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A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as
education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...
,
literacy Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in Writing, written form in some specific context of use. In other wo ...
,
social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals ...
,
health care Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health pr ...
, and
economic development In the economics study of the public sector, economic and social development is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and ...
.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Missionary' 2003, William Carey Library Pub, . In the Latin translation of the Bible,
Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...
says the word when he sends the disciples into areas and commands them to preach the
gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...
in his name. The term is most commonly used in reference to Christian missions, but it can also be used in reference to any
creed A creed, also known as a confession of faith, a symbol, or a statement of faith, is a statement of the shared beliefs of a community (often a religious community) in a form which is structured by subjects which summarize its core tenets. The ea ...
or
ideology An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied pri ...
. The word ''mission'' originated in 1598 when
Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...
, the members of the
Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
sent members abroad, derived from the Latin ( nom. ), meaning 'act of sending' or , meaning 'to send'.


By religion


Buddhist missions

The first Buddhist missionaries were called "Dharma Bhanaks", and some see a missionary charge in the symbolism behind the Buddhist wheel, which is said to travel all over the earth bringing Buddhism with it. The Emperor Ashoka was a significant early Buddhist missioner. In the 3rd century BCE,
Dharmaraksita Dharmarakṣita (Sanskrit, 'Protected by the Dharma')(Pali: Dhammarakkhita), was one of the missionaries sent by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka to proselytize Buddhism. He is described as being a Greek (Pali: ''Yona'', lit. " Ionian") in the '' Maha ...
—among others—was sent out by emperor Ashoka to proselytize the
Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
tradition through the Indian
Maurya Empire The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until ...
, but also into the Mediterranean as far as Greece. Gradually, all India and the neighboring island of
Ceylon Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
were converted. Then Buddhism spread eastward and southeastward to the present lands of
Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
,
Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
,
Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist s ...
,
Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand ...
,
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...
, and
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...
.Welty, Paul Thomas. The Asians: Their Heritage and Their Destiny (Revised Edition). Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Co. (1966); pg. 77. Buddhism was spread among the Turkic people during the 2nd and 3rd centuries BCE into modern-day Pakistan,
Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...
,
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...
, eastern and coastal
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
,
Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...
,
Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the s ...
, and
Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...
. It was also taken into China brought by Kasyapa Matanga in the 2nd century CE, Lokaksema and An Shigao translated Buddhist sutras into Chinese.
Dharmarakṣa (, J. Jiku Hōgo; K. Ch’uk Pǒphom c. 233-310) was one of the most important early translators of Mahayana sutras into Chinese. Several of his translations had profound effects on East Asian Buddhism. He is described in scriptural catalogues ...
was one of the greatest translators of Mahayana Buddhist scriptures into Chinese. Dharmaraksa came to the Chinese capital of
Luoyang Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyan ...
in 266 CE, where he made the first known translations of the
Lotus Sutra The ''Lotus Sūtra'' ( zh, 妙法蓮華經; sa, सद्धर्मपुण्डरीकसूत्रम्, translit=Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtram, lit=Sūtra on the White Lotus of the True Dharma, italic=) is one of the most influ ...
and the
Dasabhumika Sutra The ''Ten Stages Sutra'' ( Sanskrit: ''Daśabhūmika Sūtra''; ; ) also known as the Daśabhūmika Sūtra, is an early, influential Mahayana Buddhist scripture. The sutra also appears as the 26th chapter of the '' ''.Modern Buddhist studies sch ...
, which were to become some of the classic texts of Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. Altogether, Dharmaraksa translated around 154
Hīnayāna Hīnayāna (, ) is a Sanskrit term literally meaning the "small/deficient vehicle". Classical Chinese and Tibetan teachers translate it as "smaller vehicle". The term is applied collectively to the '' Śrāvakayāna'' and '' Pratyekabuddhayāna'' ...
and
Mahāyāna ''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing br ...
''
sutra ''Sutra'' ( sa, सूत्र, translit=sūtra, translit-std=IAST, translation=string, thread)Monier Williams, ''Sanskrit English Dictionary'', Oxford University Press, Entry fo''sutra'' page 1241 in Indian literary traditions refers to an ap ...
s'', representing most of the important texts of Buddhism available in the Western Regions. His proselytizing is said to have converted many to Buddhism in China, and made
Chang'an Chang'an (; ) is the traditional name of Xi'an. The site had been settled since Neolithic times, during which the Yangshao culture was established in Banpo, in the city's suburbs. Furthermore, in the northern vicinity of modern Xi'an, Qin ...
, present-day Xi'an, a major center of Buddhism. Buddhism expanded rapidly, especially among the common people, and by 381 most of the people of northwest China were Buddhist. Winning converts also among the rulers and scholars, by the end of the T'ang Dynasty Buddhism was found everywhere in China. Marananta brought Buddhism to the Korean Peninsula in the 4th century. Seong of Baekje, known as a great patron of
Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
in
Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic ...
, built many temples and welcomed priests bringing Buddhist texts directly from India. In 528, Baekje officially adopted Buddhism as its state religion. He sent tribute missions to Liang in 534 and 541, on the second occasion requesting artisans as well as various Buddhist works and a teacher. According to Chinese records, all these requests were granted. A subsequent mission was sent in 549, only to find the Liang capital in the hands of the rebel Hou Jing, who threw them in prison for lamenting the fall of the capital. He is credited with having sent a mission in 538 to
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
that brought an image of Shakyamuni and several sutras to the Japanese court. This has traditionally been considered the official introduction of Buddhism to Japan. An account of this is given in ''
Gangōji Garan Engi , often abbreviated to ''Gangōji Garan Engi'', is a Japanese Buddhist text. It is one volume in length and was compiled by an unnamed Buddhist monk in 747.Nihon Koten Bungaku Daijiten Henshū Iinkai (1983:60-61) Contents The text is made up of ...
''. First supported by the Soga clan, Buddhism rose over the objections of the pro-Shinto MononobeCrim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: HarperCollins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 523. and Buddhism entrenched itself in Japan with the conversion of Prince Shotoku Taishi. When in 710 Emperor Shomu established a new capital at
Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It ...
with urban
grid plan In urban planning, the grid plan, grid street plan, or gridiron plan is a type of city plan in which streets run at right angles to each other, forming a grid. Two inherent characteristics of the grid plan, frequent intersections and orthogon ...
modeled after the capital of China, Buddhism received official support and began to flourish. Padmasambhava, The Lotus Born, was a sage guru from Oḍḍiyāna who is said to have transmitted Vajrayana Buddhism to
Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainou ...
and
Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
and neighbouring countries in the 8th century. The use of missions, councils, and monastic institutions influenced the emergence of Christian missions and organizations, which developed similar structures in places that were formerly Buddhist missions. During the 19th and 20th centuries, Western intellectuals such as
Schopenhauer Arthur Schopenhauer ( , ; 22 February 1788 – 21 September 1860) was a German philosopher. He is best known for his 1818 work ''The World as Will and Representation'' (expanded in 1844), which characterizes the phenomenal world as the pr ...
,
Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817May 6, 1862) was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher. A leading transcendentalist, he is best known for his book ''Walden'', a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and h ...
,
Max Müller Friedrich Max Müller (; 6 December 1823 – 28 October 1900) was a German-born philologist and Orientalist, who lived and studied in Britain for most of his life. He was one of the founders of the western academic disciplines of Indian ...
, and
esoteric Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas ...
societies such as the
Theosophical Society The Theosophical Society, founded in 1875, is a worldwide body with the aim to advance the ideas of Theosophy in continuation of previous Theosophists, especially the Greek and Alexandrian Neo-Platonic philosophers dating back to 3rd century CE ...
of
H.P. Blavatsky Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, uk, Олена Петрівна Блаватська, Olena Petrivna Blavatska (; – 8 May 1891), often known as Madame Blavatsky, was a Russian mystic and author who co-founded the Theosophical Society in 1875 ...
, The Buddhist Society of Great Britain and Ireland and the Buddhist Society, London spread interest in Buddhism. Writers such as
Hermann Hesse Hermann Karl Hesse (; 2 July 1877 – 9 August 1962) was a German-Swiss poet, novelist, and painter. His best-known works include '' Demian'', '' Steppenwolf'', '' Siddhartha'', and '' The Glass Bead Game'', each of which explores an individual ...
and Jack Kerouac, in the West, and the
hippie A hippie, also spelled hippy, especially in British English, is someone associated with the counterculture of the 1960s, originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to different countries around ...
generation of the late 1960s and early 1970s led to a re-discovery of Buddhism. During the 20th and 21st centuries Buddhism has again been propagated by missionaries into the West such as Ananda Metteyya (Theravadha Buddhism), Suzuki Daisetsu Teitarō (Zen Buddhism), the
Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current D ...
and monks including Lama Surya Das (Tibetan Buddhism).
Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...
has been significantly active and successful in the West since the Chinese takeover of Tibet in 1959. Today Buddhists make a decent proportion of several countries in the West such as
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
, the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
,
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
, and the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
. In Canada, the immense popularity and goodwill ushered in by
Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
's
Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current D ...
(who has been made honorary Canadian citizen) put Buddhism in a favourable light in the country. Many non-Asian Canadians embraced Buddhism in various traditions and some have become leaders in their respective sanghas. In the early 1990s, the French Buddhist Union (UBF, founded in 1986) estimated that there are 600,000 to 650,000 Buddhists in France, with 150,000 French converts among them. In 1999, sociologist Frédéric Lenoir estimated there are 10,000 converts and up to 5 million "sympathizers", although other researchers have questioned these numbers. Taisen Deshimaru was a Japanese Zen Buddhist who founded numerous zendos in France. Thich Nhat Hanh, a
Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolo ...
-nominated,
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making ...
ese-born Zen Buddhist, founded the
Unified Buddhist Church The Plum Village Community of Engaged Buddhism, Inc. (formerly the Unified Buddhist Church, Inc.) and its sister organization, the French Congregation Bouddhique Zen Village des Pruniers are the governance bodies of the monasteries, press and fund ...
(Eglise Bouddhique Unifiée) in France in 1969. The Plum Village Monastery in the
Dordogne Dordogne ( , or ; ; oc, Dordonha ) is a large rural department in Southwestern France, with its prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and the Pyrenees, it is named ...
in southern France was his residence and the headquarters of his international sangha. In 1968 Leo Boer and Wener van de Wetering founded a Zen group, and through two books made Zen popular in the Netherlands. The guidance of the group was taken over by Erik Bruijn, who is still in charge of a flourishing community. The largest Zen group now is the Kanzeon Sangha, led by Nico Tydeman under the supervision of the American Zen master Dennis Genpo Merzel, Roshi, a former student of Maezumi Roshi in Los Angeles. This group has a relatively large centre where a teacher and some students live permanently. Many other groups are also represented in the Netherlands, like the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives in Apeldoorn, the Thich Nhat Hanh Order of Interbeing and the International Zen Institute Noorderpoort monastery/retreat centre in Drenthe, led by Jiun Hogen Roshi. Perhaps the most widely visible Buddhist leader in the world is Tenzin Gyatso, the current
Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current D ...
, who first visited the United States in 1979. As the exiled political leader of
Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
, he has become a popular cause célèbre. His early life was depicted in Hollywood films such as '' Kundun'' and '' Seven Years in Tibet''. He has attracted celebrity religious followers such as Richard Gere and Adam Yauch. The first Western-born Tibetan Buddhist monk was
Robert A. F. Thurman Robert Alexander Farrar Thurman (born August 3, 1941) is an American Buddhist author and academic who has written, edited, and translated several books on Tibetan Buddhism. He was the Je Tsongkhapa Professor of Indo- Tibetan Buddhist Studies ...
, now an academic supporter of the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama maintains a North American headquarters at Namgyal Monastery in
Ithaca, New York Ithaca is a city in the Finger Lakes region of New York, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Cayuga Lake, Ithaca is the seat of Tompkins County and the largest community in the Ithaca metropolitan statistical area. It is named ...
. Lewis M. Hopfe in his "Religions of the World" suggested that "Buddhism is perhaps on the verge of another great missionary outreach" (1987:170).


Christian missions

A
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...
missionary can be defined as "one who is to witness across cultures". The Lausanne Congress of 1974, defined the term, related to Christian mission as, "to form a viable indigenous church-planting movement". Missionaries can be found in many countries around the world. In
the Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts o ...
,
Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...
is recorded as instructing the apostles to make
disciples A disciple is a follower and student of a mentor, teacher, or other figure. It can refer to: Religion * Disciple (Christianity), a student of Jesus Christ * Twelve Apostles of Jesus, sometimes called the Twelve Disciples * Seventy disciples in t ...
of all nations (, ). This verse is referred to by Christian missionaries as the
Great Commission In Christianity, the Great Commission is the instruction of the resurrected Jesus Christ to his disciples to spread the gospel to all the nations of the world. The Great Commission is outlined in Matthew 28:16– 20, where on a mountain i ...
and inspires missionary work.


Historic

The Christian Church expanded throughout the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
already in New Testament times and is said by tradition to have reached even further, to Persia (
Church of the East The Church of the East ( syc, ܥܕܬܐ ܕܡܕܢܚܐ, ''ʿĒḏtā d-Maḏenḥā'') or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church or the Nestorian C ...
) and to India (
Saint Thomas Christians The Saint Thomas Christians, also called Syrian Christians of India, ''Marthoma Suriyani Nasrani'', ''Malankara Nasrani'', or ''Nasrani Mappila'', are an ethno-religious community of Indian Christians in the state of Kerala ( Malabar region) ...
). During the Middle Ages, the Christian monasteries and missionaries such as
Saint Patrick Saint Patrick ( la, Patricius; ga, Pádraig ; cy, Padrig) was a fifth-century Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Ireland, the other patron saints b ...
(5th century), and Adalbert of Prague (ca 956–997) propagated learning and religion beyond the European boundaries of the old Roman Empire. In 596, Pope Gregory the Great (in office 590–604) sent the
Gregorian Mission The Gregorian missionJones "Gregorian Mission" ''Speculum'' p. 335 or Augustinian missionMcGowan "Introduction to the Corpus" ''Companion to Anglo-Saxon Literature'' p. 17 was a Christian mission sent by Pope Gregory the Great in 596 to conv ...
(including
Augustine of Canterbury Augustine of Canterbury (early 6th century – probably 26 May 604) was a monk who became the first Archbishop of Canterbury in the year 597. He is considered the "Apostle to the English" and a founder of the English Church.Delaney ''D ...
) into England. In their turn, Christians from Ireland (the
Hiberno-Scottish mission The Hiberno-Scottish mission was a series of expeditions in the 6th and 7th centuries by Gaelic missionaries originating from Ireland that spread Celtic Christianity in Scotland, Wales, England and Merovingian France. Celtic Christianity spr ...
) and from Britain (
Saint Boniface Boniface, OSB ( la, Bonifatius; 675 – 5 June 754) was an English Benedictine monk and leading figure in the Anglo-Saxon mission to the Germanic parts of the Frankish Empire during the eighth century. He organised significant foundations o ...
(ca 675–754), and the Anglo-Saxon mission, for example) became prominent in converting the inhabitants of central Europe. During the
Age of Discovery The Age of Discovery (or the Age of Exploration), also known as the early modern period, was a period largely overlapping with the Age of Sail, approximately from the 15th century to the 17th century in European history, during which seafa ...
, the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
established a number of missions in the Americas and in other Western colonies through the
Augustinians Augustinians are members of Christian religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written in about 400 AD by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–1 ...
,
Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...
, and Dominicans to spread Christianity in the New World and to convert the Native Americans and other indigenous people. About the same time, missionaries such as Francis Xavier (1506–1552) as well as other
Jesuits , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders = ...
, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Dominicans reached Asia and the
Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The t ...
, and the Portuguese sent missions into Africa. Emblematic in many respects is Matteo Ricci's
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
mission to China from 1582, which was totally peaceful and non-violent. These missionary movements should be distinguished from others, such as the Baltic Crusades of the 12th and 13th centuries, which were arguably compromised in their motivation by designs of military conquest. Much contemporary Catholic missionary work has undergone profound change since the
Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and ...
of 1962–1965, with an increased push for indigenization and inculturation, along with
social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals ...
issues as a constitutive part of preaching
the Gospel The gospel or good news is a theological concept in several religions. In the historical Roman imperial cult and today in Christianity, the gospel is a message about salvation by a divine figure, a savior, who has brought peace or other benefit ...
. As the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
normally organizes itself along territorial lines and had the human and material resources, religious orders, some even specializing in it, undertook most missionary work, especially in the era after the collapse of the Roman Empire in the West. Over time, the
Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...
gradually established a normalized Church structure in the mission areas, often starting with special jurisdictions known as apostolic prefectures and apostolic vicariates. At a later stage of development these foundations are raised to regular diocesan status with a local bishops appointed. On a global front, these processes were often accelerated in the later 1960s, in part accompanying political decolonization. In some regions, however, they are still in course. Just as the Bishop of Rome had jurisdiction also in territories later considered to be in the Eastern sphere, so the missionary efforts of the two 9th-century saints Cyril and Methodius were largely conducted in relation to the West rather than the East, though the field of activity was central Europe. The
Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops via ...
, under the Orthodox Church of Constantinople undertook vigorous missionary work under the
Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
and its successor the
Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
. This had lasting effects and in some sense is at the origin of the present relations of
Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
with some sixteen Orthodox national churches including the Romanian Orthodox Church, the
Georgian Orthodox and Apostolic Church The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonly ...
, and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (both traditionally said to have been founded by the missionary Apostle Andrew), the
Bulgarian Orthodox Church The Bulgarian Orthodox Church ( bg, Българска православна църква, translit=Balgarska pravoslavna tsarkva), legally the Patriarchate of Bulgaria ( bg, Българска патриаршия, links=no, translit=Balgars ...
(said to have been founded by the missionary Apostle Paul). The Byzantines expanded their missionary work in Ukraine after the mass baptism in Kiev in 988. The
Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches. The majori ...
had its origins in the conversion by Byzantine missionaries of the Serb tribes when they arrived in the Balkans in the 7th century. Orthodox missionaries also worked successfully among the Estonians from the 10th to the 12th centuries, founding the Estonian Orthodox Church. Under the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War ...
of the 19th century, missionaries such as Nicholas Ilminsky (1822–1891) moved into the subject lands and propagated Orthodoxy, including through
Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...
,
Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
,
Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised state of Transnistri ...
,
Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...
,
Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, an ...
,
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...
, and
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
. The Russian St. Nicholas of Japan (1836–1912) took Eastern Orthodoxy to
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
in the 19th century. The
Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...
also sent missionaries to
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U ...
beginning in the 18th century, including Saint Herman of Alaska (died 1836), to minister to the Natives. The
Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia The Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (russian: Ру́сская Правосла́вная Це́рковь Заграни́цей, lit=Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, translit=Russkaya Pravoslavnaya Tserkov' Zagranitsey), also called Ru ...
continued missionary work outside Russia after the 1917
Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...
, resulting in the establishment of many new dioceses in the
diaspora A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...
, from which numerous converts have been made in Eastern Europe, North America, and Oceania. Early
Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
missionaries included John Eliot and contemporary ministers including John Cotton and Richard Bourne, who ministered to the Algonquin natives who lived in lands claimed by representatives of the
Massachusetts Bay Colony The Massachusetts Bay Colony (1630–1691), more formally the Colony of Massachusetts Bay, was an English settlement on the east coast of North America around the Massachusetts Bay, the northernmost of the several colonies later reorganized as th ...
in the early 17th century. Quaker "publishers of truth" visited Boston and other mid-17th century colonies, but were not always well received. The Danish government began the first organized Protestant mission work through its
College of Missions The College of Missions ( da, Missionskollegiet; la, Collegium de cursu Evangelii promovendo) or Royal Mission College (') was a Dano-Norwegian association based in Copenhagen which funded and directed Protestant missions under royal patronage. ...
, established in 1714. This funded and directed
Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...
missionaries such as
Bartholomaeus Ziegenbalg Bartholomeus or Bartholomaeus or Barthelomaeus is a masculine Latin given name, the Latin equivalent of Bartholomew. The German cognate is Bartholomäus. Notable people with the name include: * Bartholomeus Amadeus degli Amidei (died 1266), Ital ...
in Tranquebar, India, and
Hans Egede Hans Poulsen Egede (31 January 1686 – 5 November 1758) was a Dano-Norwegian Lutheran missionary who launched mission efforts to Greenland, which led him to be styled the Apostle of Greenland. He established a successful mission among the Inui ...
in
Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland ...
. In 1732, while on a visit in 1732 to
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan a ...
for the coronation of his cousin King
Christian VI Christian VI (30 November 1699 – 6 August 1746) was King of Denmark and Norway from 1730 to 1746. The eldest surviving son of Frederick IV and Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow, he is considered one of Denmark-Norway's more anonymous kings, bu ...
, the
Moravian Church The Moravian Church ( cs, Moravská církev), or the Moravian Brethren, formally the (Latin: "Unity of the Brethren"), is one of the oldest Protestantism, Protestant Christian denomination, denominations in Christianity, dating back to the Bohem ...
's patron Nicolas Ludwig, Count von
Zinzendorf Nikolaus Ludwig, Reichsgraf von Zinzendorf und Pottendorf (26 May 1700 – 9 May 1760) was a German religious and social reformer, bishop of the Moravian Church, founder of the Herrnhuter Brüdergemeine, Christian mission pioneer and a major fig ...
, was very struck by its effects, and particularly by two visiting
Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territorie ...
children converted by
Hans Egede Hans Poulsen Egede (31 January 1686 – 5 November 1758) was a Dano-Norwegian Lutheran missionary who launched mission efforts to Greenland, which led him to be styled the Apostle of Greenland. He established a successful mission among the Inui ...
. He also got to know a slave from the Danish colony in the
West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greate ...
. When he returned to Herrnhut in
Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a ...
, he inspired the inhabitants of the villageit had fewer than thirty houses thento send out "messengers" to the slaves in the West Indies and to the Moravian missions in Greenland. Within thirty years, Moravian missionaries had become active on every continent, and this at a time when there were fewer than three hundred people in Herrnhut. They are famous for their selfless work, living as slaves among the slaves and together with the Native Americans, the Delaware (i.e., Lenni Lenape) and
Cherokee The Cherokee (; chr, ᎠᏂᏴᏫᏯᎢ, translit=Aniyvwiyaʔi or Anigiduwagi, or chr, ᏣᎳᎩ, links=no, translit=Tsalagi) are one of the indigenous peoples of the Southeastern Woodlands of the United States. Prior to the 18th century, th ...
Indian tribes. Today, the work in the former mission provinces of the worldwide Moravian Church is carried on by native workers. The fastest-growing area of the work is in
Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...
in Eastern Africa. The Moravian work in
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
inspired William Carey and the founders of the British
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...
missions. , seven of every ten Moravians live in a former mission field and belong to a race other than Caucasian. Much
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of t ...
mission work came about under the auspices of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (SPG, founded in 1701), the
Church Missionary Society The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British mission society working with the Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as mission ...
(CMS, founded 1799) and of the Intercontinental Church Society (formerly the Commonwealth and Continental Church Society, originating in 1823).


Modern

With a dramatic increase in efforts since the 20th century, and a strong push since the ''Lausanne I: The International Congress on World Evangelization'' in Switzerland in 1974, modern evangelical groups have focused efforts on sending missionaries to every ethnic group in the world. While this effort has not been completed, increased attention has brought larger numbers of people distributing
Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...
s, Jesus videos, and establishing
evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
churches in more remote areas. Internationally, the focus for many years in the later 20th century was on reaching every "people group" with
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...
by 2000. Bill Bright's leadership with Campus Crusade, the Southern Baptist
International Mission Board The International Mission Board (or IMB, formerly the Foreign Mission Board) is a Christian missionary society affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). The headquarters is in Richmond, Virginia, United States. History Thousands ...
, The Joshua Project, and others brought about the need to know who these " unreached people groups" are and how those wanting to tell about the Christian God and share a
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...
Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...
could reach them. The focus for these organizations transitioned from a "country focus" to a "people group focus". (From "What is a People Group?" by Dr. Orville Boyd Jenkins: A "people group" is an ethnolinguistic group with a common self-identity that is shared by the various members. There are two parts to that word: ethno and linguistic. Language is a primary and dominant identifying factor of a people group. But there are other factors that determine or are associated with ethnicity.) What can be viewed as a success by those inside and outside the church from this focus is a higher level of cooperation and friendliness among churches and denominations. It is very common for those working on international fields to not only cooperate in efforts to share their gospel message, but view the work of their groups in a similar light. Also, with the increased study and awareness of different people groups, western mission efforts have become far more sensitive to the cultural nuances of those they are going to and those they are working with in the effort. Over the years, as indigenous churches have matured, the church of the Global South (Africa, Asia, and Latin America) has become the driving force in missions. Korean and African missionaries can now be found all over the world. These missionaries represent a major shift in church history. Another major shift in the form of modern missionary work takes shape in the conflation of spiritualism with contemporary military metaphors and practices. Missionary work as spiritual warfare is the latest iteration in a long-standing relationship between Christian missions and militarization. Despite the seeming opposition between the submissive and morally upstanding associations with prayer and dominating violence associated with militarism, these two spheres interact in a dialectical way—they are entangled to produce one another. Nigeria, and other countries have had large numbers of their Christian adherents go to other countries and start churches. These non-western missionaries often have unparalleled success; because, they need few western resources and comforts to sustain their livelihood while doing the work they have chosen among a new culture and people. One of the first large-scale missionary endeavors of the British colonial age was the
Baptist Missionary Society BMS World Mission is a Christian missionary society founded by Baptists from England in 1792. It was originally called the Particular Baptist Society for the Propagation of the Gospel Amongst the Heathen, but for most of its life was known as th ...
, founded in 1792 as the Particular Baptist Society for the Propagation of
the Gospel The gospel or good news is a theological concept in several religions. In the historical Roman imperial cult and today in Christianity, the gospel is a message about salvation by a divine figure, a savior, who has brought peace or other benefit ...
Amongst the Heathen. The London Missionary Society was an
evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
organisation, bringing together from its inception both
Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of t ...
s and Nonconformists; it was founded in England in 1795 with missions in Africa and the islands of the South Pacific. The
Colonial Missionary Society The Colonial Missionary Society was formed in May 1836 as a "distinct society for the Colonies" following the report of a deputation to Canada by representatives of Congregational churches from Britain. Its principal mission effort was directed tow ...
was created in 1836, and directed its efforts towards promoting Congregationalist forms of
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...
among "British or other European settlers" rather than indigenous peoples. Both of these merged in 1966, and the resultant organisation is now known as the Council for World Mission. The Church Mission Society, first known as the Society for Missions to Africa and the East, was founded in 1799 by evangelical Anglicans centred around the abolitionism in the United Kingdom, anti-slavery activist William Wilberforce. It bent its efforts to the Coptic Church, the Ethiopian Church, and India, especially Kerala; it continues to this day. Many of the church planting, network of churches they established became the Anglican Communion. In 1809, the London Society for Promoting Christianity Amongst the Jews was founded, which pioneered mission amongst the Jewish people; it continues today as the Church's Ministry Among Jewish People. In 1865, the China Inland Mission was founded, going well beyond British controlled areas; it continues as the OMF, working throughout East Asia. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) has an active Missionary (LDS Church), missionary program. Young men between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five are encouraged to prepare themselves to serve a two-year, self-funded, full-time proselytizing mission. Young women who desire to serve as missionaries can serve starting at the age of nineteen, for one and a half years. Retired couples also have the option of serving a mission. Missionaries typically spend two weeks in a Missionary Training Center (or two to three months for those learning a new language) where they study the scriptures, learn new languages when applicable, prepare themselves to teach the Gospel of
Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...
, and learn more about the culture and the people they live among. As of December 2019, the LDS Church had over 67,000 full-time missionaries worldwide and over 31,000 Service Missionaries.


=Maryknoll

= In Montreal in 1910, James Anthony Walsh, Father James Anthony Walsh, a priest from Boston, met Thomas Frederick Price, Father Thomas Frederick Price, from North Carolina. They agreed on the need to build a seminary for the training of young American men for the foreign Missions. Countering arguments that the Church needed workers here, Fathers Walsh and Price insisted the Church would not flourish until it sent missioners overseas. Independently, the men had written extensively about the concept, Father Price in his magazine ''Truth'', and Father Walsh in the pages of ''A Field Afar'', an early incarnation of ''Maryknoll Magazine''. Winning the approval of the American hierarchy, the two priests traveled to Rome in June 1911 to receive final approval from Pope Pius X for the formation of the Catholic Foreign Mission Society of America, now better known as the Maryknoll Fathers and Brothers.


Hindu missions

Hinduism was introduced into Java by travelers from India in ancient times. When the early Javanese princes accepted Hinduism, they did not give up all of their early Animism, animistic beliefs—they simply combined the new ideas with them. Several centuries ago, many Hindus left Java for Bali rather than convert to Islam. Hinduism has survived in Bali ever since. Dang Hyang Nirartha was responsible for facilitating a refashioning of Balinese Hinduism. He was an important promoter of the idea of moksha in Indonesia. He founded the Shaivite priesthood that is now ubiquitous in Bali, and is now regarded as the ancestor of all Shaivite pandits. Shantidas Adhikari was a Hindu preacher from Sylhet who converted King Pamheiba of Manipur to Hinduism in 1717.Foundation of Manipuri Muslim History
Manipur Online – August 15, 2002
Historically, Hinduism has only recently had a large influence in western countries such as the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Canada. Since the 1960s, many westerners attracted by the world view presented in Asian religious systems have converted to Hinduism. Many native-born Canadians of various ethnicities have converted during the last 50 years through the actions of the Ramakrishna Mission, ISKCON, Arya Samaj and other missionary organizations as well as due to the visits and guidance of Indian gurus such as Guru Maharaj, Sai Baba of Shirdi, Sai Baba, and Rajneesh. The International Society for Krishna Consciousness has a presence in New Zealand, running temples in Auckland, Hamilton, Wellington and Christchurch. Paramahansa Yogananda, an Indian yoga, yogi and guru, introduced many westerners to the teachings of meditation and Kriya Yoga school, Kriya Yoga through his book, ''Autobiography of a Yogi''. Swami Vivekananda, the founder of the Ramakrishna Mission is one of the greatest Hindu missionaries to the West.


Ananda Marga missions

Ananda Marga, Ānanda Mārga, organizationally known as Ānanda Mārga Pracaraka Samgha (AMPS), meaning the ''samgha'' (organization) for the Wave propagation, propagation of the ''Buddhist Paths to liberation, marga'' (path) of ''ananda'' (bliss), is a Social issues, social and Spirituality, spiritual movement founded in Jamalpur, Munger, Jamalpur, Bihar, India, in 1955 by Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar (1921–1990), also known by his spiritual name, Shrii Shrii Ánandamúrti. Ananda Marga counts hundreds of Ananda Marga#Organisation and Activities, missions around the world through which its members carry out various forms of selfless service on Relief. (The social welfare and development organization under AMPS is Ananda Marga Universal Relief Team, or AMURT.) Education and women's welfare The service activities of this section founded in 1963 are focused on: * Education: creating and managing primary, post-primary, and higher schools, research institutes * Relief: creating and managing children's and students' homes for destitute children and for poor students, cheap hostels, retiring homes, academies of light for deaf dumb and crippled, invalid homes, refugee rehabilitation * Tribal: tribal welfare units, medical camps * Women's welfare: women welfare units, women's homes, nursing homes


Islamic missions

Dawah means to "invite" (in Arabic, literally "calling") to Islam, which is the second largest religion with 1.6 billion members. From the 7th century, it spread rapidly from the Arabian Peninsula to the rest of the world through the initial Muslim conquests and subsequently with traders and explorers after the death of Muhammad. Initially, the spread of Islam came through the Dawah efforts of Muhammad and his followers. After his death in 632 CE, much of the expansion of the empire came through conquest such as that of North Africa and later Iberia (Al-Andalus). The Islamic conquest of Persia put an end to the Sassanid Empire and spread the reach of Islam to as far east as Greater Khorasan, Khorasan, which would later become the cradle of Islamic civilization during the Islamic Golden Age (622–1258 CE) and a stepping-stone towards the introduction of Islam to the Turkic tribes living in and bordering the area. The missionary movement peaked during the Islamic Golden Age, with the expansion of foreign trade routes, primarily into the Indo-Pacific and as far south as the isle of Zanzibar as well as the Southeastern shores of Africa. With the coming of the Sufism tradition, Islamic missionary activities increased. Later, the Seljuk Turks' conquest of Anatolia made it easier for missionaries to go lands that formerly belonged to the
Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
. In the earlier stages of the Ottoman Empire, a Turkic peoples, Turkic form of Shamanism was still widely practiced in Anatolia, but soon lost ground to Sufism. During the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman presence in the Balkans, missionary movements were taken up by people from aristocratic families hailing from the region, who had been educated in Constantinople or other major city within the Empire such as the famed ''madrassahs'' and ''kulliyes''. Primarily, individuals were sent back to the place of their origin and were appointed important positions in the local governing body. This approach often resulted in the building of mosques and local ''kulliyes'' for future generations to benefit from, as well as spreading the teachings of Islam. The spread of Islam towards Central Africa, Central and West Africa had until the early 19th century has been consistent but slow. Previously, the only connection was through Trans-Saharan trade routes. The Mali Empire, consisting predominantly of African and Berber tribes, stands as a strong example of the early Islamic conversion of the Sub-Saharan region. The gateways prominently expanded to include the aforementioned trade routes through the Eastern shores of the African continent. With the Colonization of Africa, European colonization of Africa, missionaries were almost in competition with the European Christian missionaries operating in the colonies. There is evidence of Arab Muslim traders entering Indonesia as early as the 8th century. Indonesia's early people were animists, Hindus, and Buddhists. However it was not until the end of the 13th century that the process of Islamization began to spread throughout the areas local communities and port towns. The spread, although at first introduced through Arab Muslim traders, continued to saturate through the Indonesian people as local rulers and royalty began to adopt the religion subsequently leading their subjects to mirror their conversion. Recently, Muslim groups have engaged in missionary work in Malawi. Much of this is performed by the African Muslim Agency based in Angola. The Kuwait-sponsored AMA has translated the Qur'an into Chichewa language, Chichewa (Cinyanja), one of the official languages of Malawi, and has engaged in other missionary work in the country. All of the major cities in the country have mosques and there are several Islamic schools. Several
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...
n, Kuwaiti, and other Muslim agencies are active in Mozambique, with one important one being the African Muslim Agency. The spread of Islam into West Africa, beginning with ancient Ghana in the 9th century, was mainly the result of the commercial activities of North African Muslims. The empires of both Mali Empire, Mali and Songhai Empire, Songhai that followed ancient Ghana in the Western Sudan adopted the religion. Islam made its entry into the northern territories of modern Ghana around the 15th century. Mande languages, Mande speakers (who in Ghana are known as Soninke Wangara, Wangara) traders and clerics carried the religion into the area. The northeastern sector of the country was also influenced by an influx of Hausa people, Hausa Muslim traders from the 16th century onwards Islamic influence first occurred in India in the early 7th century with the advent of Arab traders. Trade relations have existed between Arabia and the Indian subcontinent from ancient times. Even in the Pre-Islamic Arabia, pre-Islamic era, Arab traders used to visit the Malabar region, which linked them with the ports of South East Asia, Southeast Asia. According to Historians Elliot and Dowson in their book ''The History of India as told by its own Historians'', the first ship bearing Muslim travelers was seen on the Indian coast as early as 630 CE H. G. Rawlinson, in his book: ''Ancient and Medieval History of India'' claims the first Arab Muslims settled on the Indian coast in the last part of the 7th century. Shaykh Zainuddin Makhdum's "Tuhfat al-Mujahidin" also is a reliable work. This fact is corroborated, by J. Sturrock in his ''South Kanara and Madras Districts Manuals'', and also by Haridas Bhattacharya in ''Cultural Heritage of India Vol. IV''. It was with the advent of Islam that the Arabs became a prominent cultural force in the world. The Arab merchants and traders became the carriers of the new religion, and they propagated it wherever they went. Islam in Bulgaria can be traced back to the mid-ninth century when there were Islamic missionaries in Bulgaria, evidenced by a letter from Pope Nicholas to Boris of Bulgaria calling for the extirpation of Saracens. Pioneer Muslim missionaries to the Kenyan interior were largely Tanzania Mainland, Tanganyikan, who coupled their missionary work with trade, along the centres began along the railway line such as Kibwezi, Makindu, and Nairobi. Outstanding among them was Maalim Mtondo Islam in Kenya, a Tanganyikan credited with being the first Muslim missionary to Nairobi. Reaching Nairobi at the close of the 19th century, he led a group of other Muslims, and enthusiastic missionaries from the coast to establish a "Swahili village" in present-day Pumwani. A small mosque was built to serve as a starting point and he began preaching Islam in earnest. He soon attracted several Kikuyu people, Kikuyus and Wakambas, who became his disciples.Quraishy, MA (1987). Text Book of Islam Book 1. Nairobi: The Islamic Foundation, p. 182. In 1380, Makhdum Karim, Karim ul' Makhdum the first Arabian Dawah, Islamic missionary reached the Sulu Archipelago and Jolo in the Philippines and established Islam in the country. In 1390, the Minangkabau people, Minangkabau's Prince Rajah Baguinda and his followers preached Islam on the islands. The Sheik Karimal Makdum Mosque was the first mosque established in the Philippines on Simunul, Tawi-Tawi, Simunul in Mindanao in the 14th century. Subsequent settlements by Arab missionaries traveling to Malaysia and
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...
helped strengthen Islam in the Philippines and each settlement was governed by a Datu, Rajah, and a Sultan. Islamic provinces founded in the Philippines included the Sultanate of Maguindanao, Sultanate of Sulu, and other parts of the southern Philippines. Modern missionary work in the United States has increased greatly in the last one hundred years, with much of the recent demographic growth driven by conversion. Up to one-third of American Muslims are African Americans who have converted to Islam during the last seventy years. Conversion to Islam in prisons, and in large urban areas has also contributed to Islam's growth over the years. An estimated US$45 billion has been spent by the Saudi Arabian government financing mosques and Islamic schools in foreign countries. ''Ain al-Yaqeen'', a Saudi newspaper, reported in 2002 that Saudi funds may have contributed to building as many as 1,500 mosques and 2,000 other Islamic centers.


Early Islamic missionaries during Muhammad's era

During the Expedition of Al Raji in 625,Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 187.
online
the Islamic Prophet Muhammad sent some men as missionaries to various different tribes. Some men came to Muhammad and requested that Muhammad send instructors to teach them Islam, but the men were bribed by the two tribes of Khuzaymah who wanted revenge for the Expedition of Abdullah Ibn Unais, assassination of Khalid bin Sufyan (Chief of the Banu Lahyan tribe) by Muhammad's followers
online
8 Muslim Missionaires were killed in this expedition., another version says 10 Muslims were killedNote: Book contains a list of battles of Muhammad in Arabic, English translation available her

/ref> Then during the Expedition of Bir Maona in July 625 Muhammad sent some Missionaries at request of some men from the Banu Amir tribe,Mubarakpuri, The Sealed Nectar, p. 188.
online
but the Muslims were again killed as revenge for the Expedition of Abdullah Ibn Unais, assassination of Khalid bin Sufyan by Muhammad's followers 70 Muslims were killed during this expedition During the Expedition of Khalid ibn al-Walid (Banu Jadhimah) in January 630, Muhammad sent Khalid ibn Walid to invite the Banu Jadhimah tribe to Islam.William Muir, The life of Mahomet and history of Islam to the era of the Hegira, Volume 4, p. 135. This is mentioned in the Sunni Hadith .


Ahmadiyya Islam missions

Missionaries belonging to the Ahmadiyya thought of Islam often study at International Islamic seminaries and educational institutions, known as Jamia Ahmadiyya. Upon completion of their degrees, they are sent to various parts of the world including South America, Africa, North America, Europe, and the Far East as appointed by Mirza Masroor Ahmad, present head and Khalifatul Masih, Caliph of the worldwide Ahmadiyya Muslim community. Jamia students may be appointed by the Caliph either as Missionaries of the community (often called Murrabi, Imam, or Mawlana) or as Qadis or Muftis of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community with a specialisation in matters of fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence). Some Jamia alumni have also become Islamic historians such as the late Dost Muhammad Shahid, former Official Historian of the Ahmadiyya Muslim community, with a specialisation in tarikh (Islamic historiography). Missionaries stay with their careers as appointed by the Caliph for the rest of their lives, as per their commitment to the community.


Jain missions

According to Jaina tradition, Mahavira's following had swelled to 14,000 monks and 36,000 nuns by the time of his death in 527 BCE For some two centuries the Jains remained a small community of monks and followers. However, in the 4th century BCE, they gained strength and spread from Bihar to Orissa, India, Orissa, then so South India and westwards to Gujarat and the Punjab region, Punjab, where Jain communities became firmly established, particularly among the mercantile classes. The period of the Mauryan Dynasty to the 12th century was the period of Jainism's greatest growth and influence. Thereafter, the Jainas in the South and Central regions lost ground in face of rising Hindu devotional movements. Jainism retreated to the West and Northwest, which have remained its stronghold to the present. Emperor Samprati is regarded as the "Jain Ashoka" for his patronage and efforts to spreading Jainism in east India. Samprati, according to Jain historians, is considered more powerful and famous than Ashoka himself. Samprati built thousands of Jain Temples in India, many of which remain in use, such as the Jain temples at Viramgam and Palitana temples, Palitana (Gujarat), Agar Malwa (Ujjain). Within three and a half years, he got one hundred and twenty-five thousand new temples built, thirty-six thousand repaired, twelve and a half million murtis, holy statues, consecrated and ninety-five thousand metal murtis prepared. Samprati is said to have erected Jain temples throughout his empire. He founded Jain monasteries even in non-Aryan territory, and almost all ancient Jain temples or monuments of unknown origin are popularly attributed to him. It may be noted that all the Jain monuments of Rajasthan and Gujarat, with unknown builders are also attributed to Emperor Samprati. Virachand Gandhi (1864–1901) from Mahuva, Bhavnagar, Mahuva represented Jains at the first Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago in 1893 and won a silver medal. Gandhi was most likely the first Jain and the first Gujarati to travel to the United States, and his statue still stands at the Jain temple in Chicago. In his time he was a world-famous personality. Gandhi represented Jains in Chicago because the Great Jain Saint Param Pujya Acharya Vijayanandsuri, also known as Acharya Atmaram, was invited to represent the Jain religion at the first Parliament of the World's Religions, World Parliament of Religions. As Jain monks do not travel overseas, he recommended the bright young scholar Virchand Gandhi to be the emissary for the religion. Today there are 100,000 Jains in the United States. There are also tens of thousands of Jains located in the UK and Canada.


Judaism

Historically, various Jewish sects and movements have been consistent in avoiding or even forbidding proselytization (religion-to-religion conversion propaganda) to convert gentiles (non-Jews). They believe that gentiles do not need to convert to Judaism, due to Abrahamic religions being already under the Seven Laws of Noah. Chabad Lubavitch has a sub-sect that has engaged in an effort to spread Noahidism (Seven Laws of Noah) among non-Jews who follow none of the existing Abrahamic religions. Orthodox Judaism outreach (''kiruv'') encourages non-practicing Jews to become more knowledgeable and observant of ''halakha'' (Jewish law). Outreach is done worldwide, by organizations such as Chabad Lubavitch, Aish HaTorah, Ohr Somayach, Jerusalem, Ohr Somayach, and Partners In Torah. Members of Reform Judaism began a program to convert to their brand of Judaism the non-Jewish spouses of its Interfaith marriage in Judaism, intermarried members and non-Jews who have an interest in Reform Judaism. Their rationale is that so many Jews were lost during the Holocaust that newcomers must be sought out and welcomed. This approach has been rejected by both Orthodox Judaism and Conservative Judaism as unrealistic and posing a danger on the entire Jewish faith.


Sikh missions

According to Sikhs, when he was twenty-eight, Guru Nanak went as usual down to the river to bathe and meditate. It was said that he was gone for three days. When he reappeared, it is said he was "filled with the spirit of God". His first words after his re-emergence were: "there is no Hindu, there is no Muslim". With this secular principle he began his missionary work. He made four distinct major journeys, in the four different directions, which are called ''Udasis'', spanning many thousands of kilometres, preaching the message of God. Currently there are List of gurdwaras, gurdwaras in over 50 countries. Of missionary organizations, the most famous is probably The Sikh Missionary Society UK. The aim of the Sikh Missionary Society is the ''Advancement of the Sikh faith in the U.K. and abroad'', engages in various activities: * Produce and distribute books on the Sikh faith in English and Panjabi, and other languages to enlighten the younger generation of Sikhs as well as non-Sikhs. * Advise and support young students in schools, colleges, and universities on Sikh issues and Sikh traditions. * Arrange classes, lectures, seminars, conferences, Gurmat camps and the celebration of holy Sikh events, the basis of their achievement and interest in the field of the Sikh faith and the Panjabi language. * Make available all Sikh artifacts, posters, literature, music, educational videos, DVDs, and multimedia CD-ROMs. There have been several Sikh missionaries: * Bhai Gurdas (1551–1636), Punjabi people, Punjabi Sikh writer, historian, missionary, and religious figure; the original scribe of the Guru Granth Sahib and a companion of four of the Sikh GurusSaints
– Sikhs.org
* Giani Pritam Singh Dhillon, Indian independence movement, Indian freedom fighter * Bhai Amrik Singh, devoted much of his life to Sikh missionary activities; one of the Sikh community's most prominent leaders along with Sant Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale * Jathedar Sadhu Singh Bhaura (1905–1984), Sikh missionary who rose to be the Jathedar or high priest of Sri Akal Takhat, Amritsar Sikhs have emigrated to many countries of the world since Partition of India, Indian independence in 1947. Sikh communities exist in Britain, East Africa, Canada, the United States, Malaysia, and most European countries.


Tenrikyo missions

Tenrikyo conducts missionary work in approximately forty countries. Its first missionary was a woman named, Kokan, who worked on the streets of Osaka. In 2003, it operated approximately twenty thousand mission stations worldwide.


Criticism

Contact of Christian missionaries with isolated tribes has been asserted as a cause of the extinction of some tribes, such as extinction from infections and even simple diseases such as flu.Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar
Centre Ignored ST Panel Advice on Protecting Vulnerable Andaman Tribes
The Wire, 23 Nov 2018.
Navina Jafa
The Sentinelese and the Dilemma of Conservation Without Contact
The Wire, 2 Dec 2018.
Documented cases of European contact with isolated tribes has shown rapid health deterioration, but this is not specifically linked to missionaries.Is It Ethical to Leave Uncontacted Tribes Alone?
Time (magazine), 4 June 2015.
Christian missionary work has been criticized as a form of colonialism. Christian missionary thinkers have recognized complicity between colonialism and missions with roots in 'colonial paternalism'. Some kinds of Christian missionary activity have come under criticism, including concerns about a perceived lack of respect for other cultures. Potential destruction of social structure among the converts has also been a concern. The Huaorani people of Amazonian Ecuador have had a well-documented Operation Auca, mixed relation with Evangelical Christian missionaries and the contacts they brought to their communities, criticized by outsiders.


Impact of missions

A 2012 study by political scientist Robert Woodberry, focusing on Protestant missionaries, found that they have often left a very positive societal impact in the areas where they worked. "In cross-national statistical analysis Protestant missions are significantly and robustly associated with higher levels of printing, education, economic development, organizational civil society, protection of private property, and rule of law and with lower levels of corruption".Robert D. Woodberry, "The Missionary Roots of Liberal Democracy.
''American Political Science Review'' (2012) 106#2: 244-274. online
A 2020 study by Elena Nikolova and Jakub Polansky replicates Woodberry's analysis using twenty-six alternative democracy measures and extends the time period over which the democracy measures are averaged. These two simple modifications lead to the breakdown of Woodberry's results. Overall, no significant relationship between Protestant missions and the development of democracy can be established. A 2017 study found that areas of colonial Mexico that had Mendicant missions have higher rates of literacy and educational attainment today than regions that did not have missions. Areas that had Jesuit missions are today indistinct from the areas that had no missions. The study also found that "the share of Catholics is higher in regions where Catholic missions of any kind were a historical present." A 2016 study found that regions in Sub-Saharan Africa that Protestant missionaries brought printing presses to are today "associated with higher newspaper readership, trust, education, and political participation." Missionaries have also made significant contributions to linguistics and the description and documentation of many languages. "Many languages today exist only in missionary records. More than anywhere else, our knowledge of the native languages in South America has been the product of missionary activity… Without missionary documentation the reclamation [of several languages] would have been completely impossible" "A satisfactory history of linguistics cannot be written before the impressive contribution of missionaries is recognised." In 2019, Monika Zin, a German researcher of Buddhist art and architecture claimed that several Christian missionaries used translations of Jataka tales and Panchatanatra to claim that the Buddha was Christian to advance their proselytyzation activities in Japan.


Lists of prominent missionaries


American missionaries

* Gerónimo Boscana, (Roman Catholic Franciscan) missionary * Isabel Crawford, (
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...
) missionary * Antonio de Olivares, (Roman Catholic Franciscan) missionary * Anton Docher, (Roman Catholic) missionary * Elisabeth Elliot, American Protestant missionary in Ecuador, author and speaker, widow of Jim Elliot of Operation Auca * Mary H. Fulton, Women in medicine#Western medicine in China, female medical missionary to China, founder of Lingnan University (Guangzhou)#Hackett, Hackett Medical College for Women (夏葛女子醫學院) in Guangzhou, ChinaRebecca Chan Chung, Deborah Chung and Cecilia Ng Wong, "Piloted to Serve", 2012 * Adoniram Judson, first significant missionary in Burma * Eusebio Kino, (Roman Catholic
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
) missionary * Zenas Sanford Loftis, medical missionary to Tibet * Robert E. Longacre, Christian linguist missionary to Mexico * Dada Maheshvarananda, Ananda Marga yoga missionary * Fred Prosper Manget, medical missionary to China, founder of Houzhou General Hospital, Houzhou, China, also a doctor with the Flying Tigers and U.S. Army in Kunming, China, during World War II * Lottie Moon, Baptist missionary to China * Arthur Lewis Piper, medical missionary to the Belgian Congo * Dada Pranakrsnananda, Ananda Marga yoga missionary * Darlene Rose, missionary in Papua New Guinea * John Stewart (missionary), John Stewart, (Methodist) missionary * José de Anchieta, (Roman Catholic
Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...
) missionary * Peter of Saint Joseph de Betancur, (Roman Catholic Franciscan) missionary * John Allen Chau, (Evangelicalism, evangelical Christian) missionary killed while attempting to convert the Uncontacted peoples, uncontacted Sentinelese


British Christian missionaries

* John Hobbis Harris, with his wife Alice Seeley Harris, Alice Seeley, he used photography to expose colonial abuses * Benjamin Hobson, medical missionary to China, set up a highly successful Wai Ai Clinic (惠愛醫館() in Guangzhou, China. * Teresa Kearney, Sister in Uganda * Olive Hilda Miller, missionary to Jamaica and the Cayman Islands * William Milne (missionary), William Milne, Bible translator to China * Robert Morrison (missionary), Robert Morrison, Bible translator to China * George Piercy, Methodist missionary to China * Sam Pollard (missionary), Sam Pollard, Bible translator to China * James Hudson Taylor, missionary to China, insist on going into the inland of China. * John Wesley


See also

*List of Protestant missionaries in China *List of Protestant missionaries in India *List of Roman Catholic missionaries *List of Roman Catholic missionaries in China *List of Roman Catholic missionaries in India *List of Eastern Orthodox missionaries *List of missionaries to Hawaii *List of missionaries to the South Pacific *List of Slovenian missionaries *List of Russian Orthodox missionaries *List of Protestant missionaries to Southeast Asia *List of Roman Catholic missions in Africa *:Christian missionaries in New Zealand, Christian missionaries in New Zealand *:Christian missionaries in Oceania, Christian missionaries in Oceania *Timeline of Christian missions *Catholic missions *Christianity and colonialism *Christian missionaries *Christianisation *Evangelism *History of Christian missions *Indigenous church mission theory *Mission (Christianity) *Missiology *Missionary kid *Missionary religious institutes and societies *Portuguese Inquisition in Goa and Bombay-Bassein *Religious conversion *Short-term mission *Timeline of Christian missions


References


Further reading

* Dunch, Ryan. "Beyond cultural imperialism: Cultural theory, Christian missions, and global modernity." ''History and Theory'' 41.3 (2002): 301–325
online
* Dwight, Henry Otis et al. eds., ''The Encyclopedia of Missions'' (2nd ed. 1904
Online
Global coverage Of Protestant and Catholic missions. * Robinson, David ''Muslim Societies in African History'' (The Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge Cambridge, UK 2004) * Sharma, Arvind (2014). Hinduism as a missionary religion. New Delhi: Dev Publishers & Distributors. * Shourie, Arun. (2006). Missionaries in India: Continuities, changes, dilemmas. New Delhi: Rupa. * Madhya Pradesh (India)., & Niyogi, M. B. (1956). Vindicated by time: The Niyogi Committee report on Christian missionary activities. Nagpur: Government Printing, Madhya Pradesh.


External links


Missionary eTexts


* [https://web.archive.org/web/20190407072339/http://www.lefaitmissionnaire.com/ LFM. Social sciences & Missions]
Henry Martyn Centre for the study of mission & world Christianity
*William Carey Library, Mission Resources *Hiney, Thomas: ''On the Missionary Trail'', New York: Atlantic Monthly Press (2000), p5-22.
EtymologyOnLine
(word history) {{Authority control Christian terminology Missionaries, Religious practices Religious occupations