{"id":55777,"date":"2016-06-20T08:00:33","date_gmt":"2016-06-20T15:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=55777"},"modified":"2016-06-20T08:00:33","modified_gmt":"2016-06-20T15:00:33","slug":"the-american-missionaries-and-jaffna-tamils","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2016\/06\/20\/the-american-missionaries-and-jaffna-tamils\/","title":{"rendered":"THE AMERICAN MISSIONARIES AND JAFFNA TAMILS"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

The \u2018American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions\u2019 originated in 1810 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Several different churches such as the Presbyterian and Dutch Reformed Church participated in it. The Board\u00a0\u00a0 was in touch with the British missionary societies too.\u00a0 By the 1830s is had developed into a huge organization with many branches and a worldwide network. It was\u00a0\u00a0 meticulously organized and\u00a0\u00a0 fairly satisfactorily underwritten. Its objective was to spread Christianity worldwide by creating local churches that would be self-governing, self-supporting and self-propagating, no longer needing missionaries.\u00a0 Between 1813 and 1903\u00a0 the Board\u00a0 sent missions to\u00a0 Angola, Borneo, Bulgaria, China, Czechoslovakia, Greece, \u00a0Hawaii, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Micronesia ,Persia,\u00a0 Philippines, South Africa, West Africa, \u00a0Spain, Sri Lanka ,Sumatra, Syria , Thailand, Turkey \u00a0\u00a0and\u00a0 also to\u00a0 the\u00a0 American Indians \u00a0in the USA.<\/p>\n

The very first mission sent by the American Board was to Bombay in 1813. The second was to Jaffna in 1816, on the recommendation of the Bombay missionaries. Jaffna was selected due to its proximity to the Coromandel Coast (south east coast) of South India.\u00a0\u00a0 Native preachers and teachers from India and Ceylon were to be trained in Jaffna \u00a0\u00a0and sent to start missions in India. Accordingly, a mission was established in Madurai (1834) by Daniel Poor, one of the American missionaries in Jaffna with the help of three Jaffna Tamil Christians. One was Francis Ashbury. A second mission was set up in Madras (1836). <\/em><\/p>\n

The American Board dominated the missionary scene in Jaffna. It worked in 17 of the 32 Jaffna parishes, while the Church Missionary Society (CMS) was in ten parishes and Wesleyan mission in three parishes. Rev. J. Knight, the first CMS representative in Jaffna started his work in 1818 at Nallur. He found it difficult at the start, since he was treated as a low caste or outcaste. By 1834 American Board had missions in Batticaloa, Manipay, Uduvil, Pandatharippu, Tellipallai and Chavakachcheri with two \u2018native\u2019 stations at Varani and Udupiddy and\u00a0 British Governor Horton said that London had given permission for more American missionaries to come . \u00a0In 1838 there were 7 stations and 6 outstations with about 500 converts.\u00a0 The Tellipallai church was successfully burned down in August 1834, after a failed attempt in July.<\/p>\n

The American mission also provided a health service in Manipay and some medical training but its greatest success was in secondary education. The American Mission was the earliest and most enterprising pioneer of western education in Ceylon. In 1816 itself they started two native free schools. Within five years, the\u00a0\u00a0 five principal stations, Tellipallai, Uduvil, Manipay, Vaddukoddai and Pandatharippu had large boarding schools.\u00a0 In 1822 there were\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 42 schools with 1800 pupils. In 1824 there were 90 primary schools. Pupils learnt Christianity, English, Tamil grammar and geography. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Tuition was free. Donors in the USA\u00a0\u00a0 sent the money needed for the pupils and the pupils took on the names of the donors. Sinnatamby Saravanamuttu became E. Cornelius, Saravanamuttu Murugasu became Gerard H Hallock, Valauthar Sidemparapillai became David Riggs, Antho Simon became Ira Gould and Kathiraser Periatamby became Joshua Danforth.<\/p>\n

The Jaffna schools excelled over all others set up abroad said the Board at its Annual General Meeting in Boston in 1834.\u00a0 (AR 1834) The pupils were so promising that the mission had established Batticotta seminary, Vaddukoddai for the boys (1823) and Uduvil for girls (1834). Batticotta seminary\u00a0\u00a0 predated Christian College, Kotte (1827) and Royal College (1836). It brought together the best pupils from the boarding schools at Manipay, Tellipallai, Uduvil, and Vaddukoddai. They were mainly Vellala caste. They were taught in English and Tamil. Two thirds of the time in English, one third in Tamil. Period of study was six years.\u00a0 Subjects were Christianity, English language and literature, Tamil language and literature, Sanskrit, \u00a0\u00a0mathematics, native arithmetic, European and Hindu\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 astronomy, geography, history and chemistry.<\/p>\n

A total of 12 American missionaries taught at Batticotta with the assistance of native teachers, who at any given time did not exceed five. The American missionaries had university degrees \u00a0\u00a0and some\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 taught in American universities before or after their period\u00a0\u00a0 of service in Jaffna. Pupils\u2019 expenses were looked after by American patrons in the USA who made yearly donations of not less than twenty dollars.\u00a0\u00a0 The pupils took on the names of these donors.<\/p>\n

Martyn (1923) observed that Batticotta seminary had a laboratory with modern equipment and a museum which displayed the geology of Ceylon. In addition to the ordinary branches of learning, the school taught \u2018all the higher departments of mathematical and physical science\u2019.\u00a0 Tennent said In 1848\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018The pupils when tested showed great knowledge and Batticotta is entitled to rank with many an European University\u2019 \u00a0Batticotta was set up to train preachers and teachers and the full training, collegiate and professional, took ten years. The Board wished to set up a degree awarding theological institute but the British government refused permission. Batticotta produced good Christians and excellent Tamil scholars, such as C.M. Thamotharampillai. Several Batticotta pupils were effective abroad, in Madras and elsewhere.\u00a0 Batticotta closed in 1855.<\/p>\n

Batticotta Seminary marked the start of modern education in Jaffna.\u00a0 Uduvil Girls School was free up to 1852. It was the first girls boarding school in Asia.\u00a0 Drieberg College, Chavakachcheri was established in 1875.\u00a0 They also set up teacher training colleges, such as Kopay Christian teachers college. Other Christian missions also set up schools in Jaffna region. This led to the creation of a highly educated and professionally qualified community of Tamil Christians. The CMS set up St John\u2019s College, Jaffna (1823) and Chundikuli girls school (1841). Methodist Mission started Hartley College, Point Pedro (1838) and Vembadi girls high school. (1837).<\/p>\n

Catholic Church had St Patrick\u2019s College, Jaffna. (1850). St Patrick\u2019s had surveying, leveling, architecture, mechanical drawing and typewriting classes in 1901, fully equipped science labs in 1911, powerhouse and workshop in 1913 and\u00a0 new chemistry laboratory in 1914. Holy Family Convent Jaffna (1845) was run by French nuns from 1862. \u00a0St Xavier\u2019s girl\u2019s college, Mannar (1870) by Good Shepherd nuns. \u00a0Rambaikulam Girls maha vidyalam, Vavuniya was established in 1890 for Catholic children. K.M. de Silva observed that the missionary societies were much stronger in Jaffna and its environs in the 19th century than elsewhere in the island\u00a0\u00a0 and their network of schools was run far more efficiently.<\/p>\n

Jaffna College started in 1872as successor to Batticotta at the urging of Batticotta alumni. The upper class Tamils wanted to sit the Indian University exams.\u00a0 Jaffna College taught Tamil, Latin, English, Indian history and the history of Rome and Greece \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Jaffna College was affiliated to Calcutta University\u00a0\u00a0 in 1891 and to Madras University in 1907. In 1921 London University Intermediate classes were started. From its very inception, Jaffna College had no corporal punishment.\u00a0 Over 20% of the teachers were from South India, mostly Kerala and they taught the sciences. \u00a0\u00a0Jaffna College had pupils from Malaysia, Singapore and even two from Uganda. The College had several Sinhalese students from the south and an occasional Muslim student. In the 1920s when the Gandhian movement was ascendant in India and Jaffna Youth congress had been founded Jaffna College pupils\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 started to wear \u2018national dress\u2019. (Silan Kadirgamar, 2013)<\/p>\n

The American Mission used the Fabricius translation of the Bible and provided a Bible based on this in simple Tamil. A nascent Tamil Christian literature consisting of lyrics, hymns and books, composed by the Jaffna Tamil Christians started to emerge. Tamil scholar Arnold Sathasivampillai, a student of Batticotta, composed over\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 500 Christian devotional songs. The missionaries spoke fluent Tamil. This was essential otherwise they could not communicate with the Jaffna people. They\u00a0\u00a0 prepared books on Christian theology explained in Tamil.<\/p>\n

The Christian missions in Jaffna were able to create a body of staunch Christians. Roberts (2011) stated that judging by the undergraduates at Peradeniya University, (probably\u00a0\u00a0 1950s) Tamil Christians in Sri Lanka were more strongly religious than the Sinhala Christians.\u00a0 A few embodied a depth of religious faith that was quite exceptional, he said. Missionaries had encouraged the Christians to marry\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 each other. It was observed that \u2018If you look deep enough you would find that all Tamil Christians are related\u2019. (Gunasekera \u2018Chosen ground\u2019 p 79).<\/p>\n

The American mission\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 was able to create a Tamil Christian community which felt distinct and separate. Converts took on American names. Cyrus Kingsbury (b. 1808) was originally Gurunather Vayiravi. When he converted to Christianity he took on the name of an American missionary who was working with American Indians in the USA. The link with South India was maintained. When the Church of South India, a united church<\/a> of Anglicans, Presbyterians, and other Protestants, started in 1947, Jaffna became a diocese of the Church of South India.<\/p>\n

The Christian missionaries faced the usual problem of converts reverting to their earlier religion. When Jaffna Christians went to Madras for further study, they found that in Madras Christians were considered low caste. This induced them to abandon Christianity.\u00a0\u00a0 The American Mission therefore tried to prevent its students going for advanced studies to Madras as they were then reconverted to Saivism there.<\/p>\n

Unlike in Sinhala areas, where, in the initial period, changes of religion were accepted, with resignation (grandmother Buddhist, grandson Christian), in the Jaffna Tamil community this has led to clashes both ways.\u00a0 C.A. Thamotharampillai\u2019s father, Cyrus Kingsbury was a first- generation Christian. \u00a0Thamotharampillai\u00a0\u00a0 therefore started off as Christian. He then went to Madras, converted to Saivism and became virulently anti-Christian. His son Francis reverted to Christianity and became virulently anti Hindu. He even refused to officiate at a Hindu funeral.\u00a0 Neelan Thiruchelvam, Devanesan Nesiah and S.R.N. Hoole are descendants of Cyrus Kingsbury, (Hoole 1997) so the mix of Christian and Hindu has continued, but probably without the acrimony of the earlier generation. \u00a0Published in Island 2016.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS The \u2018American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions\u2019 originated in 1810 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Several different churches such as the Presbyterian and Dutch Reformed Church participated in it. The Board\u00a0\u00a0 was in touch with the British missionary societies too.\u00a0 By the 1830s is had developed into a huge organization with many branches […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-55777","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55777","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55777"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55777\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55777"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55777"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55777"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}