The Ethical Purpose: Indian Ecumenists and Nationalism in the Early Twentieth Century

John Thomas

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Chapter 4 The Ethical Purpose: Indian Ecumenists and Nationalism in the Early Twentieth Century

In: Nationalism and Internationalism in the Young Ecumenical Movement, 1895-1920s

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John Thomas

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Pages:: 85–113

DOI:: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004707597_005

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Abstract

The early 20th century was a period when the nationalist movement spread rapidly and widely across the Indian sub-continent. There was an increased awareness of the implications of British rule, a growing restlessness with the coercive power of the state and the apathy of the local elite, and an eagerness to delineate the objectives and course of nationalist struggle. This was also the time when nationalism tended to increasingly and explicitly pander to consolidated Hinduism, placing Indian Christians and other minority religious groups in an ambiguous position.

The dilemma that the Indian Christians faced was as follows: the prevailing nationalist sentiment decried the European and American missionaries as purveyors of colonial domination, and tended to portray Christianity as a ‘foreign’ religion that was opposed to ‘national’ interest, wherein onus was increasingly put on the Indian Christians to prove their nationalist credentials. Meanwhile, Indian Christians, especially the educated ones, were increasingly becoming weary of the colonial attitude and racial politics prevalent in missionary work and church administration. They were keen to assert their independence and identify with the struggles of their countrymen, but without severing the close association they already had with churches and missionary societies across the world.

In resolving this dilemma, the Indian Ecumenists articulated a sense of being and becoming ‘Indian’ that was in consonance with the humanist and social reformist tradition of 19th Century India as well as the intellectual departures set in motion by Gandhi, Tagore and others at the time. It was one that conceived India as an organic ‘civilizational entity’ rather than a ‘nation’—‘that aspect which a population assumes when organised for a mechanical purpose’ (Tagore, 1917); and as having a distinct identity of her own, which is essentially plural, as well as remaining open to people, cultures and ideas from other parts of the world. It was also one that prioritized the moral imperative to work towards ‘elevating’ people and communities from their dehumanised existence and restoring them with dignity and self-respect just as Christ did.

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Nationalism and Internationalism in the Young Ecumenical Movement, 1895-1920s

Series: Theology and Mission in World Christianity, Volume: 34

E-Book ISBN:: 9789004707597

Publisher:: Brill

Print Publication Date:: 01 Mar 2025

Subjects
- Theology and World Christianity
  - General

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Chapter 4 The Ethical Purpose: Indian Ecumenists and Nationalism in the Early Twentieth Century

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Nationalism and Internationalism in the Young Ecumenical Movement, 1895-1920s

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