Mission, A Cultural Confrontation
Swami Vivekananda and The American Missionary Movement
Keywords:
Mission, Swami Vivekananda, American Missionary MovementAbstract
In 1893 there occurred a unique event in the history of, organized religion. Commemorating the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of. America, the World-Columbian Exposition opened in Chicago to display the achievements of Western civilization. Since "faith in a Divine Power ... has been, like the sun, a life-giving and fructifying potency in man's ... development,"] one of the twenty congresses was devoted to religion. When the Parliament convened on September 11, 1893, among the Oriental delegates on the platform were: Proptop Chandra Mazoomdar of Calcutta and B.B. Nagarkar of Bombay, both representing the Brhamo Samaj; Dharmapala of the Ceylon Buddhists; Virchand Gandhi for the Jains; and Chakravarti and Annie Besant of the Theosophical Society. Seated with this illustrious group was a young Hindu, Swami Vivekananda, who "represented no particular sect, but the Universal Religion of the Vedas.
References
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added.
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"Woman Under the Ethnic Religions", Mission Studies XI (Nov. 1893), pp. 212-15.
Mrs. E.G. Goodrich, "The Needs of Heathen Women a Reason for Larger Giving", Mission Studies XI (Jan.1983), pp.2-3 ..
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