Christianity in India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Christianity is India's third-largest religion, following Hinduism and Islam.[1] Abrahamic religions on the whole date back about 2500 years with the arrival of Judaism,[2] followed by arrival of Christianity around 2000 years ago.[3]
Christianity came to India in two main periods, the first Century missionary activity linked to the Apostle Thomas by legend, and the Western missionary activities from 1500 to 1975.[4] Vasco da Gama, seeking India, discovered a sea route to India by circumnavigating the Cape of Good Hope[5] which caused a major influence on both the histories of Europe.[6]
The total number of Christians in India as per Census in 2001 are 24,080,016 or 2.34% of the population.[7] There are three main regional concentrations of Christian population, namely in South India, on the Konkan Coast, and among tribal people in East, Central, and North-East India. The states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu in South India and Arunachal Pradesh in North-East India account for 60% of India's total Christian population.[citation needed]
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[edit] Early Christianity in India
According to local legend, the dawn of Christianity in India dates back to 52 AD, with the arrival of Saint Thomas to Kodungallur in Kerala and the establishment of the Seven Churches.[8] As a carpenter, he offered to build a palace for the Indo-Parthian King Gondophares,[9] later converting his daughter and her newly-wed groom,[10] before returning to Mylapore, Chennai in 72 AD. It is believed that he had attained martyrdom here.[8] [11] The Syrian Malabar Nasrani tradition goes back to the very beginnings of 1st century Christian thought and the seven churches that were established by St. Thomas among the natives and the Jewish diaspora in Kerala. According to the Acts of Thomas, the Malabari Jews were the first Christians converted by Thomas in India, who had settled in Kerala since the time of King Solomon of Israel.
According to historians, St. Thomas who was himself a Jew by birth, evangelizing in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the Apostle is believed to have been martyred at St. Thomas Mount in Chennai and buried on the site of San Thome Cathedral. Members of the Syro-Malabar Church, an eastern rite of the Catholic Church, adopted the Syriac liturgy dating from an unknown period before the 4th Century. In the 4th century, the Apostle’s relics were taken to Edessa at the instance of the Bishop of Edessa. The Christian community founded by St Thomas has since developed into a number of churches during the Portuguese persecution, including Syriac-rite churches in communion with the Roman Catholic, Antiochian Orthodox churches, and Nestorian churches.
[edit] Medieval Period
The Syrian Malabar Nasrani community was further strengthened by various Persian immigrant settlers. The community was Christian-Jewish Knanaya colonies of third century, Manichaeanism followers and the Babylonian Christians settlers of 4th Century, the 7th Century Syrian settlement of Mar Sabor Easo and Proth, and the immigrant Persian Christians from successive centuries. The Kerala Syrian Church was in communion with Syrian Church and was belived to be under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians and the Patriarch of Babylonian till the Portuguese arrival in the late 15th century. Bishops came from Syria. They seem to have maintained their identity for a long time in the first few centuries and later amalgamated into one patronized community known differently as Nasrani, Malankara Christians, Syrian Christians.
The archaeological excavations at Pattanam show that the ancient port town of Muziris was in modern Kerala. The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea calls it of “leading importance” describing it: Muziris, of the same kingdom, abounds in ships sent there with cargoes from Arabia,it is located on a river, distant from Tyndis by river and sea five hundred stadia, and up the river from the shore twenty stadia.[citation needed]
The South Indian epic of Manimekalai (written between 2nd and 3rd century CE) mentions the Nasrani people by the name Essanis referring to one of the early Christian-Jewish sect within the Nasranis called Essenes. The embassy of Alfred in 833 CE described the Nestorian Syrian Christians as being prosperous and enjoying high status in the Malabar coast. Marco Polo also mentioned the Nasranis and their ancient church in the Malabar coast in his writings Il Milione.
[edit] Early Modern Period
In the early modern periods, the French missionaries were the first Europeans to touch Indian shores. The French missionary Jordanus Catalani arrived in Surat in 1320. After his ministry in Gujarat he reached Quilon in 1323. He not only revived Christianity but also brought thousands to the Christian fold. The first Bishop of Quilon was received with great jubilation by the faithful of Quilon. He brought a message of good wishes from the Holy Father to the local rulers. As the first bishop in India , he was also entrusted with the spiritual nourishment of the Christian community in Calicut , Mangalore, Thane and Broach (north of Thane).[12]
Portuguese missionaries had reached the Malabar Coast in the late 15th century, made contact with the St Thomas Christians in Kerala and sought to introduce the Latin Rite among them. Since the priests for St Thomas Christians were served by the Eastern Christian Churches, they were following Eastern Christian practices at that time. Throughout this period, foreign missionaries also made many new converts to Christianity. This led to the formation of the Latin Catholics in Kerala. Latin Catholics in Kerala today comprises the St Thomas Christians who accepted Latin Rite, found mostly in central Kerala, and the Christians converted by Portuguese influence and other missionary work, found mainly in the southern parts of Kerala.
With the Papal bull Romanus Pontifex the patronage for the propagation of the Christian faith in Asia was given to the Portuguese. The Portuguese colonial government in Goa supported the mission in India with incentives for baptized Christians. They offered rice donations for the poor, good positions in the Portuguese colonies for the middle class and military support for local rulers[13].Early Roman Catholic missionaries, particularly the Portuguese, led by the Jesuit St Francis Xavier (1506-52), expanded from their bases on the west coast making many converts. Portuguese missionaries wanted to convert the population of Goa. As a result of Portuguese incentives many converted Indians were opportunistic Rice Christians, who even practiced their old religion[13]. This was seen as a threat to the immaculateness of the Christian belief. St. Francis Xavier, in a 1545 letter to John III of Portugal, requested an Inquisition be installed in Goa. However, it was not installed until eight years after Francis Xavier's death. Modern-day Goa has a substantial Roman Catholic population; around 30% of the population is Roman Catholic. The undecayed body of Saint Francis Xavier is still on public view in a glass coffin at the Basilica of Bom Jesus in Goa.
Mangalore is one more significant region on the west coast which has a huge population of Christianity. In 1321, the French Dominican friar Jordanus Catalani of Severac (in south-western France) landed in a place called Bhatkal near Mangalore and established a missionary station there. Many locals were converted to Christianity by Jordanus. .[12] However like the other tracts in India, the Portuguese were unable to establish their presence in Mangalore due to the valiant Vijayanagara ruler Krishnadevraya and the dauntless Bednore Queen of Mangalore Abbakka Rani of Ullal. Mangalorean Catholics were basically the descendants of Goan Catholics who fled Goa during the Portuguese-Maratha Wars and the Goa Inquisition. The St. Aloysius Chapel was later built in Mangalore. This chapel very closely resembles the world-famous Sistine Chapel in Rome.[14][15]
In Bombay, the high-class Hindus were ceremoniously converted to Christianity by the Portuguese in the 16th century. A large number of the converts were decendants of the Christian Community founded by Apostle St. Barthmolew. They were even referred to as the Portuguese Christians by the Portuguese. From the early days of the East India Company, there were no other Indian Christians in the North Konkan. With the defeat of the Portuguese at the hands of the Marathas and later on the advent of the British, there came a lot of changes. With gradual development, the North Konkan region received the Goan Catholic emigrants from Goa. On the occasion of The Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria, the Christians of North Konkan, who were known as Portuguese Christians discarded that name and adopted the designation East Indians.[16]
Beginning in the eighteenth century, Protestant missionaries began to work throughout India, leading to the growth of different Christian communities. In 1793 William Carey, an English Baptist Minister came to India as a Missionary. He worked in Serampore, Calcutta, and other places as a missionary. He started the Serampore College. He translated the Bible into Bengali.[17] He worked until his death in 1834. Anthony Norris Groves, Plymouth Brethren missionary came to India in 1833. He worked in the Godavari delta area. He worked in India until his death in 1852. Mormon missionaries, including Hugh Findlay, arrived in Bombay and Pune in the early 1850s, but did not meet with success.
[edit] Demographics
The total number of Christians in India as per Census in 2001 are 24,080,016 or 2.34% of the population.[18]
Majority of Indian Christians are Roman Catholics accounting for a total of 17.3 million members[19], including 408,725 members of the Syro-Malankara Church[20] and 3,674,115 of the Syro-Malabar Church[21]. In January 1993 the Syro-Malabar Church and in February 2005 Syro-Malankara Church were raised to the status of major archiepiscopal churches by Pope John Paul II. The Syro-Malabar Church is the second largest among 22 Eastern Catholic Churches who accept the Pope as the "visible head of the whole church".
Most Protestant denominations are represented in India, as a result of missionary activities throughout the country. The largest Protestant denomination in the country is the Church of South India, since 1947 a union of Presbyterian, Reformed, Congregational, Methodist, and Anglican congregations with approximately 3.8 million members[22]. A similar Church of North India had 1.25 million members[23]. (These churches are in full communion with the Anglican Communion.) The Mar Thoma Church has 900,000 members[24], and derives from the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, which numbers 1.2 million [25] and is in communion with the Anglicans, but not a full member. In 1961, the evangelical wing of the church came out of Mar Thoma Church and formed the St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India which has 10,000 members [26]. Syrian Orthodox Church of Malabar rites 1,200,000 members[27], respectively. There were about 1,267,786 million Lutherans[28], 648,000 Methodists[29], and 2,392,694 Baptists in India [30]. Pentecostalism, another denomination of Protestantism, is also a rapidly growing religion in India. It is spreading greatly in northern India and the southwest area, such as Kerala. The major Pentecostal churches in India are the Assemblies of God, The Pentecostal Mission (TPM - founded in 1923.[31] [32]), India Pentecostal Church of God (IPC) with 900,000 members.[33] New Apostolic Church founded in 1969, with total adherents of 1,448,209.[34] The New Life Fellowship (founded in 1968) now has approximately 480,000 adherents, and the Manna Full Gospel churches and ministries (founded in 1968 with connections to Portugal) has 275,000.[35] Evangelical Church of India now has over 680 churches with a 250,000 community.[36] Another prominent group is the Brethrens. They are known in different names Plymouth Brethren, Indian Brethren, Kerala brethren. Presbyterian Church of India has 823,456 members.[37]
From the late nineteenth century, the fastest growing Christian communities have been located in the northeast, among the Khasis, Mizos, and the Nagas. Today Christians are most prevalent in the northeast, and in the southwestern states of Kerala and Goa. Indian Christians have contributed significantly to and are well represented in various spheres of national life. They are currently chief ministers of the states like Andhra Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, and Meghalaya, and they were chief ministers earlier of Kerala, Manipur, Goa, and Chattisgarh. In the powerful election committee of the ruling Indian National Congress party, they take four out of twenty places.
| Church Name | Population |
|---|---|
| Roman Catholics Latin Rite[38] | 13,217,160 |
| Roman Catholic Syro-Malabar Church[39] | 3,674,115 |
| Roman Catholic Syro-Malankara Church[40] | 408,725 |
| Church of South India[41] | 3,800,000 |
| Baptists[42] | 2,392,694 |
| New Apostolic Church[43] | 1,448,209 |
| Church of North India[44] | 1,250,000 |
| Malankara (Indian) Orthodox Syrian Church[45] | 1,200,000 |
| Mar Thoma Church[46] | 1,000,000 |
| Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church of Malabar[47] | 1,200,000 |
| Lutherans[48] | 1,267,786 |
| Methodists[49] | 648,000 |
| India Pentecostal Church of God[50] | 600,000 |
| Indian Brethren | 1,000,000 |
| St. Thomas Evangelical Church[51] | 30,000 |
| Presbyterian Church of India[52] | 823,456 |
| New Life Fellowship[53] | 480,000 |
| Manna Full Gospel[54] | 275,000 |
| Evangelical Church [55] | 250,000 |
[edit] Conflicts
[edit] Hindu-Christian conflict
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Historically, Hindus and Christians have lived in relative peace since the arrival of Christianity in India from the early part of the first millennium. The arrival of European colonialists brought about large scale missionary activity in South India and North-East India. Many indigenous cultures were converted to Christianity. Sometimes they were voluntary, and other times they were violent and forced, as in the Goa Inquisition.
Then Hindus who converted to Christianity typically retained their social customs, including caste practices.[56] Aggressive proselytizing by Christian missionaries under British rule was a cause of resentment among Hindus and Muslims in the 19th century, who felt that their cultures were being attacked. This was one of the several causes of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the British Raj. Also, many Christian ideals prompted reform movements within the Hindu society in the 19th century, the most notable being the Brahmo Samaj, which was influenced by British Christian Unilateralism.[citation needed]. Some Indian Christians have retained Hindu customs and practices, and have combined Hindu customs with Christianity to achieve a unique brand of Indian Christianity. For instance, some Christians in India celebrate the Hindu festival of Diwali .[57]
In more contemporary periods, Hindu-Christian amity is sometimes challenged by partisan politics and extremism from both communities. Christian missionary activity among lower-caste Hindus has created groups of Crypto-Christians, particularly among Dalits. As a response to allegedly aggressive missionary activity four Indian states (Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu mainly) have passed laws restricting or prohibiting religious conversion.[58] This has created some resentment in the Indian Christian community.
The Government of the state of Tripura has uncovered evidence to support the assertion that the Baptist Church of Tripura has been supporting the terrorist group National Liberation Front of Tripura, a violent separatist group that has attacked and killed Hindus in the region and that has banned Hindu festivals by force.[59] The cause of the terror groups are supported by leadership of the American Baptist Churches USA. John Sundquist of International Ministries ABC/USA stated support for these groups in a release on Feb. 26, 1998.[60]
[edit] Muslim - Christian conflict
Muslims in India and Pakistan who convert to Christianity have been known to be subjected to harassment, intimidation, and attacks. In Kashmir, a 50 year old Christian convert named Bashir Tantray was killed, allegedly by Islamist militants, on November 21, 2006.[61]
A Christian priest, K.K. Alavi, who is a convert from Islam, recently raised the ire of his former Muslim community and has received many death threats. An Islamic militant group named "The National Development Front" actively campaigned against him.[62]
[edit] References
- ^ a b Population by religious communities
- ^ Katz, Nathan; & Goldberg, Ellen S; (1993) The Last Jews of Cochin: Jewish Identity in Hindu India, Foreword by Daniel J. Elazar Columbia, SC, Univ. of South Carolina Press. ISBN 0-87249-847-6
- ^ Israel J. Ross. Ritual and Music in South India: Syrian Christian Liturgical Music in Kerala. Asian Music, Vol. 11, No. 1 (1979), pp. 80-98
- ^ Christianity in India. M.B. Herald, Vol. 35, No. 9. Retrieved on 2008-03-13.
- ^ Vasco da Gama collection on University of Michigan
- ^ K. M. Panikkar. Asia and Western Dominance: A Survey of the Vasco Da Gama Epoch of Asian History, 1498-1945 The Pacific Historical Review, Vol. 23, No. 4 (Nov., 1954), pp. 407-408
- ^ CensusIndia 2001
- ^ a b Stephen Andrew Missick.Mar Thoma: The Apostolic Foundation of the Assyrian Church and the Christians of St. Thomas in India. Journal of Assyrian Academic studies.
- ^ Tom Shippey. Bibliophobia: Hatred of the Book in the Middle Ages
- ^ Susan Ashbrook Harvey. Women in the Syrian Tradition. The St. Nina Quarterly
- ^ Stephen Neill. A History of Christianity in India: The Beginnings to AD 1707 ISBN 0521548853
- ^ a b THE GREATE PRELATES WHO SHAPED THE HISTORY OF DIOCESE OF QUILON. Quilon Diocese. Retrieved on 2008-01-17.
- ^ a b Daus, Ronald (1983). Die Erfindung des Kolonialismus. Wuppertal/Germany: Peter Hammer Verlag, p.61-66. ISBN 3-87294-202-6.
- ^ The St. Aloysius College Chapel. St. Aloysius College. Retrieved on 2008-03-02.
- ^ aburad. St. Aloysius Chapel. YouTube. Retrieved on 2008-03-02.
- ^ East Indians (the indigenous Catholic inhabitants of Bombay, Salsette and Bassein). The East Indian Community. Retrieved on 2008-03-02.
- ^ Eugene Myers Harrison. William Carey (The Cobbler Who Turned Discoverer). Wholesome Words. Retrieved on 2008-03-02.
- ^ CensusIndia 2001
- ^ Factfile: Roman Catholics around the world. BBC News.
- ^ Recapitulation of Statistics. The Syro-Malankara Catholic Major Archiepiscopal Church.
- ^ http://www.smcim.org//about.htm
- ^ Church of South India
- ^ Address data base of Reformed churches and institutions
- ^ Indian Christianity
- ^ Malankara Orthodox Church - Malankara Orthodox Church
- ^ Adherents.com
- ^ Malankara Syriac Christian Resources - http://SyriacChristianity.org
- ^ Adherents.com: By Location
- ^ GBGM Feature
- ^ Baptist World Alliance - Statistics
- ^ Critique Of Pentecostal Mission By A Friendly Evangelical
- ^ http://www.missionstudies.org/conference/1papers/fp/Roger_Hedlund_Full_Paper.pdf
- ^ http://www.apts.edu/ajps/01-1/01-1-SBurgess.pdf
- ^ http://www.apts.edu/ajps/01-1/01-1-SBurgess.pdf
- ^ http://www.apts.edu/ajps/01-1/01-1-SBurgess.pdf
- ^ Adherents.com: By Location
- ^ || Indian Christianity ||
- ^ BBC NEWS | World | Factfile: Roman Catholics around the world
- ^ http://www.smcim.org//about.htm
- ^ Welcome to "The Syro-Malankara Catholic Major Archiepiscopal Church Website"
- ^ Church of South India
- ^ Baptist World Alliance - Statistics
- ^ http://www.apts.edu/ajps/01-1/01-1-SBurgess.pdf
- ^ Address data base of Reformed churches and institutions
- ^ Malankara Orthodox Church - Malankara Orthodox Church
- ^ Address data base of Reformed churches and institutions
- ^ Malankara Syriac Christian Resources - http://SyriacChristianity.org
- ^ Adherents.com: By Location
- ^ GBGM Feature
- ^ http://www.apts.edu/ajps/01-1/01-1-SBurgess.pdf
- ^ Adherents.com
- ^ || Indian Christianity ||
- ^ http://www.apts.edu/ajps/01-1/01-1-SBurgess.pdf
- ^ http://www.apts.edu/ajps/01-1/01-1-SBurgess.pdf
- ^ Adherents.com: By Location
- ^ Christian caste - Britannica Concise
- ^ Christianity - Hindu Customs in the Christian Community in India
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6050408.stm BBC Article dealing with conversion prohibition laws
- ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/south_asia/717775.stm BBC News article explaining links between the Baptist Church of Tripura & the NLFT
- ^ ABC IM - Nagaland Crisis
- ^ Christian convert from Islam shot dead in Kashmir, SperoNews
- ^ Convert from Islam in India Remains on Death List, Christian Examiner
- This article includes material from the 1995 public domain Library of Congress Country Study on India.
- Trec International
- International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention
- American Baptist Convention
- The St. Thomas Christian Encyclopedia of India, Vol.I (India), Vol.II (Kerala)
[edit] See also
- List of notable Indian Christians
- Caste system among Indian Christians
- List of cathedrals in India
- List of Roman Catholic missionaries in India
- List of Protestant missionaries in India
- History of Pentecostalism in India
[edit] External links
- Directory of Pastors in INDIA and their Ministries
- A History of the Church of England in India
- Catholic encyclopedia - entry on India
- St. Thomas Christian Encyclopaedia of India-entries on various topics
- Mid-India Christian Mission
- Churches In India
- Christian Pilgrimage sites in India
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