How could the missionaries in India win so many souls?
Why did Hindus choose Christianity over the Hindu gods? What made people like Pandita Ramabai, Krishna Mohan Banerjee convert to Christianity? When in fact both of them belonged from the upper castes.
The most astounding thing about the Christian missionaries were they chose to travel to the most backward, poverty stricken, unsafe places on earth in order to simply share the Gospel.
This is completely opposite to how all the gurus travelled with their failed Hindu message to the most prosperous, comfortable, safest, advanced part of the world. They could have gone to Africa first, couldn’t they?
When the missionaries came to India, they preached “EVERYONE is created IN THE image of God. BOTH male and female he created them.”
Unlike the Hindu message which says the lower castes must serve the upper castes and downgrades women’s status (Manusmriti 1.87-91, Gita 9.32, Rig Veda 8.33.17)
Hinduism and Christianity are fundamentally opposite. One believes in Karma and not grace, where even the Hindu gods had to pay for their sins. Pause and think for a moment, even the so called holy gods had to suffer.
What can be a more hopeless message than this??
On the other hand, you have Jesus Christ, who was God, came down as a human in this fallen world, but did not commit a sin as we do. He didn’t have a royal birth, or have rich parents as a king and queen. But rather He was born in a manger. He didn’t ride horses, a sign of royalty in the ancient world, but rather rode on a donkey, a sign of utmost meekness and lowly.
He touched the lepers and the sick. He even prayed for those who were nailing him.
Who can better demonstrate God’s unfailing love?
This unfathomable and unparalleled love, the kindness and the service that came from the missionaries is what made Indians choose Christ over Hindu gods.
The missionaries gave voice to the lower castes and freedom to the women of India.
The first ever an Indian female to receive a medical degree and then becoming a doctor was Anandibai Joshi, which all happened under the guidance of missionaries. She was also related to Pandita Ramabai whose contribution was massive in building modern India.
Indian got its first female lawyer, first female teacher, first female doctor all because of the Christian missionaries. Not just that, the missionaries also helped to ban sati practice, devadasi system, breast tax for lower caste women, female infanticide.
For it is written by their fruits…