"…this
object is the salvation of the immortal souls
ready to perish, and the glory of Him, who
gave his life as ransom for sin (3).”
Mary
Lyon had
a vision.
With her book Missionary
Offering she set forth
a call to action:
Missionaries followed
the channels of imperial expansion. Emblematic
of more
than one master,
they had multiple allegiances: Christ, American
womanhood, a global woman’s movement
and the indigenous people whom they served (4).
With
ethnocentric notions
of superiority, American missionaries acted
as crusaders for religious
and
social reform. They contributed
a great deal to the westernization on India
(5).
The
active missionary movement spanned
a little more than a century, from 1830 – 1940.
At the turn of the century, a readjustment
of
purpose occurred in the Christian mission
effort.
The emphasis shifted to humanism – in
education and social work.
The missionaries of India
Sixty-two years apart and at opposite ends
of India, Mary Browning Herron and Ruth Parker
White were representative of their kind.
Both alumnae of Mount Holyoke, they braved
the unknown in an effort to make the world
a better place. The missionary campaign had many
intended and unintended consequences.
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