Abstract/Sommario: From the first millennium of the Christian era in India, only mere fragments of Christian literature have survived, held at places such as the Orthodox Seminary in Kottayam, Kerala. Cyril Bruce Firth lists the few items that are available, mentioning other authors who have summarized the material. The situation does not change up through the second half of the second millennium; Firth again remains our source and guide. The situation begins to change with the arrival of Francis Xavier ...; [Leggi tutto...]
From the first millennium of the Christian era in India, only mere fragments of Christian literature have survived, held at places such as the Orthodox Seminary in Kottayam, Kerala. Cyril Bruce Firth lists the few items that are available, mentioning other authors who have summarized the material. The situation does not change up through the second half of the second millennium; Firth again remains our source and guide. The situation begins to change with the arrival of Francis Xavier to the Indian subcontinent in 1542. Some information from the following century and half has survived relating to Roman Catholic mission activities. By the time, Protestant missionaries Barholomew Ziegenbalg and Heinrich Plutschau entered India in 1706, the art of pining made it possible for writings to be preserved and widely read. Ziegenbalg translated the New Testament and printed it with a short span of two decades at the beginning of the eighteenth century. When William Carey and his team developed an educational enterprise at Serampore, West Bengal, they were able to assemble a surprisingly large number of printed books. These volumes are still available at the Carey Library and Research Centre at Serampore College (founded in 1818). By the middle of the nineteenth century indigenous writers were appearing, such as Lal Behari Day, Keshub Chandra Sen, K. M. Banjerjee. But still most written document were written by Western missionaries and colonial masters. The materials were exploratory, apologetic, and evangelistic in nature. Late in the twentieth century appeared Indigenous theology. The Christian Institute for the Study of Religion and Society (CISRS) set up in 1957, and began to develop the various aspects of theology for the mission and began publishing books .