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Religious Conversion in Hindu India: the Complicated Case of Manilal C. Parekh by Parimal Roy

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Religious Conversion in Hindu India: the Complicated Case of Manilal C. Parekh by Parimal Roy ISFM Orlando 2009: “Best Practices in Frontier Mission” Religious Conversion in Hindu India: The Complicated Case of Manilal C. Parekh by Parimal Roy Introduction indu seekers in India who are attracted by Christ question the need for conversion to become Christians. The nuance here has little to Hdo with “turning” to Christ and much to do with what conversion means. There is something about conversion that causes Hindus, particularly upper caste Hindus, to maintain a safe distance from Christianity. Certainly there are already upper caste adherents to Christ in the Indian context who have tasted God’s power to heal and perform miracles in their lives in the name Editor’s Note: A version of this paper of Jesus Christ and who, for various reasons, do not wish to associate with was originally presented by Parimal Christian churches. One such Hindu was Manilal C. Parekh (1885-1967). We Roy at the 2009 Orlando meeting of the International Society for Frontier will briefly consider his life in the pages that follow. Missiology, September 17, 2009. H. L. Richard (president of the Parekh’s Brief Biography Rethinking Forum and researcher on Manilal Parekh has left us an account of his life both in English and in Gujarati. South Asian culture and religion) gave The English language autobiography is a brief sketch while the Gujarati account the response (pp. 171-73), which was 1 followed by a question and answer is fairly comprehensive. He was born in 1885, in Rajkot, Gujarat. His family session (pp. 173-74) during which both religion was Jainism but his father had adopted Vaishnavism. It is interesting to Roy and Richard took part. note that an atheistic Jainism and a personalist, theistic Vaishnavite tradition not Parimal Roy is currently a doctoral only coexisted but remained part of their family religiosity. Their upbringing student at Fuller Theological Seminary. was in more of an eclectic popular religiosity. He also provides pastoral leadership at the Church of India, Alhambra. He Early influences on his life included his reading ofThe Use of Life by Lord was an associate professor at Leonard Avebury and The Imitation of Christ when he was fifteen. The former awakened Theological College, Jabalpur in his moral hunger and the latter, his spiritual hunger. He was introduced to K. India. He was also involved with evangelism among students as well C. Sen through Sen’s writings. Sen influenced Parekh significantly. Sen was a as in grass-root social organizations. reformer and a renowned leader of the Brahmo Samaj, who “made it the mis- His interest in conversion has led sion of his life to harmonise all the religions of the world, and he made this syn- to his study of Manilal Parekh and c Christian Proselytism in India. His thesis Christo-centric.”2 Parekh was widely read. Reading Cardinal Newman, publications include A Bibliography he felt the need for “certitude in my faith. The Brahma Samaj was too subjec- of Original Christian Writings in tive in its faith and belief.”3 India in Gujarati (Bangalore, SSC, 1991), as well as articles in the Global Parekh did not enjoy good health. But these bouts of illness became times for Dictionary of Theology, Dictionary of South Asian Christianity, and in drawing closer to God. During one such bout, he read the entire Bible. He also popular periodicals. read a book in Gujarati about Swami Narayana (1781-1830),4 a great exponent cInternational Journal of Frontier Missiology 26:4 Winter 2009•165 166 Religious Conversion in Hindu India: The Complicated Case of Manilal C. Parekh of Vaishnavism. Both readings con- Discipleship to Christ and critiqued Keshub Chunder Sen, whom verged on the truth of incarnation for Christocentric Theism he highly respected, because Sen opted the redemption of humanity, something In 1918 he embraced Christianity and out of “Hinduism” as a religion when that Brahmo Samaj did not teach. was baptized in an Anglican Church in the Brahmo Samaj Marriage Act was 8 Parekh, an original thinker and a Bombay. For about a year he remained enacted in 1872. He preferred the dis- maverick spiritual seeker, was enthused an active member but soon began to be ciples of Christ to remain in their own not so much with the political side of disillusioned by the westernized and community and witness while totally nationalistic fervor as with the deep materialistic attitude of the church. rejecting mass conversion as prosely- 9 spiritual thirst for lasting peace of He severed all ties with the churches tism. Even as a Christian, he believed heart within oriental religious tradi- and missions, but remained commit- that Christianity should remain moksh tions. His spiritual journey led him ted to Jesus Christ. He called himself a dharma (a salvific and a spiritual reli- from atheistic religion to personal “Hindu disciple of Christ” and desired gion) rather than samaj dharma (a social theism, on to incarnational theism to establish a “Hindu Church of religion). He advocated caste separation and ultimately to samanvaya (a spiri- Christ.” He gave his home in Rajkot a and approved of the social segregation tual harmony) of theistic religions. new name: “Oriental Christ House.”6 of races in the U.S. that he had seen 10 Parekh knew Mahatma Gandhi but during his visit. parted from many of his ways. Like Baptism as Discipleship Gandhi, Parekh mulled over the idea In 1924, Parekh wrote an article of swadharmagraha (“insistence on the in which he discussed the spiritual religion of one’s birth”). He called it Parekh was significance and value of baptism. He Hindu swadharmagraha and differed attracted by the had severe criticism for the church. from Gandhi in that he sought to He believed that the church of his create a kind of eclectic religion. “In my world renouncing times had become Westernized and “Hindu swadharmagraha” a large place aspects of materialistic. It had become a com- was given to Christ, and to “prophets” munal body that was more political from outside India—not, however, as the Gospels. and social than spiritual. Culturally it the prophets of foreign religions, but was anti-national. The church had lost as God’s own messengers.”5 While its identity as “Christian.” In fact, he Gandhi directed his apologetic against expressed his desire to start a Hindu claims made for Christianity as a mor- Parekh was attracted by the world Church of Christ, but refrained when ally superior religion that could help renouncing elements in the Gospels, he learned that some Christians were improve national life (he was interested that discipleship to Christ is a path of attempting to do just that and decided in keeping Christianity away), Parekh renunciation and selflessness in the instead to become a part of it.11 was actually bringing together the service of others. Christian disciple- He applied the term “Christendom” spiritual wealth of Christianity and ship is not so much performing rituals to describe the characteristics of the other such theistic religions together as following Christ. This emphasis Christian community and the church while insisting on remaining a Hindu. on Christ led him eventually to reject (which for him are one and the He retreated from politics and did not historical Christianity, the local church, same), which were then expanding use religion for political or material and western lifestyles that were associ- all over the world. The “Christendom ends. He desired spiritual meaning in ated with becoming a Christian. He saw mentality” fueled the superiority of life and in his spiritual thirst explored cno need to separate himself from Hindu Christianity (in its Western form) over various religions but did not think society. He remained a Hindu and everything native in the Indian con- them to be samabhava (of equal value worked for the uplift of the depressed text. It despised the religious, socio- or worthy of equal respect). He rejected classes. He was perhaps one of the few cultural, and political arrangements atheistic and monistic religions and to interact with the Harijan (literally, within India. In Parekh’s words, sought samanvaya (a spiritual harmony) people of god, a name Gandhi gave of theistic religions. Finally, he got bap- to the depressed class people), even It has come to mean absolute sever- tized and declared himself a disciple of eating with them and worshiping with ance from one’s own community, Jesus Christ. He did not leave cultural them, while believing the preserva- from one’s own birth and kin, from Hinduism and transcended culture and tion of caste differences.7 For Parekh, one’s national, cultural and even spiri- tual heritage, all of which are very society in his spiritual quest to address the term “Hindu” denoted more than often nearer to the Spirit of Christ deeper issues of life. In his spiritual a religious affiliation. A “Hindu” was wanderings he tasted water from than the so-called Christendom of the anyone who subscribed to Indian Christian community in India.12 many rivers. cultural heritage. In this, he candidly International Journal of Frontier Missiology Parimal Roy 167 He thought that Christianity had e felt that baptism was needed, but the practice mixed with “absolutely unessential and even anti-Christian elements.” He needed to be clipped of its unnecessary ritual identified them as “western civiliza- accumulations. tion, European culture and foreign 13 H imperialism.” The church in India of pressure from the dominant Hindu and a privilege from Christ to reveal at the time of Parekh, the church that community by accommodating to its the name of Christ. In this respect, he Parekh knew, stood condemned in his socio-cultural surroundings without felt that baptism itself was needed, but eyes and in the eyes of some of his con- giving up the faith.14 Unlike Buddhism the practice needed to be clipped of the temporaries as a compromised entity.
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