People Movements in the Punjab

Margaret Stock, Frederick Stock

Description

Penned in the mid-1970s, People Movements in the Punjab gives an accurate analysis of the history of the church in the Punjab. After spending 12 years ministering in Pakistan, the authors set about finding the answers to the following questions:

· What caused the church in the Punjab to grow from the 1880s into the first half of the 20th century?

· Which missionary methods were effective, and which were ineffective?

· What segments of society proved responsive?

· Are any of these factors part of the present-day scene?

Based on primary sources, including church and mission records, missionary and national leaders' biographies, and census reports, the author's well-written research provides a profound view of the churches' growth in the Punjab.

The book includes a substantial appendix, "A Brief Comparative Study of Other Churches in Pakistan," which gives a wealth of information. And although this study is based on the growth of the church in Pakistan, the pattern of development and church growth principles apply to scores of areas on the Indian subcontinent as well. This authentic church history has great relevance for the church and her leaders today.

Dedication v

Figures xi

Foreword xv

Preface xix

Introduction 1

Growth of the United Presbyterian Church in Pakistan

Chapter 1: Pioneer (1855-1872)  17

Chapter 2: The Group Movement Among the Meg 33

Chapter 3: The Chuhras 57
Chapter 4: The Chuhra Movements Begins (1873-1880) 64

Chapter 5: Amazing Growth (1881-1891) 68

Chapter 6: Retarded Growth (1891-1899) 102
Chapter 7: Accelerated Growth (1900-1930) 109

Chapter 8: Revival 127

Chapter 9: Self-Support 140

Chapter 10: The “407” Movement 159

Chapter 11: Periods of Decline 163

Chapter 12: Internal Growth (1930-1973) 172

Chapter 13: Pakistani Leadership 184

Chapter 14: Self-Propagation 192

Chapter 15: God’s Answer for Today 209

Chapter 16: Principles Essential for Church-Planting Today 218

Appendix

A Brief Comparative Study of Other Churches in Pakistan

Appendix 1: The Church of Pakistan 234

Appendix 2: The Lahore Church Council (Presbyterian Church, U.S.A) 264

Appendix 3: The Salvation Army 280

Appendix 4: The Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church 281

Appendix 5: The Pentecostal Churches 287

Appendix 6: The Pakistan Mission of the International Foreign Missions Association 289

Appendix 7: The Pakistan Christian Fellowship of the International Christian Fellowship 290

Appendix 8: The Evangelical Alliance Mission 292

Appendix 9: The Indus Christian Fellowship (Conservative Baptist) 295

Appendix 10: The Brethren Church 299

Appendix 11: The Afghan Border Crusade 301

Appendix 12: Worldwide Evangelization Crusade 302

Appendix 13: The Seventh Day Adventists 303

Appendix 14: Missions with Small Churches 306

Appendix 15: Helping or Service Missions 307

Appendix 16: The Roman Catholic Church 309

Summary 321

Bibliography 341

Index 359

Biographic Information 365

Sujets

• Religion
• Christianisme
• Philosophie et théologie
• Hindú
• Pakistán
• Church planting
• Christian Church
• Hindu
• Islam
• History
• Asia
• Pakistan
• India

Informations

• Publié par: William Carey Publishing
• Date de parution: 01 janvier 1975
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781645084822
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 4 Mo

Extrait

Andrew Gordon, first United Presbyterian missionary to the Punjab.
-- from OUR INDIA MISSION

Copyright 1975 by the William Carey Library
All rights reserved,
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner what-soever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
In accord with some of the most recent thinking in the academic press, the William Carey Library is pleased to present this scholarly book which has been prepared from an author-edited and author-prepared camera-ready manuscript.
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Stock, Frederick, 1929-
People movements in the Punjab.
Bibliography: p.
1. Presbyterian Church in Punjab, Pakistan (Province) 2. Missions-Punjab, Pakistan (Province) 3. Sects--Pakistan-Punjab (Province) I. Stock, Margaret, 1929-joint author. II. Title. BX9151.P18S76266'.51'5491474-18408
ISBN978-0-87808-417-3
Published by the William Carey Library 533 Hermosa Street South Pasadena, Calif. 91030 Telephone [phone]
We lovingly dedicate this book to Mom and Dad (Mr. and Mrs. F. J. Stock) who patiently did our housework, carefully proof-read our manuscript and lovingly cared for our five children to make this book possible.
Contents
Dedication
Figures
Foreword
Preface
Introduction
GROWTH OF THE UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH IN PAKISTAN
1. PIONEER PERIOD (1855-1872)
2. THE GROUP MOVEMENT AMONG THE MEGS
3. THE CHUHRAS
4. THE CHUHRA MOVEMENT BEGINS (1873-1880)
5. AMAZING GROWTH (1881-1891)
6. RETARDED GROWTH (1891-1899)
7. ACCELERATED GROWTH (1900-1930)
8. REVIVAL
9. SELF-SUPPORT
10. THE 407 MOVEMENT
11. PERIODS OF DECLINE
12. INTERNAL GROWTH (1930-1973)
13. PAKISTANI LEADERSHIP
14. SELF-PROPAGATION
15. GOD S ANSWER FOR TODAY
16. PRINCIPLES ESSENTIAL FOR CHURCH PLANTING TODAY
APPENDIX
A BRIEF COMPARATIVE STUDY OF OTHER CHURCHES IN PAKISTAN
THE CHURCH OF PAKISTAN
THE LAHORE CHURCH COUNCIL (Presbyterian Church, U.S.A.)
THE SALVATION ARMY
THE ASSOCIATE REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
THE PENTECOSTAL CHURCHES
THE PAKISTAN MISSION OF THE INTERNATIONAL FOREIGN MISSIONS ASSOCIATION
THE PAKISTAN CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP OF THE INTERNATIONAL CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP
THE EVANGELICAL ALLIANCE MISSION
THE INDUS CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP (Conservative Baptist)
THE BRETHREN CHURCH
THE AFGHAN BORDER CRUSADE
WORLDWIDE EVANGELIZATION CRUSADE
THE SEVENTH DAY ADVENTISTS
MISSIONS WITH SMALL CHURCHES
HELPING OR SERVICE MISSIONS
THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
SUMMARY
Bibliography
Index
Biographic Information
Figures
Figure
1 Pakistan and the Indian Subcontinent
2 Punjab Province of Pakistan
3 Population Percentage Distribution by Religions 1961
4 Pakistan
5 Growth of United Presbyterian Communicant Membership 1855-1881
6 Sialkot District, Center of Meg and Early Chuhra Movements
7 A Chronological Chart of the Main Events and Baptisms of the Megs
8 The Web of Kinship Relations in the Four Main Families of the Meg Congregation of Zafarwal Area in 1885
9 Growth of United Presbyterian Communicant Membership 1873-1900
10 Growth Rate of Church and Schools 1881-1891
11 Canal System of the U.P. Area
12 Growth of the U.P. Communicant Membership 1900-1930
13 Presbyteries of the U.P. Church
14 Communicant Membership Growth by Presbytery
15 Religious Movements of the Chuhras 1881-1931
16 U.P. Congregations, Ministers and Missionaries
17 Growth in the Number of Elders the U.P. Church 1887-1957
18 Adult Baptisms by Presbyteries
19 The Growth of Self Support
20 The United Presbyterian Mission Field in India 407 Occupation Map 1920
21 Growth of United Presbyterian Communicant Membership 1930-1971
22 U.P. Church Christian Community and Communicant Membership 1855-1971
23 Church and Mission Comity Map 1973
24 The Church of Pakistan -- Anglican 1850-1968
25 Anglican Scheduled Caste Baptisms 1918-1973
26 The Methodist Church of Pakistan 1873-1968
27 The Sialkot Church Council (Church of Scotland -- Presbyterian) 1857-1970
28 Lahore Church Council 1870-1910 (Presbyterian Church U.S.A.)
29 Lahore Church Council 1870-1970 (Presbyterian Church U.S.A.)
30 The Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church 1910-1968
31 The Church of The International Christian Fellowship 1955-1967
32 Indus Christian Fellowship 1955-1967 (Conservative Baptist)
33 The Seventh Day Adventist Church 1913-1972
34 The Roman Catholic Church 1891-1973
35 Christian Community of Major Churches
36 The Christian Community by Percentage
37 Church Statistics
38 Missionary Societies and Agencies
39 Growth of Major Protestant Churches
40 Growth Rate of Major Protestant Churches
41 Population Growth Rates
42 Religion in the Four Provinces of Pakistan
43 Questionnaire
Foreword
I. In 1974, at least nineteen-twentieths of the members of the Church in Pakistan--Presbyterian, Methodist, Anglican, Baptist, Roman Catholic and Salvation Army--are descendants of men and women who were born Hindus and became Christians in Chuhra people movements from 1880 to 1930. The remaining twentieth is composed of descendants of individual converts from the Muslim, caste Hindu, and European connnunities,
During the last hundred years a Christian population of about 900,000 has been built up. Its top echelons are filled with able men and women--holding positions of responsibility. The middle ranks are composed of peasant farmers of small holdings, mechanics, artizans, petty clerks, servants, and respectable lower class Pakistani citizens. The bottom ranks are made up of Christian sweepers and landless labor, living under difficult conditions. L. Vennnelund s study of the 15,607 Christians in the Northwest Frontier Province sets forth the conditions of these last in distressing detail.
How did this great movement to the Christian faith take place? It was one part of the surging movement out of the Chuhra prison house which took about equal numbers into Islam and into Christianity and a sizeable number into the Sikh faith. But how did the Christian movement develop? This is the story ably told in the following pages.
Some Missions cooperated with the Chuhra people movement. Other Missions resisted, reluctant to include the Chuhras for fear of the effect this might have on the other castes. They felt called to educational work and evangelism among high caste Hindus and Muslims. Partly because of the slowness of the Churches to enter fully into the people movement, more than half the Chuhras ended up in some non-Christian faith. Today, few of the remaining million Depressed Class Hindus have become Christian as yet--though much evidence exists that they are friendly to the idea,
Under these circumstances, it is imperative that the Churches and Missions in Pakistan study carefully the mighty act of God through which nineteen-twentieths of the existing Church has come to be, and apply the lessons learned through that experience to the present situation among the Depressed Classes.
II. The Stocks brilliant book, People Movements in the Punjab, is essential reading for Christian leaders concerned for world evangelism. It should be taught in all Christian colleges and seminaries on the Indian subcontinent, as well as in courses on Missions in the homeland. Such authentic church history has great relevance for the Church and her leaders today.
Here for the first time is an accurate analysis of what really happened in the Punjab. The Stocks have studied the records to good effect, Their story is carefully documented and well told. They portray the sociological and ethnographic background soundly and clearly. Many charts and maps aid understanding. Many myths and rationalizations as to how the Church came into being, vanish into thin air. A clear understandable picture remains.
Moderators, District Superintendents, Bishops, Pastors, Seminary Professors, and Lay Leaders--both men and women--together with the whole missionary contingent on the subcontinent should study this book carefully. Future ecclesiastical and evangelistic policies should be determined in the light of what God has done during the past hundred years and the desperate need of the multitudes He is now calling to discipleship.
The book describes chiefly the growth and development of the United Presbyterian Church, but let this fact deter no one in other Churches from reading it. The development of most other Churches in the Punjab (indeed, in many other parts of the subcontinent as well) is very like that portrayed in this book. Factual data about other Churches is given in the Appendix, As other denominations read People Movements in the Punjab, they will see their own Church long before they come to the Appendix. The book is correctly named, for it was exactly this kind of movement from this same Chuhra people which created the major denominations throughout the Punjab. Christians of any variety can read this book with profit.
III. Readers will develop a new awareness of the winnability of about a million Pakistani citizens of the Depressed Classes who are yet not Christians . This prophetic book illuminates both past and future. The oppressed are still looking for release. God still says:
I have seen the affliction of my people ... and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters; I know their sufferings. I have come down to deliver them ... and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land ... flowing with milk and honey. (Exodus 3:7-8)
God sends His Churches and His missionaries:
... to preach good news to the poor ... release to the captives, recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, and to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. (Luke 4:18)
Like all good church history, People Movements in the Punjab speaks to the contemporary People of God. His voice sounds forth on every page.
Donald McGavran The School of World Missi