Certain high caste (higher social standing) individuals made a living off of aiding and abetting exploitative colonial leaders and their descendants today aspire to do the same. There are also some Indians who are Christians (often ones who’s families were converted in the colonial era, not in ancient times) who feel that brings them closer to more the more regressive white people that run the US now.
Its a fascinating relationship but doesn’t how Indians in general feel towards rising white supremacy in the US. For every bobby jindal there are 5 ro khannas.
Colonial Portugese Catholic missionaries attempted an inquisition on Kerala Christians via the Synod of Diamper in 1599 which failed, culminating in the Coonan (Crooked) Cross Oath in 1653, the peoples rejection of Western Catholic imposition upon their beliefs and traditions.
To their credit, Anglican (British) missionaries did not attempt to force conversion. In fact they were pivotal to translating the Bible into the local language (Malayalam).
Kerala Christians were largely converted by Syrian missionaries in the 4th century based on archeological records.
Its interesting because many in North India and other Hindus in India associated Indian Christianity with aquiescence to colonial tyranny but there is a rich history that predates that predates colonists.
An Indian friend whose family was Christian said that it used to really cook other kids brains when they would ask him what Caste he was and he’d say he didn’t have one
They would have had one prior to conversion. Social stratification is not an easy thing to shake off and was codified during the colonial era as European powers strongly believed in hierarchies, especially racial / colorist ones. The British in particular gave institutional power to those that were higher caste and criminalized those that were lower caste in a way that was not common prior to that era.
I am familiar with several South Indian Christian communities and there is no persistence of caste there though social stratification does it exist as it does universally.
Certain high caste (higher social standing) individuals made a living off of aiding and abetting exploitative colonial leaders and their descendants today aspire to do the same. There are also some Indians who are Christians (often ones who’s families were converted in the colonial era, not in ancient times) who feel that brings them closer to more the more regressive white people that run the US now.
Its a fascinating relationship but doesn’t how Indians in general feel towards rising white supremacy in the US. For every bobby jindal there are 5 ro khannas.
Kerala (southern-most state in India) is about 20% Christian and the community dates to long before the arrival of the British.
Colonial Portugese Catholic missionaries attempted an inquisition on Kerala Christians via the Synod of Diamper in 1599 which failed, culminating in the Coonan (Crooked) Cross Oath in 1653, the peoples rejection of Western Catholic imposition upon their beliefs and traditions.
To their credit, Anglican (British) missionaries did not attempt to force conversion. In fact they were pivotal to translating the Bible into the local language (Malayalam).
Kerala Christians were largely converted by Syrian missionaries in the 4th century based on archeological records.
Its interesting because many in North India and other Hindus in India associated Indian Christianity with aquiescence to colonial tyranny but there is a rich history that predates that predates colonists.
As a Louisiana citizen, fuck Bobby Jindal.
An Indian friend whose family was Christian said that it used to really cook other kids brains when they would ask him what Caste he was and he’d say he didn’t have one
If they lived in India, I’m pretty sure they still had one even if they didn’t acknowledge it.
They would have had one prior to conversion. Social stratification is not an easy thing to shake off and was codified during the colonial era as European powers strongly believed in hierarchies, especially racial / colorist ones. The British in particular gave institutional power to those that were higher caste and criminalized those that were lower caste in a way that was not common prior to that era.
I am familiar with several South Indian Christian communities and there is no persistence of caste there though social stratification does it exist as it does universally.
Interesting. Most of them still inherit their caste even after conversion, maybe it gets diluted with passing generations