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Christianity is India's third-largest religion, with approximately 24 million followers, constituting 2.4% of India's population.[1]. In the 1st c. AD, India was one of the earliest areas to have a Christian community (along with the Near East and Greece), with the mission of Saint Thomas (doubting Thomas) to the Malabar traditionally dated to AD 52[2][3]. Most of the Christians in India are converted from Hinduism or Islam. The Saint Thomas Christians, still use the Syriac language (a dialect of Aramaic that Jesus is believed to have spoken[4]) in services. This group, which existed in Kerala relatively peacefully for more than a millennium, faced considerable persecution from Portuguese evangelists in the 16th c[5] [6]. This later wave of evangelism spread several denominations of Christianity more widely. [7][8]
Today Christians are found all across India and in all walks of life, with major populations in parts of South India, the Konkan Coast and the North-East. The Christian Church runs thousands of educational institutions and hospitals and has contributed significantly in the development of the nation.[9] Most Christians in India are Catholic, (Latin rite). The Eastern rites include the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church and the Syrian Orthodox church, which are prominent in Kerala. Other churches include the Church of South India (CSI), the Church of North India (CNI) and other evangelical groups.
[edit] Early Christianity in India
Saint Thomas is credited with introduction of Christianity in India in 52 AD[2]. Most of the Christians in India are converted from Hindu or Muslim. 70% of Indian Christian Population is Dalit, who like many other Hindu converts have even after conversion contnued with their caste system. According to the 3rd century text Acts of Thomas, (written in Syriac), when the apostles were in Jerusalem and divided the world among them, it was decided that Saint Thomas would go to India. Saint Thomas then arrived in North West India, and baptized King Gondophares and his brother, thereby heralding the beginning of Christianity in India.[10] However, the Acts of Thomas may be apocrypha, and may not be a historical account, and its characters may have been influenced by the Indo-Parthian Kingdom that existed in north-western India. During this time, Buddhism which was recently introduced to Northwestern India was making great strides and cosmopolitan cities such as Taxila, meeting points of Greek, Bactrian, Scythians, and Indian discourse, were centers of Buddhist learning.[10]
According to Indian Christian traditions, Saint Thomas arrived in Kodungallur, Kerala and established the Seven Churches and evangelized in present day Kerala and Tamil Nadu.[3]. As with early christianity in Europe, the initial converts were largely Jewish proselytes among the Cochin Jews who are believed to have arrived in India around 562BC, after the destruction of the First Temple[11]. St. Thomas, who was also a Jew by birth, also spoke the same language, Aramaic. As in the earliest Christian groups (in the near East) the earliest practices mixed many elements of contemporary Judaism.
It is believed that St. Thomas attained martyrdom at St. Thomas Mount in Chennai and is buried on the site of San Thome Cathedral.[12]
[edit] 4th century missions
India had a flourishing trade with Central Asia, Mediterranean, and Middle East, both along mountain passes in the north and sea routes along the western and southern coast, well before the start of Christian era, and it is likely that Christian merchants settled in Indian cities along trading routes.[10]
The Chronicle of Seert describes an evangelical mission to India by bishop David of Basra around the year 300;[13] this metropolitan reportedly made many conversions,[14] and it has been speculated that his mission took in areas of southern India.[15] According to Travancore Manual, Thomas of Cana, a Mesopotamian merchant and missionary, introduced Christianity to India in 345 AD.[16] He brought 400 Christians from Baghdad, Nineveh, and Jerusalem to Kodungallur. He and his companion Bishop Joseph of Edessa sought refuge from King Cheraman Perumal from persecution of Christians by the Persian king Shapur II. The colony of Syrian Christians, thus established at Kodungallur, became the first recorded Christian community in South India.[17]. A number of historians conclude that Thomas of Cana was confused with the 1st century apostle Thomas by India's Syrian Christians sometime after his death and became their Apostle Thomas in India.[18][19][20][21]
[edit] Jesus in India theories
There are also two sets of distinct accounts of Jesus travelling through India.[22] According to the first set of accounts, Jesus traveled and studied in India between the ages of twelve and thirty. According the second set of accounts, Jesus did not die on the cross, but after his apparent death and resurrection he journeyed to Kashmir to teach the gospel, and then remained there for the rest of his life[22][23]. The origin of the first set of accounts is attributed to Russian author Nicolas Notovitch who published the book La vie Inconnue du Jesus Christ (The Unknown life of Jesus Christ) in 1894.[22]
The origin of the second set of accounts is attributed to Kashmiri author Mirza Gulam Ahmed who published the book Masih Hindustan Mein (Jesus in India) in 1899.[24] These two accounts are generally not presented in combination. While travel between Middle-East and India was common during those times, these accounts are not given serious thought and treated as speculation since there is no historical account, either in early Christian writings or Indian historical accounts, to either confirm or refute Jesus traveling to India.[22]
Although, the exact origins of Christianity in India remain unclear, it is generally agreed that Christianity in India is almost as old as Christianity itself and spread in India even before it spread in many, predominantly Christian, nations of Europe[25][26].
[edit] Medieval Period
A set of palm leaf manuscripts from the 15th century or the 16th century, containing
Christian prayers in
Tamil
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 believed 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 called the Nasranis. 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).[27]
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 Catholicism 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 were forced to accept 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[28].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[28]. 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, the Inquisition, one of the most violent events in History of Goa targeting Hindus, Jews, and many newly converted Christians,[29][30][31] was installed 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. .[27] However like the other tracts in India, the Portuguese were unable to establish their presence in Mangalore due to the Vijayanagara ruler Krishnadevraya and the 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.[32]
In Bombay, the high-class Hindus were ceremoniously converted to Christianity by the Portuguese in the 16th century[citation needed]. A large number of the converts were descendants 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.[citation needed] 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.[citation needed] With gradual development, the North Konkan region received the Goan Catholic emigrants from Goa.[citation needed] 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.[33]
Beginning in the eighteenth century, Protestant missionaries began working 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.[34] 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.
Ahmednagar district in Maharastra has more Protestant Christians than Catholics. They are also called as Marathi Christians. Missionaries began to evangelise the local people in 1800 CE. The Christian population of Ahmednagar is only 4%. Haregaon a small village in Shrirampur taluka of Ahmednagar district is majority Catholic. Haregaon receives thousands of devotees on the occasion of the annual Feast of the 'Matmauli' 'The Blessed virgin Mary' on 7 and 8 September.[35]
Several American Baptist missionaries went to Northeastern parts of India during this period. It was in 1876 that Dr. E. W. Clark first went to live in a Naga village, four years after his Assamese helper, Godhula, baptized the first Naga converts. Rev. and Mrs. A.F. Merrill went to India in 1928. Rev. and Mrs. M.J. Chance spent most of the years between 1950-1956 at Golaghat in evangelistic work. They worked with Naga and Garo tribes. Even today the heaviest concentrations of Christians in India continue to be in the Northeast.[36]
[edit] Demographics
Distribution of Christian population in different Indian states
[37]
The total number of Christians in India as per Census in 2001 are 24,080,016 or 2.34% of the population.[1]
Majority of Indian Christians are Roman Catholics accounting for a total of 17.3 million members[38], including 408,725 members of the Syro-Malankara Church[39] and 3,674,115 of the Syro-Malabar Church[40]. 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". The states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu in South India and Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya in North-East India account for 60% of India's total Christian population.[citation needed]
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[41]. A similar Church of North India had 1.25 million members[42]. (These churches are in full communion with the Anglican Communion.) The Mar Thoma Church has 700,000 members[43], and derives from the Malankara Jacobite Syrian Church, which numbers 1.2 million 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 [44]. Syrian Orthodox Church of Malabar rites 1,200,000 members[45], respectively. There were about 1,267,786 million Lutherans[46], 648,000 Methodists[47], and 2,392,694 Baptists in India [48]. 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.[49][50]), Indian Pentecostal Church of God (IPC) with 900,000 members.[51] New Apostolic Church founded in 1969, with total adherents of 1,448,209.[51] 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.[51] Evangelical Church of India now has over 680 churches with a 250,000 community.[52] 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.[53]
Sacred Heart Cathedral in
Delhi
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 include former and current chief ministers.
Christianity in India
| Church Name |
Population |
| Catholic- Lati
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