Introduction
In the 19th century, ‘Christianity became
the religion of Europe; many countries received Christianity from them. The 19th
and the first half of 20th century may be called the centuries of
white dominance both in religion, politics and commerce. Therefore, an accurate
understanding of European countries, their socio-economic, political and
theological development is vital to understand development of mission at global
level.’[1] Many historians have found
it convenient to treat the 19th century as begun in 1789 with the
outbreak of French revolution, and lasted till 1914, the beginning of the First
World War. This period was pre-eminently European century in world history; it
is the period in which Europe was able to impose its will and ideas on the
whole of inhabited world.[2] Because of a combination
of geographic expansion, inner vitality and the effect upon humankind as a
whole, this period constituted the greatest century which Christianity had thus
far known.[3]
This paper will
focus on the impact of Christianity on empire building in Europe during the 19th
century, and how this century had ushered into global mission movements and
developments.
Recapitulation
of relationship between the Church and the State in Europe
Since the time
of Constantine, there was a symbiotic relationship between Church and the
State, manifested during the middle ages in the interdependence between the
Pope and the ruler of Holy Roman Empire. Pope and emperor continued to operate
of the Christian faith, within the framework of Christendom. The reformation
dealt a severe blow to this symbiosis, since the Western Church was no longer
one. Meanwhile, the Holy Roman Empire had also begun to disintegrate into
several nation-states. The idea of Christendom remained intact, however, in
each European country the Church was established as State Church- Anglican in
England, Presbyterian in Scotland, Reformed in the Netherlands, Lutheran in
Scandinavia and some of the German territories, Roman Catholic in most of
Southern Europe, etc. It was difficult to differentiate between political,
cultural, and religious elements and activities since they merged into one.[4] Therefore, it is possible
to say that Christianization and empire building went hand in hand.
Christianity
and empire building
Most of the
European countries in the 19th century belong to Christianity in
religion. The development of various nation states has something to do with
Christianity in one way or another. Christianity played a crucial role in
building the empire, either in pleasant or antagonistic means. Christianity, in
European countries, in the 18th and 19th century faced a
number of challenges.
The
Enlightenment, rationalism, evolutionism and romanticism; literary, historical
and Biblical criticism; evangelicalism and liberalism; French revolution and
Napoleonic wars; subordination of Papal power to the State and its restoration;
the formation of Holy Alliance; revolutions in French, Germany and Italy in mid
19th century; unification of Italy and Germany; extreme Catholicism
and Protestantism by some rulers which were almost persecution for others; Development
and change in the countries’ socio-politics condition of Europe, and many other
evolutions of cultures and nations affected Christianity in Europe to a large
extent.
In spite of these
serious obstacles, Christianity had a more extensive and profound influence on
humankind than before. Roman Catholic Church put fresh efforts into propagation
of faith, and new orders, congregations and societies sprang up to share
enterprises. It produced a large number of professional missionaries. Christian
awakening also became more pronounced in Protestantism. Great revivals
occurred, which spread to many countries. New organizations and denominations
multiplied including a large number of societies for the propagation of
Christianity.[5]
Christianity
moulded European civilization to a large extent during this period. It
addressed itself to a basic remarking of society, paving the way for Christian
ideology in many of the European countries. Colonial expansion extended more
widely over many areas. Christianity was partly responsible for the expansion
of European peoples to the world. At times, Christian missionaries were the
pioneers of White Man’s penetration in different parts of the world.[6]
The
Cross and the Flag
The rapid
expansion of European power coincided with the missionary advance. Three major
groups were involved in the colonial system- the diplomat, the merchant and the
missionary. They represent three forms of imperialism- political, economic and
cultural. Geographically, the cross and the flag followed each other in the
colonization of India, Africa, East Indies, South-East Asia, Oceania and Latin
America. In some parts, it was the missionaries, not the colonialist who explored
the vast unknown areas. And in the areas already under some form of colonial
rule, the missionaries were often checked to extend their endeavors beyond the
areas regarded as safe by the colonial administrators. The missionaries
sometimes even invited the European powers to intervene in the situation of
these lands.[7]
One of the
outstanding phenomena of the 19th century was the penetration of
European to the rest of the world. This penetration was primarily economic. The
European, it seems, were ransacking the unexplored lands. Along with the
economic motive came the political one and the Christians nations were bringing
more and more lands under their administration. This century experienced the
spread of Christian faith more rapidly by the Protestants than Roman Catholics.
The chief empire builder of the 19th century, Great Britain,
accorded protection to their missionaries.[8] This is not same in all
areas, but it clearly reflects the coming together of Cross and Flag.
New
Imperialism - Empire building as White Man’s burden
By the 19th
century, most major world powers began a new phase of empire building. This time
the expansion was into Africa, the Middle East, China, Japan and other Asian
nations. The Western countries achieved humanity highest achievement. They felt
a duty to share its enlightenment with the backward societies of the world.
Much of the Western world felt white man’s burden, which was that people of
European background had a special obligation to share the benefits of their
advanced civilization around the world to the people who were often seen as
simple, incapable of ruling themselves effectively and who lived in societies
characterized by superstition and immorality.[9] Colonization and
Christianization becomes a means to lighten up these people.
The Western
countries felt that they had a special calling from God to be a light unto the
world; that their mission was to spread the good news of holy trinity -
Christianity, Democracy and Capitalism - to the needy world. The white man’s
burden was used by Western societies throughout the period of new imperialism
to justify the taking of native lands and the destruction of indigenous
cultures.[10]
This is because they regard themselves as instruments to spread their civilization.
These ideas fed
into the increased missionary activities of the 19th and 20th
century. Many of the early modern missionaries seem to have understood
Christianity as being much the same thing as Western society. As a result, as
they spread Christianity, they sought to westernize native cultures as well.[11] However, such attitudes
lead to a rejection of westernized Christianity by many important native Church
leaders. But their source of knowledge on Christianity is no doubt the
Europeans.
Mission
movements
The 19th
century was a century of Western colonialism, missions had close tie with it.
Missionary movement aided colonial and imperialist schemes. The colonial
expansion contributed to missionary vision. The spiritual awakenings of the
last decade of the 18th century gave Christians the motive to share
the Gospel, and gave birth to many missionary societies.[12]
Catholics had
been involved in spreading the Gospel to foreign lands for centuries.
Protestant involvement in missionary efforts had been limited. But in the late
18th and early 19th centuries, Protestant denominations
began to embrace a new missionary vision largely through the efforts of
Pietists, Moravians and Methodists. The new colonialism, along with ideas about
spreading the many superior features of Western civilization, contributed to
this vision. Revivalism, with its stress on converting the lost, also played a
part.[13]
The 19th
century mission effort was increased by the founding of mission societies in
most European countries. The purpose of these societies was to promote the
Gospel among the heathen. Many denominations also formed their own missionary
boards to support evangelistic work in foreign lands. Much of the new emphasis
on missions may be traced to the work of a truly remarkable man named William
Carey (1761-1834). His influence was so great that he is called ‘the Father of
modern missions.’[14] His work, ‘An enquiry into the obligation of
Christians to use means for conversion of the heathens’ published in 1792 ignited
the Protestant missionary activities.
Missionary
societies and Bible societies
The founding of
Baptist Missionary Society in 1792 can be said as the direct result of Carey’s
work. This inaugurated the era of mission societies. The BMS was followed in
England by the London Missionary Society (1795), The Church Missionary Society
(1799), The Religious Tract Society (1799), the Anglican Evangelical Church
Missionary Society (1799), The British and Foreign Bible Society (1804). In
continental Europe, the Netherlands Missionary Society was founded in 1796,
followed in Switzerland by Basel Mission (1815), Germany by the Berlin Society
(1824), the Rhenish Society (1828), the Gossner Society (1836), and the Leipzig
Society (1836). Denmark (1821), France (1822), Sweden (1835), and Norway (1842)
followed in due course.[15] These societies were
mostly interdenominational and regional.
These missionary
societies sent numerous missionaries to many nations. Their main task was to
evangelize and to found Churches. Other works such as Bible translation,
education, medicine, philanthropic works, carpentry and social reforms were a
preparations and aids to evangelism.[16]
Several new
developments came in the latter half of the 19th century. Faith
missions, nondenominational foreign missionary agencies appeared in 1865 with
the founding of China Inland Mission (Overseas Missionary Fellowship) by Hudson
Taylor, This directly or indirectly influenced the founding of over 40 new
mission boards.[17]
Ruth Tucker (1983:289) writes, ‘with the founding of such missions as the
Christian and Missionary Alliance (1887), the Evangelical Alliance Mission
(1890), the Central American Mission (1890), the Sudan Interior Mission (1893),
SIM International Mission (1893) and the Africa Inland Mission (1895),
independent faith missions became a significant feature of World evangelism.’[18]
Special mention
should be made of the Bible societies, without which the missions would have
been greatly handicapped. Through the years, the Bible societies have made an
enormous contribution to Christian mission around the world like the British
and Foreign Bible Society (1804), the National Bible Society of Scotland
(1809), the Netherlands Bible Society (1814), etc. They worked very closely
with Christian missions.[19]
Critique
on empire building and mission
As it was
highlighted above, empire building, colonization, Christianization and mission
movement goes simultaneously to a large extent. Political, economic, commercial
and religious motif compels European power for imperialism. In this regard, colonialism
and mission movement is inseparable to a significant degree, which is very much
visible in the 19th century European experiences in colonization and
mission process. This observable fact has negative impacts on Christianity till
today.
For the
indigenous people in colonial countries, how would they consider the religion
brought in by their colonizers who ruled over them? It can be said that they
are colonized in the name of religion. They are divided and ruled. While some
missionaries preached the gospel to them, some businessmen and company
officials extracted huge amount of the country’s wealth and bring it home to
their homeland in Europe. The country’s wealth was drained.
For the native nationalists,
the Europeans are enemy of the land, so also the religion they brought in. This
is the reason why many colonized countries considered Christianity as foreign
religion and therefore anti-nationalist. Christianity faced stern obstacles in
this way, of which to various measures squeeze Christian mission movement. Thus,
even after becoming a Christian, the erstwhile colonized countries created their
versions of the faith based on the ideas and practices of the indigenous cultures.
Inculturation and indigenization in mission are the outcome of this quandary.
Conclusion
K.S.
Latourette (1953:469) rightly called the 19th century as the great
century. It may also be called the European century politically and
commercially. Christianity had never before penetrated as large area as in the
19th century. The emissaries of the Cross were to be found in almost
all parts of the globe. It was not wholly colonial expansion that caused the
mission movements and vice versa, but we cannot deny mission and colonization had
to some extent yielded to each other. Thus, the empire building and mission
movements in the 19th century can be regarded as the impacts and the
outcome of Christianity in Europe.
[1] F.
Hrangkhuma, An Introduction to Church
History (Bangalore: Theological Book Trust, 1996), 333-334. Hereafter cited
as F. Hrangkhuma, An Introduction to
Church History.
[2] Stephen
Neil, A History of Christian Missions,
2nd Edition (Middlesex: Penguin Books, 1986), 207. Hereafter cited
as Stephen Neil, A History of Christian
Missions.
[3] Kenneth
Scott Latourette, A History of
Christianity (New York: Harper & Row, 1953), 1063.
[4] David
Bosch, Transforming Mission: Paradigm
Shifts in the Theology of Mission, Indian Edition (Bangalore: Centre for
Contemporary Christianity, 2006), 344.
[5] K.M.
George, Development of Christianity
through the Centuries- Tradition and Discoveries (Tiruvalla: Christava
Sahitya Samithi, 2005), 476-477. Hereafter cited as K.M. George, Development of Christianity through the
Centuries.
[6] K.M.
George, Development of Christianity
through the Centuries…477.
[7] J.
Herbert Kane, A Concise History of the
Christian World Mission, Revised Edition (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker
Book House, 1998), 93-94. Hereafter cited as J. Herbert Kane, A Concise History of the Christian World
Mission.
[8] K.M.
George, Development of Christianity
through the Centuries…478.
[9] R. Dean
Peterson, A Concise History of
Christianity, 3rd Edition (Belmont: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning,
2007), 284. Hereafter cited as R. Dean Peterson, A Concise History of Christianity.
[10] R. Dean
Peterson, A Concise History of
Christianity…284.
[11] R. Dean
Peterson, A Concise History of
Christianity…284.
[12] F.
Hrangkhuma, An Introduction to Church
History…351.
[13] R. Dean
Peterson, A Concise History of
Christianity…320.
[14] R. Dean
Peterson, A Concise History of
Christianity…320.
[15]
F. Hrangkhuma, An
Introduction to Church History…352. See also Stephen Neil, A History of Christian Missions…214.
[16]
F. Hrangkhuma, An
Introduction to Church History…353.
[17] F. Hrangkhuma, An Introduction to Church History…353.
[18] Ruth A. Tucker,
From Jerusalem to Iryan Jaya. A
Biographical History of Christian Missions (Grand Rapids: Academic Books,
1983), 289. Cited in F. Hrangkhuma, An
Introduction to Church History…353. See also J. Herbert Kane, A Concise History of the Christian World
Mission…94-95.
[19] J.
Herbert Kane, A Concise History of the
World Mission…94-95.
Comments