Protestantism in India - Revision history

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← Older revision		Revision as of 11:42, 7 June 2022
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	{{more citations needed\|date=July 2020}}		{{more citations needed\|date=July 2020}}
	'''Protestants in India''' are a minority and a sub-section of [[Christians in India]] and also to a certain extent the [[Christians in Pakistan]] before the [[Partition of India]], that adhere to some or all of the doctrines of [[Protestantism]]. Protestants in India are a small minority in a predominantly [[Hindu]] country, but form majorities in the north-eastern states of [[Meghalaya]], [[Mizoram]], [[Nagaland]] and ~~sizeable~~ minorities in [[Kerala]], [[Tamil Nadu]] ~~and~~ various east coast and northern states. Protestants today trace their heritage back ~~through a rich history of~~ [[~~Christianity\|Christian~~]] and [[~~monotheistic]] faith on~~ the [[Indian ~~subcontinent~~]].		'''Protestants in India''' are a minority and a sub-section of [[Christians in India]] and also to a certain extent the [[Christians in Pakistan]] before the [[Partition of India]], that adhere to some or all of the doctrines of [[Protestantism]]. Protestants in India are a small minority in a predominantly [[Hindu]] majority country, but form majorities in the north-eastern states of [[Meghalaya]], [[Mizoram]]& [[Nagaland]] and significant minorities in [[Konkan division]], [[Bengal]], [[Kerala]]& [[Tamil Nadu]], with various communities in east coast and northern states. Protestants today trace their heritage back to the [[Protestant Revolution of the 16th century]] and [[Ancient Christianity in the Indian Subcontinent]].

	==History==		==History==
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	===Independent India===		===Independent India===
	{{unreferenced section\|date=December 2019}}		{{unreferenced section\|date=December 2019}}
	Many Protestant denominations are represented in India, the result of missionary activities throughout the country especially under [[British Raj\|British rule in India]]. The largest Protestant denomination in the country is the [[Church of South India]], since 1947 a union of [[Presbyterian]], [[Reformed]], [[Congregational]], [[Methodist]], and [[Anglican]] [[wikt:congregation\|congregation]]s with approximately 4 million members as of 2014. The broadly similar [[Church of North India]] had 1 million members. (Both churches are in full communion with the [[Anglican Communion]].) There were about 1.3 million Lutherans, 473,000 Methodists, and 425,000 Baptists as of 1995.		Many Protestant denominations are represented in India, the result of missionary activities throughout the country especially under [[British Raj\|British rule in India]]. The largest Protestant denomination in the country is the [[Church of South India]], since 1947 a union of [[Presbyterian]], [[Reformed church\|Reformed]], [[Congregational]], [[Methodist]], and [[Anglican]] [[wikt:congregation\|congregation]]s with approximately 4 million members as of 2014. The broadly similar [[Church of North India]] had 1 million members. (Both churches are in full communion with the [[Anglican Communion]].) There were about 1.3 million Lutherans, 473,000 Methodists, and 425,000 Baptists as of 1995.

	Pentecostalism, one of the largest Protestant denominations worldwide, is also a rapidly growing denomination in India. It is spreading greatly in [[northern India]] and the southwestern areas, such as [[Kerala]]. The largest indigenous Pentecostal denominations in India are [[The Pentecostal Mission]] (TPM) and the [[India Pentecostal Church of God]] (IPC).		Pentecostalism, one of the largest Protestant denominations worldwide, is also a rapidly growing denomination in India. It is spreading greatly in [[northern India]] and the southwestern areas, such as [[Kerala]]. The largest indigenous Pentecostal denominations in India are [[The Pentecostal Mission]] (TPM) and the [[India Pentecostal Church of God]] (IPC).
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	== Protestant Churches in India ==		== Protestant Churches in India ==
	{{Christianity in India sidebar}}		{{Christianity in India sidebar}}
			* [[Assemblies of God in India]]
	*[[Ao Baptist Arogo Mungdang]] (Ao Baptist Churches Convention)		*[[Ao Baptist Arogo Mungdang]] (Ao Baptist Churches Convention)
	*[[Apatani Christian Fellowship]]		*[[Apatani Christian Fellowship]]
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	*[[Baptist Church of Mizoram]]		*[[Baptist Church of Mizoram]]
	*[[Baptist Union of North India]]		*[[Baptist Union of North India]]
			*[[Basel Mission]]
	*[[Bengal Baptist Fellowship]]		*[[Bengal Baptist Fellowship]]
	*[[Bengal Orissa Bihar Baptist Convention]].		*[[Bengal Orissa Bihar Baptist Convention]].
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	*[[Rabha Baptist Church Union]]		*[[Rabha Baptist Church Union]]
	*[[Reformed Presbyterian Church of India]]		*[[Reformed Presbyterian Church of India]]
	*[[Reformed Presbyterian Church in North East India]]		*[[Reformed Presbyterian Church North East India]]
	*[[Presbyterian Church of South India]]		*[[Presbyterian Church of South India]]
	*[[Samavesam of Telugu Baptist Churches]]		*[[Samavesam of Telugu Baptist Churches]]
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	*[[Mar Thoma Church]]		*[[Mar Thoma Church]]
	*[[Tamil Baptist Churches]]		*[[Tamil Baptist Churches]]
			*Tamil Evangelical Lutheran Church
			*Tirunelveli C.M.S. Evangelical Church
	*[[Tripura Baptist Christian Union]]		*[[Tripura Baptist Christian Union]]
	*[[United Church of Northern India – Presbyterian Synod]]		*[[United Church of Northern India – Presbyterian Synod]]

92.97.184.210: /* Protestant Churches in India */

2021-03-19T05:42:08Z

Protestant Churches in India

New page

{{more citations needed|date=July 2020}}
'''Protestants in India''' are a minority and a sub-section of [[Christians in India]] and also to a certain extent the [[Christians in Pakistan]] before the [[Partition of India]], that adhere to some or all of the doctrines of [[Protestantism]]. Protestants in India are a small minority in a predominantly [[Hindu]] country, but form majorities in the north-eastern states of [[Meghalaya]], [[Mizoram]], [[Nagaland]] and sizeable minorities in [[Kerala]], [[Tamil Nadu]] and various east coast and northern states. Protestants today trace their heritage back through a rich history of [[Christianity|Christian]] and [[monotheistic]] faith on the [[Indian subcontinent]].

==History==
===Colonial India===
[[File:St. Paul's Cathedral - Calcutta (Kolkata) - 1865.jpg|thumb|250px|[[St. Paul's Cathedral, Kolkata|St. Paul's Cathedral]] was built in 1847 and served as the [[Cathedra|chair]] of the Bishop of Calcutta, who served as the [[Metropolitan bishop|metropolitan]] of the [[Church of India, Burma and Ceylon]].<ref name="Buchanan2015">{{cite book|last=Buchanan|first=Colin|title=Historical Dictionary of Anglicanism|date=22 October 2015|publisher=[[Rowman & Littlefield Publishers]]|language=en|isbn=9781442250161|page=117}}</ref>]]
As the [[Church of England|Anglican Church]] was the [[established church]] of England, "it had an impact on India with the arrival of the British".<ref name="Dalal2014">{{cite book|last=Dalal|first=Roshen|title=The Religions of India|date=18 April 2014|publisher=Penguin Books Limited|language=en|isbn=9788184753967|page=177}}</ref> Citing the [[Great Commission]], [[Joseph White (orientalist)|Joseph White]], a [[Laudian Professor of Arabic]] at the University of Oxford, "preached before the university in 1784 on the duty of promoting the universal and progressive message of Christianity 'among our Mahometan and Gentoo Subjects in India'."<ref name="Marriott2013">{{cite book|last=Marriott|first=John|title=The Other Empire: Metropolis, India and Progress in the Colonial Imagination|date=19 July 2013|publisher=[[Manchester University Press]]|language=en|isbn=9781847795397|page=107}}</ref> In 1889, the [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister of Great Britain]], [[Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury]] expressed similar sentiments, stating that "It is not only our duty but is in our interest to promote the diffusion of Christianity as far as possible throughout the length and breadth of India."<ref name="Kanjamala2014">{{cite book|last=Kanjamala|first=Augustine|title=The Future of Christian Mission in India|date=21 August 2014|publisher=[[Wipf and Stock Publishers]]|language=en|isbn=9781620323151|pages=117–119}}</ref>

The growth of the [[British Indian Army]] led to the arrival of many [[Anglican]] chaplains in India.<ref name="Tovey2017">{{cite book|last=Tovey|first=Phillip|title=Anglican Baptismal Liturgies|date=30 August 2017|publisher=Canterbury Press|language=en|isbn=9781786220202|page=197|quote=The growth of the army in India also led to many army chaplains. After the change in the Charter in 1813, Anglican missionaries began to work across North India. The missionaries translated the Book of Common Prayer into various Indian languages. The first Anglican diocese was Calcutta in 1813, and bishops from India were at the first Lambeth conference. In 1930 the Church of India, Burma and Ceylon became an independent Province and created its own Book of Common Prayer, which was translated into several languages.}}</ref> Following the arrival of the Church of England's [[Church Mission Society]] in 1814, the [[Diocese of Calcutta of the Church of North India|Diocese of Calcutta]] of the [[Church of India, Burma and Ceylon]] (CIBC) was erected, with its [[St. Paul's Cathedral, Kolkata|St. Paul's Cathedral]] being built in 1847.<ref name="Dalal2014"/> By 1930, the Church of India, Burma and Ceylon had fourteen [[diocese]]s across the Indian Empire.<ref name="BCC1940">{{cite book|title=The Indian Year Book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UScWAQAAMAAJ|year=1940|publisher=Bennett, Coleman & Company|language=en |page=455|quote=The three dioceses thus formed have been repeatedly subdivided, until in 1930 there were fourteen dioceses, the dates of their creation being as follows : Calcutta 1814; Madras 1835; Bombay 1837; Colombo 1845; Lahore 1877; Rangoon 1877; Travancore 1879; Chota Nagpur 1890; Lucknow 1893; Tinnevelly 1896; Nagpur 1903; Dornakal 1912; Assam 1915; Nasik 1929.}}</ref>

Missionaries from other [[Christian denominations]] came to British India as well; [[Lutheran]] missionaries, for example, arrived in Calcutta in 1836 and by "the year 1880 there were over 31,200 Lutheran Christians spread out in 1,052 villages".<ref name="Kanjamala2014"/> [[Methodists]] began arriving in India in 1783 and established [[Christian mission|missions]] with a focus on "education, health ministry, and evangelism".<ref name="AbrahamKirby2009">{{cite book|last1=Abraham|first1=William J.|last2=Kirby|first2=James E.|title=The Oxford Handbook of Methodist Studies |date=24 September 2009|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|language=en |isbn=9780191607431|page=93}}</ref><ref name="Jr2014"/> In the 1790s, Christians from the [[London Missionary Society]] and [[Baptist Missionary Society]], began doing missionary work in the Indian Empire.<ref name="FrykenbergLow2003">{{cite book|last1=Frykenberg|first1=Robert Eric|last2=Low|first2=Alaine M.|title=Christians and Missionaries in India: Cross-cultural Communication Since 1500, with Special Reference to Caste, Conversion, and Colonialism|year=2003|publisher=[[William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company]]|language=en |isbn=9780802839565|page=127}}</ref> In [[Neyyoor|Neyoor]], the London Missionary Society Hospital "pioneered improvements in the public health system for the treatment of diseases even before organized attempts were made by the colonial Madras Presidency, reducing the death rate substantially".<ref name="LucykLoewenau2017">{{cite book|last1=Lucyk|first1=Kelsey|last2=Loewenau|first2=Aleksandra|last3=Stahnisch|first3=Frank W.|title=The Proceedings of the 21st Annual History of Medicine Days Conference 2012|date=6 January 2017|publisher=Cambridge Scholars Publishing|language=en|isbn=9781443869287|page=237}}</ref>

After 1857, the establishment of schools and hospitals by British Christian missionaries became the "a pivotal feature of missionary work and the principal vehicles for conversion".<ref name="CraneMohanram2013">{{cite book|last1=Crane|first1=Ralph|last2=Mohanram|first2=Radhika|title=Imperialism as Diaspora: Race, Sexuality, and History in Anglo-India|date=31 August 2013|publisher=Oxford University Press|language=en |isbn=9781781385630|page=86}}</ref><ref name="Jr2014">{{cite book|last=Jr|first=Charles Yrigoyen|title=T&T Clark Companion to Methodism|date=25 September 2014|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|language=en |isbn=9780567662460|page=400}}</ref> [[Christ Church College, Kanpur|Christ Church College]] (1866) and [[St. Stephen's College, Delhi|St. Stephen's College]] (1881) are two examples of prominent church-affiliated educational institutions founded during the colonial period India.<ref name="CarpenterGlanzer2014">{{cite book|last1=Carpenter|first1=Joel|last2=Glanzer|first2=Perry L.|last3=Lantinga|first3=Nicholas S.|title=Christian Higher Education|date=7 March 2014|publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing|language=en|isbn=9781467440394|page=103}}</ref> Within educational institutions established during the British Raj in India, Christian texts, especially the [[Christian Bible|Bible]], were a part of the curricula.<ref name="CraneMohanram2013"/> During the colonial era in India, Christian missionaries developed writing systems for Indian languages that previously did not have one.<ref name="AKanjamala2014">{{cite book|last=Kanjamala|first=Augustine|title=The Future of Christian Mission in India|date=21 August 2014|publisher=[[Wipf and Stock Publishers]]|language=en|isbn=9781630874858|page=120}}</ref><ref name="Bhaṭṭācāryya1969">{{cite book|last=Bhaṭṭācāryya|first=Haridāsa|title=The Cultural Heritage of India|year=1969|publisher=[[Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture]]|language=en|isbn=9780802849007|page=60}}</ref> Christian missionaries in India also worked to increase literacy and also engaged in social activism, such as fighting against prostitution, championing the right of widowed women to remarry, and trying to stop early marriages for women.<ref name="Mullin2014">{{cite book|last=Mullin|first=Robert Bruce|title=A Short World History of Christianity|date=12 November 2014|publisher=Westminster John Knox Press|language=en|isbn=9781611645514|page=231}}</ref> Among British women, [[zenana missions]] became a popular method to win [[conversion to Christianity|converts to Christianity]].<ref name="CraneMohanram2013"/>

In [[colonial India]], the [[All India Conference of Indian Christians]] (AICIC) played an important role in the [[Indian independence movement]], advocating for [[swaraj]] and [[opposition to the partition of India|opposing the partition of India]].<ref name="Thomas1974"/> The AICIC also was opposed to separate electorates for Christians, believing that the faithful "should participate as common citizens in one common, national political system".<ref name="Thomas1974">{{cite book |last1=Thomas |first1=Abraham Vazhayil |title=Christians in Secular India |date=1974 |publisher=Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press |isbn=978-0-8386-1021-3 |pages=106–110 |language=en}}</ref><ref name="Oddie2001">{{cite journal |last1=Oddie |first1=Geoffrey A. |title=Indian Christians and National Identity 1870-1947 |journal=The Journal of Religious History |date=2001 |volume=25 |issue=3 |pages=357, 361|doi=10.1111/1467-9809.00138 }}</ref> The All India Conference of Indian Christians and the [[All India Catholic Union]] formed a working committee with M. Rahnasamy of [[Andhra University]] serving as President and B.L. Rallia Ram of [[Lahore]] serving as General Secretary; in its meeting on 16 April 1947 and 17 April 1947, the joint committee prepared a 13 point memorandum that was sent to the [[Constituent Assembly of India]], which asked for [[religious freedom]] for both organisations and individuals; this came to be reflected in the [[Constitution of India]].<ref name="Thomas1974"/><ref name="Oddie2001" />

===Independent India===
{{unreferenced section|date=December 2019}}
Many Protestant denominations are represented in India, the result of missionary activities throughout the country especially under [[British Raj|British rule in India]]. The largest Protestant denomination in the country is the [[Church of South India]], since 1947 a union of [[Presbyterian]], [[Reformed]], [[Congregational]], [[Methodist]], and [[Anglican]] [[wikt:congregation|congregation]]s with approximately 4 million members as of 2014. The broadly similar [[Church of North India]] had 1 million members. (Both churches are in full communion with the [[Anglican Communion]].) There were about 1.3 million Lutherans, 473,000 Methodists, and 425,000 Baptists as of 1995.

Pentecostalism, one of the largest Protestant denominations worldwide, is also a rapidly growing denomination in India. It is spreading greatly in [[northern India]] and the southwestern areas, such as [[Kerala]]. The largest indigenous Pentecostal denominations in India are [[The Pentecostal Mission]] (TPM) and the [[India Pentecostal Church of God]] (IPC).

As for the smaller denominations, another prominent group is the Brethren. They include [[Plymouth Brethren]], [[Indian Brethren]], [[Kerala Brethren]] etc. The [[Conference of the Mennonite Brethren Churches in India]] has more than 100,000 members.

One of the oldest denominations meanwhile is the [[Northern Evangelical Lutheran Church]].

== Notable missionaries ==
Protestant [[missionaries]] began to work throughout [[India]], leading to the growth of different Christian communities. In 1793, [[William Carey (missionary)|William Carey]], an English Baptist Minister, came to India as a missionary. He worked in [[Serampore]], [[Calcutta]] and other cities founding churches. On the educational front, in addition to starting the [[Serampore College]], he also translated the Bible into [[Bengali language|Bengali]] and [[Sanskrit]], continuing with these labours until his death in 1834.
According to the chronicler [[Otto of Freising]], Arnold had studied in [[Paris]] under the tutelage of the reformer and [[philosopher]] [[Pierre Abélard]]. He took to Abélard's philosophy of [[Reform movement|reform]] ways. [[Anthony Norris Groves]], [[Plymouth Brethren]] missionary came to India in 1833. He worked in the [[Godavari River|Godavari delta]] area of then [[Madras Presidency]], until his death in 1852.

== Protestant Churches in India ==
{{Christianity in India sidebar}}
*[[Ao Baptist Arogo Mungdang]] (Ao Baptist Churches Convention)
*[[Apatani Christian Fellowship]]
*[[Assam Baptist Convention]]
*[[Baptist Christian Association]]
*[[Baptist Church of Mizoram]]
*[[Baptist Union of North India]]
*[[Bengal Baptist Fellowship]]
*[[Bengal Orissa Bihar Baptist Convention]].
*[[Council of Baptist Churches in Northern India]]
*[[Congregational Church in India]]
*[[Church of North India]]
*[[Church of South India]]
*[[Evangelical Baptist Convention of India]]
*[[Evangelical Church of Maraland]].
*[[Garo Baptist Convention]]
*[[Gospel Association of India]]
*[[India Association of General Baptists]]
*[[India Evangelical Lutheran Church]] IELC
*[[Evangelical Church of India]]
*[[Karbi Anglong Baptist Convention]]
*[[Karnataka Baptist Convention]]
*[[Lower Assam Baptist Union]]
*[[Maharashtra Baptist Society]]
*[[Manipur Baptist Convention]]
*[[Mao Baptist Church]]
*[[Nagaland Baptist Church Council]]
*[[North Bank Baptist Christian Association]]
*[[Orissa Baptist Evangelical Crusade]]
*[[Poumai Baptist Church]]
*[[Presbyterian Church in India]]
*[[Presbyterian Church in India (Reformed)]]
*[[Presbyterian Free Church of Central India]]
*[[Rabha Baptist Church Union]]
*[[Reformed Presbyterian Church of India]]
*[[Reformed Presbyterian Church in North East India]]
*[[Presbyterian Church of South India]]
*[[Samavesam of Telugu Baptist Churches]]
*[[Separate Baptists in Christ]]
*[[Sumi Baptist Church]]
*[[Southern Asia Division of Seventh-day Adventists]]
*[[Seventh Day Baptist|Seventh Day Baptist Church]]
*[[The Pentecostal Mission]] (formerly [[Ceylon Pentecostal Mission]])
*[[Mar Thoma Church]]
*[[Tamil Baptist Churches]]
*[[Tripura Baptist Christian Union]]
*[[United Church of Northern India – Presbyterian Synod]]
*[[Indian Pentecostal Church of God]]

Source of the list: World Christian Encyclopedia.

== See also ==

*[[Baptists in India]]
*[[Anglicans in India]]
*[[Seventh-day Adventist Church in India]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Asia topic|Protestantism in}}
{{Churches in India}}

[[Category:Protestantism in India| ]]
[[Category:Protestantism by country|India]]