Protestantism in Myanmar

Main article: Christianity in Burma

Protestants in Burma make up 3% of that nation's population, many of them Baptists.[1] The Protestant Churches of Burma were begun in the early 19th century by Adoniram Judson, an American Baptist missionary. Since the 19th century, Christianity has become deeply rooted and has grown stronger through many adversities.

In 1966 all missionaries were expelled by the Burmese government, but the Burmese Church has become a vibrant missionary-sending movement, despite financial limitations and geographic isolation. Baptists, Assemblies of God, Methodists and Anglicans form the strongest denominations in Burma. Many Christians are well-educated, but cannot rise to positions of responsibility.

Most Christians are from the minority ethnic groups such as Karen, Lisu, Kachin, Chin, and Lahu. An estimated 0.1 per cent of the Bamar population is Christian.

Anglicanism

The Anglican Communion is represented in Burma by the Church of the Province of Myanmar. As of 2006, it has about 62,000 members.[2]

Baptist

The Myanmar Baptist Convention is an association of Baptist churches in Myanmar.[3]

The famous American Baptist missionaries, Adoniram and Ann Judson, moved to Yangon in 1813 when British authorities refused to allow them to stay in India. The Judsons were in Burma six years before their first convert was baptised. Adoniram Judson gathered a group of believers and laboured under many trials, but his missionary tenure of almost 40 years helped firmly establish the Baptist work in Myanmar. His monumental work included translating the Bible into Burmese, which was completed in 1834. George Dana Boardman began a work among the Karen peoples in 1828. Today the Karen Baptist Convention is the largest member body of the Myanmar Baptist Convention, which was formed in 1865.

HIV/AIDS is a significant problem in Myanmar. In 1992, the Baptist Convention created a 32-member AIDS commission, because they see the problem as spiritual, as well as social and medical.

In Myanmar about 6% of the population is Christian, with two-thirds of them being considered Protestant. Almost half of these Protestants are Baptists. In 2012, the Convention had over 1.6 million members in 4929 churches. The Myanmar Baptist Convention has 18 affiliated conventions and two directly affiliated local churches under its umbrella, and is a member of the World Council of Churches and the Baptist World Alliance.

During 5–8 December 2013 Myanmar Baptist Convention celebrated its 200th anniversary arrival of missionary Judson. They are actively planning to evangelise all the unreached people groups of it and plant as many as 1200 churches in their project entitled: Golden Myanmar Baptist Mission, Second Decade(2014-2024).

The Convention operates the Myanmar Institute of Theology, the leading Christian seminary in Myanmar, founded in 1927 and located in Insein.

Methodist Church

Methodist missionaries entered the country along with the British once Myanmar became a British colony in the late 1800s. Methodists established, similarly to the Anglicans, schools in the country, most notably the Methodist English High School in Yangon, mostly to educate the Anglo-Burmese and British. The school exists to this day and today is known as Dagon State High School but still attached the Methodist Church.

The United Methodist Church works with the Lower Myanmar Methodist Church which was founded by American Methodist missionaries over 100 years ago. The Upper Myanmar Methodist Church was planted by British Methodists. The two are in discussion about merging. They already conduct joint missions.

The Lower Myanmar Methodist Church began under the British. The Lower Myanmar Methodist Church concentrates on leadership development through scholarships and continuing education. It also provides a home for the elderly, helps youth develop job skills, cares for orphans and provides environmental education.

Christian Reformed Church in Myanmar

The Christian Reformed Church in Myanmar is a Reformed church of Myanmar, and was founded in 1985 by Pastor Chan Thleng who was former ordained in the Presbyterian Church in Myanmar. He belongs to the Matu tribe in Southern Chin State born in 1954 become Christian in 1974. In 1985 he founded the United Christian Church after he graduated from Calvin Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, MI he returned to Burma and changed the denominations name to the Christian Reformed Church.[4] It has 52 congregations and 13 preaching points with more than 6,000 members. The church is divided into 10 Classes. Most of the evangelists work among Buddhist and Animist people. The church is divided into classes. The Church recognises the Belgic Confession, Heidelberg Catechism, Canons of Dort and the Ecumenical Creeds. To train pastors the church founded the Reformed Theological seminary in Yangon in 1997. The college offers a degree of Bachelor of Theology. The Christian Reformed Church maintains a clinic opened in 1999 in Matupi. It belonged to the Reformed Ecumenical Council, the only Burmese denomination to do so. But REC merged with the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, now the Christian Reformed Church is affiliated with the World Communion of Reformed Churches.[5][6] The denomination held its 26th General assembly in 17–20 March 2011.[7] It entered into official ecclesiastical fellowship with the Christian Reformed Church in North America in 2011.

Presbyterian Churches

The biggest church is the Presbyterian Church in Myanmar with 30,000 members and 300 parishes and hundreds of house fellowships.

Mara Evangelical Church

The Mara Evangelical Church is one of the oldest church in Chin State. It was founded by American missionaries. The church has 100 congregations and 17,200 members, and it is affiliated with the World Communion of Reformed Churches.

Kachin Church

Kachin Church is a church centred in Kachin State of Myanmar. It is also present in China and India and is predominantly Baptist.

Lisu Church

Main article: Lisu Church

Lisu Church is a Christian church of an ethnic minority of southern China, Myanmar, Thailand and a part of India. Missionaries had been working in the Lisu area since the early 20th century. The first to work among the Lisu, in the Yunnan province in China, was James O. Fraser, who also developed the written Lisu language and the Fraser Alphabet, which today is officially adopted by the Chinese government. Writing and reading in Lisu has been mainly developed by the church. Today there are an estimated 300,000 Lisu believers. The Lisu Church has both the Bible and a hymn book in their own language.

True Jesus Church in Myanmar

The True Jesus Church is a nontrinitarian Christian denomination begun in China, growing out of the Pentecostal movement. Since its foundation it has spread to other countries including Myanmar.

As of 2000, there are two churches, one in Taungphila and Pyindaw Oo, and prayer houses in six different areas: Pyidawtha, Sakhamayi, Tiddicm, Falam, Nud Kyi Kone, and Yangon Shwebogan. The number of believers is 211.

See also


Further reading

  1. ↑ "Burma". CIA World Factbook. 8 November 2008. Retrieved 21 July 2006.
  2. ↑ World Council of Churches, 1 January 2006, Church of the Province of Myanmar. Retrieved 13 November 2008.
  3. ↑ Myanmar Baptist Convention. "Myanmar Baptist Convention: Who We Are". Myanmar Baptist Convention (in Burmese). Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  4. ↑ http://www.reformiert-online.net/adressen/detail.php?id=13237&lg=eng
  5. ↑ www.wcrc.ch/node/164
  6. ↑ www.facebook.com/pages/The-Christian-Reformed-Church-of-Myanmar-CRCM/175010122573927?id=175010122573927&sk=info
  7. ↑ http://johnmcmurphy.wordpress.com/2011/04/28/ministry-update-from-chan-thleng/
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