Background and Rationale
Myanmar is a pluralistic society of over fifty million people who speak over hundred different languages and dialects. The presence of pagodas, temples, mosques, spirit houses and churches proclaim it as a multi-religious country. The Christian presence in Myanmar began with early Catholic missionaries in the seventeenth century. However, it was only with the Italian Barnabite Order that mission work began in 1721. The first protestant missionaries, sent by William Carey who started the English Baptist Mission in Serampore, India, arrived in 1807. The work of the English Baptists was taken over by the American Baptists with the arrival of Adoniram and Ann Judson on July 13, 1813.
In spite of this long history of Christian proclamation and witness, Christianity remains an alien religion, a potted plant that has not been transplanted into the soil of the country. In the minds of most Burmese people, it is still connected with colonialism which overwhelmed the country in the 19 th century. This is especially true in terms of Christians’ reluctance or inability to have meaningful dialogue with Buddhists and people of other primal religions. In fact, the Christian presence is almost non-existent among the peoples like the Bamars (ethnically Burmese), Rakhines, Mons and Shans who profess Buddhism as their faith whereas it is evident in the communities of ethnic minorities such as Karens, Kachins, Chins, Lisus and Was. For faithful witness and mutual tolerance, it is imperative that Christians begin to take seriously the faith of their neighbors. There is a vital need for Buddhist-Christian dialogue and study of the primal religions of the people of Myanmar.
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