Thailand has
always been a Buddhist country. Often described as more a way
of life than religion, Buddhism pervades Thai life and influences
their conduct in countless subtle ways. Over 95% of the Thai people
are members of the Theravada Buddhist sect. Thailand has long
been tolerant of other religions, but the numbers involved are
quite small; one million Muslims predominate in 4 provinces bordering
Malaysia; 250,000 Christians and small groups of Hindus, Sikhs
and believers of Confucius Ethics. There is a complete freedom
of worship, exemplified by the role of the King as protector of
all religions.
The Portuguese
were the first Europeans to arrive in Thailand in 1518and they
were allowed to open a Christian mission. In fact the Thai king
gave a large donation to build the first Christian (Roman Catholic)
church in the country. English traders who arrived in 1612 were
agents for the East India Company and were more interested in
building a factory than a church. Under King Narai, who was interested
in the West, European missionaries and adventurers exerted considerable
influence at court. However, when King Narai died in 1688, members
of the government, fearing the missionaries proselytizing efforts,
killed or expelled all Westerners from Thailand. It remained a
closed country to the Europeans for the next 100 years.
In 1780, King
Taksin allowed French missionaries to enter Thailand, and like
a previous Thai king, helped them build a church. In the early
part of the 19th century it was estimated that there were 1,000
Thai Christians in Bangkok, descendants of the Portuguese who
were widely intermarried with the Thais. Protestant missionaries
arrived in 1828,and the continuous residence of American missionaries
dates from 1833. After 18 years, 22 missionaries had failed to
make one convert, but their non-religious impact was profound.
They brought modern scientific knowledge and western medicine
to the country. In 1835, American missionaries set up the first
printing press using the Thai alphabet.
King Mongkut
learned English from his American missionary friends who also
introduced him to Christianity. However, he could not accept Divine
Revelation or Redemption of Sin, only pure human reason. He is
quoted as saying, "What you teach them to do is admirable,
but what you teach them to believe is foolish." Still, he
saw no harm in the Christian faith if it helped other people and
both the Catholics and the Protestants benefited from his help
in many ways.
Although in the early part of this century, the Presbyterian missionaries
saw growth occur in the Thai church, this began to level off after
a few years. Then, during the 2nd World War, numbers declined,
but began to rise again after the war ended when there was an
influx of missionaries and new missions, e.g. OMF, New Tribes,
WEC. However, it was not until the 1970s that any significant
trends began to be established in terms of church growth.
Buddhism
1990's
Even though
to be born Thai means to be born Buddhist, the average Thai person
is not much more a Buddhist than many people in the Western world
consider themselves to be Christian. Some rituals are followed
by most people, but only a few follow all the rules of Buddhism.
It seems that Buddhism has lost a lot of its attraction to the
Thai people. The economic turmoil of the recent years has caused
a new openness in the Thai people as many are looking for meaning
in life besides materialism.
"The
power of God is moving in Thailand, the darkness is lifting over
Thailand it has never been so easy to lead a Thai person to Christ!"
(Peter C. Wagner at a 1996 conference of 7000 Thai believers in
Bangkok.)
