Approaching the West — Page 4
A pproaching the West—4 in 1814. Later, non-British missionaries were also granted permission to establish their missions in India. The missions received grants-in-aid for educational purposes from endowments established by the British government and even by some local States. In the 19th century, Christian missions became so numerous and diverse in India that they were a noteworthy feature of the British Empire. The missionaries were aggressively engaged in attacking Isl ā m and other native religions, and prominent British statesmen announced that the British sovereignty was God’s work to redeem the whole of India and to find its salvation in Jesus Christ. Moreover, Western influence was reaching India through the British public education system which was initiated in 1854 by Sir Charles Wood (later, Lord Halifax), and many primary, secondary and high schools were established. Superior education was mainly given in English. Universities with affiliated colleges were functioning in Calcutta, Madras, Bombay and the Punjab, exposing young minds of Muslims and Hindus and other native Indians to Western sciences, arts and philosophies for their “mental and moral progress. ” Among educational institutions, mission schools and colleges were run by Christian functionaries and missionaries with the hope to use the institutions as factotums to promote Christianity. In addition, anti-Isl ā mic literature was being profusely produced by Christian scholars and missionaries. The reputable British Universities of Cambridge and Oxford were not only sending missionaries to India, they were busy preparing apologetic material to prove the superiority of Western civilization over the oriental cultures and religions.