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Christian Witness to HindusReport of the Consultation on World Evangelization Mini-Consultation on Reaching Hindus held at Pattaya, Thailand from 16-27 June, 1980 Sponsored by the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization Prefatory Note This report, Christian Witness to Hindus, is one of a series of Lausanne Occasional Papers (LOPs) emerging from the historic Consultation on World Evangelization (COWE) held in Pattaya, Thailand, in June, 1980. The report was drafted by members of the "Mini-Consultation on Reaching Hindus," under the chairmanship of Mr. Satkheerthi Rao, who also served as International Co-ordinator of the pre-COWE study groups on Hindus. The major part of this report went through a draft and a revised draft, which involved all members of the mini-consultation. It was also submitted to a wider "sub-plenary" group for comment, but the responsibility for the final text rests with the mini-consultation and its chairman. The report is released with the prayer and hope that it will stimulate the church and individual members in reaching this large segment of the population. Copyright © 1980 Contents Introduction We give thanks to God Almighty for his gracious act of salvation in Jesus Christ, which has made possible the entrance into the Kingdom of God for over 565 million Hindu people dispersed throughout the world, with the majority in the Indian sub-continent. We rejoice in the fact that the saving Word of God preached faithfully by God's servants has brought about a Christian population of about 19 million people in India alone. However, we are conscious that God longs for the whole Hindu people to know Jesus Christ and live under his Lordship (Isa. 17:7, 8). We regret that, after so many years of sincere effort by so many faithful people, the number of Christians in India is still less than 3% of the population. Further, the dispersed Hindus in other parts of the world have been largely neglected by the Christian communities. We repent of the fact that we have been so pre-occupied with structural concerns of the church that we have neglected to make these structures the medium to facilitate the compassionate concerns of the people of God. We have thus obscured the reason for our existence, which is to be instruments of the King—bringing all peoples, structures, and institutions under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, reflecting his priorities. We have forgotten that structures should serve the community and are dynamically alterable, and should not merely exist to be maintained by the community as rigid, obsolete entities. We further believe that, according to the New Testament pattern, submission of the structures to the community enhanced the evangelistic concerns. We repent of our self pre-occupation and failure to see the Hindu as God sees him—a person created in God's own image who has every right to know who his Creator and Saviour is. Because of this failure, we have not whole-heartedly welcomed new converts into our churches. Consequently, many sincere seekers have felt rejected and have thus returned to Hinduism. We repent of our arrogance which has kept us from following our Lord's example of incarnation. Because of this, we have failed to understand the Hindu and failed to develop an evangelical theology which is true to the biblical revelation, and which meets the needs of the Hindu. We are ashamed to admit that Christ has attracted so many Hindus, and yet most have not come to love him and serve him as their Lord. The statement attributed to the late Dr. Ambedkar, as reported by Bishop Picket, is a standing rebuke to us. Reportedly, he said, "When I read the gospels I find there an antidote for the poison Hinduism has injected into our souls. But when I look at the Christians I know, I find they are taken up with seeking their own self-interest and have no concern for their own people." Unfortunately, we also are aware that the present planning and deploying of resources by our churches reflect the imbalance which we find in the secular world. In the Indian sub-continent most of the resources of manpower and finance are spent on the elite of the church population living in urban areas. However, 80% of India's population consists of rural people. Because of this imbalance, we have failed to realise that most church growth has taken place in rural areas in people movements to Christ. We, therefore, call upon the churches interested in reaching world-wide to reorganise radically the use of their resources so as to serve the basically rural community. We call upon church leaders to be bold in their decisions regarding institutions and training of pastors and evangelists, so that the rural areas get the priority they rightly deserve. We, the participants in the COWE Mini-Consultation on "Christian Ministry to Hindus," sincerely repent that we have failed to be a blessing to the Hindus among whom God has placed us. We desire that God should renew his church so that it reflects the love and concern of our Lord for the Hindus. We rejoice in the activity of God in recent days, brought to light through conferences like COWE, that has led to a growing awareness of our responsibility for evangelization of the peoples of the earth and which calls us to a world-wide prayer commitment for world evangelization. As its first and most important step, we call upon the church world-wide, and especially the church in India, to mobilise intensive and believing prayer for the reaching of the 565.5 million Hindus in this generation. We strongly believe that God is calling his people to active involvement in evangelizing Hindus in every part of the world. 1. Historical Sketch and Contemporary Situation a. The Hindu Population The Aryans from Central Asia entered India in the 3rd century B.C. and settled on the banks of the river Indus. Their search for God resulted in the writing of the Vedas. Based on the Vedic scriptures was born the Aryan religion, which evolved into Hinduism. It absorbed everything, covering tribals and Dravidians. Hinduism dominated and built a strong sense of community in the Indian society, stratifying it into different castes. Wherever the Indian was taken, either to serve in plantations or in the British army, Hinduism followed, spreading far and wide. Generally speaking, a Hindu is born, not made. Except for recent trends of conversion to Hinduism, by and large the growth of Hinduism has been biological. The world population is said to be 4.3 billion, of which Hindus make up over 565 million or 13 per cent of the total population. Of that number, 527 million live in India and 38 million have moved to countries such as the Middle East, United Kingdom, the United States, South Africa, East Africa, Malaysia, Fiji, Singapore, and Sri Lanka. In India, 83 per cent of the total population is Hindu (527 million), whereas the Christian population in India is only 2.9 per cent (19 million).
b. The Hindu Religion There is no one definition which explains Hinduism in its entirety. In fact, it is a conglomeration of ideas, beliefs, convictions, and practices varying from people to people and from region to region. For example, Aryan Hinduism of North India is radically different at many points from Dravidian Hinduism of South India. However, Hinduism can be understood in the following ways:
- Advaita—non-dualism They teach from the ancient Vedas that there is a spark of divinity in man, and hence to call a man a sinner is blasphemous; there is, then, no need for a saviour.
- Gnanamarga (way of knowledge)
In conclusion, modern trends in Hinduism find expression in the Harijan Movement*, initiated and propagated by Mahatma Gandhi, in the missionary movement designed by Vivekananda, in a secular socialist ideology advocated by Jawaharlal Nehru, and in the militant communal sectarian groups such as Rashtriya Swayam Sevak (RSS).
The post-independence Indian society has developed into a secular democracy. The agnostic leadership emphasised industrialisation, resulting in rapid secularisation, modernisation and westernisation. The urban population developed popular nominal Hinduism which leaves it open to new influences. The rural Hindu, oppressed by poverty and corruption, seeks a liberating gospel. The unrest caused by several philosophies and a weak political structure, has softened the Hindus within India for the gospel, even though the above varieties of Hinduism continue to prevail. Overseas Hindus are in a very unsettled, fluid state. In some countries of the world they are undergoing a period of great strain and change, which may influence their receptivity to the gospel. 2. Biblical Framework for Hindu Evangelization a. Preamble Jesus Christ, the Son of God, became flesh within an Asian context. During the days of his flesh, he lived within a Hebraic cultural framework within this Asian context. He was poor. He walked among the villages and wept over the cities. He accepted social rejects and understood the fluctuating fortunes of leadership within a tangible human society. The Hindu can understand him. Before such an understanding can be effected, however, Jesus Christ must be made known to the Hindu. In this effort to communicate Jesus Christ to the Hindu, the Indian Christian faces the tension between being faithful to the content of the Bible, and relating this content to the theological, philosophical, and religious context of the Hindu. The resolution of this problem does not lie in interfering with the content of biblical truth, but in the proper use of the crucible of Hindu categories and needs in the process of communicating that truth. This is not the first time for such an effort to be attempted because, as early as the 19th century A.D., many Christian congregations existed in South India within a culturally Hindu environment. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is relevant and relates to all human cultures. He can be made known to a Hindu in a traditionally Hindu culture in India, likewise to Hindus living outside of India. b. Theological Perspective The gospel is never proclaimed within a vacuum. India provides a particular context which influences the kind of communication we should pursue. Thus we need to examine the Indian context in the light of the scriptures, and see which aspects warrant our careful consideration in Christian communication. The following are some crucial factors which will influence Hindu evangelism:
c. Theological Blocks Four particular theological barriers to effective communication with Hindus should be highlighted:
d. Theological Bridges Introduction: We must recognise that Hinduism revolves around a different centre than does Christianity, asking fundamentally different questions and supplying different answers. The use of any theological bridge, therefore, is fraught with difficulty, particularly if we attempt to use a specific term or concept to demonstrate that Christ is the fulfilment or crown of Hinduism. No concept of Hinduism can be accepted into Christianity without change. By way of illustration, the following bridges can be grouped into two categories: Points of Contact: Those concepts which require radical change of content:
Points of Caution and Clarification: Concepts which require a radical conceptual redefinition:
3. Hindrances to Evangelization of Hindus a. Socio-Cultural Issues Western culture has been injected into Indian culture as an acceptable form of Christianity; thus, it appears to non-Christians, this alienates them to a large extent. The following are some of the issues that have alienated Hindus and proved a hindrance to evangelism:
b. Economic Issues
c. Methodological Issues
Christian leaders with this type of spiritual qualification are a powerful means of communication. 4. Case Studies of God's Action in Christian Ministry to Hindus a. Family head responds through unusual circumstances The principle of "in contact family-to-family witnessing" works effectively within high-caste Hindu communities. In Salem District, Tamil Nadu, the Udaiyar Community became responsive to the gospel through a series of unusual happenings. A widespread religious movement was accepted by many in the community, and was led by a man who claimed to be god himself. His teachings and life seemed so attractive that many followed him and surrendered much of their wealth to him. Then one day "the god" died. The scandal resulted in a government investigation and the group disbanded. When a Christian missionary contacted the head of a family, many months after this, he responded to the gospel, because he realised that the irrefutable teachings of "the god who had died," who was the leader of the group, really came from the New Testament. The imposter had used the New Testament without acknowledging it. The new believer remained in the main stream of his family and community. As a result, many of his family members have believed and have been baptised. The nurture of their believers has been organised in terms of creating a believing community of their own, called "Jesus' family," wherein the alien structures of denominations have not been imposed. Now the Holy Spirit is building a bridge between the Udaiyar and the Lingayath with whom they live in continued community, and as many as 100 monthly baptisms are common happenings. b. Miraculous healing convinces many A Hindu lady, Thirupathamma, was hospitalised with a serious heart problem, a few months before her delivery. The doctors expected complications during labour, and even feared she might die. A Christian doctor visited her daily, prayed for her, and explained the gospel. As she opened her heart to the gospel, she had a vision of Jesus giving her a baby girl and assuring her of a safe delivery. Not only did she have a safe delivery and a healthy baby girl, but her faith increased so that she stopped taking medicines, trusting the Lord to heal her of her cardiac problem. A checkup a few months later showed her to be completely healed. Thirupathamma's husband, upon seeing his wife healed, and listening to the gospel, accepted the Lord a few months later; and both husband and wife were baptised on the same day. Through Thirupathamma's life and witness, all her children and their partners became Christians. Through her faith, prayer life, and consistent witness, she is influencing the whole village for Christ. c. The Church's social concern softens the community A certain church in Kuala Lumpur helped a man who had accepted the Lord to build a small house in a squatter area. This man, when approached, was willing to open his home for Christian work. The evangelism group of the church then invited children for Sunday School in his home. The response was poor. One day a family with three retarded and undernourished children was brought to their attention. The father had left the family. The mother worked, doing menial jobs. The family was treated like outcasts in that community. The evangelism group became involved in taking care of the children, cleaning the home, providing food, clothing, and medicines. This touched the community. The non-Christians saw the concern of the Christians. Their attitude changed, with the result that the Sunday School attendance increased. When the Christians invited the parents for a fellowship tea, they had the opportunity to communicate the gospel to them. Sewing classes for the women have been started to help the people, and with the hope that eventually they will be saved, and finally win their whole families to the Lord. d. Repeated exposure to the Gospel bears fruit Dehilla was born in Kenya, son of a Brahmin. The family moved to England after I I years. Being devout Hindus, they followed all the rituals customary to practising Brahmins. Dehilla first became interested in Jesus Christ through a tract he picked up at a fair. The words, "Father forgive them, for they know not what they do," printed under a picture of Christ on the cross, impressed him. But he felt that this was the God of the white man and so seemed unfair. "Why should ugly people have such a kind God?" he thought. Sunday School was Dehilla's second contact. But his father took him out of it the moment he realised his son was learning about Jesus Christ, and not about English grammar. The next contact was an Indian Christian girl who took him to a Bible study in the home of a missionary. He was amazed to find so many Asian Christians at this Bible study. John 3:3 and I John 1:9 convinced him of his need for a Saviour, and he decided to follow Christ. Hungrily he studied the Bible, and Christ began sorting out his wrong attitudes. He ceased to worship the family idols and stopped his visits to the temple. His parents were both hurt and annoyed. Going to a Christian meeting has become very difficult, and Dehilla studies his Bible in secret. But the Word of God gives him comfort, and he continues to pray for his parents and other Asian people who do not know the Lord. e. Christian witness and worship crosses social divisions A village in Dharmapuri district in Tamil Nadu has a population of about 4,500 people. This village is made up of seven different groups, including Udaiyars, Gownders, Kasu, Chettiars, and several low-caste groups. An indigenous missionary movement has been active in this village for the last 10 years, and many people are coming to the Lord Jesus Christ. They have built a church on the outskirts of the village where converts from all seven groups are worshipping together. This new spiritual community is gradually transcending the existing traditional structured communal system in the village. A new church building holding 1,000 people is under construction. More people are led to the Lord in this village by the converts than by the missionaries. f. A period of teaching and discussion precedes reaping in high-caste community The first contact with a small Reddy (high-caste) community living in northern Andhra Pradesh was made three years ago. Regular teaching began through scripture memorisation and songs. Various issues such as family ties, caste, the objections of older members of the community, and marriage prospects for their children, were thoroughly discussed at family and community levels. In December 1979, 16 people were baptised as family units. The first to respond were young couples, followed later by older members; and, a few months after, by the oldest man, who was very much revered in the community. g. Initial contact through students The first contact with a rural Neethakani people in Andhra Pradesh was made through boys from that group, studying in a school in a nearby town and living in government-run hostels. When the boys returned home during the holidays, they shared their faith with their parents. As a result, the people of that community invited missionaries to come and speak about Christ. Discussions, for example, about the power of the Creator God (and a practical example of such a power encounter) bore fruit; and 21 people from that group, mostly as families, were baptised in one village in December 1979. 5. Strategic Planning For Evangelization of Hindus a. Preamble and Principle In the context of the Indian society, which is deeply divided and fragmented, the unity of God's people will proclaim God's power to all men. Our strategies for evangelism must therefore contribute to God's purposes for his people—the visible presence of the Body of Christ throughout the world. There is strong biblical support for viewing all peoples as living in unique social contexts and understanding the plan of God as the establishment, in those contexts, of his church, from among all caste, class, economic, and social groups. Such a united visible presence of the Body of Christ is a major goal of evangelization. Consequently, our evangelistic strategy must view people in specific societal groups, defined within geographical units, not by social or cultural factors. It is helpful to view India as composed of many hundreds of thousands of such communities in the villages (nagars, purams, varams, giris, etc.). God's purpose is that the church planted in each community be a true demonstration of the power of the gospel to break down all human barriers. We are committed to "the whole gospel to the whole man." The gospel must reach each individual and touch every dimension of community, social, economic, religious, and political life. Our commitment to evangelism must seek to reach people in community. We must, therefore, be sensitive to the complexity of communal acceptance. Two problems present particular difficulties. In our enthusiasm for individual conversion we may erect barriers to acceptance among the majority. If, as frequently occurs, the first converts are those who are socially isolated for one reason or another from the community, premature reaping may create serious barriers to the establishment of the Body of Christ in that area. We must exercise patience as we sow the seed, create a hunger, and work for the conversion of the opinion leaders in the community. The acceptance of Christ by a community lies in the life of the converts. The diffusion of the gospel throughout a community inevitably takes time. The initial enthusiasm of the converts may erode. As nominalism grows within the church, the resultant loss of vitality will eat away at the credibility of Christ's Body, the church. A continually revived church is an essential—if not the supreme need—in our strategy, if the Body of Christ, living as a vital testimony to the power of Christ, is to be planted in every area in each town and city throughout India and the Indian diaspora. The church, therefore, is both our primary goal, our strategy, and our resource in evangelization. b. Rural Evangelism Eighty per cent of India's people live in rural areas. There are about 600,000 villages. There has been great neglect of rural evangelism. Rural Hindus tend to be more religious than the materialistic-minded city dwellers and may be more receptive to the gospel. Evangelists must be trained for rural areas in their own vernacular and should adopt a suitable life-style. The evangelist working among rural Hindus must have a call and commitment to this work and must depend on the Holy Spirit to guide him to the most appropriate strategy.
c. Urban Evangelism In our attempt to communicate the gospel to the city dwellers, it has been ascertained that the following categories of Hindus have an open response to Christ:
With regard to the methods of communication, the following have been found fruitful:
Regarding strategy, a systematic follow-up programme must be designed for each of the above methods, and especially for public crusades. Hundreds of Hindus respond to the altar call, but few are baptised. Hence the call for a systematic, follow-up programme. d. Ministry to Women
e. Student Evangelism There are great opportunities among university, as well as high school, students. The Christian church should take advantage of this opening by effective reach out.
f. Diaspora The main concern of the recently established Fellowship of South Asian Christians (organised at the Overseas Indians Congress on Evangelism, June 9-15, 1980) is the evangelization of South Asians living abroad. This should become a dynamic force for evangelism of Asians, many of whom are Hindus, scattered in countries other than their homeland. g. Social Concern The Bible teaches the Christian's responsibility to meet the need of the total man. Historically, the Christian church has shown great social concern towards the poor and oppressed masses among Hindus. Today some political leaders increasingly charge that Christian social action uses the poverty of the people as a means of exploitation to gain converts. Evangelical relief organisations nevertheless should not hesitate, because of fear of reaction, to present the claims of Christ when they meet human physical need. Strategy for social concern:
6. Resources and Tools for the Task a. The Middle-Class Church India's population of over 600 million divides itself approximately into 10 million wealthy, 90 million middle class, and 500 million below poverty level. Within the last group are 250 million who are hopeless and separated from any contact with any level above the poverty level. Among these 500 million, Jesus Christ is a "natural." The church is interwoven in all these layers of society. But the 90-million layer is articulate and in contact with the poor in a broadside contact. They also cut right across all of India's divisions—caste, language, region, etc. The church within this section will be most responsive to the call of mission because they are open to change and are change agents themselves. Small groups brought together for action, transcending India's divisions, produce the quality of integrity without which no authentic communication can take place. Therefore, small groups of born-again Christians among this middle class can be formed with three main purposes:
They must then:
Thus the church, without dividing the Body of Jesus Christ, will utilise creatively the sociological diversities within one Indian Christian community (the believing human community) to communicate with the diversities of the non-church human communities around her—without further accentuating the diabolical diversity already existing within it. b. Mass Media
c. Weddings, funerals, and festivals Many Hindus attend Christian weddings and funeral services. These services may be used as opportunities to teach Hindus the biblical doctrines of creation, man, life, life beyond death, etc. Christian festivals, such as Christmas, Easter, and others should be celebrated in a way that clearly spells out the meaning of the festivals—thus opening the possibility of the presentation of the gospel to Hindu spectators, many of whom would enthusiastically participate. d. Dialogue The use of dialogue in reaching people has to be carefully considered. This method paves the way for a sharing of experiences, and provides an opportunity for frank interchange in conversation. It provides an atmosphere in which both parties can understand each other, and creates a mutual bond of friendship and appreciation. However, it must not end there. It must lead to proclaiming Christ as Lord. This method finds a ready reception among the intelligentsia and in western countries where there is a strong Hindu influence. The purpose of dialogue should be carefully and constantly borne in mind. It should not simply end in dialogue. e. Seminars It is natural that we need to know the background of the people among whom God has placed us, and to whom God has commanded us to be his witnesses. It is a matter of common experience that most Christians do not have adequate knowledge of the Hindu religion, thus hindering effective communication. It is, therefore, essential that seminars giving instruction regarding the Hindu religion and culture should be held in order to inform and equip Christians for effective evangelism. f. Diaspora The main concern of the recently established Fellowship of South Asian Christians (organised at the Overseas Indians Congress on Evangelism, June 9-15, 1980) is the evangelization of South Asians living abroad. This should become a dynamic force for evangelism of Asians, many of whom are Hindus, scattered in countries other than their homeland. a. Co-operation between Church and Para-Church Organisations There is urgent need for close co-operation between the churches and the para-church organisations involved in the evangelization of Hindus.
b. Mobilisation of the Church World-wide for Prayer for Hindu People We cannot overemphasise the importance of individual and corporate prayer in reaching Hindus. The church is tempted to depend on strategies and methods alone. This is a real danger. Without prayer, all else will fail. Therefore, we must mobilise the church world-wide to "stand in the gap" (Ezekiel 22:30; Isa. 59:16; 11 Sam. 12:23) through intensive, believing, and corporate prayer for Hindu peoples. We believe that only within the context of such prayer should we develop and carry out any other evangelistic strategies. We recommend that this prayer thrust be developed community-to-community for a specific Hindu people-group in the following ways:
a. The Hindu Quest The Hindu quest for peace (shanti) and bliss is so overwhelming that he is willing to exert extreme effort in a relentless search to find this. Christ, as the author and giver of peace, with the promise of heavenly bliss, provides ample incentive for the Hindu to look into the Christian gospel of peace with God. b. Love Dynamic Principles of love, to become meaningful, must be personalised within a given context. The incarnation is the model for this (John 3:16). The communicator to the Hindu must first feel and know and respond to this intense love of God for the Hindu. The love of God for the Hindu provides the reason for the relentless search to understand the Hindu and identify with him. The communicator's love for Jesus Christ is the rationale for continued obedience to love, even when it seems unreasonable to do so. You cannot question the intentions behind the demands of Calvary love (John 15:14). The reaching of the Hindu is one of the greatest challenges to the people of God in this generation. To this end we call for:
We have waited on the Lord and have used the best insights among us to produce the preceding statements. They are not in any way exhaustive nor adequate, but they do seek to alert the earnest Christian, seeking to reach unreached Hindu people groups, concerning some points of contact and concern. Having said that, we know that reaching any "people group" for Christ cannot be merely academic; and we cannot, and must not, place our total confidence in correct words and statements, but upon the living Lord who seeks all Hindus. We must be aware that the Holy Spirit who has gone before us, is alongside us and guides us, and alone can reveal Jesus Christ (I Cor. 12:3). Without him we cannot succeed (John 15:5). Report Committee
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