Dear Jeyaraj,
Shanti!
Thanks for writing more positively about my life and seva. I agree on most of the points, though I have to disagree with some points. I made few correction and added new points and give few suggestion. You should try to make those correction. For example ‘Tirumurai’ should be ‘Devaram or Thevaram’. I sent this to Madhu, Raman and Chakaravarthy with my comments. I know they will have their own reservations and comments, but accepting or rejecting them is left to you. God bless you.
db
2.10 Swami Dayanand Bharati
Dayanand Bharati (1952-present)[1] is very significant for this study as he is the only one of the seven theologians [Why should you call me a theologian? You know well that I am not a theologian.–db] who is still alive and continues to contribute to the non-church movement. He has experimented [What we are practicing is not any experiment. This is the very life that we live as Hindu bhaktas of Muktinath (Jesus). Only those evangelicals who cannot agree with us at the same cannot oppose us, use this word ‘experiment’ to explain away our life in their own terms easily.–db]with various ways and means to guide followers of Christ outside the church and has hardly any link with the organized church as an institution. He came to Christ through the witness of missionaries and was baptized on the mission field. After this he underwent some Bible training in a missionary training institute and worked for some time on the mission field. He has also taught widely about how to work among followers of other religious faiths, and speaks from both his own experience and his observations of the mistakes committed by others. His lifestyle and family relationships and the way he has come back to his family and relatives is a lesson to be learned. It has been the privilege of the present writer to meet him several times, and especially in the course of this study. Dayanand acknowledges that he is not giving a pattern to follow for the whole of India but principles to follow in a “limited context” for “high caste and educated Indians.” The majority of the following pages are based upon the interview of Dayanand’s friends[2] with support from some of his writings both published and unpublished. This study gives his biography in detail and reflects on the theological framework he gives for followers of Christ to remain outside the [institutionalized] church.
2.10.1 Biography
Family background and religious influences
Dayanand was born in 1952 in Trichy[3] in a Smarta Brahmin family of Saivism. His father was a businessman and because of his father’s business his family lived for some time in Virudhachalam[4] and later moved back to Trichy. He did his bachelor degree in economics in Trichy and aspired to do his Masters in Tamil literature, but even though he was the only student to apply and had all the needed qualifications, because of the quota system[5] he was not granted admission. During his childhood he had read and written down some Bible verses and even attended a Sunday school and a Lutheran church with one of his Christian schoolmates. He heard a foreigner preaching in the mid 1970s but did not pay attention because he had an aversion to internationals, as they had been the rulers of India. His family deity was Tirupathi Venkatachalapathi.[6] Only once they visited the temple town of Tirupathi and like other Smarta Brahmins the family worshipped other deities as well. His regular daily worship involved Sandya Vandanam, reciting the Gayatri Mantra,[7] puja to the tulasi plant, singing bhajans[8] and Bajagovindam.[9] Learning the scriptures and reciting slogas were also part of his regular devotional practice. He read and memorized parts of Tamil poems like Nalayira Divya Prabhandam, Tirumurai [it should be Devaram or Tevaram and not Tirumurai. Tirumurai is the title for some collected Tamil poems by Saiva saints and is not the title of any Tamil devotional work.—db]and Tiruvasagam[10] and was very fond of attending bajans and kathakalachebams.[11] He regularly visited temples but was more interested in architecture than in worship. His observation of Christians was that they belonged to two castes, namely Protestants and Catholics, their churches were like Hindu temples, and their festivals were Christmas, Good Friday and Easter and their Gods were Jesus and Mary.
Coming in contact with Christianity
Dayanand worked in the marketing profession as sales representative for medicines for about six and a half years and used to go to a village called Marandahalli in the Dharmapuri district.[12] There he became a friend of Ashokan, the owner of a medical shop, who had become a follower of Christ from another religious faith through the ministry of Friends Missionary Prayer Band (FMPB).[13] However, Ashokan never declared that he was a follower of Christ and never shared the gospel.
Dayanand was going through a spiritual crisis and looking for a spiritual guru. He yearned to live a holy life but the fact that he could not live a flawless life even for a single day intrigued him. He did many pujas (a certain act of worship) but his real life was very different. He realized that he was saying one thing but doing some thing completely different. There was no correlation between his words and works. He did the following three things regularly. He read the Hindu Scriptures and found plenty of answers to his questions, but nothing convinced him; he was very rationalistic. He attended many satsangs[14] and talked with many people in society to get answers for his religious questions but he could not find answers for many of the important questions. He came to the conclusion that no one in this world can live a perfect life. He thought to himself that what is past is past and nothing can be done about it; the future is very uncertain; therefore, let us enjoy the present. Though he was going through inner struggles, he kept on reading Hindu Scriptures, as it was his hobby.
Dayanand wanted to go somewhere and quietly spend some time. He wanted to go to Periamalai.[15] Ashokan gave a letter of recommendation to his FMPB friends Stephen and Devanesan. His friends described Dayanand’s experience of meeting the FMPB missionaries:
When he met them he began to weep and he might have wept for about 45 minutes. The missionaries did not know what to do with him. They told him that they would like to pray for him. They prayed with genuine earnestness and in fact they were crying in their prayer.
Their simple lifestyle, hospitality and Christian commitment touched Dayanand. He was given a Bible and happened to read the cry of Saul on the road to Damascus, “Lord what do you want me to do,” but he did not understand what it meant. He heard the message of the missionaries and did not understand it either, though later he realized that “it was the gospel message.” Two other incidents from his life also influenced his decision to become a follower of Christ.
During his high school days in Virudhachalam, Dayanand had a Christian classmate named Raja Vijaya Anbazhagan. They were so close that Dayanand went with him to Sunday services and Sunday classes and even won prizes for memorizing Bible texts, to the amazement of the Christians. Anbazhagan used to pray whenever there were exams, but Dayanand was hurt by one of the statements his friend made: “Your Hindu gods and goddesses are from the devil and demons driven away from heaven and Jesus Christ is the only living God.” This statement caused Dayanand to develop an aversion to Christians for having such attitudes, and though their friendship continued he stopped going to the church and Sunday school. Through his personal reading Dayanand was impressed by Swami Vivekananda and Mahatma Gandhi. He wanted to emulate them by doing service without expecting any reward.[16]
The second incident was his two visits to Tapovanam, a branch of the ramakrishna mission[17] at Tirupparaitturai.[18] In order to serve others he wanted to become a sannyasi and so he applied to the headquarters of the ramakrishna mission. The interview he attended was like an army interview, more physical rather than spiritual. He did not like what went on there, including his stay, and the way he was questioned. He was not selected and later came to know that they did not take young people. He realized that it was not the place for him anyway.
As he came down the mountain, Dayanand met with Christian missionaries. He thought to himself that he should worship the gods of these Christian friends in Periamalai. He considered living like them. It is apparent that at this time he went through some kind of conversion experience though it only became clear later.
Baptism
Dayanand came down from the mountain and told his friend Ashokan that he wanted to become a Christian, which shocked him (1980). While continuing his job, he spent the next four months helping the missionaries by providing medicines to distribute among the hill tribe people for their ministry in Periamalai. He started an organization called Paramporul Paniyagam (Association with the Almighty—in fact I named it as ‘Almighty Association’–db) to receive money to buy medicines and to collect free medicines from all the medical shops he knew to give to the missionaries at Periamalai. He collected a lot of medicines, which he carried on his back to the mountain. Simultaneously he began to read the Bible, which was given to him. Even though he did not understand he kept on reading. After four months he was invited by one of the Periamalai missionaries, Stephen, to take baptism and to declare himself a Christian. He agreed and prepared himself by praying the whole night, along with a few others, prior to taking baptism. On October 1980, Rev. G. S. Mohan[19] baptized him in Marandahalli and Stephen changed Dayanand’s name to Christopher Kumar. During the baptism he was examined with some questions, which he barely understood. After his baptism he did not go to any church, except once when he stood at the entrance of one. He did not share about his new faith with anybody except with one of his friends at Cuddalore,[20] but he regularly prayed and read the Bible.
Several key issues should be noted here: very little explanation was offered about conversion, no proper teaching was given about baptism, his name was changed and no adequate steps were taken for pastoral care. Looking back on all this, Dayanand feels satisfied that he was not baptized in the church but on the mission field. He was happy that there were many others from a Hindu background who took baptism along with him. Similarly, he feels satisfied that G. S. Mohan, who baptized him, was from a Hindu brahmin background. However, he says that he does not promote any brahmanism or casteism. Now he feels that, if something similar to his baptism happened, he would not do it in the same way.
Invitation to full time ministry and the response from his home
Within the month of becoming a follower of Christ, FMPB asked Dayanand to attend their “Gideonites”[21] meeting at Karur.[22] A great challenge was put forth explaining that North Indians were living in a horrific condition without the knowledge of the living God, and that leading a soul to eternity is a ministry far superior to meeting the temporary needs of the physical body. When the altar call was given on the third day for people to go to North India as missionaries, Dayanand was the first one to go forward. He was interviewed in December and he no longer remembers the questions and answers. Subsequently he gave away all his clothes to his colleagues and began to wear simple dress as a mark of simplicity. Though no one told him to, he removed his sacred thread. However, he wore it whenever he went to his home. He resigned his job in December and in the month of January 1981 he joined Bethel Bible Institute[23] (BBI) at Danishpet,[24] Salem, for missionary training. He informed his home that he was doing further studies at the Bachelor of Bio-chemistry Institute (BBI). Within three months of becoming a follower of Christ he was baptized, challenged, interviewed for full time ministry and entered the missionary training college.
Through his colleague, Dayanand’s brother came to know that Dayanand had become a follower of Christ and was now being trained for full-time ministry. His father was also informed, wrote a long letter disowning him, and blamed him for bringing shame to his family and their community. After this event he was afraid to go home. But occasionally he visited his mother when his father was out of town.
Becoming a sannyasi
In the BBI, Dayanand decided to become a sannyasi after making enquires as to whether it was possible to become sannyasi in Christianity. He came to know of another missionary in FMPB who wore a saffron dress and he heard about Sadhu Sunder Singh. After three people prayed over his saffron dress and had given their blessing, he wore it and declared that he was entering a sannyasi life. He was encouraged by his friends to be confident and sure about his calling. He was fully convinced and ready to enter into such a phase of life. His friends requested him to keep the vows and prayed for him. From then on he began to wear saffron clothes and lived a sannyasi life. Today he strongly feels that God had a purpose and used his emotions, ignorance and failures to fulfill His eternal purposes.
Controversy about food
There was a considerable controversy about Dayanand’s food habits. Coming from a Brahmin background he was a strict vegetarian but his college mates felt that he was not fully converted! He should eat non-vegetarian food to display or affirm his allegiance to Jesus Christ. This was sheer foolishness and he felt that food habits had nothing to do with one’s belief.
Dayanand had many questions about the Bible and the way ministry was done. He found that his classmates were mainly using Western methods and skills for their evangelistic work and he was able to bring some changes in the format of evangelism like introducing villupattu[25] to share the gospel. His teachers advised him to be careful and cautious in coming to conclusions about various Christian practices and evangelistic methods. Dr. Devadasan encouraged him to go for higher studies in Union Biblical Seminary, Yavatmal,[26] and arranged for a scholarship, though he faced stiff opposition from FMPB.
Family encounters and setbacks
Dayanand got admission to study his Bachelor of Divinity at Yavatmal[27] and joined Union Biblical Seminary, but after three months he received a letter from his father informing him that his family were struggling and experiencing conflict within the family. This greatly disturbed him and he was not able to concentrate on his studies. So he requested the seminary authorities to release him to go home. He was given permission, and upon reaching home he changed his sannyasi dress to normal dress and went back to his previous job, working hard to support his family. He worked many extra hours by staying in the office premises and eating in restaurants. Slowly his father was able to go back to his job and his family returned to a stable condition.
After reaching home from the seminary, Dayanand wrote a letter to his mentor Dr. Devadasan, explaining his circumstances and family situation, and the latter got in touch with him. A few days after this he faced an unfavorable situation at his work and because of this he resigned his job. He explained to his father under what circumstances he had resigned and also told him that he did not have peace about carrying on with his job. He told his parents that he would like to go back and they released him, although they were reluctant to do so. Later he met his mentor Dr. Devadasan again. It was decided that he would go to North India as a missionary.
Missionary in North India
Dayanand was sent to Gonda in Uttar Pradesh[28] to learn Hindi,[29] and after learning the language he was sent to the mission field in Bihar. He began to write many poems and some articles, but he did not show them to anyone because he was afraid being criticized by traditional Christians and colleagues. He had many questions about the way mission work was carried out in North India, but during his early days he just observed everything, not wishing to differ much from his contemporaries. He observed that the missionaries treated and preached about the Hindu religion as the work of the devil and demons, and this attitude hurt him. Those who became Christians were kept under the control of the missionaries, which led to a dependent attitude in all areas of life. In many cases they were taken out of their immediate cultural and social context. In the early days he questioned them about such matters but he did not fight over these issues. In almost all areas he differed from the other missionaries working there. Some of them were very sympathetic to him and encouraged him to be slow in making conclusions; they also encouraged him to be more observant. Others, however, sharply disagreed with him and were very harsh in their responses. Some others were suspicious about his brahmin background and thought that he was carrying the same brahminical dominating attitude, and had come to dominate the missionaries on the mission field.
Later Dayanand was appointed to be in charge of the Madhubani[30] mission field. He wanted to do ministry in the way he felt was right, but this was not without opposition. He felt that Christians, Christianity and the church differed very much from the Bible he read, but he was very sure that Jesus Christ has chosen him as his disciple. He did a lot of ministry among the high caste community there. Just when he was beginning to witness a breakthrough among the high caste people through his methods of ministry, he was shocked to hear that FMPB had decided to close their mission here due to its poor response. When this decision was taken he was away doing some private studies on Hinduism, but when he learned about it a battle began and he left the mission field. Dayanand felt hurt by the way FMPB had handled the mission and by his colleagues’ attitudes towards his methods of evangelism. He decided to leave FMPB but first took six months off to spend time in prayer and meditation.
From 1983 onwards Dayanand had been writing on subjects like how Christian mission has failed to communicate the gospel. He did not share about this with other people because he had already faced much discouragement. He came to the conclusion that he had not yet been able to follow Christ in a way that was natural for him. What followed next was a period of transition. He spent a year with the Delhi Brotherhood in study. He decided to resign from FMPB even though he was being persuaded not to do so. Finally he did it, but that resignation till date has not been accepted! He began to help organizations in reaching high caste people, and he did this through his teaching. In particular he helped Operation Mobilization India[31] and the Yavatmal College for Leadership Training[32]. [and YWAM. But since last few years he completely stopped such teaching among the Christians, except rarely teaching in School of Hindu Studies.] He also edited a Tamil magazine called Forest Sound from January 1997 to August 2001. It was meant to be a common forum for followers of Christ outside the church. He called them as Hindu Christ Bhaktas to share their struggles and find solutions from one another, but he felt that there was very little contribution from Hindu Christ Bhaktas.Beside this he taught classes on contextualization and Hinduism, began to write articles and helped to begin ministry among high caste people in Rewa[33], Madhyapradesh. He evolved three principles for his future ministry: High caste Hindus, when accepting Christ as their guru, should not become Christians but continue to remain culturally and socially as Hindus. Second, they should be known as Hindu Christ Bhaktas and should never become members in any denominational church, even though they may have fellowship with Christians [OUTSIDE THE CHURCH. If you say ‘inside’ the church, then it will contradict what I said and upheld.–db] inside the church. Third, they should never enter into paid full-time ministry.
Dayanand also decided not to speak in churches or Christian conventions. Looking at the journey he has taken he feels that God has led him thus far. Though FMPB missionaries have made a lot of mistakes, he has overlooked them and felt that they have done what they thought was right. He now resides in Hosur,[34] near Bangalore, from where he visits and ministers to Hindu Christ Bhaktas.[35] He also writes and gets involved in publishing. His best-known book is Living Water and Indian Bowl.[36] [He has also published another book: Understanding Hinduism, Munshiram Manoharlal, Delhi, 2005 and prepared the manuscript of their book: Living Dialogue’ and translated Hrudaya Gita of Danjibai Faquir Bai in Tamil in poetic form and composed music for it.. He has a website where he posts some of his thoughts regularly: SAMVAD   :: Dialogue of Life ]. The connection that he once lost with his family has been re-established, and he is now able to visit them and be with them. [His mother who stayed with him for six to eight months since 2000, from 2008 moved to stay with him permanently.] When he is called upon to speak about reaching high caste Hindus in India he shares his ideas and does what he can to equip others for the same ministry.
2.10.2 Theological framework: Hindu Christ Bhaktas and the incarnation of the Christian faith in Hindu culture
Dayanand would like to remain outside the church but he has remained faithful to the historical faith of Christianity, unlike Parekh and Chenchiah. He invites people to worship the divine name of Jesus[37] and addresses Jesus as “King,” “Savior of Sinners,” “Fountain of Grace,”[38] “One Who Removes the Sins and Curses,” “Sat Guru Bhagavan Muktinath” (True Teacher Lord Savior) and “The Light.”[39] He has a great appreciation for the cross and the suffering involved in it and claims the whole of humanity as being redeemed by the sufferings of Jesus on the cross.[40] He emphasizes the resurrection event and prays for the same power to invade his life. In one of his songs he prays to receive the power of resurrection, so that he too can participate in Christ’s death and receive His glory.[41] He would like to proclaim to the world the secret of the death and resurrection of Jesus. He believes that among all thousands of gods in this world Jesus is the true God, because he came down to this earth as man and sought for human beings. He calls people to follow this Jesus, who came in search of humanity,[42] and talks about the sufficiency of Jesus in all aspects of life.[43] He has a very clear and high view of Jesus.
Dayanand never entered the institutional church. He was baptized on the mission field and became a missionary in the same organization. He has witnessed the work of missionaries in India but found very little acceptance for his initiatives. Therefore he moved away from organized Christianity and its witnesses. Now he works directly with Hindu Christ Bhaktas in his own way. His ideas arise out of his experience. He has put forward various arguments for people to remain outside the church.
Hindu Christ Bhaktas
When people of other faiths view Christians in India, they have some preconceived picture in their minds. In this sense Hindu Christ Bhaktas are not Christians. They are not members of any organized denomination or institutional church and they do not take baptism from a pastor. Rather, they take diksha (initiation) from a guru. Hindus are allowed to choose their God and guru, and Dayanand notes, “one of the most refreshing aspects of Hinduism is the freedom of choice it allows to an individual.”[44] Similarly diksha is a ceremony where a Hindu Christ Bhakta chooses his personal God Jesus Christ. It takes place as a family event held in their presence and the family pays for the expenses of the ceremony. In this way it becomes a point of contact and opportunity to witness to a person’s family members.
They are the Bhaktas of Jesus Christ and totally committed to him. The Bible is the center of their lives and they worship only Jesus, not any of their family deities. According to their situation they decide about going to the temple but, even if they go, their family members are aware that they don’t worship the Hindu deities. There is no uniformity among Hindu Christ Bhaktas regarding external religious symbols as these vary from individual to individual.
Whenever there is an opportunity they ought to participate in the mahaprasadam.[45] They should not show any indifferent attitude in following their social customs, but the value system of their social, ethical, spiritual and moral life should be biblical. A Hindu Christ Bhakta’s life should be clearly Christ-centered and a witness to others. They should believe in the authority of the scripture, accept the concept of the body of Christ (which does not just mean church members), and witness to their faith commitment.
Hindu Christ Bhaktas should not consider the church as their enemy. They remain outside the church because of their own family and social context or because of shortcomings in the church. The church and Hindu Christ Bhaktas can coexist side-by-side. They can work with Christians outside the church and pray for one another. The Hindu Christ Bhaktas should consider and esteem one another.
Hindu Christ Bhaktas should take care of themselves and the church should not attempt to change them. They have their own fellowship groups, which are small and self-supportive and natural for them in their context. Good elements of Indian culture are used in their worship according to their understanding of God and the world. There is freedom to worship using the signs, symbols and instruments of their choice. Their study of the Bible is based on their context, with reference to the Hindu scriptures, and they look at their problems and discuss them together. Problems are analyzed before finding an answer from the Bible. Church history discloses that most of the time heresies come from the church leaders and not from the lay people. Therefore Hindu Christ Bhaktas, being a movement of lay people, will not create any heresy. Their meetings are not merely a time of worship. They also take care of their social, moral, financial and ethical needs. Three dimensions are emphasized: “knowing, helping and sharing.” Even marriages are arranged for the members. They get involved in one another’s life situations and counsel each another. When there are such fellowships other family members who are not followers of Christ also attend. They too are helped. There is even an email forum for Hindu Christ Bhaktas (known as esatsangh)through which they help one another. From the Biblical perspective, they are part of the universal church.
From a social and cultural point of view Hindu Christ Bhaktas are Hindus and Indians. They should not enter full time Christian ministry but rather witness to their faith within their families and in their work contexts whenever they have an opportunity. There is a great danger that they may become syncretistic or pluralistic and even go back to their former religion. This might not happen due to lack of fellowship, teaching or prayer but it might happen because of personal reasons or social pressures. They do not have answers for all their problems, nor are answers readily found in the Bible, though it contains principles for addressing them. They depend upon the leading of the Holy Spirit.
Hindu Christ Bhaktas have their own struggles. They are attempting to live out the values of Christ in a social system that has not been shaped by his values. Even if such values have existed, as Hindus they are not able to implement them. They also face the same struggles as everyone else, but try to live with Christ’s help according to their limited understanding of the Bible. At times they have to let things take their natural course and allow God to work, having totally surrendered themselves to God. They try to live as responsible people, facing the situations allowed by God and overcoming those situations by God’s grace. They are encouraged not to depend on others but to stand on their own, with God’s help.
Hindu Christ Bhaktas are not organized and they do not want to be organized as a church. Regarding last rites, no proper solutions have been found and they are encouraged to follow the local customs and not hurt their family members. If possible, they should try to avoid the rituals, but if they have to participate in them they should inform their family members that they are doing so out of compulsion and constraint, and not out of conviction.
In the past, Hindu Christ Bhaktas have tried to change the church by remaining within it but they were unsuccessful. It is better, therefore, to leave the church to function as it does for those who need it. They leave the church alone and continue with their own fellowship groups.
The non-necessity of the church
Church is meant to be a place for worship and fellowship but in today’s churches there is hardly any fellowship. Most churches meet for only 1 to 3 hours and it is impossible to have real fellowship within this time frame. There is no opportunity to know one another, no open sharing or deep interaction, and no opportunity for open discussions, debates and clarifications. In churches today the members have very little involvement. Most do not know what is happening in the church—it looks like one-way traffic as the pastor does everything.
Churches have become religious and social clubs for the Christian community in India. They take care of social needs like birthdays, marriages, house dedications and burials. Dayanand writes that the:
Church is a mere religious club, which looks after the social ceremonies of her members and it has never remained as a spiritual as well as religious center in India. The situation of the church ever since the “Missionary Invasion” in India has been a pathetic one. Various denominations and cults in [the] west used her to promote their sectarianism in India. Every new denomination started in [the] West will have its branch shop within 24 hours in India without even any important [sic] license.[46]
Christians definitely need the church, as it provides necessary functions for the Christian community. The social needs of the Hindus, however, are met within their community and not in their religious institutions such as temples. So Hindu Christ Bhaktas will have their own satsangs[47] for spiritual fellowship and their social and cultural needs will be met within their own communities.
Christianity as a religion has become churchianity, and churches have become big power centers and institutions with lots of rules and regulations. There are lots of traditions, most of which are not necessarily biblical, which look out of place in the Indian context. This does not reflect the true meaning of the church and in such an atmosphere Hindu Christ Bhaktas feel suffocated. Many followers of Christ from other faiths who have become members of the churches are silently suffering within its framework, but they put up a brave face and even go to the extent of defending the existing structures.
Churches in India today are fulfilling the agenda of their Western partners and have not comprehended the biblical concept of mission. Para-church organizations are building their empires and function on behalf of the church. Local churches have no freedom to function by themselves, as they are controlled by someone in some distant headquarters. The methods of pastoral ministry, the teaching materials for church members, and the teaching methods and techniques themselves, are imported from outside. Those who produce them have no knowledge of the context of the local people and this does not allow the church to function as it needs to do.
The churches also do not use the talents and insights of the Hindu Christ Bhaktas. Therefore the latter are unable to contribute to the church. Churches today do not allow their members to reflect upon their past beliefs and worldviews. Hindu Christ Bhaktas are neither respected nor taken into consideration. The churches do not even refer to the Hindu Scriptures. Hindu Christ Bhaktas are forced to accept Christian traditions and religious practices, which are extra biblical[48] rather than scriptural. They are compelled to conform to the image of contemporary Christianity and thus prevented from using anything from their past religious heritage.[49] Hindu Christ Bhaktas would like to use their background and Hindu Scriptures, but this is not acceptable in the churches today.
Churches are very enthusiastic about getting new members but they don’t meet their needs. This is especially true with regard to the marriage of young women. On the one hand, churches do not allow their members to marry people of other faiths; on the other hand, they don’t help in finding a suitable partner within the Christian community. Though there are exceptions, there are many single women-followers of Christ from other faiths who remain unmarried, and this is not by their choice but because of their circumstances.
There is very little unity among Christians. One group excludes another and each one claims that their church is the only true and pure church by excluding others. Christians themselves are confused about who is a real Christian. It is not possible to worship together when there are such differences.[50] Denominationalism among Christians is a stumbling block that prevents Hindu Christ Bhaktas from growing deeply and personally in Christ.[51] In one of his Tamil songs Dayanand writes about the church in this way:
People gather together in the name of the church but they propagate their own sectarian doctrine. They call it a congregation but it is only a tradition. When some one says it is not right, they are counted as enemies of the church. They gather together once a week in the name of worship but it is only a drama after few rehearsals. They claim the admission is free but it is for only those who follow their own sectarian doctrine. Gathering within the four walls with rules and regulations is not a congregation. We know that it is not truth. We, Hindu Christ Bhaktas, are saved from this very fortunately. The grace of God, which reached us will enable the waiting soul to live the rest of the life as his devotee.[52]
It is possible to be Hindu and a follower of Christ simultaneously. Formal membership in a church is unnecessary. Dayanand writes:
As a Hindu is a member of a particular community with his freedom to profess any faith, what is the need for him to become a Christian in the present sense of holding membership of a church? Let a Hindu remain a Hindu, while following his own cultural and social life, which are not against the Bible. There is no reason to think that he must necessarily compromise in his theology or faith in Christ. (And please note that I do not mean making the Hindu a better Hindu or the Muslim a better Muslim. My point is, let Christian faith be incorporated and incarnated in Indian [Hindu] culture as it is.).[53]
Pastoral ministry not meeting the needs of the Hindu Christ Bhaktas
Dayanand feels that pastors are appointed for a period of time and they have an organizational relationship rather than organic relationship with their congregations. When pastors complete their term they are transferred and they are gone. They neither identify with the people nor acquire knowledge about the people as they are there only for a limited period. They are unable to understand followers of Christ from other faiths, and they do not meet their needs, as they do not identify with them. He is of the opinion that the members of the Hindu Christ Bhaktas fellowship group should recognize a leader among themselves and that person should become the leader. This would be more natural than bringing in a seminary graduate from a distant place who does not know the congregation.[54] A leader who emerges from the group would be able to identify with it and meet the needs of followers of Christ from other faiths.
Christ-centred families in the Hindu community
A group of Hindu Christ Bhaktas becomes a Christ-centered family within the Hindu community. Generally when a Hindu becomes a follower of Christ it is viewed as shifting camps, moving from one community to another. This is viewed negatively as one group gains over the other and so tensions are created. It is better therefore that Hindu Christ Bhaktas do not become members of the church. Other family members of Hindu Christ Bhaktas will listen to the gospel when they realize that following Christ does not mean changing community allegiance.[55] Being with one’s family and witnessing to one’s family from within through one’s lifestyle is the main reason for remaining outside the church.
Followers of Christ are members of the Hindu community who do not need the identity of the Christian community because their identity comes from their own Hindu community. The community in which one is born is God-given; it is a person’s birthright and must be protected. Religion, however, is a matter of personal choice. The Hindu community gives freedom to an individual to follow Christ as long as he remains within its fold. For example, a person can be a Hindu communist or a Hindu Christian. For a Hindu, community is the utmost important entity, not religion; but when a person joins the church he loses his identity within his own community and gets a different identity in the church. Followers of Christ are neither incorporated in the church nor accepted in their own community, and consequently they don’t feel at home anywhere. According to Dayanand, for Hindu Christ Bhaktas the hostile home (the Hindu community) is better than a friendly but suspicious neighbor (the Christian community or church). The Hindu community may be hostile because of the individual’s faith commitment, but the church is a suspicious neighbor. On the basis of his observation of history, Dayanand feels that the church will never become a home for a follower of Christ from another faith. So Hindu Christ Bhaktas should maintain good relationships with their Hindu families and not try to cling to their suspicious neighbor, the church. For the sake of their own community they must remain within it without becoming members of the church.
Indian traditions and the Hindu community are natural waters for Hindu Christ Bhaktas and they must live in them. New believers should be helped to express and grow in their faith spontaneously—it should be nurtured in the natural soil of their native thinking. This alone will help them to stand on their own legs and be fruitful in their lives. Christianity may present itself as rich milk, but a fish cannot survive in milk, though it is also a liquid. In the same way the followers of Christ cannot survive in Christianity. They should remove their own scum and froth by remaining in their natural communities as Hindu Christ Bhaktas. They have to maintain this dual identity[56] even though it requires an ongoing struggle.
Remaining within one’s community is the best way to witness to one’s family members, and it is a person’s birthright to remain there.[57] A person’s identity becomes a witness and when they claim to be a Hindu Christ Bhakta this speaks volumes about their faith and practices. Their experience and lifestyle will begin to speak without any hindrances. Dayanand writes:
…the reason for us to keep our Hindu identity is to take the gospel inside our respective communities as leaven in the dough. This is possible when our own people realize that following Christ does not mean changing allegiance.[58]
Growth at assigned places
Hindu Christ Bhaktas can be compared to the gentile movement of the early church. The Judean Christians wanted the gentile Christians to fulfill the Mosaic traditions, which was unnatural for the gentiles (Acts 15). Paul and Barnabas, however, did not allow the gentiles to become Jews. Similarly, Hindu Christ Bhaktas need not to become Christians in the traditional Christian sense. They can be followers of Christ like the gentiles of the early church.
The apostle Paul writes in I Corinthians 7:17 (NIV), “Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches.” Hindu Christ Bhaktas are assigned to stay in their Hindu communities and should not leave these communities.
Paul sent Epaphras back to the Colossian church (Colossians 1:7) from Rome. He did not force him to follow Jewish Christianity. Similarly, Philip baptized the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:26-40) who then went home to Ethiopia. He was not compelled to join Judaistic Christianity. Hindu Christ Bhaktas should follow this pattern in India.
Church history reveals that church growth mainly took place through the involvement of lay people. Hindu Christ Bhaktas should be viewed as a God-given movement, which will bring growth, though it is not to be treated as another evangelistic strategy. It is a parallel movement to the church. The concept of church is very wide and can refer to small groups of people meeting together. So when Hindu Christ Bhaktas meet together they become a church, a church outside the organized church.
2.10.3 Dayanand: A Hindu Christ Bhakta who proclaims Christ through the singing of bhajans
Dayanand has come a long way, and his views and practices are based on his own reflections upon his experiences and observations. He is very Christo-centric. His devotion to Christ as the Lord of his life is obvious. In this he differs from both Parekh, who tended to become quite syncretistic, and Subba Rao, who tended to become eclectic and monistic. Coming from a saivite background, bhakti is his major focus and he refers to himself as a bhakta. He attempts to relate his bhakti heritage with his experience of Christ and he writes poems, which reflect the bhakti literature of his heritage. In this he is very similar to Tilak (cf. ch. 2.5) , who wrote many bhakti songs in Marathi language. He appeals to people to make Christian worship relevant to those who come to worship, using songs with Indian tunes, Indian musical instruments, sitting on the floor and singing bhajans.
Dayanand attempts to find solutions to the problems faced by Hindu Christ bhaktas. He explains things from both the Hindu perspective and his understanding of Christian viewpoints, accepting the weaknesses of both viewpoints, and openly declaring that there are no easy answers. He also encourages a dialogue between the scriptures of the religions and the context of Hindu Christ Bhaktas, while advocating that decisions be made according to the situation, keeping a person’s relationships in mind.
Dayanand has an earnest desire to see high caste and educated Indians becoming followers of Christ. He tells his Hindu friends that they have to seek after the truth sincerely and earnestly. In the changing context of an increasingly materialistic and money-oriented India, Hindus have to maintain their spiritual and social ethics, which he considers to be fast deteriorating. He sincerely works among Hindu Christ Bhaktas, spending time with them, helping them, thinking with them and enabling them to keep their faith commitment. Through them he has access to their parents and relatives and witnesses to them also. They find him approachable and he helps them in whatever ways he can.
Dayanand accepts that there is no uniform pattern to follow. The approaches and methods he proposes are applicable only in some contexts. He is very clear that the low castes and outcastes do need the church, but he would like the churches to be free from Western domination in all aspects, and to indigenize themselves so as to become truly Indian. He pleads for the unity of Christians and urges them not to fight over doctrines, traditions and denominations.
Dayanand would like Indian Christians to study Indian religions with an open mind and to build concrete and life-long, committed and sympathetic relationships with people following them, going beyond the motives of conversion. Those who come to faith commitment should be allowed to practice their faith within their family and community, and should not be plucked out and sent off for full time ministry. Each congregation should develop its own leadership and there should be very little control from distant headquarters. The gap between lay people and the ordained clergy should be minimized. There should be opportunities for all church members to exercise their gifts and talents and to contribute to the well-being of the local congregation. Educating the congregation is very important: each local congregation should sincerely strive for a true spirit of fellowship in its midst rather than just coming together to see the “worship drama” going on for two to three hours each Sunday.
Dayanand takes up real issues like women wearing pottu, the worship of images, family pujas and festivals, receiving prasad (food received by the devotees in the Hindu temples after worship), marrying someone from another religious faith and funeral rites. He grapples with these issues and, while he does not claim to have all the answers, he invites both Hindu Christ Bhaktas and church members to face such issues squarely and to find answers together.
While attempting to do all these things Dayanand has a very negative attitude toward evangelical Christianity, full-time ministry and Christian missions in general. He has no appreciation for anything in Christianity except Christ. Because of this many Christians have developed an aversion to him. In the process he has lost the opportunity to correct some of the pitfalls of Indian Christianity. He stands as an outsider and is not able to work with sincere Christians who are sympathetic to his approaches. While he emphasizes the need for maintaining good relationships with the Hindu community, he fails to do this with the Christian community. In this he has forgotten the examples of some of his predecessors like Chenchiah. His writings also tend to be reactionary rather than constructively facilitating the correction of the problems he addresses.
Most of the issues Dayanand takes up have already been discussed by most of the earlier theologians. Upadhyay, Parekh, and Chenchiah gave similar definitions to Dayanand for the word “Hindu,” but the fact that even after 100 years the confusion persists shows the complexity of the matter. Most people in India do not think of being “Hindu” as cultural and social but not religious. For them, when one claims to be a Hindu one should follow Hindu rituals and worship, though there is nothing wrong in going to a church. The word is very syncretistic and not as neat and clear as Dayanand and his friends maintain. Their understanding may be good for discussion but not for practical expression. This is why Hindus who become followers of Christ find it extremely difficult to be known as Hindus. [As a Christian you have to write only like this. But in our identity and understanding we are very clear. The Christian will never understand and accept this. But our concern is not about their understanding but our birth right identity within our society and in this we are biblical.—db]
Dayanand has been experimenting [No. We are actually living] with all his proposals, but he has made very little progress. His friends Kannan and Saradha[59] in Erode told the present writer that these are only attempts. There are very few models available and the breakthrough in this pattern is yet to take place [In fact there are several break through that is happening. One of my shishyas from Rewa who moved back to his native place recently called and told that more than 65 people are following and worshipping the Lord as Hindus. They received deeksha even have regular weekly gathering. But as we don’t want to make such movements as promotional points, we rarely share such information to others, particularly to the Christian. Recently I met around 200 such Hindu Christ bhaktas in North India and I shared in their sat-sangh. I even tell to such Hindu bhaktas of Muktinath, ‘let the Christians not know about us. If they know, then will come and began to start their own denomination by stealing the sheeps.’—db] However, there are still lessons to learn from him with regard to taking care of the first generation Christians, learning from Hindus Scriptures and traditions, and finding culturally-relevant worship patterns.
2.10.4 Summary and evaluation
Dayanand has moved from the context of the believing Christian community (though he never joined the church) to the periphery, but continues to proclaim the Lordship of Christ as a Hindu Christ Bhakta. He came to know the Lord through missionaries and was baptized on the mission field, so he did not have an opportunity to get to know the established church. He went through missionary training and was sent to the mission field soon after his faith-commitment and baptism. His experiences on the mission field with other missionaries from a traditional Christian background made him move further away from the established church. Finally he ended up as a facilitator, seeking to form believing communities away from the established church.
Dayanand himself acknowledges that the path he has chosen for himself and other Hindu Christ Bhaktas is very dangerous. But the church is equally dangerous for Hindu Christ Bhaktas. A Hindu Christ Bhakta can easily become syncretistic or pluralistic if not sufficient care is taken. The churches, however, are too reluctant to change their approaches and to help Hindu Christ Bhaktas. Though it is a parallel movement outside the organized church, it is part of the wider church. The Indian churches have a responsibility to give attention to the phenomenon. They cannot afford to ignore it. There needs to be dialogue, interaction and learning from one another. This would lead to a fruitful relationship, and to mutual enrichment and help.
Dayanand sincerely attempts to do things by revealing his faith commitment to Jesus Christ, but he has received very little sympathy from the church. He discusses real-life issues and tries to find answers to problems for which not many have found any alternatives. This needs to continue, but it should be done in cooperation and dialogue with the Christian community. In this regard the book Living Water and Indian Bowl (2001),he has published is very helpful and, at the same time, too critical and poorly organized. The history of the church goes on and it is time for the church to stop and take stock of the situation. As there was an Upadhyay 100 years ago, there will be more Dayanands in the days to come. The organized church has to interact with followers of Christ outside the church, past, present and future.
We were very encouraged that this man Jeyaraj finally wrote to you and sent the copy of what he’d written. Better late than never. What is he actually proposing to do with his thesis? If it’s to be published, where and by whom? In light of that, do you feel that it will
have any negative impact on you personally and your ministry (i.e. for who you are, your history and pilgrimage, to be made much more public; as well as for the security of bhaktas being left alone and not hassled by either Christian or Hindus)?
A few comments on what Jeyeraj has written and your responses (Linda will
send hers later):
p. 7 of “biography by Jeyeraj” (the corrected document): You might not
mention “The School of Hindu Studies” in order to keep that work from
possibly being targeted by militant groups as merely part of Christian
missionary training. You could just leave it with YWAM and then say “except
for rare occasions with sympathetic friends” or something like that.
p. 8: You added the sentence “His mother who stayed with him for six to
eight months since 2000, from 2008 moved to stay with him permanently.” You
might also include part of what you recently wrote to us: ” I too want to
serve her not because it is my duty (dharma) as a son; nor as my
responsibility (in fact as a sannyasi I don’t have such responsibility), but
for the sake of sheer joy of serving my mother I am happy that she is back
with me.”
p. 15: I really like the points you made on p. 15. We sincerely hope he
includes at least some of that. (But, again, we’re always concerned about
bhaktas being protected from both Christians and militant Hindus.)
Hope this helps.
Shanti,
Brian
Dear Jeyaraj,
Shanti!
The following is the comment from one of my friends and well wisher.1 I too have to agree with him on the point of not mentioning School of Hindu Studies’. So don’t mention it and leave it with YAWAM and what he has said, “except for rare occasions with sympathetic friends” or something like that.
I am sending his entire comments below for you to read and consider. The general opinion of my friends and shsiyas is that though I allowed you to use my case study for your thesis, if you intend to publish it as a book, then it is better for the future of this movement for you could drop me from it. I too personally don’t like anyone to write about me in any book. When I gave my consent for your thesis, I never thought that you will publish your thesis as a book. If I ever knew about it or if you have mentioned about it, I would have never allowed you to use me for your thesis even. So consider the common view and considering the nature of the church and mission in India, even if hundred such thesis or book come, nothing is going to change but add one more such book for the library and for some one to do the research in future. I hope you will understand our view and honor it.
Regarding what I wrote about your comment on ‘no break through’ about stealing the sheep of Hindu bhaktas of the Lord, it actually happened. I don’t want to mention the name of the place, but I myself saw it. In one place, the local Christian leader, told the few Hindu bhaktas who regularly gather in the house, that they should go to the church. And when some of them said that actually they gather every week and even some time in week days to worship in that house, he said, ‘but that is not a church. A house can never be a church. So you should come to the church’. So in order to safe guard his mandali, that man went and even registered his house mandali as a church. (We all know the common attitude of a Hindu’s reverence to any temple including to that of the Christian temple, viz., the church building). When he told this, I said, ‘you gave money to the govt. to call you as a Christians. Whereas you claim that you never became a Christian and to prove this you even show your certificates in which you still remain a Hindu’. For this he has no answer. So in order to save his mandali from the Pastor who belongs to a ‘INSTITITUION’ he has to go against his own conscience. But the tragedy in it is that his own mandali people did know any of this.
If you doubt this, go and enquire what is happening to the converts in Malto area where FMPB established several churches, where I too worked for several years.. FMPB handover the churches to ECI. But now all kinds of denominations have entered there. The tragedy in it will be that soon one denomination will restrict its member not have marital relationship with another denomination church (Brethren vs. Pentecostal etc.), whereas all the converts belongs to the same tribe. So far they all lived as one social group, but now the denominational church entered there to divide the people on their personal agenda.
If you want I can give more concrete evidence. Such things frustrate people like us. Some Christians don’t want to believe what all I said. When one Christian asked me how many ‘converts’, viz., Hindu bhaktas of Christ I have, I said, ‘I don’t know. Because we never keep any register. We believe in multiplication but not through one individual or church but as a movement.’ For this he said, ‘why should I believe this’? In response I said, ‘Thanks. I don’t want you or any Christian to believe me. The more they don’t believe what all I say and do, that is good for us. We don’t want you to know about us. We don’t want your support, your money’ and finally slowly but taking each word separately I said seeing his eyes ‘WE -DON’T- WANT- EVEN- YOUR- PRAYERS’. This really shocked him. But this is what I strongly believe. And that is why many people like you don’t know what actually happening. And may God continue to protect us from the ecclesiastically organized and Institutionally Christianized Churchianity’.
And if you drop me if you publish your thesis as a book then it will safe guard not only me but several bhaktas of the Lord. NEVER MISS SUCH A CHANCE TO SERVE THE KINGDOM OF GOD AND NOT TO SERVE THE DENOMINATION CHURCHES.
Db
Gurukulam, May 16, 2009
1. We were very encouraged that this man Jeyaraj finally wrote to you and sent the copy of what he’d written. Better late than never. What is he actually proposing to do with his thesis? If it’s to be published, where and by whom? In light of that, do you feel that it will
have any negative impact on you personally and your ministry (i.e. for who you are, your history and pilgrimage, to be made much more public; as well as for the security of bhaktas being left alone and not hassled by either Christian or Hindus)?
A few comments on what Jeyeraj has written and your responses:
p. 7 of “biography by Jeyeraj” (the corrected document): You might not
mention “The School of Hindu Studies” in order to keep that work from
possibly being targeted by militant groups as merely part of Christian
missionary training. You could just leave it with YWAM and then say “except
for rare occasions with sympathetic friends” or something like that.
p. 8: You added the sentence “His mother who stayed with him for six to
eight months since 2000, from 2008 moved to stay with him permanently.” You
might also include part of what you recently wrote to us: ” I too want to
serve her not because it is my duty (dharma) as a son; nor as my
responsibility (in fact as a sannyasi I don’t have such responsibility), but
for the sake of sheer joy of serving my mother I am happy that she is back
with me.”
p. 15: I really like the points you made on p. 15. We sincerely hope he
includes at least some of that. (But, again, we’re always concerned about
bhaktas being protected from both Christians and militant Hindus.)
Hope this helps.
Shanti,
Dear Jeyaraj,
Shanti!
I read your corrections and the following are some of my comments. Thanks.
db
For example, a person can be a Hindu communist or a Hindu Christian **[Christ bhakta]**.
He appeals to people to make Christian **[Christian? Better church or merely ‘worship’ and leave both ‘Christian and church’]** worship
In this he has forgotten the examples of some of his predecessors like Chenchiah **[But Chenchia became a ‘Christian and therefore he has to appease the Christians community for his survival and identity. So I need not follow his example.].**
This is why Hindus who become followers of Christ find it extremely difficult to be known as Hindus. **[Agreed. But we are not expected to live with a neat and clear understanding of any term in life. For example the word ‘Christian’ and ‘Christianity’ is more confused and syncretistic, not only in India, but in the entire world. When Christians have the liberty and even right to live with that identity and term with all the confusion and syncretism, why we alone are questioned and challenged?]**
[1] In Tamil culture one should be addressed with the first name, so from here onwards he will be referred to as Dayanand.
[2] The author is grateful to the friends of Swami Dayanand Bharati for their time and availability. The names of his friends are not published due to security reasons. They are referred to as friends of Dayanand.
[3] Trichy was earlier known as Trichinopoly or Trichirapalli. It is a big town 300 kilometers away from Chennai in the southwest direction.
[4] Virudhachalam is a small town on the railway line from Chennai to Trichy.
[5] In India, certain jobs and seats in the colleges are reserved for some underprivileged people and high caste candidates are not given admission.
[6] Tirupathi is a Hindu pilgrim centre in the southern part of Andhrapradesh very close to the border of Tamilnadu. The temple here is very famous and millions of people visit throughout the year.
[7] The Gayatri Mantra is a prayer offered three times a day among the Brahmins: one before sunrise, one at noon and another before sunset. The routine includes breathing exercises, reciting the Gayatri prayer and a time of quiet contemplation. At midday it includes Surya Namaskaram (worship of sun).
[8] A form of indigenous song.
[9] Shankara, one of the philosophers of Hinduism and the main proponent of advaitic philosophy, wrote many hymns and one of them is Bhajagovindam. It is a hymn in praise of Lord Govinda (Krishna).
[10] All are Tamil poems written in praise of Gods and they are excellent devotional literature.
[11] This is a method of communicating religious truths through songs and stories with music.
[12] Dharmapuri is one of the districts in the Western part of Tamilnadu.
[13] Friends Missionary Prayer Band (FMPB)is one of the largest indigenous missionary movements in India, founded through follow-up fellowship meetings of Vacation Bible School teachers.
[14] Religious meetings with Gurus where there is singing and discourses with music.
[15] Periamalai is a village on the mountain in the district of Dharmapuri, where FMPB missionaries were working among the tribal people.
[16] Swami Vivekananda propagated the theory of “Nishkaamyakarma,” which is doing service without expecting any reward for the work done.
[17] Swami Vivekananda founded the Ramakrishna Mission to propagate the teachings of his Guru Swami Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and advaitic philosophy. The Mission undertakes huge philanthropic activities.
[18] Tirupparaitturai is a small village in the Trichy district of Tamilnadu.
[19] Rev. G. S. Mohan was a follower of Christ from a Brahmin family who worked as a Methodist pastor after his theological education. At this time he was working as director of finance for Bethel Agricultural Fellowship at Danishpet, about 70 kilometers away from Marandahalli. Bethel Agricultural Fellowship is a trust taking care of poor, orphan and marginalized children and it was financially supported by a Dutch foundation, namely, “Save a Child Foundation.” Apart from the children’s ministry it also had mission outreach programs around the villages of Danishpet. Those who became followers of Christ through its outreach ministry were either brought to Danishpet or Marandahalli for a spiritual retreat and baptism. Such meetings were called “Jesus’ family.” The staff at Danishpet mainly carried out the ministries with students of the Bible institute, “Bethel Bible Institute.” Later Dayanand studied here for a year and did the same ministry.
[20] Cuddalore is a large town and district headquarters in the state of Tamilnadu.
[21] Gideonites meetings are regularly conducted by FMPB for three days during the holidays. There were Bible studies, challenges about the great commission, prayer for mission work in India and devotions based on missionary biographies. Missionaries from the mission field would share their experiences and challenges. The FMPB motto is “Go or Send.” The assembled congregation would be challenged to go or send someone on their behalf and to give financial support.
[22] Karur is a town near Trichy.
[23] FMPB missionaries were trained here before they went to the mission field.
[24] Danishpet is the headquarters of Bethel Agricultural Fellowship (BAF), which was earlier the headquarters for the missionary work of the Danish mission. It is found on the main railway line from Chennai to Coimbatore.
[25] Traditional way of singing and sharing the gospel message using an Indian musical instrument
[26] This is one of the leading Evangelical seminaries, situated in the state of Maharashtra. The seminary has now shifted from Yavatmal to Pune, within the same state.
[27] Yavatmal is a small town in the southeastern part of Maharashtra state.
[28] Uttar Pradesh is the largest state in India. Gonda is found in the eastern part.
[29] Hindi is the national language and the state language of Uttar Pradesh, but most South Indians have very little knowledge of Hindi.
[30] Madhubani is a town in North Bihar.
[31] Operation Mobilization India is one of the largest missionary organizations in India, with more than 2500 workers around India. Its main work has been evangelism through teams of men and women, who distribute literature, show films, do personal evangelism, visit house-to-house and form fellowship groups. OM runs a large training program for national workers and its church-planting division has more than 2500 Churches. It is also involved with educational activities and runs about 65 schools. The literature division, OM Books, is the largest Christian literature-distributing agency in Asia.
[32] YCLT was established as a missionary training college when UBS relocated to Pune.
[33] Rewa is a town in the northeastern part of that state.
[34] Hosur is an industrial town in Tamil Nadu. It is 50 kms away from the city of Bangalore.
[35] In 2007, he moved to live in a village called Thally (25 kilometers from Hosur). With the help of his supporters and disciples he has constructed a Gurukulum (house for learning).
[36] Dayanand has published another book: Understanding Hinduism and Living Dialogue (2005).
[37] Dayanand Bharati, “Praise and Worship,” The Songs of Dayanand Bharati (unpublished), 1981, p.2.
[38] Bharati, “Come Down,” The Songs of Dayanand Bharati (unpublished), 1981, p.2.
[39] Bharati, “I am Worshipping You,” The Songs of Dayanand Bharati (unpublished), 1985, p.3.
[40] Bharati, “There,” The Songs of Dayanand Bharati (unpublished), 1985, p.3.
[41] Bharati, “After Resurrection,” The Songs of Dayanand Bharati (unpublished), 1997, p.30.
[42] Bharati, “Following Jesus,” The Songs of Dayanand Bharati (unpublished), 1997, p.30.
[43] Bharati, “Your Will is Needed,” The Songs of Dayanand Bharati (unpublished), 1998, p.32.
[44] Dayanand Bharati, Living Water and Indian Bowl, Delhi, 2004 (revised edition), p.42, cited from Gita18.63.
[45] This is the Holy Communion service among the Hindu Christ Bhaktas held in their own indigenous way. They have their own meetings for worship and Bible study called Satsangs and during which they celebrate “Mahaprasadam.” Some Christian denominations also use this term for Holy Communion.
[46] Bharati, The European Captivity of Indian Believers, unpublished paper, September 1992.
[47] Informal meetings for mutual fellowship.
[48] Such as celebrating Christmas or Easter, or singing hymns with organs rather than using indigenous resources.
[49] Bharati, In Their Image Biblically Unbiblical, unpublished paper, November 1995.
[50] Bharati, “Conversion is the confusion,” Forest Sound, Volume 2, no. 3, September–December 1998, p.3
[51] Bharati, Living Water and Indian Bowl, p.44.
[52] Translated by the writer. Bharati, “Church or Street Gathering,” Forest Sound, Volume 2, no. 1, January-April 1998, p.6.
[53] Bharati, “Conversion is the Confusion,” Voice of Bhakti, Volume 1, no. 1, February 2002, pp.1-2.
[54] Bharati, Living Water and Indian Bowl, p.52.
[55] Ibid., p.54.
[56] Identity in the Hindu community and identity in Christ.
[57] Bharati, Living Water and Indian Bowl, p.54.
[58] Ibid.
[59] Kannan and Saradha work among the followers of Christ outside the church.
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