After tracing the early Christian presence in India and discussing the nature of the caste system, this chapter profiles individuals—well-known upper-caste nineteenth-century converts from Hinduism. As in China, the missionary presence in India was a necessary but not sufficient factor in Christianity’s spread. Missionaries initiated the first conversions, but within a generation or two, Indian Christians became the primary instruments for the spread of the gospel. Communication never flowed in one direction, from missionary to Indians. Increasingly, Indians converted on their own terms and adapted Christianity to meet their own particular concerns and to indigenize their faith by separating Christ from the trappings of Western, colonial Christianity. Converts discussed include Krishna Mohan Banerjea, Baba Padmanjee, Krishna Pillai, Narayan Vaman Tilak, Pandita Ramabai, and Brahmabandhab Upadhyay.
Feminist Historiography with special reference of Pandita Ramabai and Tarabai Shinde
