Christianity in India is More Popular than You Might Think

Christianity is the third most popular religion in India. Its followers account for more than twenty-three million people, which is nearly to two and a half percent of India's entire population.

Followers in India, like most Christians, believe that their Messiah, Jesus Christ, is the son of God, and the singular savior of mankind. They also believe that Jesus Christ is the same Messiah, who is foretold of in the Old Testament of the Hebrew Bible.

It's believed that Jesus taught through his followers, called disciples, and that he was eventually persecuted for his teachings. He was then crucified and buried, only to later arise from the dead and to open a passageway to his father's Kingdom of Heaven for all of his followers. They believe that Jesus died for their sins, and that through strong faith, they will be forgiven for their sins on Earth.

You may be curious as to how the Christian Religion reached India; there is an interesting and somewhat mysterious story behind that piece of India's History!

As the story goes, a man by the name of Saint Thomas arrived in Southwest India in 52 AD to try and convert Jewish inhabitants to their faith. As the unverifiable story goes, he opened seven churches in India and was successful at converting many people to his faith. There is a Syriac writing referred to as the "Acts of Thomas", that describes how his apostles were connected with two powerful kings in North and South India.

According to this uncertain religious history, a section of "Acts of Thomas" indicates that God convinced Saint Thomas to travel to North India to teach his religious beliefs to a King called Gondophares. As the story goes, his teachings spread through the whole kingdom. Later, Saint Thomas went on a second quest to convert the South Indian Kingdom of King Mahadwa, in which he was also successful. Eventually, this newer religion could be found in all regions of India.

There are two different written stories about Jesus living in India. One, written by a Russian author named Nicolas Notovich. His writing suggests that Jesus studied in India from age twelve until he was thirty, and then left India. A second writer, named Mirza Gulam Ahmed, wrote that Jesus never actually died on the cross, but instead survived, staged a resurrection, and lived in India for the rest of his life. There is, of course, no proof of either of these visits to India actually happening, and they are only considered to be mythical stories.

No one really knows the exact details of the religion's arrival in India, however, it is agreed that the Christian religion in India is about as old as the religion itself, and that it actually spread into India before it spread to most European Countries.

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