Effective Approach to Hindus

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INTRODUCTION

Effective witness to high caste Hindus has become a neglected priority among the

churches in Southern Asia. The classical missionary approach and traditional church planting

methods most often practiced among high castes have proven less than effective. Witnessing

efforts by early missionaries among this group of people in India yielded scanty results.

Subsequently, missionaries shifted their focus to more receptive lower castes and tribal groups

that resulted in the remarkable growth of the church. However, the effort to make inroads into

high caste Hindu communities continues. The gospel must advance within this more influential

group1 in order to maintain the momentum of Christian growth and consolidate its impact in

Southern Asia.

To ensure wider and lasting impact of the gospel in the region, high caste Hindus must

become a significant part of the body of Christ. Students will be able to identify hindrances to

evangelization of Hindus and understand the need to communicate the gospel effectively. The

course will build confidence in students for sharing the gospel to this important group. An

effective approach to witnessing will train students to appreciate and relate to the Hindu culture

with sensitivity. Students will learn to build bridges and contextualize the gospel presentation

that will result in establishing indigenous congregations capable of maintaining an ongoing

witness within their own communities.

The seminary methods of the past need major revision because the old models of

ministerial training have proven inadequate. Often Bible college graduates display a lack of

1The caste system offers privileges and better opportunities to the higher castes to advance in the society in

areas like economics, politics, religion, and culture. Consequently, the age-old caste system in India has rendered

higher castes to remain dominant over the low castes. Although in recent decades caste system has experienced a

tidal change, giving way for the lower castes to experience upward mobility in the society, high castes still wield

preponderance in economic and political powers.


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confidence when interacting with high caste Hindus. The traditional Western syllabi on church

planting and evangelism have inadequately prepared students to face the challenge of

communicating the gospel to educated and high caste Hindus.

The Problem

The shift of the Christian centre of gravity towards the south and east2

has brought

Christians in close contact with Hindus, thereby intensifying the need for an authentic expression

of the gospel among high caste Hindu communities. The traditional Hindu religion is deeply

rooted in the culture and lives of the Hindu people of Southern Asia. Therefore, Hindu

communities perceive Christianity as a foreign religion of white people. Even educated Hindus

find the gospel message as alien. The fact that Western missionaries, struggling with cultural and

language barriers, introduced Christianity to Southern Asia only compounded the problem.

Churches continue to employ the same traditional methods of evangelism. In spite of the

outstanding works of numerous missionaries and native Christians, meaningful communication

of the gospel message to high caste Hindus remains neglected. Despite these obstacles,

Christianity managed to establish its presence in India and Nepal as a minority. The challenge to

communicate the gospel effectively to high caste Hindus has become more critical. Asian church

history indicates a concern for developing contextual expressions of biblical life and faith rather

than traditional patterns of Christianity introduced from the West.

2There appears a steady decline and then more recently a remarkable growth in the percentage of Christians

in the Global South from the day of Pentecost to the present. Christians in the Global South represented at least

50% of all Christians from the beginnings of Christianity until the year 923. For over 1,000 years after that,

Christians in the Global North dominated Christian demographics. But in the twentieth century a dramatic

turnaround resulted in the majority of Christians (since 1981) once again living in the Global South. Todd M.

Johnson, and Kenneth R. Ross, eds.,Atlas of Global Christianity 1910-2010 (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University

Press, 2009), 50-53.


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Hindus make up over 948 million or 14 percent of the 6.9 billion people in the world.3

The majority of global Hindus (97.9 percent) live in South-Central Asia, which includes India

and Nepal.4

According to the 2001 census of India, over 827 million people (80.5 percent)

identify themselves as followers of the Hindu religion.5

Religion occupies an integral position in

Nepalese life and society. Until 1991, Nepal was the only constitutionally declared Hindu state in

the world; consequently, Hindus are in the majority in Nepal. The 2001 census of Nepal

identified 80.6 percent of the population as Hindu.6

The latest figures, obtained from the Atlas of

Global Christianity, indicate that India is comprised of 73.1 percent Hindus and Nepal of 69

percent Hindus.

7

Neglect of this huge block of Hindus within India has resulted in a nation with

only 2.3 percent Christians.8

However, more recent figures show a slight increase: Christians in

India at 4.8 percent and 3.1 percent in Nepal.9

Such a minimal impact among the predominantly-

Hindu region causes a major concern for the churchs mission.

The majority of the students are second and third generation Christians who have lost

connection with their Hindu relatives and communities. Even the first generation Christians

coming from high castes have adapted to the church culture and succumbed to a negative attitude

towards Hindus.

3Status of Global Mission, 2010, in Contexts of 20th and 21st Centuries, International Bulletin of

Missionary Research 34, no. 1 (January 2010): 36.

4Johnson and Ross eds.,Atlas of Global Christianity, 12.

5Religious Composition, Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs,

http://www.censusindia.gov.in/Census_And_You/religion.aspx (accessed April 3, 2010).

6Nepal in Figures 2008 Central Bureau of Statistics, http://www.cbs.gov.np/Nepal%20in%

20figure/Nepal%20in%20Figures%202008.pdf (accessed April 3, 2010).

7Johnson and Ross, eds.,Atlas of Global Christianity, 12.

8Religious Composition, Government of India, Ministry of Home Affairs,

http://www.censusindia.gov.in/Census_And_You/religion.aspx (accessed April 3, 2010).

9Johnson and Ross eds.,Atlas of Global Christianity, 114.


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0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Population Christians

SC/ST

Hindus

10%

90%

70%

30%

Caste Hindus

Scheduled

Castes/Tribes

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In recent years, lower castes and tribal communities readily responded to the gospel;

however, high caste Hindus have not responded in significant numbers. Almost 90 percent of

Christians in India today belong to the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, and 90 percent of

todays evangelistic missionary work focuses on the receptive tribal and scheduled castes that

comprise approximately 26 percent of Indias population.

10

Consequently, systematic

evangelistic ministry among the high caste Hindus, who form more than 70 percent of the Hindu

population, is minimal. Generally, Christians consider high caste Hindus resistant to the gospel

and, due to their limited response to the gospel, the church often neglects this huge block of

people. Atul Aghamkar observes,

While the Western missionaries by and large confined themselves to the ministry to the

poor and the marginalized, their Indian counterparts continued to do so even after theindependence of India. Granted that there are a few exceptions to this, one cannot deny

the reality that the major segment of Christian missions is focused on the Dalits and the

tribals.11

The gospel has yet to make a significant impact among high caste Hindus. Effective

communication of the gospel among them requires a change of attitude and approach. A

deliberate change in focus may create genuine interest among Hindu communities toward the

message of the gospel. Evangelism will take new strides, ensuring a wider response and,

ultimately, securing a lasting and reliable impact.

10Martin Alphonse, The Gospel for Hindus: A Study in Contextual Communication (Chennai: Mission

Educational Books, 2001), 14.

11Atul Aghamkar, Contemporary Mission Challenges in India, Dharma Deepika: A South Asian Journal

of Missiological Research 9, no. 2 (July-December 2005): 76.


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In the effort to communicate Jesus Christ to Hindus, Christians face the tension between

being faithful to the content of the Bible and relating this content to the religio-cultural context of

Hindu people. The resolution to this problem lies in the proper use of the Hindu categories and

culture in the process of communicating the truth. Bible school curricula should include a course

on effective approach to high caste Hindus while preparing students to understand the value of

contextual approach in ministry and equipping them to build bridges of communication.

The Purpose

Witnessing among high caste Hindus poses a great challenge. The traditional church

planting methodologies and individual evangelization strategies currently practiced among

Hindus prove ineffective among high caste Hindu people. The purpose of this project is to

develop a course for SABC students that will equip them to communicate the gospel effectively

to their Hindu neighbors.

Scripture provides several examples of communicating the gospel to people from

different backgrounds. Scriptural principles drawn from the ministry of the Early Church create

insights and guidelines for effective witnessing. This project intends to highlight the biblical

illustrations that support the need for a unique approach to witnessing to high caste Hindus.

A critical historical study of missionary work in Asia will help identify issues that affect

the witness of the church. Lessons drawn from history will alert the church and assist in avoiding

past mistakes. The church, with its traditions and Western cultural influence, has become a major

obstacle to effective witness. Further, the majority of Christians come from lower castes and do

not have acceptance among high caste Hindus. This project seeks to identify hindrances to the

communication of the gospel among high castes Hindus by evaluating traditional evangelism

approaches.


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Contextualizing the message becomes inevitable if the church desires to reach the high

caste Hindus. This project aims to discuss the crucial issue of contextualization of the gospel

message and presents a case for the need to change the traditional approach of evangelism to

high caste Hindus. Discussion will include an evaluation and implementation of important

practical issues necessary for a breakthrough in communicating the gospel to Hindus.

Culture plays a vital role in building relationship between peoples of diverse

backgrounds. A cultural conflict between Hindus and Christians has created a wide gulf that

needs bridging. Equipping students to genuinely practice Hindu culture would gain them

acceptance as they engage in relational evangelism. This will encourage students to contextualize

their lifestyles and motivate them to emulate the aspects and practices of Hindu culture that

demonstrate biblical values. Ultimately, this approach promotes an indigenous expression of

Christian faith in Asia.

Generally, high caste Hindus are deeply religious. They revere their scriptures as the

most ancient collections of spiritual wisdom and treasure of vast knowledge. Most often,

Christians brush aside anything that is Hindu, which leads to ignoring and sometimes even

denouncing Hindu scriptures while presenting the gospel message. This project will explore the

possibility of strategically using Hindu scriptures to build bridges into the Hindu religious

community that will ensure meaningful communication. Familiarizing students in using Hindu

scriptures to initiate conversation with high caste Hindus will result in effective evangelism and

greatly enhance the possibility of creating lasting relationships in sharing the gospel message.

Description of Proposed Project

Although the Church has worked in India for many centuries, results among high caste

Hindus are minimal. This calls for an urgent evaluation of evangelistic strategies in order to


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determine the reasons for the poor response. A brief historical survey of evangelistic efforts

among Hindus will reveal reasons for negative responses to traditional evangelism methods. A

robust evaluation of those methods will help the church avoid approaches and attitudes that

trigger negative response from Hindus.

Sporadic indigenous groups and movements emerged from the contextualized attempts of

native Christians exist in isolation from the mainstream church. This project will study such

movements and aim at bridging the widening chasm that threatens the Churchs witness in unity.

This project will also evaluate evangelism methods employed in the present-day church and

identify obstacles and weaknesses of prevalent strategies.

A study of the Hindu scriptures will reveal several portions that can assist Christians in

connecting the gospel message with Hindus. Although hermeneutics and the authority of Hindu

scriptures remain outside the scope of this project, the use of Hindu scriptures as a point of

contact and common ground becomes the aim.

The research will focus on high caste Hindus; ministry among the lower castes will not

be included. While focusing on raising an effective Christian witness among high caste Hindus,

the project will deal with building bridges of communication and removing barriers created by

early missionary efforts.

Conclusion

Although the gospel has flourished amongDalits and tribal populations, Christianity has

not significantly influenced the high caste Hindu communities in Southern Asiaeven after

centuries of efforts by foreign and indigenous missions. High caste Hindus have not responded

significantly to the gospel message. Traditional methods of sharing the gospel have not appealed


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to this group. The church with its westernized expression and approach has become alien to the

cultural context of the high caste Hindus.

Developing a new evangelism approach to high caste Hindus will open an opportunity to

strategically penetrate Hindu society in Southern Asia. In order to prepare students to reach high

caste Hindu people with the gospel of Jesus Christ, this project will develop a course entitled,

Effective Christian Witness to High Caste Hindus, for the students of SABC. The result of this

course will be evident in the emergence of self-witnessing groups of high caste Hindu followers

of Jesus Christ who will be able to give impetus to the growth of the church among their

communities

Documents

Effective Approach to Hindus