The depressed in India raised its head under British Raj

   Although Christianity opposed to the caste system in general, caste divisions were existed in congregations. Christian Brotherhood Association which he organized , opposed caste system  in order to promote Christianity.

 India's first Indian Bishop  V.S. Azariah never accepted the charge that his efforts were not intrinsically unpatriotic.  Christians  and Muslims were disturbed by the symbolic association of Hinduism with the nationalist cause.

 Azariah struggled during his pre Episcopal career to reconcile his Indian  Christian identity  with communal, national and transnational  loyalties of other Christians in YMCA and elsewhere.

 The conversion of Mr. Ramanujam Chetty (high caste Komati caused a great uproar  which resulted in  establishing  Young Men’s  Hindu Association (YMHA).

 In the restaurant of Young Men’s Christian Association in Madras,  men of Highest caste had to sit men of other castes and eat food prepared by a cook who is an outcaste, as far back as 1896.

 Within the walls of the Association, all are equal without distinction of caste or creed whether he was a Brahmin, Sudra ,churchman or a dissenter. All stood  on one platform with feeling of fellowship and equality fostered between all members.

 Whatever the forum, Azariah never compromised his Christian evangelism in the face of resistance.

 At the age of 21, he was placed in charge of YMCA headquarters in Madurai.. He traveled extensively visiting YMCA branches helping to indigenize the YMCA by adjusting its activities to the needs of the smaller towns and villages  where western influence was less pronounced.

 He put before the Christian students the duty of evangelization of India. Azariah argued that conversion to Christianity  promised national as well as individual salvation.

 Indian Missionary Society in Tinnevelly  was formed in 1903 and  National Missionary Society  in 1905.

 Azariah wrote in 1906 to John Mott of the YMCA who won Nobel prize  that India was in great need of literature that used to rouse up missionary interest of the church. We have to study  your methods and adapt them to India. Running a totally Indian church  was something which was discouraged by the Western missionaries. However Azariah managed to establish IMS  (Indian Missionary Society) as far back as 1903.

  Even their models for indigenization  were taken from the western based Christian organization rather than from Hindu based Indian one. IMS has been established in complete isolation from Indian nationalism.

 The NMS restricted the membership to  Indian Christians and forbade solicitation of funds from outside India.. National Missionary Society wanted to evangelize the hitherto untouched parts of  the country through Indian men and women supported by Indian money.

 Many of its founders were generally sympathetic  to the national movement. They were members of a relatively small and elite, western educated group.

 The NMS later adopted a radically indigenous approach contributing to its decline rather than to any greater acceptance in India. The European Advisory Board was dismissed in1920  and the society assumed a vernacular name: “Bharat Kristya Sevak Samaj.” But many Indian churches were alienated by its call  for radical indigenization and  they had a few new converts reason being that it was made a  nationalist movement.

  Meanwhile Azaria thought NMS’ growing  liberal nationalistic profile would detract it from its original evangelistic mission. He said  that the missionary cause has taken  his  entire heart.

  In spite of being not strongly  convinced of the society’s  new orientations,  I am called upon to defend it, to speak for it, to support it, of which  I feel doubtful in private. Hence, I feel miserable in this business, said Azaria.

 Travails of Christianity and Azaria

 In 1912 Azeria was consecrated  the first Indian Bishop who belonged to Anglican Church, it being the most significant event in his personal a life more than all the evangelical movement of India.

 Only Syrian Church appointed Bishops from the 16th century on wards. The Roman Catholic Church appointed three Goan Brahmins as Bishops in the 17th century. But they did not appoint native Indian Bishops again until 1923. Catholic and Syrian churches used liturgical languages of Latin and Syriac respectively in their priestly duties. Methodist Episcopal Church appointed a  Indian Bishop only in 1931. Lutheran Church lingered until 1955.

 The first indigenous Anglican bishops Were consecrated in China in 1918, Japan 1923, Uganda 1947 and  Iran in 1961. Thus the appointment of Azaria  was a path breaking step, not only for the Anglican Church globally but also for all Christian denominations in India.

 The church in India confronted variety of  frustrating state-imposed obstacles on its path of growth. This situation of civil and ecclesiastical discord belied the widely accepted notion that church participated in a semi official imperial system of mutual support and promotion.

 Queen Victoria in 1858 ordered non-interference with the religious belief or worship of any of the  subjects on pain of  her highest displeasure.

 But this policy of non-intervention was difficult to enforce. Evangelicals such as Charles Grnt (1746 – 1823) and Willian Wilberforce (1759- 1833) successfully pressured the government into allowing the Anglican Church and missionary societies fuller access in India. Meanwhile East India Company administered revenues to Hindu temples and propitiated Hindu gods.

 However the Parliament approved the extension of Anglican episcopate to India in 1813. 1823  appointed a new Bishop of Culcutta  being the first Anglican Bishop east of Suez with three new archdeacons assisting him in the presidency capitals.

 Culcutta Bishop Herber, during his short tenure, ordained a Tamil convert Christian David and Muslim Convert Abdil Masih to Anglican orders. Although Christianity may have benefited in early times  from its close association with the prestigious British Empire in India, its state connection became serious liability with the adventure of the national independence movement.

 Anglican Bishops generally came to regret their church connection with sate, well before the advent of  popular Indian nationalism in the early 20th century.

 Azaria lamented that the Anglican Church  in India was unable to create new dioceses and also  to subdivide old ones or to consecrate new bishops without government approval.

 The Hindus knew that Her Majesty has proclaimed  strict neutrality in the matters concerning the religion of the peoples of India. The Church saw the sate connection as a legal and cultural hindrance to the Church’s growth and  development.

 From 1813  1929 number of Bishoporics in India, Burma and Ceylon increased from one to fourteen. Untouchable groups in Soutern Andra Pradesh  of over a million people converted into Christian faith during the last three decades of 19th century.

 Bishop of Madras Henry Whitehead recognized the need for assistance in overseeing the expanding Telugu Churches and identified Azariah as the man for the job.

Whitehead was sorry as the progress of conversion was slow. But it continued to spread at a rapid pace among untouchables and  low  castes in India. Christian Missionaries were the first people to treat India’s outcastes as human beings.

  When Azaria joined the mission formally, there were approximately 30,000 Indian Christians associated with the Indo Anglican Church in the Telugu region. In 1925 alone there were over 17,000 converts.

 Newspaper accounts of Azaria’s  appointment in early 1912 generated rumors which caused concern in both London and Madras. Controversies  erupted in Parliament in 23 April 1912 and Undersecretary of State  for India Edwin Montagu had assured the House of Commons through his spokesman En King issuing  Royal license  to Archbishop of Canterbury empowering him to commission the bishops in India to consecrate Azaria as Assistant Bishop in the Madras diocese. Some British Anglicans did not like his low cast background not representing westernized  Indian professional elite.

 As a Nadar from Tinnevely, Azaria represented formerly low caste and  untouchable groups who rejected High class Hindu domination, which conveniently reinforced British Empire’s own policy  of resisting the increasingly troublesome Indian Congress (page 130). He was not a High Caste English educated Indian.  In spite of criticisms, Azaria rose to become competent bishop running a diocese roughly the size of England.

 Heads of Church of India were government servants supported out of government funds  Consequently the church in India actively engaged in propagating Christianity among the people of India whose responsible heads are government officers. So, it was simply impossible for the government to maintain its pledge of religious neutrality as ordered by Queen Victoria.

 “The Hindu” only made a passing comment on the appointment of an Indian as Bishop and had he been from a elite background The Hindu would have gone to town with it.

  However the non-Christian elite were unconcerned with this appointment because the Anglican Church was considered Home for the British rulers and Indian outcastes.  Marginalization of Azariah’s ministry by the Indian elites was begun with the very date of his consecration.

 However Nizam  administration was pleased to have a church  working among poor people  in the remote  Dornakal area that it donated 300 acres of land to the diocese free of charge as an act of charity. Nizam being a Muslim Maharajah, gave Azria free first class railway passage throughout the state and also requested Azaria to talk with him when he was passing through Dornaka in a rain.

 Meanwhile, Indian Christians castigated Azaria  for allegedly lacking experience, sanctity advanced university or theological education, high social position or reputation among Hindus. Even at Tinnevelly those who belonged to different castes sent petitions against Azaria  In letter to Archibishop of Cantabury , Whitehead argued that protests were inspired by unworthy motives, race, prejudice, caste feelings, party spirit and jealousy.

 Azaria was promoted by liberal westerners against the wishes of many less liberal westerners and Indians. His appointment opened up rifts within the established church., within British, Indian and Madras governments, within and between various missionary societies and within factions of Indian Christianity itself.

 Azariah himself faced enormous personal and professional challenges. He was worried as to how his wife would rise up to the occasion of his being a bishop, to dine with the bishop, to lead in all big meetings, to be introduced to the governor. It is difficult to behave in such way that the people will look up to. And yet God can give you the grace and I am praying that He who led us so far, will even now lead us on.

 English bishops at that time make dresses costing 500 pounds Sterling  amounting to Rs.7500 rupees  with which Azaria and his wife could have bought a  three to four bed-room house. At  the Edinburg conference of missionaries Azriah said that we ought to be wiling to learn from one another and help one another.

 The next two Indians elevated to th episcopate were appointed only as assistants to Europena Bishops (SK Traffidar for Cucuta in 19 35 and  and JSC Banergea for Lahore in 1937) and this trend was followed in China Japan and Africa too.

 Indian professional elites filled positions of Indian Civil Service while those  mostly from outcastes and low caste back grounds, became Christians out of whom bishop  being appointed,  Consequently, Britons became further prejudiced against them.

 Whitehead hoped that Azariah’s appointment would both mollify the Indian community and challenge those westerners who believed that the White races should never be under the authority of non-white races. British missionaries were placed  under Azaria’s Jurisdiction in the new Dorankal diocese. No other Indian was made diocesan bishops during Azaria’s life time.

 Of the 34 appointed to Anglican dioceses in India, Burma and Ceylon  from 1912 to 1945, all were Europeans except  Azaria and  and C.K.Jecob, an Indian who was consecrated bishop of Travancore and Cochin after Azaia’s death in 1945. Of course there were two assistant bishops appointed one to Calcutta in 1935 and to Lahore in 1937 of which earlier reference was made.

 Azaria generally appointed  Englishmen rather than Indians  to important positions in the Dornakal diocese; three European Archdeacons and  one European Assistant Bishop shouldered much of the responsibility for his diocesan administration.

   Azariah declined to comment on the absence of  other Indian diocesan bishops for most of his career being more cautious than his mentors  about taking a chance on  an Indian appointee.

 India’s total Christian population  of 1,862,634 in 1881  which  rose to 6,290, 292 in 1931. Conversions to Christianity  in Andra Pradesh grew faster than other territories in the  entire South Asian region during Azaria’s administration. By 1933, roughly 80 per cent  India’s  Protestant Christian Converts  were from depressed class backgrounds and no Brahmins.

 Shepherding the conversion of  depressed classes, tribals and non-brahmin castes through direct evangelism, teaching and grass roots humanitarian aid was the central occupation of Azaria’s life. Azaria who performed baptisms in the river keeping his body in water up to waist, used to get up at 5.00 and spend at least 02 to 03 hours for bible study and prayer.

 Most notable aspect of IMS mission strategy under Azariah leadership was the encouragement of group conversions in order to minimize the social

dislocation of converts after baptism and to provide the strength of group solidarity in the face of hostility from non-Christians.

 He emphasized during the conversion questioning as to the use of worshipping idols. Forgetting the creator, you are worshipping the creation, he said.

IMS and Azaria regarded evangelism as their first duty. Second was training teachers and pastors to look after fast proliferating village congregations. Dornakal Divinity school was founded in 1920 to train ordination candidates.

 Azaria  shared  Gandhiji’s interest of woman upliftment and was responsible for training widows as Bible women to teach villagers, promoting women as village elders, deaconesses at the same time he also went from village to village and spoke of the importance  of tithing  in order to keep the Church self-sufficient.

Azaria’s  wife Anbu served as President of Mothers’ Union in Dornakal which maintained branches throughout the diocese. By 1931, the mothers union  had 688 branches  and 5,480 members. He enjoin seminarians to get on their knees to thank Lord for their wives.

 Azaria changed the Lord’s prayer thus:

 “Oh Father  who art in heaven,  You are our Father, We are Your children. Keep us all well. Heal my rheumatism and my child’s boil. Keep us from wild animals and the tiger, Forgive us our sins, our quarrels, angry words, all that we have done since morning. Make us good. Bring all the castes to kneel down to you and call you Father. By 1940, 157 out of 168 ordained workers were listed a indigenous and only 11 as foreign.

 Azaria’s dedication to the cause of unity  was prompted by several interrelated facts. A) His commitment to evangelism 2) his quest for united Church of India, were to promote authentically Indigenous Church. He was for universal ecumenical vision for being distressed to find younger Christians felt more resentment than gratitude towards the work of the western missionaries.

 Azaria’s second major challenge was to overcome the constant friction between local Andra culture and the transformative agenda of the Christianity. He insisted all beliefs and rituals, practices, cultural manifestations of Hinduism that the church  judged to be evil be renounced at Baptism.  Chief among the evils were the caste system with dehumanizing conceptualization like pollution and Untouchability  throwing some one fifth of the society to perpetual thralldom. He argued for complete repudiation of caste loyalties in order to achieve successful brotherhood.

 Stronghold  of caste system is being very badly shaken by the assault of Christian message of salvation for all. Hindu men women were asked  to remove the caste marks. Rejection of traditional authority  represented not just repudiation of old idols but also a challenge to the social order. All this were done by long suppressed  lower classes. But they could not eradicate all the caste practices.

 The bishop also talked of the importance of giving up the  animosities between Malas and Madigars. (both were outcaste groups in Andra) and to soften the negative feelings of Sudras towards untouchables.

 Converts from different caste back grounds were required to attend the same chapels, drink from the same communion cup, to send children to the same school (Where they could receive training in occupations reserved traditionally for their own or for rival castes. When assistant pastor of Madiga origin attempted to preside at wedding in a predominantly Mala congregation, riot erupted. Finally entire congregation  temporarily defected to the Roman Catholic Church. Denominationalism pander to the class hatred often, having to run two different chapels to the different communities in the same village. (This would never happen in any other country).

 Azaria wrote in 1941: Mixed marriages are wrong according to Christian ideals and it is duty of the church by ecclesiastical action to give clear guidance to their ministers and uphold the Christian standards by Christian discipline, also calling for abolition of dowry system and bargain marriages.

 Successfully introduction of  marriage rights and celebrations free of alcohol consumption were done.

 One of the main factors associated with the Untouchability  was meat eating. Chicken, fish and mutton are considered less polluting. Bats, cats, rats dogs crows and snakes considered tobe very much more polluting. Beef and pork considered by higher castes particularly defiling because the former came from most sacred of all animals- the cow and the latter came from swine which ate excrement.

 Both western missionaries and caste neighbors disapproved of carrion eating but for different reasons. Depressed classes eating carrion was condemned  because they came from animals which died of disease, old age and starvation resulting in their being dangerously unsanitary. Madigas and Yerukulas decided to abstain from eating beef and pork voluntarily. In 1928 Church reported that Christians in Pastorate headquarters had given up pork (page 275)

 Voluntary commitment to  giving up drinking  beef eating thievery  and falsehood  improved their  cleanliness in the eyes of  Village Zamindars who as a result abandoned the spatial distance requirement.

 Azaria had hostile relationship with Gandhiji. Whitehead and Azaria met Gandhi for the first time  in February 1916. Mahatma Gandhi arrived by slow train, 3rd class and immediately struck Whitehead as  delightful person, very simple in his life, very warm-hearted and affectionate and most responsive to the appeals on poverty and suffering.

 There was big rift because the Christians were considered anti-national and unpatriotic, Azaria and  Gandhi both opposed to British plans to divide the growing Indian electorate along communal lines.

 In a much publicized declaration at the Yola Conference of October, 1935, Ambedkar announced that he would lead  those belonging to depressed classes out of Hinduism into a religion committed to  social equality. On that Azaria wrote: “Religion is not a matter that can be adopted or changed by fifty million people at the behest of a leader, however influential he may be.

 Mahatma’s popular and carefully  cultivated political image as a champion of the depressed  classes was jealously observed by leaders like Ambedkar.

 By 1935 Dornakal diocease had 250 ordained Indian clergy and more than 2000 village teachers and extensive network of schools and medical dispensaries, co-operative societies,   banks, printing presses, agricultural  settlements and industrial projects in addition to leading  the worship and providing pastoral service for over 218, 879 Anglicans.

 Gandhi accused Azaria for inflating figures of conversion. Gandhi advise them to confine to areas of ameliorating  the social and economic conditions instead of converting people into Christianity. But this is something which could give enough practical difficulties.

 The conflict between Gandhi and Christian missionary forces and Azaria personally over depressed class conversions  threatened to worsen the atmosphere of intercommoned distrust. Agatha Harrison who liaise between and Nationalist leaders and the Briish government  said that conflict between missionaries  and Hindu reformers in the religious field was serious enough  to aggravate the conflict between Briton and India in the political field.

 Gandhi’s position was that it was better for the depressed classes to suffer in Hinduism than to be converted into Christianity. He refused to admit those who were converted into Christianity were improved.

 Bishop Azaria, Hodge and Pickett  had an interview with Gandhi who told him if they convert depressed classes, he would wean away the educated other  classes from Christianity. Gandhi had also threatened them with legislation to discourage conversion not to prohibit them.

 However, Azaria’s continued  activity of supporting mass conversions had placed him in collision course with Gandhi well before 1937. Gandhi being formidable opponent, by 1938 Azaria was simply unwilling to take on a major battle with him.

 C. Rajagopachari  called upom Hindus  to wake up  and give up their social inequalities in order that the depressed classes may not be driven away from Hinduism.

 Azariah called upon the religious leaders to respect the religious liberties of the Christians  in the interest of the national unity.(340).

Azaria rejected Gandhi's view that all religions are merely different paths to the same truth. The bishop also said that the government or party (Congress) has no right to call itself national if it allies  to a one particular religion out of many professed. However he said that Hindus and Christians  could work to make a joint  electorates.

Persecution of Christians in an Independent India is not unlikely. Our forefathers who wanted to become  Christians were often deprived of their homes, their property, yet sometimes their lives had been threatened . In 1944 Bishop Azaria forcefully said  Christians must have the right to preach and baptize in the Independent India. He urged that in no circumstances, should any penalties be inflicted on those who honestly and sincerely desire to  change their religion.

His work among depressed class groups in Andra also convinced him that many Indians preferred British rule to Congress-led Independent government. In 1942 at the Episcopal Synod, Azaria reported that the depressed classes felt that they owed everything to the British and were afraid of Congress gaining control.

He spent last part of his life traveling on village roads by bullock carts to visit the remote  Parkel area.  When the people were asked whether they are Chrisitans and they so said “no” adding that no one has told us about it. How shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard putting the blame back to him and the evangelical effort. Having  served  as a Bishop of Dornakal for  thirty two years,  Azaria died on the new year day of 1945 at the age of 70.

After Azaria’s death in 1945, many Christians in the Dornakal campaigned vigorously for an European Bishop.  “Not tainted like the treacherous late Tamilian bishop,” many of them said. There  are persons who preferred an Indian Bishop but vast majority wanted a European bishop.