communicate freely with those people of the most despised castes. Therefore, he called himself as a Roman of raja (Kshatria) caste rather than a Portuguese. In November 1607, he left the old Madurai Mission House, where Fernandez stayed, and went to lived in a house, which was offered to him by one of his Hindu admirers. His first conversion high caste Hindu man (whom he called Albert) led the conversions of several people of the Nayak caste.
Nobili was very much concerned about the language of the people. He wanted to present Christianity to Indian in their own langunge. His achievements is to be seen in his understanding and adaptation of Hindu Customs and ceremonies, in his pioneering study of Sanskrit and Tamil and in his initial of essential task of evolving a Christian Theological vocabulary for Indian languages. Nobili began to learn that Indian society was divided into a number of rigidly structured hierarchical groupings called "Caste System". He understand that, naturally, the Hindus began to see Christianity as the religions of the Parangis or Portuguese and rejected outright any possibility of conversions due to its inevitable consequence the loss of caste. He then adopted a variety of indigenous forms of the Indian culture (Change his Paraghi dress with secret threat and live in a mud house with vegetarian life) in order to create a culturally relevant or contextualized expression of
Christianity.
Christianity.
His Methods of Evangelism: Nobili observed the weakness of the catholic Mission and sought for the need of new method for missionary outreach. He realized that the Brahmins could be evangelized only by way of identification with their culture and life style. As a result, he cut himself off from the rest of the Portuguese missionaries, studied the Brahmin culture, their prejudices they had in the society and to give up some of his cultural habits and adopt their, unless they were obviously idolatrous.
In order to identify himself with the Brahmins, Nobili becomes a Sannyasi guru, a priest and a teacher who renounces the luxuries of material world and adopted an ascetic way of life. Nobili dress like a Brahmin, wearing wooden sandals, or paste, sacred thread with cross and discussed with the Brahmia religion and philosophy, studied Vedic hymns and text and practice meditation and ceremonial bathing of which he was well respected and received by the Brahmins in Madurai. His dress, his food and ceremonial observances made him like a Brahmin and unlike the Poruguese. His method was not hypocrisy rather a legitimate missionary method. He was perfect in performing social customs too.
In 1606, he made four-point program as his missionary strategies:
1. The missionary should openly decelare that he is not born of the Paraghi caste. His disciples or converts do not necessarily lost their caste and degenerate into Paranghi.
2. He should profess to be, first a noble of the highest rank.
3. He should abandoned the Portuguese mode of life and adopt the manner of life of the high caste; Brahmins and rajas. He should permit himself not to contact with any law caste person; accept that which is allowed by the law and usage of the Brahmins and sanryasi.
4. He should have a house and a church at a distance from those Paranghi and the Parava Christians and avoid social communication.
Nobili made used of his noble birth so as to become acceptable to Brahmins and other dominant groups
1. The missionary should openly decelare that he is not born of the Paraghi caste. His disciples or converts do not necessarily lost their caste and degenerate into Paranghi.
2. He should profess to be, first a noble of the highest rank.
3. He should abandoned the Portuguese mode of life and adopt the manner of life of the high caste; Brahmins and rajas. He should permit himself not to contact with any law caste person; accept that which is allowed by the law and usage of the Brahmins and sanryasi.
4. He should have a house and a church at a distance from those Paranghi and the Parava Christians and avoid social communication.
Nobili made used of his noble birth so as to become acceptable to Brahmins and other dominant groups
6. THE PROTESTANT MISSION: THE TRANQUEBAR MISSION
The first Protestant missionary group came to India at the initiative of the Danish King (Denmark) Frederick IV. The first Protestant missionaries Bartholomew Ziegenbalg and Henry Pluetschau were Lutherans and they were the product of the German pietism (a movement in the Lutheran Church in Germany in the 17th century that stressed personal piety holiness/faithfulness over religious formality and orthodoxy). A few of their converts came from the Roman Catholic Church who brought their caste distinctions with them.
The first Protestant missionary group came to India at the initiative of the Danish King (Denmark) Frederick IV. The first Protestant missionaries Bartholomew Ziegenbalg and Henry Pluetschau were Lutherans and they were the product of the German pietism (a movement in the Lutheran Church in Germany in the 17th century that stressed personal piety holiness/faithfulness over religious formality and orthodoxy). A few of their converts came from the Roman Catholic Church who brought their caste distinctions with them.
Tranquebar is a common European word for the small town Tranangkampadi (village on the seashore or village of the dancing/singing waves) on the Coromandel Coast of Tamil country in south India. Originally it was a centre for business and a place known for fishing. The Tranquebar mission is the beginning of Protestant mission in India. Out of the five missionaries here 1 will Ziegenbalg in detail and sum up with the other four missionaries with their significant contributions.
6. 1. Bartholomew Ziegenbalg and Henry Pluetschau: The Protestant missions began in 1706 with the arrival of the Danish-Halle products of a revival movement called Pietism, which began in the Lutheran Church in Germany in the last quarter of the seventh century. Ziegenbalg and Plutschau who were brought to Denmark and ordained. The two "royal missionaries" reached Tranquebar-India on the 9th July 1706. Soon after they learned Portuguese because it was the common language then in use in the European trading stations of south India, Tamil because it was the language of the people. The two Missionaries began to produce literature in Tamil language, even though it was a laborious process-making booklet by hand.
They have a strong resolution that every Christians should be able to explain to people of other faith why he/she had become a follower of Jesus Christ. For a large numbers of Indian who were considered to be sub-human, the news of the new dignity derived from Jn. 3:16 provided a power to regain their self-confident to break away the chains of Karma-Samsara (cycle of rebirth based on karma), and to work for the social upward mobility especially through their Dharma-Pallik-Kudams' (public charity schools), orphanage and above all through their local churches. In 1716, they founded a seminary and Aaron, one of the students was ordained in Dec. 1733 as the first Indian protestant Pastor.
Some signiicant and individual works of the Tranquebar missionaries such as; Ziegenbalg, Pluetschau. Benjamin Schulze, John Philip, Fabricius and Christian Frederick Schwartz are as given below. Remember they are all the product of the Halle University, the center of Pietism under A. Hume. Their common principles were; Charity, Converts, established schools and learning centres and translate Bible into the language of the given communities.
Bartholomew Ziegenbalg:
- Established school
- Translate Bible in Tamil, when he was in the Danish jail.
- Contextualization: he leamed Malabar culture and understands their practices. He said unless you understand the religious belief of the people, Gospel can't be effective.
- Wrote books on "genealogy of Malabar gods" and "Malabar Heathenism" for German readers.
- He focuses on; make Indian church as early as possible. And to him learning language was to sit with the people in the sand and learn alphabet by finger tip.
- Dialogical methods especially to uneducated elders.
- Construction of local church in 1716 and was in cross shape, in order to separate the caste among the believers.
- First to give women education and a first one to run an industry. A paper mill, to produce paper so as to print the Bible.
Henry pluetschau:
- Pluetschau was not competent to learnt language, even though he knew Portuguese, so he was assigned to work among the Portuguese speaking, who were already Christians.
- Worked among the mixed race people. Mainly concerned about the administration.
- He was give a task to contact with the ‘Missionary Board' in Copenhagen (Germany) Went back to Germany in a short period of ime in 1711.
- He was the one who convinced the Mission Board to send much fund to Ziegenbalg ministries.
Benjamin Sehultze:
- He took over the management in 1720 and was able to direct the work in several new areas.
- A German Missionary who became the founder of the Lutheran church in the city of Madras in 1720.
- He completed Ziegenbalg translation of the Bible into Tamil and also branched out into Hindustani languages.
- First person to translate Bible into Telegu (N. T.).
- Schultze returned home to Germany in 1743 and was succeeded by Philip Fabricius, and excellent Tamil Scholar.
John Philip Fabricius:
- Arrived and Tranquebar in 1743. And in 1750 he completed his transalation of the whole Bible and because of his ability his transalation known as "Golden Translation".
- Engagedd in literary work and produce hymns and Tamil-English dictionary along with Tamil grammar in English in 1779.
- One of his popular translation was the Pilgrim's Progress in Tamil (Oru paratecí yon puniyan caritiram) in 1793.
- He also works among the East India Company soldiers and with the SPCK (Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge).
Christian Frederick Schwatz:
- The ‘brightest star in the constellation of Danish-Halle missionaries' because of his educational activity in his first twelve years (1750-1762). Also known as “jewel of Tranquebar Mission".
- He was so congenial (nice/good) with the people in Nagapattinam, so the E.I.C. called him to be their Chaplain.
- He is specializing in superintending the missionary.
- Had multidimensional activities. He went for peace mission between British and Hyder Ali, the Mysore king who joined hand with the French.
- SPCK adopted C.F. Schwartz in 1767 and served continually until death in 1798.
- He never forgets that he was a missionary, even though his political involvement was very influential.
6. 2. The Serampore Mission
After the Battle of Plassey (1757), Calcutta emerges as an important commercial and political center. And by the end of the Eighteenth century it was clear that the next period in the history of India was to be the British period. The British had monopolized India and do not permit missionary activities. However there was an idea that, if England was to rule India, something should be done for the spiritual welfare of the Indian people gained. Notable among them were Charles Grant (member of the council of Bengal and afterwards a director of the company), David Brown (Company's Chaplain), Daniel Corrie (Bishop of Madras) and others.
Meanwhile, a very remarkable man had arrived in Bengal: William Carey. A self educated country pastor, who had eked out a meager stipend by teaching a village school and working as a cobble, Carey had been the leading spirit in the formation of the Baptist Missionary Society. It was his constant urging of the idea on his fellow-ministers, and especially his sermon on Isaiah 54:2-3, with its famous two points, 'Expect great thing from God, attempt great things for God’, which had moved a small group of them to found the Society (BMS); and he himself became one of its two first missionaries. The other was a zealous but erratic medical doctor, called John Thomas, who had been in India already. Carey with his wife and four children's along with his wife sister arrived at Hooghly River in Novenber 1793.
After the Battle of Plassey (1757), Calcutta emerges as an important commercial and political center. And by the end of the Eighteenth century it was clear that the next period in the history of India was to be the British period. The British had monopolized India and do not permit missionary activities. However there was an idea that, if England was to rule India, something should be done for the spiritual welfare of the Indian people gained. Notable among them were Charles Grant (member of the council of Bengal and afterwards a director of the company), David Brown (Company's Chaplain), Daniel Corrie (Bishop of Madras) and others.
Meanwhile, a very remarkable man had arrived in Bengal: William Carey. A self educated country pastor, who had eked out a meager stipend by teaching a village school and working as a cobble, Carey had been the leading spirit in the formation of the Baptist Missionary Society. It was his constant urging of the idea on his fellow-ministers, and especially his sermon on Isaiah 54:2-3, with its famous two points, 'Expect great thing from God, attempt great things for God’, which had moved a small group of them to found the Society (BMS); and he himself became one of its two first missionaries. The other was a zealous but erratic medical doctor, called John Thomas, who had been in India already. Carey with his wife and four children's along with his wife sister arrived at Hooghly River in Novenber 1793.
The plan was that the missionaries should as soon as possible earn their living. Goods had been provided, whose sale was intended to finance for the first year: but Thomas spent all the money in two months, before any other arrangement had been made. Carey found himself and his family in a desperate plight, his wife and eldest son were down with dysentery; they had to be dependent on a kind Hindu for a dilapidated house in which to live while he sought for a livelihood. In February, 1794, having obtained a lease of waste land in Sunderbans, South Fast of Calcutta, he removed and set to work clearing the jungle for cultivation. Meanwhile George Udny offers him a post of manager in indigo factory in Madnabati, Malda, district, North Bengal in June 1794. At Madnabati they stayed five and half years. During that time, besides attending to his indigo business, Carey learned Bengali and Sanskrit, preached to the people of the surrounding district and opened school.
In 1799 four families arrived at Hooghly in an American ship. As they had no permission from the company (E. I. C) they had been advised to go straight to the Danish settlement of Serampore, about fifteen miles upstream from Calcutta. The Danish Governer who had served in Tranquebar and known Christian Frederick Schwatz made them welcomes and defended them against the attempts of the British authorities to have them expelled, and soon Carey move to Serampore in 1800 to join them. Thus began the Serampore Mission. A large house and compound near the river were bought, and as the year passed developed an astonishing range of activities. Death soon thinned the ranks of newcomers; but two men, Joshua Marshmen a school master, and William Ward, a printer, survived to form with Carey a famous partnership, known as the "Serampore Trio”.
Missionary Activities of the Serampare Trio: The Serampore trios were engaged in education. literature, Bible translation, abolition of social evil practice, social upliftment, and medical work.
Missionary Activities of the Serampare Trio: The Serampore trios were engaged in education. literature, Bible translation, abolition of social evil practice, social upliftment, and medical work.
6. 1. Education: The Baptist missionaries led by William Carey and his close associates, William Ward and Joshua Marshman were pioneers in modern and missionary educaion. From the very beginning education was one of the best missionary tools. Joshua and his wife Hannah started schools mainly for the children of educated classes. School for both boys and girls were also started which were paying boardings school: By the year 1818, there were 126 elementary sohools in and around Serampere. In the same year in 1818 under the patronage/support of Marquis, the Governor General of India. Serampore College was founded. It was set up as a liberal arts and Science College for both Christians and Non-Christians and it includes Theology Department in English and in Bengali. In the year 1827 King of Denmark granted it a charter to confer its own degrees (autonomous).
6. 2. Literature: The first objective of Serampore Trio was to get the Bengali Bible printed, and with much effort the Bengali New Testament was completed in early 1801. This work resulted with Carey's appointment as Professor at Fort Willam Collage in Culcutta in 1807. His position in the college was useful as it provides him much needed income for other literary works in producing Grammar books Dictionaries and others. Later Bengali O.T. was printed not long after. Carey had a linguistic talent which provides an opportunity of
translating the Bible in different langunges. At the time of his dead in 1834 six versions of the whole Bible were already published, and New Testament in Twenty Three languages, and smaller portion had been appeared in ten languages. With the foundation of Serampore College, the trio entered into the field of journalism. Marshman started a weekly newspaper in Bengali called Samachar Darpan, which was believed to be the first newspaper ever printed in the original language. He also published English monthly newspaper, the Friends of India.
6.3. Bible Translation as Tools of Evangelizing the Natives: One objective of William Carey was to bring out the Bible in the language of the people. He did so for the purpose of evangelization the natives. According to Him making the scripture available in the language of the converts would contribute much to the success of the missionary outreach. He felt that the task of the evengalization would not be completed unless the Bible made available to the member of the community. Soon after this Carey learn numerous Indian languages at the urgency of his ministry and started the work of translating the Bible. Because of his hard work Carey could bring out as many as 35 translations of the Bible into different Oriental languages. One could say, that Carey objective in the translation of the Bible was for the indigenization of the Gospel.
translating the Bible in different langunges. At the time of his dead in 1834 six versions of the whole Bible were already published, and New Testament in Twenty Three languages, and smaller portion had been appeared in ten languages. With the foundation of Serampore College, the trio entered into the field of journalism. Marshman started a weekly newspaper in Bengali called Samachar Darpan, which was believed to be the first newspaper ever printed in the original language. He also published English monthly newspaper, the Friends of India.
6.3. Bible Translation as Tools of Evangelizing the Natives: One objective of William Carey was to bring out the Bible in the language of the people. He did so for the purpose of evangelization the natives. According to Him making the scripture available in the language of the converts would contribute much to the success of the missionary outreach. He felt that the task of the evengalization would not be completed unless the Bible made available to the member of the community. Soon after this Carey learn numerous Indian languages at the urgency of his ministry and started the work of translating the Bible. Because of his hard work Carey could bring out as many as 35 translations of the Bible into different Oriental languages. One could say, that Carey objective in the translation of the Bible was for the indigenization of the Gospel.
6.4. Response to the Practice of Sati: The primary concern of Carey on women was the practice of Sati (widow burning). He witness the incident of widow burning alive aroused him to abolish the Sati. In the first issue of Joshua Marshman journal “Friends of India” published an article on the issue of widow burning. The paper continues to keep up raising voices before the public, reporting the actual as they occur. This practice reached England and the protest against the Sati mounted up from the home board of the East India Company. On the other hand, some of the East India Company officers who were the students of Carey at Forth William College prohibit the practice of Sati in their district on their own responsibility. Social reformers like Raja ram and a few eighteen Hindus also raise their voices against the Sati practice. In the meantime, in 1829 William Bentinck, who was the governor of the East India Company issued his famous order prohibiting Sati in all Britih territories All these outside assistance promote the work of Serampore mission in abolishing the practice of widow burning.
6.5. Response to caste and Society: the Serampore Mission was engaged in eradicating the evil practices of Bengali society. it was also during the time when social reformer like Raja Ram Mohan Roy founder of (Brahmo Samaj) enough you Hindu enlighten move towards reforming the Hindu society. there was a great caste division in this Brahmins were considered as gods. Besides, there was it Temple prostitues among the Devadasis. On the other hand, the female infanticide and human sacrifice, all these social evil practices in the Indian society made the Serampore trio to bring some changes. Carey took keen interest in Indian culture and customs and was not afraid to become involved in social reform. He strongly opposed the practice of infanticide and child prostitute by joining hands with the Hindu reformers. With the help of Lord Wellesley and other officers the practice of female infanticide was heard no more. Even social discrimination among the Christian were also being abolished as the Brahmin boy by name Krishna Pal married sudra girl Onunda by name.
6.6. Agri-Horticultur: one of Carey's main concerns was in the field of agriculture and plantation, as a result of horticulture Garden was founded in 1820 which help the people of that area a lots. It has a flower garden greenhouse and research laboratory along with library. It has a significant collection of various botanical varieties with facilities for Garden and plant/flower lovers. Course on gardening and cultivation of certain species are offered to the people in public from time to time. Today a large variety of ferns and medical plants are grown in the Bontical Garden.
6.7. Medical Service: William Carey and his companions in spite of their busy activities, involved in founding a refuse hospital/clinic for lepers in Calcutta. The care of those suffering from leprosy has been a special field in Christian services. This mission was a service to promote refuge for advance cases of leprosy. They were given shelter and made comfortable.
6.8. impact of Serampore Mission on society
6.8.1. Social and moral reform
6.8.2. Growth of education
6.8.3. Women Empowerment
7. Group Conversion Movement of the 19th and 20th century
The centrality of community in the context of religious conversion is replicated in many of the conversion movements in India. People belonging to marginalized communities across India came into the Christian fold in large numbers in different parts of India during the colonial times. This refers to as "Mass Conversion Movements" or "Group Conversion Movement" by some scholars. The uniqueness of these movements lies in the fact that the central ageney in conversion is the community and not the individual.
7. 1. Mass conversions Movement: Christianity in India trace their roots to Aposle Thomas himself, however the ancient community in India had remain small and localize for centuries never achieving the rate of expansion. The coming of Jesuits missionaries such as Francis Xavier and Robert de Nobile, Christianity get expanded marginally. Despite moderate success in the coastal regions of Portuguese influence. Christianity failed to attract a widespread following across social boundaries and remain generally confined to Indian of high castes. Through the second half of the nineteenth century, these demographic changes drastically as people of low castes, particularly the casteless dalits and tribals flocked to Christian religion in unprecedented numbers. To give some idea and scope of these changes, the numbers of Christian in India had increased from around one million in 1860 to around five millions in 1930, including the conversion of one millions dalits by 1914. An official census taken in 1931 indicates that approximately five out of six Indian Christians lived in rural rather than an urban environment. The reason for this radical change can be partly trace to the protestant missionaries and mainly due to the mass conversion that took place during this period. The very common word used to denote this phenomenon was 'Mass Movement’. The 19th century and earlier periods had used this phrase very casually, as it was common to refer to groups of people as 'mass of people’. However, the later historians, beginning from the twentieth century refer to the phenomenon of ‘mass conversion movements’ as ‘Group Movement’, as earlier phrase is a misleading one. Group conversion or the Mass conversion movement was the result of the sharing of the Gospel among the low caste dalits communities by some of the local converts. However, Arthur Jeyakumar was very clear about the phrase, he said; Group Conversion refers to the group of people converting to Christianity: they could be from one clan or tribe or caste group or family or one community in substantial or recognizably number, in one point of time. This has a wider and clear meaning and it gives us a better way for understanding the term group conversion.
Piekett explain the term "mass movement," or "group movement" as "The distinguishing features of Christian mass movement are a group decision favorable to Christianity and the consequent preservation of the converts' social integration. Whenever a group, large than the family, accustomed to exercise a measure of control over the social and religious life of the individuals that composed it, accepts the Christian religion (or a large portion accept it with the encouragement of the group), the essential principle of the mass movement is manifest."
Piekett explain the term "mass movement," or "group movement" as "The distinguishing features of Christian mass movement are a group decision favorable to Christianity and the consequent preservation of the converts' social integration. Whenever a group, large than the family, accustomed to exercise a measure of control over the social and religious life of the individuals that composed it, accepts the Christian religion (or a large portion accept it with the encouragement of the group), the essential principle of the mass movement is manifest."
7.2. The Main Causes of Group Conversion: the missionaries who came to India mostly belong to educated urban middle class. Their initial efforts were concentrated on the elite educated section of Indian society.
Thus during the first 50 years of their ministry almost all the converts came from the Brahmins, Rajput, Muslims and other upper sections of the Indian caste Hierarchy. There was little impact on the outcastes and other minority group during the period. The number of Christians during this period was only handful and very few. From the period 1834 to 1885 the total number of the communicant members of the presbyterian church was only 477. This situation was similar in the other mission.but there after when the mass movement started among the outcasts and other tribal communities the number increased in 2000 in the year 1990 of Christian rose 37,980 and in the year 1921 to went up to 375,031 mainly because of the mass movement started among the outcastes. one thing need to be noted here is, this was not only the work of the missionaries but was due to the ardent evangelistic work of the local Christians who got converted from the lower castes, and then committed themselves to spread the Gospel among their castes or clan or tribes. Thus, the mass conversion movement was mainly the result of the sharing of the Gospel among the dalits and tribal communities by some of the local converts. Some of the main causes or reasons of mass conversion as far as different parts of India in those periods we're concerned are as given below;
7.2.1. Spiritual reasons: The conversion of Malabar people by saint Thomas was claimed to be because of a true desire to follow Christ. Among the Protestant groups, the conversion Maharasan Vedamanickamand (the pioneer Protestant Christian in Travancore, was born in Mylaudy, Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu) and Subsequent conversion of his Sambavar caste people is a best example under this category. Arthur Jeyakumar said that the conversion narrative of vedamanickam, the spiritual cause was the foremost in his conversion. Yet the satisfaction of Indian caste could also said to be a cause for his decision.
Similar conversion experience based on spiritual thirst can also be seen from the conversion of Omed, a member of the Garo Tribe in the present day Meghalaya took place in 1863. He soon became evangelist from sepoy among his people which led to the establishment of large Christian communities in Meghalaya.
In the case of Mizos and Kukis in Mizoram and Manipur, a large numbers conversion mainly took place because of spiritual revivals in the early parts of 19th century.
The best example can be seen in the conversion of Kamkholun, Chief of Senvon. Tradition says, after the conversion of the chief by Watkin R. Robert in 1910, the whole villagers baptized and even influence the whole Southern part of Manipur. Moreover, T. Lunkim says, by the end of 1921 there was a new spiritual movement which resulted in a large number of conversions. This revival movement Christianized the whole Kuki communities and was also affected to the Meiteis and to the earth Hill tribe of Manipur. In case of Nagas in Nagaland, Godhula, an Assamese evangelist explored the hills occupied by Ao Nagas in the winter of 1873. During the succeeding years at Dekha Haimong he gathered the first Naga Christian congregation, which was followed by Edward Clark on October 31, 1872. Thus large numbers of Nagas are converted into Christianity through The spiritual revivals that occur during this period.
7.2.2. Medical Mission: Medical mission played a very important role in the Mass Conversion Movement in India. It was the American board who adopt a regular policy of sending medical missionaries to India.
The London Mission started medical work at Neyyoor in South Travancore in 1838. From 180 the American Baptist had two medical evangelists working in Southern Bengal. The first doctor came to Ludhiana in Punjab in 1842. It was the Welsh Mission, the British and the American Baptist who send their medical mission in North East, India during the early part of 19th centuries. This led to the establishment of dispensaries and then hospitals in different parts of India. Many Indians: Muslims, Hindus, and Tribals, either low caste or high caste get free treatment in equal level from those medical missionaries.
Thus, the work of the medical missionaries in different parts of India draw more people to Christianity which further led to the mass conversion movement in many parts of India. People left and forsake their pagan sacrificial and came towards those dispensaries and hospitals where they get medical treatment and medicine at very low cost and while the missionaries had an opportunity to share the gospel to them.
One particular reason that contributed to this movement or the growth of Christianity was that lady medical missionaries and their helpers, visiting women in their homes, had brought to light the special need of women for medical aid.
The opening of medical schools like: Agra Medical School, North India Medical School of Medical science for Christian women, Christian Medical School at Miraj (Maharashtra), Medical school for women at Vellore (West of Madras) etc. In Hindu and Muslims inhabited areas, where youths; both boys and girls came for their medical education also contributed a lot for mass conversion Movement.
7.2.3. Education and Literaturs Mission: One of the reasons of mass conversion Movement in India is due to the education mission. In the beginning education policy stressed only the elementary education to make people literate with some elements of secular knowledge sufficient for the primitive life of the village.
However, with the encouragement of higher Education and the establishment of schools and colleges in most parts of India, a large number of people were attracted to send their children's for higher education in those institution run by the missionaries with low fees and without fees for Christians. To get such privilege of free education many parents converted into Christianity, especially when the girls do not received less attention in those Christian institution, a large numbers of people, mainly from the low caste and tribals get converted into Christianity.
Education gives status to the people who are educated and got good post and salary in government this lead to the mass conversion of people into Christian fold.
Here, Arthur Jeyakumar said: very soon the low and outcast people realised the usefulness of getting educated for social mobility and thus served as a tool for group conversion in a few places. the education Mission was mainly made for the depressed class and poor people this largely attracted the low caste and poor people to join the Christian community and does the mass conversion movement a course.
On the other hand, The writings of the books and translation of bibles another Gospel tracts by some of the missionaries, for example like; William Carrey and his translation of Bengali New testament and in other 10 languages. Reading those translated books and bibles in there own vernacular languages people came to know who Christ is and what Christianity is, thus led them into Christianity. Education and literature work hand in hand and paved a way for the mass conversion or group conversion. The development of variety of Christian literature and the translation of Psalm in several vernacular also help the group of Christianity and the several mass conversion movement.
7.2.4. Political Reasons:
Generally speaking, Christian missionary activity followed whereever the European colonial government flags. This is true as far as the Portuguese and Spanish colonialist after 16 century is concerned.
However, with the coming of Evangelical revival (George Whitefield, an ordained Anglican clergyman, was converted and in 1737 began preaching) in England, the EIC charter was renew in 1793 (to continued the Company's rule in India.)
Thus, the missionary activity followed the European colonialist flag come true even for the British East India Company. Being a Christian company wherever they conquer Christianity had been spread or saw a seed of Christianity in those colonized areas in one way or other.
Christians were given more privilege for the government jobs and other privilege were also given in terms of protection to these activities were also the reasons for the mass conversion.
Mainly, the protection given by colonial Christian government such as; the Paravas in the coromandel coast between Thoothukudi (Tuticorin) and Kanyakumari ( Cape Comorin) embraced Christianity in the early decades of the 16th century.
The British Indian government also give protection to the tribals of chota nagpur (Jharkhand) against the money lenders from the plain and Zamidars, starting the late 1850s.
In the following years 1880s Being a Jesuits took up the cases against the money lenders and got them justice through the court of law. This gave the tribals not only liberation but also self identity. So, there were group conversions throughout the whole of the second half of the 19th century.
The abolition of social evil practices like child sacrifice and Sati by William Carey with the help of East India company in Bengal also served as the agent of the mass conversion of people to Christianity.
Even in the context of North East India, if there were no British East India company there would be no Christianity at large. The colonized of the tribals in North East India by East India company Mark the coming of Christianity and Christian missions which led to the group conversation among the tribals in different areas.
Tradition says; the motive of tribals was that if they were conquered by others they have to follow but the conqueror wanted them to be (submissive) at this point of time missionary work came up and the mass conversion took place in the tribal regions. F. S. Down says; the defeat of Kukis by British in Kuki Rebellion (and what we called now Kuki war of independence) of 1917-1999 and the failure of Jaints Resistance of 1862-1863 lead into mass conversion.
7.2.5. Humanitarian Activities:
In 1870s there were several famines which affected almost the whole of India subcontinent. Thousands and thousands people had died. This famine only affected the poor people. However, at this point of contacts Christians carried out a famine relief work in most of the affected areas by providing foods and shelters and others like, the digging up of the Buckingham Canal in Ongole (Ongole is a city in Prakasam district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh) saved many from the jaws of death. When such were asked as to be reasons for embracing Christianity they replied that as the Hindu temples which posist vast areas of cultivable land and store large quantity of food grains, did not used to bring relief and save the life in times of need.
The love and care is shown by the Christian during the famines and natural calamities in the 1817s and even in the later part and led many Hindus in their mass conversion into Christianity.
In case of large conversion movement in North East India, especially in Manipur and Mizoram was through the natural calamity caused by bamboo famines (Mao-gam kum) in 1911-1912.
Their natural food being insufficient, the increasing numbers of rats population consume the standing crops in their field (mostly in jhum cultivation) and invade the granaries, leaving the human inhabitants destitute and susceptible to the epidemics that invariably followed .
The help and Care as shown by the local Christian to their non-Christian tribals neighbours during this natural calamities made many to embrace Christianity.
Moreover, the rapid growth of Christianity and churches in the hill areas of Manipur between 1951 and 1961 was due to the relief work of different Christian organisation to those who are affected by the great earthquake of 1950.
7.2.6. Technical Mission:
We have discuss about the contribution in education and literature mission towards the group conversion movement. However, the success of these missions depend upon the so-called technical mission; printing press. writing books and translation of the Bible need publication, thus printing press plays an important role in paving the way for group conversion movement. Unless there were printing presses, the researcher wonder weather the translated Bible and written books for the people in the given community we made possible, which are very necessary tools for mass conversion. In the first half of the 19th century almost every major station had a press of its own. Many of these presses served their purpose and were given up; but others founded them and later one large institution which continues to this day.
Such are: The Baptist Mission Press, Calcutta (1818), The Basel Mission Press, Mangalore (1841), the (Methodist) Lucknow Publishing House (1851). and the Wesley press, Mysore (1890). Novels the writing of books left only to the initiative of individuals in the local missions.
Track and Book societies was formed in Madras (1818), Calcutta (1823), Bombay (1827), Allahabad (1827), Bangalore (1855), and other centres, as publishing and distributing agencies. Some of these continue under different management.
Another type of technical mission which pave the way for the group conversion in India was industrial and agricultural projects. In the early 19th century missionaries’ wives, such as Mrs. Mault in Travancore, began teaching Christian girls in the boarding homes lace-making, sewing or embroidery (patterns or pictures that consist of stitches sewn directly on to clothes).
The Basel Mission on the West coast (Karnataka) became well known for its tile making and textile industries, now under the management of common wealth trust. Abdul missions introduced carpentry, furniture making, and other crafts.
The motive usually was to provide economically backward communities with the means of livelihood. All these measures taken up by the missionaries attracted the people, specially the concerned that the missionaries had for the converts and thus led group conversions in those places.
In agriculture and stock-farming projects, such as the American Arcot Mission's (It was an American Mission, founded by the John Scudder (1793-1855), it was the Reformd church) Agricultural Institute at Katpadi (Madras) and the Slater Poultry Farm of the American Presbyterian Mission at Etah ( U.P) , efforts have been made to improve the economic state of the local community.
Christians and non-Christian by, teaching scientific methods and introducing superior varieties of seeds and superior breads of animals and pouchry (hunting animals). In doing so, they influence people largely and mainly people from the lower section of the Indian castes system came up to embraced Christianity which lad to mass or group conversion. We are not sure the idea behind large numbers of people embracing Christianity at this point of time, weather to get those facilities or they love to be Christians.
7.2.7. Social reasons and Sacrificial work of the early local Christians:
Joint family system was very much prevalent in Indian subcontinent. In that social system, when the head or chief, or all the oldest members of a particular family or group or village embrace Christianity, the whole family or community or village follows that person or chief. So, the social system and the clothes knit family ties led to group conversion.
The extraordinary growth or in the other hand mass conversion movement cannot be attributed to large concentrations of the effort on th hie part of mission. The numbers of missionaries and the resources expanded has never been exceptionally large. In many events, missionary are not the primary agents of evangelism except in the very beginning. It was those early Christian converts who work among there on people made the group conversion happened in their respective places or areas.
They are like, Godhura an Assamese evangelist, Maharasan Vedamanickam of Marilady, Ditt of Shahabdike Village (an important figure in the history of Christianity in Punjab). Omed of garo Hills (beginning of the Baptist work among Hill tribes of North East India), Lungpao vaiphei (pioneer of Christianity among the Kukis of Southern Manipur), and other etc. because of their sacrificial and selfless work in their respective areas and regions mass conversion Movement took place on a large scale. If they were not working during that period of time, there may be no mass conversion or group conversion. So, the researcher would like to say that, the sacrificial work of the early local Christian made the mass conversion happened.
8. The Value of the group conversion:
The group conversion movement had some major values even though the reasons for this moment varied from one place to another.
In this section, the researcher would like to deal with some of the major values of the group conversion among the Indian subcontinent in general. The value can be said that, the group conversion give protection, specially viewing from the perspective of the high caste, Brahmins. The sense of social security and belongingness was a major value.
The second values may be noted as: the main centre of influence in group conversion of the community, a tribe is the feeling of belongingness. So, when a particular community or tribes converted, the group conversion news had been spread fast and for which enable the nearby villages of the tribal group are the same members of the community to embrace Christianity.
And for the third value, there was less impact of western culture in group conversion areas. the best example can be seen in the group conversion of chin-kuki-Mizos in Mizoram and Manipur. the first convert or individual converted into Christianity by those missionaries forsake their on culture and custom practices, and even avoided all the traditional norms and festivals thinking that all those practices or pagan and on un-Christian. Thus, the cultural and traditional values erosion begin in the life of those early converts among the tribals.
However, with the coming of revival in the later part of the 19th century, group conversions took place and almost all the tribes of Mizoram and Manipur were Christianized. The coming of group conversion had a great value in the life of tribals of those areas, as they realised the needs of the cultural values and adopted the traditional tribal voice of worship and maintenance their own social structure, cultural practices and use the tribal’s drums and other tribal musical instrument in their worship services. Thus, it preserved the tribal ways of life and tribal Christianity give birth and like those days Western ways of worship.
9. Problems of mass conversion:
The mass movement among the backward classes has left a stigma over the Christian Church among the higher castes. The missions are seen as exploite of the needs of the weaker sections for communal purpose FIR in the process the protestant churches gained a communal character attitude. The mass movements therefore would severely criticized from both the non-Christians and Christians side for the motives. In fact the motives of mass conversion to Christianity can be listed down variously.
Manikin says, ‘the converts to Christianity came with mixed motives, and the motives of one individual were not identical with those of another.’
T. V. Philip commented that the motives for conversion were not always purely religion. It involves many external factors but it is a mistake to think that such motives alone caused conversion. However, for better or worse the mass movements have occurred, and it is an interesting issue. The chief numerical growth of Christianity in the 19th and 20th centuries was not by the conversion of individual but mass.
10. Movement from mission to church:
The establishment of British rule in India tiled the way for a real encounter between the East and the West and between Christianity and Indian culture. Tremendous changes and transformation took place with the onset of British rule, which gave the imputes for the foundation for modern India.
The outcome of the encounter was revival, renewal and Renaissance of Indian culture and the emergence (starting to exist) of religious and political nationalism.
Western liberal and nationalistic ideas imparted through Western education and the Christian social activities played an important role in the 19th century Indian renaissance.
Awakening also had its share in Indian politics, arts, literature and thought. Ancient literature, philosophy, science, law, art and monuments which were buried in Oblivion for years, were raised to life. Here, zeal for enlightenment, and love of the country developed in minds of the people.
It is to be noted that the orientalist in their philosophy of culture contact suggested that changes must not be attempted in India by imposing epam Indians Western institution, ideas and values but held that Western education should serve not as an end in itself, but as a stimulus for changing the indigenous culture from within.
Both the orientalist and like minded Indian recognised that there were blameworthy, and the outcome of superstition. However, they also pointed that these did not find precedence or sanction in the ancient traditions of the land and this help them to reform the society without repudiating their on tradition.
According to S.K. Das there were three chief features of the Indian Renaissance. They are: a spirit enquiry, a search for new identity as nation, and a desire to make a synthesis between the value of Indian and Europe.
10.1. Development of Indigenous Movement: There was a missionary movements identified Christ with Western forms of Christianity and Western culture. Very soon, there were an inclusion (the act of including) leaders and missionary pioneers who distinguished between Christ, Christianity and culture.
It is everything today at the beginning of protesting machinery movement, but in was not too establish an indigenous Church, but to save souls from heathenism (having no religion, or belonging to a religion that is not Christianity, Judaism, or Islam). The emergene of an Indian George in its context was hindered due to missionary paternalism. By 19th century there were some efforts to build up an indigenous Church independent of missionary control.
For instance Lal Bihar Dey in 1850s asked for equal footing with the European missionaries. However, Alexander Duff did not approve this. The desire for parity (equality, especially of pay or position), selfhood and independence from foreign mission control resulted in the formation of non-denominational organizations of Indian Christians that reflect the search for identity and autonomy.
But for many years missionaries, as a ruler, opposed such movement. A leading CMS missionary, James Vaughan at the Allahabad Conference in 1872 expressed seriously over the attitude of Indian Christians towards the missionary power particularly in Bengal. He warned that as long as the church in India was economically dependent upon European funds, it would be more proper for them to display patience with regard to independence.
10.2. Selfhood of the Indian Church: On aspect of indigenization that has received attention since the end of the 19th century was the effort to discover the cultural identity bof the Christian community with the Indian society as a whole. This expression was found in a gradual introduction of Indian music and Indian lyrics in worship and indigenous stylein church structure, methods of proclaiming Christ in Tinnevelly a group of Nadar Christians broke away from the CMS and formed “The Hindu Church of Lord Jesus”. (ca 1853). In Bengal, under the lesdership of Lal Bihari Dey started a movement against the exelusive missionary control of the church and he later brought a proposal for National Church of Bengal comprising all Christians, including Orthodox and Roman Catholics. The only confession of which should be the Apastolic Creed, and which should give freedom in matter of ministry and liturgy. Educated Christians thus formed the "Bengal Christian Association" (1869) for the promotion of Christian truth and godliness, and the protection of the right of the Indian Church. Some leaders of the radical groups like Kali Charan Banerjee in 1880 started a newspaper called, “The Bengal Christian Herald" (Later it was changed and called "The Indian Christian Herald") and his co-editor was Joy Govind shome. Typical of the view of the paper was the statementin the very first issue:
In having beeome Christians we have not ceased to be Hindus. We are Hindu Christians, as thoroughly Hindu as Christian. We have embraced Christianity, but we have not discarded our nationality. We are as intensely national as any of our brethren of native press can be.
Later Banerjee and Shome left their churches to form the "Christo Samaj” of Calcutta (1887). Indian Christians in Madras, formed the "National Church of Madras (1886). Its founder was an Indian medical doctor, S Parani Andi or Pulney Andy. Its aim was to gather all Christians into one-self-supporting and self-governing church. These movements were short lived but their impact and influence were great culminating to search for cultural identity of Christian community.
In having beeome Christians we have not ceased to be Hindus. We are Hindu Christians, as thoroughly Hindu as Christian. We have embraced Christianity, but we have not discarded our nationality. We are as intensely national as any of our brethren of native press can be.
Later Banerjee and Shome left their churches to form the "Christo Samaj” of Calcutta (1887). Indian Christians in Madras, formed the "National Church of Madras (1886). Its founder was an Indian medical doctor, S Parani Andi or Pulney Andy. Its aim was to gather all Christians into one-self-supporting and self-governing church. These movements were short lived but their impact and influence were great culminating to search for cultural identity of Christian community.
10.3. Self Support, Self-Government and Self-Propagation of Indian Church:
During the 20 century the indian Christians came up for the self-support, self-government and sel-propogation free from the foreign missionaries. Two institutional expressions in the 20th century Protestant Christians are the "National Missionary Society" (NMS) of India (Bharat Christya Sevak Samaj) and the "Christian Ashram Movenent." V.S. Azariah and seventeen other representatives from different churches in India met and constitute the NMS. This was an inter-denominational society, supported by Indian money, manned by Indians, though it would not refuse offer of help from other countries, and committed as far as possible to follow indigenous methods. The ordination and elevation of V.S. Azariah as the first Anglican Indian Bishop in 1912 was a great event in the history of Christianity in India. The main objective of NMS was to evangelize the unevangelized area in India and adjacent countries and to istimulate missionary zeal in the churches. In 1950 it claimed to have 41 missionaries and 200 other workers (including volunteers), and a budget of Rs 130, 45. In particular there came a great awareness of the church and a shift of emphasis from ‘Mission’ to ‘Church,' so that he evangelization of India was no longer seen as primarily the task of missionary societies, whether foreign or Indian, but as a function of the ordinary church in its various regions and through its normal organs. The indanizing and strengthening of this, rather than the development of other organizations on the fringe of it, became predominant aim.
Ashram seems to be an institution, which Christians could use to express their religious ideas in a way, which Indian would readily appreciate. The idea of a life of retirement and meditation is familiar to Indian mind and has a considerable popular appeal, on the other hand Catholic Christianity too has its tradition of the religious life lived in ccmmunities and orders, whether in monasteries or in the world. Ashram offer something more distinctively Indian and something capable of local adaptation in a great varieties of ways. The ashram way of life and work, modeled as it was on the Hindu ashrams of ancient and modern times provided and answer to Indian Chrisians who were looking for a ways of Christian witness and service in keeping with the tradition of Indian spirituality. It is very interesting that Christian ashram movement exists even today in different parts of the country.
Ashram seems to be an institution, which Christians could use to express their religious ideas in a way, which Indian would readily appreciate. The idea of a life of retirement and meditation is familiar to Indian mind and has a considerable popular appeal, on the other hand Catholic Christianity too has its tradition of the religious life lived in ccmmunities and orders, whether in monasteries or in the world. Ashram offer something more distinctively Indian and something capable of local adaptation in a great varieties of ways. The ashram way of life and work, modeled as it was on the Hindu ashrams of ancient and modern times provided and answer to Indian Chrisians who were looking for a ways of Christian witness and service in keeping with the tradition of Indian spirituality. It is very interesting that Christian ashram movement exists even today in different parts of the country.
Except in certain areas there had been little attempt to build up self-governing institutions, here and there a distinguished individual had been brought into a position of leadership and authority but such men ranked as assistant missionaries, that is to say, they were regarded as organs of the foreign missionary society rather than the Indian Church. This remained broadly the state of affairs up to the time when Bishop Azariah was consecrated in 1912. However after the 1914-1918 war, missionary societies came to realize that there business was not to strengthen and perpetuate their own organizations, but to foster the Indian Church and prepare it to take full responsibility of it's own life and work. And all the major missions were giving their minds to this kinds of policy in the year between 1999 and 1947. In 1867 the C. M. S. in Tinnevelly made a beginning, when a system of district church councils was introduced at the instance of Henry Venn. This councils were local bodies’ representative of the churches of particular areas within the whole Tinnevelly district. They were responsible of controlling funds, supporting their catechists, repairing their buildings and providing for the poor. The process of indianization was more rapid among the American Methodists than among the British.
10.4. Historical development of Indian Christian Theology: In the 19th century there an enormous confusion to the Christian gospel as it was seen as manipulation of the western formulations. The idea was that the gospel or the message was the translation of western doctrines into Indian languages. Even the missionaries had a very negative attitude towards the native people and it's culture. As a result of this attitude did not create conducive space for positive encounter or for the development of India Christian Theology. Concerted efforts were being made by missionary theologians like J. N. Fraquhar, Nicol Manicol and A. G. Hogg towards communicating the gospel in the languages of India or using Indian philosophical categories. By the onset of 20th century attempts were made to indigenize the theology. Indian Christian Theology in this venture the work of the “Madras Re-Thinking Group” in the 1930s and 1940s need to be appreciated.
On the other hand Renaissance Hindu leaders like K. C. Sen, P. C. Mazoomdar, and enlightened Hindu converts to Christianity like K. M. Banerjee, Parani Andi, A. S. Appasawmy Pillai, Bhavani Charan Banerjee (Brahmabandab Upadhiyaya), who possessing a true knowledge of Hinduism from within and drawing inspiration from renaissance discovery of Indian's heritage, became piony in attempt to relate positively Indian's religion to Christianity. Brahmabandab Upadhiyaya is best remembered as the first Indian Christian thinker who remained Orthodox in doctrine but at the same time laid the foundation for a Vedanta-based Christian Theology.
10.5. Subaltern Theology: Subaltern Theology is the theology of a suffering, oppressed and marginalized people who were force silence by the dominant elite group. The term Subaltern is derived from the writings of the Italian Marxist Antonio Gramsci which means of “inferior rank”, whether of class, caste, age, gender, or office. In line with this, Ranajit Guha also termed the word Subaltern as people of inferior rank, and it was used as a name for the general attitude of subordination in South Asian Society. Specific groups belonging to Subaltern classes may vary from place due to the regional display in social and economic development in the country. However, Subaltern classes usually refers to those social classes and groups not included under elite.
Subaltern is a post-colonial struggle movement in Asia which began in Inda in the 1980s with the explicit but not exclusively Marxist and Gramscian focus. It emerged in an atmosphere of widespread negative response to Marxian Orthodox in the academic research in analyzing and understanding the Indian society and the nation. It focused towards understanding peasant consciousness in India, in so far as any and all consciousness was a product of material conditions. This Subaltern theologians and writers view consciousness as a form of subjectivity which can and does develop modes of resistance to the system. Since then, the concerns of Subaltern studies have blossomed into global phenomenon with strong institution support from mainstream academia in Africa, America, Ireland and China, as well as India, Europe and America. The contribution of the Subaltern movement is the restoration of the silenced space created by elite dominant and to make Subaltern classes the subject of their history. Subaltern studies take the text seriously and therefore advocating a different theory of reading. i.e. reading the historical texts and reconstructing history and theology from their own perspectives.
10. 6. Development of Dalit Theology: Dalit Theology is a new stand which has emerged in Asian theological scene. This theology began to take shape in the early 80’s when A.P.Nimal, then a faculty member at the United Theological College flosted the idea of “Shudra Theology”. But now Dalit Theology has come of age and it stands by it's own uniqueness and creativity. Dalits are the most degraded, downtrodden, exploited and the least educated in Indian society. In fact, they are the people who are denied of their individuals and social identity in their existence. They are excluded from the caste system and hence are out caste as untouchables they are pushed out for of pollution; made to live in outskirts of village, hence segregated. Although Dalits Christians constituted approximately 70% of the Indian Christian population they were marginalized and ignored until recently. A series of attempts and initiatives began in the early 80s to systematically articulate the faith in context of the newly emerging Dalit aspiration for liberation. A. P. Nirmal, James Massey, M. E. Prabhakar, M. Azariah, K. Wilson, V. Devasahayam and F. J. Balasundaram are some of the prominent perons who figure in this theological movement. Dalit theologians felt the need to consciously reflect upon the opressive situation of Dalits in India. Thus, essentially, Dalit Theology was a libretative action in itself, in the sense that it's coming into being created space for the development of a Dalit Christians voice. One of the major sources of doing Dalit Theology is Dalit experience of suffering and pain. And Dalit Theology gives vent to the agony and pain of God's people.
The ultimate function of Dalit Theology is twofold: to act in solidarity and to act for liberation. Liberation is envisaged as liberation of Dalits from the historically oppressive structures both religio-cultural and socio-economic. Hence, Theological articulation is not only a faith expression but also a means for liberation. According to this school of thought, any Theological expression that will not lead to action and the resultant liberation is futile. Dalit Theology is part of the of the post colonial struggle of different communities for their distinct identity and space.
10.7. Development of Tribal Theology: The word “Tribe” or “Tribal” is used in a very generic term incorporating a vast number of minor races. John Friedl defines tribe as confederation of groups who recognize relationship with another, usually in form of common ethnic origin, common language, or strong pattern of interaction based on intermarriage of presumed kinship. In Indian context the term “Tribal” has a sense of pejorative, negative and derogatory connotations. It suggests primitive people living in the hills and forest, backward and uncivilized people who are the original but not developed inhabitants. History points the majority of the Christians in India come from the tribal's Dalits who are oppressed sections in the Society. The history would never be complete unless taking into account the experiences and aspiration of this people.
The term tribal theology and it's cognates became popular when it was introduced as a formal Theological discipline in Theological Colleges and seminaries. Tribal Theology as a formal Theological discipline is, of course, a recent development and phenomenon. The development of tribal or indigenous theology can be trace back to the later part of the 1980s and the early part of the 1990s when tribal theologians such as Nirmal Minz, Renthy Keitzar, F. S. Down, followed by K. Thangzauva, Wati Longchar, and other, began looking theology from the perspective of tribal people. Of course to a large extent, in North East India, Wati Longchar and Thanzauva are responsible for the shaping and development of tribal Theology.
10. 8. Development of Faminist Theology: The term “faminist” is used today for “describing those who seek to eliminate women's subordination and marginalization.” In the same line Ivy Singh, asserted that faminism is an awareness of women's oppression and exploitation at work, within the family and society, and conscious action by women and men to change this situation and uplift the life of women. In nutshell, it reflects on the struggle of women created by exclusion, untold experience and alienation in male dominated structures and it's primary commitment is women's libration. There is also a strong assumption in modern thinking that the histories were written mostly by men from their perspective making it invisible the contributions, status and place of women in history. Hence, advocating for re-writing and re-read the historical texts, secular historians in India like Kukum Sangani, Janaki Nair, Gayatri Spivak, Susie Tharu, Niranjana Lata Mani are few example who have been considering the question of writing history from the faminist perspective and the issues arising out of it.
As a grassroots movement, Asian faminist theology began when Asian women gathered to discuss the Bible and their faith in the context of their lives and Asian realities. Ever since the late 1970s, Asian Christian women have organised Theological networks, convinced ecumenical conferences and began to published books and journals, contributing to faminist theologies emerging from the third world. Participating in this movement include social activist, churches reformers, community organizers, women priests, and religious women, academics, theological students, and lay leaders of the local churches. Beginning in the 1980s association of the theological trained women have been formed in various Asian Countries, including Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, India and Philippines and ecumenical network have provided resources and support for the cross-fertilization of ideas and critical dailogue. Although faminist theologians in Asia are few in numbers, they have significant contribution to their churches and to the global feminist theological movement.
10.9. Development of Eco-Theology: The ecological crisis is so grave in the Asian Countries, especially in India. Our “Oikes”-inhabited world, is on a survival threat as there is depletion of resources, accompanied by the sound pollution, air pollution, water pollution and soil pollution. The global warming in it's alarming rate is increasing, which makes the life of other living creatures difficult, not only human. Eco-Theology has emerged as theologians have wrestled with several challenges. According to Sebastian C. H. Kim there are four points for doing Eco-Theology. Firstly, the critique of traditional theologies, which are accused of being anthropo-centric (human centered) and andro-centric (men-not women-centered). Secondly, it's on the recent ecological crisis; global warming, nuclear accident, natural calamities due to mismanagement of natural resources, water and air pollution. Thirdly, the failures of traditional theologies to responded to the problems of the eco-system and their silence in the face of western development and technology models which have been the main contributing factors to the present crisis, and fourthly, the encounter with the people and philosophies of other religions and primal spiritualities. Moreover, Eco-Theology is a form of constructive theology that focuses on the inter-relationship of religion and nature, particularly in the light of environmental concerns. Eco-Theology generally starts from the premise that a exist between human religious/spirituality worldwide and degradation of nature.
On the other hand, Eco-Theology has opened new way of theologizing to meet the ecological crisis and has contributed a great deal for understanding of the relationship of God-Humankind and nature. Specifically Eco-Theology seeks not only to identify prominent is within the relationship between nature and religion but also to outline potential solution.
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