Jaina Philosophy

Author(s): Virchand R Gandhi, Kumarpal Desai
Publisher: World Jain Confederation

Page 97

CHAPTER NINE
Have Christian Missions to
India Been Successful ?
Mr. Chairman, Ladies and gentlemen,
You have heard the scholarly views of our friend and brother. (Bishop Thoburn.) The views as they have been presented to you must appear convincing to those who have not seen or fully understood the other side; and I am most grateful to the Nineteenth Century Club that they have honoured my country by giving me the opportunity to express my views on the subject of Christian Missions in India, which may not be very important to the Christians of America, as they are rich and may well afford to misspend their money, but which is of great importance to my country as it has the tendency of affecting India vitally. But to you, the members of the Nineteenth Century Club, the subject seems to have presented an unusual importance, from the fact that this nation spends thousands of dollars for a work, the necessity of which is doubted by many even in this country. Christian Missions to India implies that India is a land of heathens and, therefore, stands on the same level with the Andaman or the Fiji Islands. That a country which has been recognized in all ages the world over as being the Mother of all religions and the cradle of civilization should be considered by Christians as heathens shows
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