Why the Gospel sputtered in India

By Abigail Sanchez Aguilar –

The Gospel did NOT arrive in India via European Colonialism. It arrived earlier in India than it did in the North of Europe. Its first beachhead was established by the Apostle Thomas in 52 AD on the Malabar Coast of Kerala.

So why did it not become a more dominant fixture? By contrast, Islam which got its start 700 years later, grew and possessed large populations and swaths of land. Today, Muslims represent 14.2% while Christians are a mere 2.3%.

Why did the Gospel sputter in the Great Subcontinent, the most populous nation in the world with 1.45B?

By historical tradition, Thomas stopped doubting. He traveled farther than any other apostle to preach the Gospel. After establishing 7-and-a-half churches, he crossed Southern India and preached in modern day Chennai, where he was martyred in 72 AD.

After a meteoric start, evangelization sputtered, being limited mostly to traders. The church dropped the ball, sending no more missionaries.

Hinduism was already deeply entrenched in Southern India, and no emperors were reported to convert. While the Gospel languished in India, it was seized upon in England, Germany, Scandinavia and elsewhere, where it was officialized.

Islam arrived in the North of India by traders, conquest and a sustained missionary effort from the Sufis. It had the backing, patronage and favor of the Muslim empires, the Mughals and the Delhi Sultanate. In the North, Hinduism was said to be less entrenched.

Not until the Portuguese arrived in the 1500s did Christianity get accused to being a “foreign religion” riling resistance.

But now, Christianity, though small, is making a big impact. There are mega churches and village pastors who are spreading the Gospel like wildfire. They are so successful that they have roused Hindu jealousies and sparked pushback.

Even before Narenda Modi came to power, anti-conversion laws were on the books in Odisha and Madhya Pradesh, but when he became prime minister in 2014, the legal attempts to stop the spread of Christianity gained momentum, spreading the anti-conversion laws to 13 states in total.

But as Indian journalist Mathew Samuel observed, you can’t stop people from acting out their freedom of conscience.

“Even in Madhya Pradesh, despite frequent (court) cases and attacks, attendance at prayer meetings has doubled and tripled after incidents of violence. Why?” Samuel says. “The answer people give is painful but real. Many from backward classes and Dalit communities feel they are still treated as second class even after 75 years of independence.”

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