The Saint in the Banyan Tree
eBook - PDF

The Saint in the Banyan Tree

Christianity and Caste Society in India

  1. 408 pages
  2. English
  3. PDF
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - PDF

The Saint in the Banyan Tree

Christianity and Caste Society in India

About this book

The Saint in the Banyan Tree is a nuanced and historically persuasive exploration of Christianity's remarkable trajectory as a social and cultural force in southern India. Starting in the seventeenth century, when the religion was integrated into Tamil institutions of caste and popular religiosity, this study moves into the twentieth century, when Christianity became an unexpected source of radical transformation for the country's 'untouchables' (dalits). Mosse shows how caste was central to the way in which categories of 'religion' and 'culture' were formed and negotiated in missionary encounters, and how the social and semiotic possibilities of Christianity lead to a new politic of equal rights in South India. Skillfully combining archival research with anthropological fieldwork, this book examines the full cultural impact of Christianity on Indian religious, social and political life. Connecting historical ethnography to the preoccupations of priests and Jesuit social activists, Mosse throws new light on the contemporary nature of caste, conversion, religious synthesis, secularization, dalit politics, the inherent tensions of religious pluralism, and the struggle for recognition among subordinated people.

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Yes, you can access The Saint in the Banyan Tree by David Mosse in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Social Sciences & Christianity. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Information

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title
  3. Copyright
  4. Contents
  5. List of Illustrations
  6. Preface
  7. Acknowledgments
  8. Note on Transliteration
  9. Introduction
  10. 1. A Jesuit Mission in History
  11. 2. A Culture of Popular Catholicism
  12. 3. Christians in Village Society: Caste, Place, and the Ritualization of Power
  13. 4. Public Worship and Disputed Caste: The Santiyakappar Festival over 150 Years
  14. 5. Christianity and Dalit Struggle: 1960s to 1980s
  15. 6. Hindu Religious Nationalism and Dalit Christian Activism
  16. 7. A Return Visit to Alapuram: Religion and Caste in the 2000s
  17. Conclusion
  18. Notes
  19. Glossary
  20. References
  21. Index