Who Are the Marathi Christians?

Marathi Christians

There is unique identity of Marathi Christians also called as Maharashtrian Christian in India. They commonly speaks Marathi language as their Mother tongue, they also speak English for communication. Christianity in Maharashtra has long history, dated back to several centuries, Marathi Christians are descendants of the thousands of original inhabitants of North Konkan, West Maharashtra, Ahmednagar, Vasai,solapur, Thane and Raigad Districts. The total of Christians in Maharashtra is only 2%.

Majority of Marathi Christians are Roman Catholic But there are Protestants in some Parts of Maharashtra, specially in Ahmednagar & Solapur. these are the only districts in Maharastra which has majority of Protestant Christians as compared to Catholics. ^[1].

There is the first Church in Ahmednagar which was built by the British Missionaries in Miri^[2] (a small village in Pathardi Taluka). Every village has its own Church for Worship in Ahmednagar. Most Protestant denominations are represented in Ahmadnagar as a result of missionary activities throughout the state. The largest Protestant Denomination in Ahmadnagar is the Church of North India, Haregaon village in Shrirampur taluka of Ahmednagar district is set to receive thousands of devotees on the occasion of the annual 'yatra' (feast) of the 'Matmauli' The blessed virgin Mary. on September 7th & 8th. Haregaon is often described as the pandharpur of the Marathi-speaking catholics in the state as nearly four lakh devotees from ahmednagar, Pune,Nasik, Aurangabad^[3]. districts and Mumbai attend the 'Matmauli yatra' every year to celebrate the birthday of the mother of jesus christ. the jesuit priests in the small village had started the feast in 1949. Great number of christian reside in Miraj. 'Miraj Christian Church' has 2nd largest members in Maharashtra.

History

Christianity spread in Ahamednagar & western, Southern part of Mahrashtra in early 1800 A.D. By the British Missionaries. & American missionaries. Since 1947 a Union of presbyterian, reformed Congregational, Methodist, and Anglican Congregations. In Maharashtra, the great Marathi poet Narayan Wamanrao Tilak realised that a Hindu-Christian synthesis was simply not possible unless the Christian religion had deep rooted in the Indian culture. He trained the Marathi Christians to worship and sing Bhajans and Kirtans. He showed Christian faith in a genuinely the Indian cultural way.

The Percentage of Christian Population in Ahmednagar, as recorded in the Census of 1881 in the old Gazetteer, was only 0.64% whereas it went up to 2.49% in 1901 and 2.72% in 1961 and in 2000 it increased to 10%. ^[5] This increase is mostly due to the proselytising activity of various Christian Missionaries. The litracy rate is very high Among Ahmednagar Christians and They are well settled in Mumbai, Pune and Nasik areas.

Culture

There are similarities of customs and culture between Hindus and Christians in Ahmadnagar, such as dress, food and cuisine. The Hindu custom of wearing a mangalsutra and placing bindis is still prominent among native Christians. Other religious traditions in Ahmednagar Christians are much the same as elsewhere. However, there is neglect of Christians by the government of Ahmednagar, which caused underdevelopment and unemployment among some Christians.

East Indian

On the West Coast of India the Christians are called as East Indians. who embraced Catholicism during the period 1200-1600 due to the missionary work of european fransciascans and jesuits. The East Indians are Fluent in Marathi and English.

History

Church In Vasai

Pope John XXII in 1329 has acknowledged the presence of christians when he addressed letters to the Christians of 'Konkan-Thane, Sopara (Now, Nala Sopara), from 1321 onwards. ^[6] The Apostle St. Bartholomew was reputed to have come to kalyan. Which means there were Christians in Maharashtra even in the 1st Century. Many more European and middle-east missionaries had come to Konkan (Thane, Bombay, Raigad, Ratnagiri, Sindhudurga districts) between 1st and 12th Century.

The British East India Company designated them with the name East Indians during the Diamond Jublilee Celebrations of Queen Victoria in 1887 to distinguish them from the Goan and Manglorean Catholics who came to Bombay in search of jobs and who had similar surnames as Catholics of North Konkan, West Maharashtra. Before 1887 East Indians did not have a fixed or all embracing designation so obviosly they referred to themselves as Catholics or Christians. ^[7]

Famous Marathi Christians

• Vijay Hazare was indian cricket player, he was a marathi christian from solapur ditrict. He captained the Indian cricket team in 14 matches between 1951 and 1953 ^[8]

• Pandita Ramabai (23 April 1858, Maharashtra- 5 April 1922) was an eminent Marathi Christian social reformer and activist. she was born as hindu brahmin and then evengelised. ^[9]

• Narayan Wamanrao Tilaka great marathi poet born in Mahrashtra as Brahmin but letter adopted christianity. he wrote many Christian songs & bhajans in marathi.

• Shahu Modak (1918-1993), a Marathi/Hindi movie actor was born in a Christian family in Ahmednagar. He primarily acted as Lord Krishna in 29 mythological films.