Conversion to Christianity
On completion of his studies in 1829, he joined the Pataldanga school as an assistant teacher. In 1832, he converted to Christianity, under the influence of Duff. As a result of his conversion, he lost his job in David Hare’s school.
His conversion to Christianity raised a storm in Hindu society. The journals of the day became full of angry tirades against the activities of the Christian missionaries. He himself was too independent a man to remain silent. He declared his determination to pursue with steadfastness his course of action and endure with patience all opposition. The campaign against Hindu College led to the dismissal of Derozio.
When the missionary society was later established he became the first Bengali priest. In 1833, he was convicted of forcibly converting a young boy to Christianity. That did not daunt him. He converted his wife, his brother Kali Mohan, and Ganendra Mohan Tagore, the son of Prasanna Coomar Tagore. Subsequently, Ganendra Mohan married his daughter Kamalmani and became the first Indian to qualify as a barrister. He was also instrumental in the conversion of Michael Madhusudan Dutt. He became a deacon of the Anglican Church in 1836 and was superintendent of the Mirzapur School of Christ Church. He used to preach and deliver sermons in Bengali.
Throughout the 1840s and 1850s, he sought to convince the Brahmins of their folly and take the plunge into Christendom. While Krishna Mohan Banerjee always propagandized the superiority of Christianity over other religions and wrote extensively, Rajnarain Bose questioned how he could claim that Christianity represented the most advanced stage of religious evolution when it was still so full of superstition, mystery and miracles.
No comments:
Post a Comment