{"id":42819,"date":"2020-03-16T05:26:35","date_gmt":"2020-03-16T05:26:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/?p=42819"},"modified":"2021-12-15T03:16:19","modified_gmt":"2021-12-15T03:16:19","slug":"ugly-and-good-side-of-conversions-in-south-asia-by-p-k-balachandran","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/ugly-and-good-side-of-conversions-in-south-asia-by-p-k-balachandran\/","title":{"rendered":"Ugly and good side of conversions in South Asia \u2013 By P.K Balachandran"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h1 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">Ugly and good side of conversions in South Asia \u2013 By P.K Balachandran<\/span><\/h1>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 24px; color: #000000;\">Source:\u00a0<strong><em>Daily Mirror<\/em><\/strong><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><strong>10 March 2020<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-42820 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Indian-fishermen-in-the-19th-Century-600x400.jpg\" alt=\"Indian fishermen in the 19th Century\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; color: #c20cf0;\"><i>Christian missionary preaching to South Indian fishermen in the 19th Century<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-42821\" src=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/P.K-Balachandran.jpg\" alt=\"P.K Balachandran\" width=\"184\" height=\"79\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400; text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\"><strong>Christianity came to South Asia in three phases: In the First phase (during First Century AD) it was brought by an unarmed preacher, St. Thomas, the Apostle. In the Second phase, between the 16th and the 19th Centuries, it was brought by the Portuguese and other colonial powers with canons to impose it, though undoubtedly, Christian institutions helped modernize local societies in course of time. In the Third phase, that is in the current era, Christianity is being propagated allegedly by offering \u201cincentives\u201d funded by Western donors.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">The first phase was peaceful and non-controversial, though St.Thomas was killed by a disgruntled Brahmin in what is now Chennai. He sought converts from the Brahmin caste through persuasion and not force. Conversions in the second phase were quite substantially forced, though at the time of St. Francis Xavier, fishermen on the Thooththukkudi and Mannar coasts were eager to convert to escape from upper caste discrimination. In South Sri Lanka, some castes converted to escape discrimination by the Govis.<\/span><!--more--><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">In the third phase, conversions have been peaceful and voluntary, but the phenomenon is seen by local governments and local political elites as being \u201cunethical\u201d. Some Indian States have banned conversions brought about by \u201cinducements\u201d. In Sri Lanka, the Buddhist majority has raised the red flag against West-backed evangelists.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">In his paper\u00a0<em>\u201cColonialism, Christianity and Mission Activities in India: A Postcolonial Perspective,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0Pynhunlang NM Shullai of the Department of Theology, Sam Higginbottom University, India, vividly describes conversions in India over the years. According to the Malabar Oral Tradition, St. Thomas landed in Cranganore in 52 AD. From there he went to preach among the Jewish colonies in Chennai, converted Brahmins, established seven churches, and appointed a priest.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">The second phase of conversions followed the discovery of a sea route to India by Vasco Da Gama, a Portuguese navigator, in 1498. The colonial era in India began four years later in 1502 when the Portuguese set up a trading center at Kollam in Kerala. In 1505 King Manuel I of Portugal appointed Dom Francisco de Almeida as the first Portuguese Viceroy in India. The same year, the Portuguese had landed in Sri Lanka too.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">Vasco da Gama and his successors came as traders, conquerors and missionaries. Historian K. M. Panicker, in his book\u00a0<em>\u201cAsia and Western Dominance,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0says the following about Vasco Da Gama: \u201cThe Captain General\u2019s ship flew on its mast a flag on which was painted a large Cross of Christ and also carried canon, symbols of the new power entering the East.\u201d He further says: \u201cThe missionaries brought with them an attitude of moral superiority and a belief in their own exclusive righteousness. The association of Christian missionary work with aggressive imperialism introduced political complications. That diplomatic pressure, extra-territoriality and sometimes support of gun-boats had been resorted to in the interests of foreign missionaries could not be easily forgotten.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">Researcher Shullai quotes Hans-Ruedi Weber as saying in his book: \u201cAsia and the Ecumenical Movement 1895-1961\u201d that \u201cno Christian can be proud of this combination of the Cross and Canon.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 D. Arthur Jeyakumar in his book: \u201cHistory of Christianity in India: Selected Theme\u201d noted that the Christian missions set up by the Portuguese were located within the range of their gunboats. In the 16th Century, Tamil Nadu\u2019s Pearl Fishery Coast (the Thooththukkudi coast), saw mass conversions being carried out by St. Francis Xavier, under Portuguese military protection. Under Portuguese rule, churches were built and missionaries were paid with State funds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">The British-Indian government patronized the Anglican church, as it was the official church. Till independence, the government of India had an Ecclesiastical Department and the Archbishop was a member of the Viceroy\u2019s Executive Council.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">In 1546, King Dom Joao III of Portugal wrote to his Viceroy in Goa to say: \u201cWe charge you to discover all the idols by means of diligent officers, to reduce them to fragments and utterly to consume them, proclaiming rigorous penalties against those who shall celebrate in public or in private any festivities which have any Gentile taint.\u201d He further said that Christian converts, \u201cshould also be encouraged with some temporal favours, such as greatly mollify the hearts of those who receive them.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">According to the Sinhala Commission Report of 1997, the Portuguese wrought havoc in Sri Lanka: \u201cBuddhist monasteries were razed to the ground, and their priceless treasures looted, libraries were set fire to. Whosoever dared to worship in public or wear the yellow robe of the ascetic was visited with death. The great institutions of Totagamuwe and Keragala, which had carried on the traditions of Taxila and Nalanda Universities were destroyed and their incumbents put to the sword. The land groaned in agony as one after another (Theros) fell, before the fierce onslaughts of the fanatical missionaries\u2026(together) with the Buddhist religious edifices which had taken generations to build. Never were a glorious civilization and a noble culture more brutally destroyed. The work of centuries was undone in a few years.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">The Portuguese used local princely differences and rivalries to impose Catholicism. Some local rulers were also ready to convert to get Portuguese help to fight their rivals. The converted Kotte King Don Juan Dharmapala gave up his rights to King Philip l of Portugal to fight Mayadunne of Sitwaka. When Dharmapala died on May 27, 1597, King Philip l of Portugal laid claim to the Lion throne of Ceylon, points out Senaka Weeraratne. However, contrary to the calculation of the Portuguese, Dharmapala\u2019s conversion did not lead to the mass conversion of the people of Kotte. In fact, Dharmapala became persona non grata with them.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">In 1591, the Portuguese enthroned in Kandy, Dom Philip 1, a converted Prince, but he died under suspicious circumstances. In 1594, the Portuguese invaded Kandy to enthrone Dona Catherina, a baptized Sinhalese noblewoman. The then King Vimaladharma Surya made use of the public opposition to Dona Catherina\u2019s coming, and using guerrilla warfare, routed the Portuguese. He captured Dona Catherina, and made her his queen.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">In the Jaffna kingdom too, the Portuguese were using force, guile and conversion to dominate the area. Local princes in turn were going to the extent of converting themselves to Catholicism to curry favour with the Portuguese. However, when King Sa-gili II usurped the throne against the wishes of the Portuguese, and opposed the latter, he was defeated, taken to Goa and beheaded in 1619. His family was forced to become Catholic priests or nuns so that the Royal family had no progeny.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">The Dutch replaced the Portuguese in Ceylon in the 17th Century and tried to force Protestantism on native Roman Catholics. Catholic churches were taken over and Portuguese priests were driven out of the island. In the North (Jaffna), the Dutch used force to convert everybody to the Dutch Reformed Church. The Dutch also made baptism compulsory for those who wanted school admissions and government jobs.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">In 1659 in India, the Board of Directors of the East India Company resolved that \u201cit is their earnest desire by all possible means to spread Christianity among the people of India an allowed missionaries to embark on their ships.\u201d But this resolution was ignored till the British parliament gave Christian missionaries freedom to work in India without licence in 1823. Many British officials supported evangelism. Shullai quotes Duncan B. Forrester\u2019s \u201cTruthful Action: Exploration in Practical Theology\u201d to say that \u201cthe missionaries generally understood British Rule as a providential ordering, a sign of God\u2019s care for India.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">With support from the British government, missionaries spread English education and healthcare for the benefit of the masses all over India and Sri Lanka. They uplifted depressed castes like the Nadars and Thevars in Tamil Nadu. The American Protestant missionaries made Jaffna Tamils an educated class of loyal government servants. Many landed families in Sri Lanka converted to be close to the British rulers.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; color: #003366;\">In Bengal, William Carey, along with Joshua Marshman and William Ward, founded the Serampore College with Arts, Science, and Theology Departments in 1818. Carey founded the Bengal Asiatic Society for Cross-Cultural understanding; translated the Ramayana from Sanskrit to English and published it in three volumes. He fought against \u201cSati\u201d or the burning of widows in the funeral pyres of their husbands.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; &nbsp; Ugly and good side of conversions in South Asia \u2013 By P.K Balachandran Source:\u00a0Daily Mirror\u00a010 March 2020 Christian missionary preaching to South Indian fishermen in the 19th Century &nbsp; Christianity came to South Asia in three phases: In the First phase (during First Century AD) it was brought by an unarmed preacher, St. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":42820,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"aside","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[14186,14185,14183,14184,14187],"class_list":{"0":"post-42819","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-aside","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-articles","8":"tag-british-parliament","9":"tag-joshua-marshman","10":"tag-sam-higginbottom-university","11":"tag-serampore-college","12":"tag-shullai-quotes-duncan-b-forresters","13":"post_format-post-format-aside"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.7.1 (Yoast SEO v25.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Ugly and good side of conversions in South Asia \u2013 By P.K Balachandran<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Christianity came to South Asia in three phases: In the First phase (during First Century AD) it was brought by an unarmed preacher, St. Thomas, the Apostle.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Ugly and good side of conversions in South Asia \u2013 By P.K Balachandran\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Christianity came to South Asia in three phases: In the First phase (during First Century AD) it was brought by an unarmed preacher, St. Thomas, the Apostle.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/ugly-and-good-side-of-conversions-in-south-asia-by-p-k-balachandran\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"eLanka\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/eLanka.com.au\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-03-16T05:26:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-12-15T03:16:19+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Indian-fishermen-in-the-19th-Century.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"eLanka admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"eLanka admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/ugly-and-good-side-of-conversions-in-south-asia-by-p-k-balachandran\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/ugly-and-good-side-of-conversions-in-south-asia-by-p-k-balachandran\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"eLanka admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/#\/schema\/person\/f6e635b74ab35ef88a68a9973cacc5bd\"},\"headline\":\"Ugly and good side of conversions in South Asia \u2013 By P.K Balachandran\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-03-16T05:26:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-12-15T03:16:19+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/ugly-and-good-side-of-conversions-in-south-asia-by-p-k-balachandran\/\"},\"wordCount\":1401,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/ugly-and-good-side-of-conversions-in-south-asia-by-p-k-balachandran\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/websitedesigns.com.au\/elankanew\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Indian-fishermen-in-the-19th-Century.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"British parliament\",\"Joshua Marshman\",\"Sam Higginbottom University\",\"Serampore College\",\"Shullai quotes Duncan B. 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