Serene and vibrant
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The first church of Seventh Day Adventists in south India was organised in Prakasapuram in 1915. Though many families from this parish have migrated to the U. S., they still have their ties with the home church intact, observes SELINE AUGUSTINE.
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The Adventist church at Nazareth.
IT WAS a balmy Saturday afternoon. A gentle winter breeze was rustling the leaves of the trees in the Seventh Day Adventist Church premises in Prakasapuram, Nazareth. What was striking was the serenity and cleanliness of the sprawling big complex which also housed the James Memorial Higher Secondary School. In under an hour the weekly Sabbath worship service was to begin, Pastor Rajaratinam Jones informed. A few hundred regular worshippers were expected to attend it. This is the oldest Adventist church in south Asia since it started functioning in 1908. It was rebuilt and rededicated in 1996; what is of significance is that it is vibrant and alive even today.
In 1893, the World's Parliament of Religions was held in Chicago, Illinois. The lecture delivered by the Seventh Day Baptist representative was published as a booklet. A copy of this reached the hands of A. N. Sattampillai, who founded the indigenous Seventh Day sect on the outskirts of Nazareth town. It surprised him, until then he had thought that only the Jews observed the Seventh Day as Sabbath. A highly learned man who knew 16 languages, and wanting to know more about Sabbath, teacher Sattampillai posted a letter to New York, but it reached the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) office in Battle Creek, Michigan. Elder F. M. Woolcox sent him a few magazines and books with his reply.
In 1905, three merchants from Mukuperi and Prakasapuram, Thambakara Nadar, N. T. Nallamuthu and N. T. Jacob, happened to attend SDA meetings in Colombo, Ceylon. The following year the Elder J. S. James of Minnesotta was chosen to work in south India and sent to Bangalore with his wife and two sons in 1906.
On learning Tamil, James translated a few pamphlets into Tamil - Is the end of the world near? Which day is Sabbath? The signs of Christ's Second Coming and New Testament Sabbath. On studying these, Sattampillai sought more explanation.
Along with Elder J. L. Shaw and G. F. Enoch, James reached Tirunelveli by train and then to Nazareth by bullock-cart to a ceremonial welcome organised by hundreds of people, including women and children of the Hindu Yeka Ratchahar church. The highlight was Psalm 23 being played on the nadaswaram by the musicians.
The threesome was lodged for ten days in the school there. It was decided that James with his family would leave Bangalore and stay in Prakasapuram.
On July 2, 1908, the church donated a land of two acres worth Rs. 1,000 to James.
Writing in the Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, 1909, James refers to the dedication of the bungalow and mentions how the locals took part in the festivities by sprinkling flowers and rose water, smearing sandanam and singing Tamil keertanais. Not very different from celebrations in this part of the country even today, one must admit.
Another quote from the Herald brought out in 1908 says: Caste system is followed here to a large extent, so also the practice of women wearing chunks of jewellery; then there are these misguided notions the native populace has about man's humanity and death.
The first church of Seventh Day Adventists in south India was organised in Prakasapuram with 49 members on January 30, 1915, though it had been functioning from 1908. Elders James and G. G. Lowry conducted the service.
Why Sabbath
Adventists reflect the passionate conviction in the nearness of the quick return of (advent of) Jesus. Seventh Day refers to the Biblical Sabbath which from Creation has been the seventh day of the week, or Saturday. While the world headquarters is based in Silver Springs in Maryland, U.S., the southern Asia division headquarters that oversees the church's work in India and Nepal is located in Hosur, Tamil Nadu.
James and Ellen G. White and retired sea captain Joseph Bates may be said to have laid the foundation for the Seventh Day Adventist church in 1850s in the U.S. In 1860 the name was chosen and three years later they organised a church body with a membership of 3500.
Ellen White in particular became a gifted author, speaker and administrator and served for 70 years till her death in 1915. Adventists are committed to making education accessible everywhere. At the heart of the Adventist education system is the conviction that every individual should have the opportunity to study and grow.
James Memorial School in Prakasapuram is one of the 5600 educational institutions operated in 145 countries around the world by the SDA church. The school named after the pioneer J. S. James was dedicated by W. Spicer. (The famed Spicer Memorial College in Pune is named after him.)
Today the Prakasapuram school has a strength of 520 boys and girls.
Principal Rev S. Ambrose said 50 per cent of the students hail from non-Christian background. First preference is given to orphans and destitute children. Some 250 resident students help out an hour every day in keeping the 22-acre campus tidy. A dairy, coconut palm grove and 12-acre paddy field dot the picturesque landscape.
It is noteworthy that about 300 families from this parish have migrated to the U.S. in the last few decades and many of them have their ties with the home church intact.
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Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
