Christianity in Thailand

Christianity was first introduced to Thailand by European missionaries and is today a rather minor part of Thai society, although historically it took on a much greater role in the modernization of Thailand. They represent only 0.008% of the national population, although Christians are numerically and organizationally concentrated more heavily in the North, where they make up an estimated 10% of some lowland districts (e.g., Chomtong, Chiang Mai) and up to very high percents in tribal districts(e.g., Mae Sariang, Mae Hong Son).
== Background ==
Christianity in Thailand began with the work of missionaries or foreign religious workers. In the 1550s the Portuguese mercenaries and their chaplain arrived in Ayutthaya. By 1660, the Vicariate Apostolic of Siam was established under the leadership particularly of Portuguese and French fathers.[Roman_Catholic_Archdiocese_of_Bangkok] Later on, Protestants appeared in the new capital of Bangkok in 1826 through the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions representative, Karl Gützlaff followed by Rev. Jesse Casswell (et al.) and Dr. Dan Beach Bradley. These to both switched affiliations to the American Missionary Association (AMA) in 1848 over their support for the Finney revival emphasis on "perfectionism" that the Congregationalist parent organization found unorthodox, effectively ending the work of the ABCFM in Siam. American Baptists arrived in Thailand in 1833 and American Presbyterians arrived in 1840. Daniel McGilvary and William Clifton Dodd were important names in the formation of the Church in Lanna Kingdom of Northern Thaialnd. Burmese Karen evangelists and Dr. Sung of China were part of the early evangelistic efforts to Thailand up until WWII. Other waves of European and American Protestant missions to Thailand were in 1930 and then again after WWII. Korean and other Asian missionaries came in increasing numbers from the 1970s through the 1990s, such Dr. Kosuke Koyama of Japan. 
Christianity in Thailand overcame initial mistrust, leading to an Edict of Toleration. Parishes and congregations experienced sporadic numerical growth and have struggled over their identity. The activities of missionaries were predominantly in itinerant preaching, medical institutions and educational facilities as well as introduction of technologies, methodologies and institutional culture which have been generally well-received by the Thai people. They were occasionally able to mobilize large numbers of Thai helpers. Since World War II control of Christian organizations was slowly turned over to Thai Christians and the institutions integrated as private institutions in an increasingly centralized Thailand. 
Relations between Christian organizations and the central government have improved. In the 1980s, Thai royal budget for programs of Christian groups appeared for the first time. Evidence of this support includes 15,000 Baht given by the Department of Religion to District 14 of the Church of Christ in Thailand for youth outreachMinutes of the Annual Meeting of 1996, District 14, Church of Christ in Thailand (unpublished) as well as waiving of the cost of tickets on trains for missionaries and for Thai pastors of the denomination. 
Christians made and are making substantial contributions to health care and education in Thailand. Such facilities, as Saint Louis Hospital, Bangkok Mission Hospital, Camillian Hospital, Bangkok Christian Hospital were once considered to be among the best in the country. Major Christian schools dot the map of Thailand. European and American missionaries introduced printing press, western surgery, smallpox vaccinations, taught foreign languages and wrote linguistic dictionaries. Thai and Western Christians in the past 50 years have been heavily engaged in administrative reform of church organizations, ecumenical and interrreligious dialogue, social development projects, enculturation or adaptation of the Gospel for Thai culture and have been active in providing leadership in the Thai democracy movement, refugee relief, and improving the status of women, the handicapped and children.
Interreligious dialogue is evidenced by such programs as the Saengtum Seminary, the Sinclair Thompson Lecture Series of Payap University, a Thailand Church History Project coordinated by Rev. Dr. Herbert Swanson in the 1990s and an Institute for Interreligious Dialogue at Payap University. In November 2007, Bangkok's Assumption Cathedral became the venue of ecumenical Pilgrimage of trust, when Christians from different backgrounds gathered to pray together. Among those present were religious leaders of the Roman Catholic Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Thailand, the Church of Christ in Thailand, the Russian Orthodox Church and also young people from Laos, Philippines, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia who came specially for the prayer meetingsPilgrimage of trust in Bangkok, Taize Home Page. Similar programs of worship have been held annually at First Church (Chiang Mai) and elsewhere across Thaland. 
Non-denominational efforts and inter-agency coordination have involved such agencies as the Church's AIDS Ministry, Voice of Peace, Lamp of Thailand, World Vision, Worldwide Faith Missions, Christian Children's Fund, McKean Leprosy Hospital (now McKean Rehabilitation Institute), Klong Thuy Slum Ministries, and the Christian Development Fellowship. Thailand has served as the destination of choice in Asian Christian gatherings and has served as the headquarters of the Christian Conference of Asia since the handover of Hong Kong.
== Numerical Data on Christianity in Thailand ==
Statistically, Thai Christianity since the 1960s has been growing at a rate slower than population growth. 
There are many sources for estimating the affiliation of Thai people in Christian denominations. The primary sources are from the government population data and from the membership records of the individual denominations. Reliable data on determining religious affiliation are not based on objective standards in all cases. The most objective report that counts individuals is government census data. Less objective standards would seek to include theological criteria in the counting of members such as belief, baptism, confirmation as well as age criteria such as persons over age 12, 15, 18 or adulthood. None of these standards of various denominational data discriminate based on gender, health or ethnicity.
Government data are based on the National House Register in which heads of households register the members of the household with the local District Office. At birth, persons declare their religious affiliation in this manner. A national census is taken of this data every 10 years. As of 2000 A.D., the latest [national census data] currently available, 486,840 people were registered as affiliates of Christian denominations or under 1% (0.008%) of total population (60 Million). Comparisons of this data to determine whether Christians in Thailand are predominantly a certain gender, age or are from urban/rural areas does not show any remarkable variation from the near 1% figure, although the age group of 10-14 shows the highest (1.0%) ratio of Christians to national population. There may be limitations to this approach to verifying religious affiliation, such as inconsistent reporting, the change of religion to Christianity of young people under their parent's house register, reversion of young people back to Buddhism, and local administrative bias towards Buddhism. However, no available evidence currently demonstrates these limitations. Religious denominations each report different sets of affiliation data. The next official census is scheduled for 2010 A.D.
Evangelical Fellowship of Thailand data comes from the individual organizations that work under its auspices, since membership in the EFT is open to church organizations. It was recognized by the Department of Religion as a Christian denomination in Thailand on June 19, 1969 as a locus for a plethora of small groups that had been in Thailand at least since 1936 when the Christian and Missionary Alliance established its presence in Thailand. 
The Church of Christ in Thailand, founded in 1932, is a member of the World Council of Churches, Christian Conference of Asia and World Reformed Alliance. The CCT generally only counts adult baptized members as reported by its districts, which the CCT then reports at its annual General Assembly meeting. In 2008,the CCT reported 120,000 members divided into 19 districts.[Church of Christ in Thailand. Documents of the 30th General Assembly of the Church of Christ in Thailand, October 21–24, 2008, Payap University, Chiang Mai] Of the parts of the Church of Christ in Thailand, 52,601 were of Baptist origin. Southern Baptist Convention and Seventh Day Adventists have other criteria.
==Roman Catholicism in Thailand==
First Roman Catholic missionaries in Siam were Friar Jeronimo da Cruz and Sebastiâo da Canto, both Dominicans, who came in 1567. They were killed by the Burmese in 1569. Later there arrived Franciscans and Jesuits. The following period (17-th, 18-th, 19-th centuries) was marked by different stages of persecution and ease between Siamese official powers and Roman Catholic missionaries.
At the beginning of the 20th century, there were about 23,000 Catholic believers, 55 churches and chapels, representatives of monastic orders, social and educational institutions (e.g. orphanages, schools and a seminary and college).Catholic Encyclopedia Article During the 20th century, many Roman Catholic congregations arrived to work in Thailand.A Brief History Of The Catholic Church In Thailand
On October 22, 1989, the catechist Philip Siphong Onphitak and six companions, who had been killed in 1940 under the suspicion of being French spies, were beatified as the Martyrs of Thailand.
Among the Roman Catholic orders presented in the country are Salesians, Sisters of Mary Help of Christians, Redemptorists, Camillian Fathers, Brothers of St. Gabriel, De La Salle Brothers, Jesuits, Franciscans, Sisters of Charity of St. Paul, Good Shepherd Sisters, Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
Roman Catholics are represented by various dioceses.List of Roman Catholic dioceses in Thailand
==Protestantism in Thailand==
There are several Protestant umbrella organizations. The oldest of them is Church of Christ in Thailand (CCT) formed in the mid-1930s. It consists of Thai, Chinese, Karen, and English-speaking congregations. It is a member of the World Council of Churches and has about 60,000 members.Church of Christ in Thailand, ELCA Page
One of the largest Protestant associations is the Evangelical Foundation of Thailand. Baptists and Seventh-day Adventists are recognized by local authorities as separate Protestant denominations and organized under the same umbrella group.US State Department 2006 Report
Among the other Protestant groups represented in Thailand are LutheransLutheran World, AdventistsAdventist Mission in Thailand, MethodistsUnited Methodist Church, Pentecostal and Charismatic ChristiansCharismatic and Pentecostal Directory, and AnglicansChrist Church in BangkokChrist Church in Bangkok.
==Thailand Bible Society==
The Thailand Bible Society was officially established in 1966, though its organized work began in 1828.
Part of the Bible in Thai was first published in 1834. The New Testament in Thai was printed for the first time in 1843. The first full text of the Bible in Thai came out in 1883.Reading the Scriptures in Thai
In 2005, the Thailand Bible Society distributed 43,740 copies of the Bible and 9,629 copies of the New Testament in Thai language.Bible Society work in Thailand
==Eastern Orthodoxy in Thailand==
Orthodoxy in Thailand is presented by the Representative Office of Russian Orthodox Church, including the Orthodox parish of Saint Nicolas in Bangkok.Thailand: Thai convert trains to become Russian Orthodox priest, by UCANOfficial Directory of Russian Orthodox Church, in Russian
The mission is headed by Father Oleg Cherepanin (by 2008 information) and serves not only Russian tourists and residents in Thailand, but also local believers of Thai origin.World of Orthodoxy, in Russian
Besides Bangkok, there are small Russian Orthodox congregations in Phuket and Chonburi province. The Russian Orthodox Church has translated into the Thai language the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, the Orthodox Book of prayer and a book about the history of Russian Orthodox Church. In July, 2008, the representative office of Russian Orthodox Church was officially registered by Thailand authorities as a foundation named the "Orthodox Christian Church in Thailand.""Pravoslavie" Portal, in Russian
The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and the Holy and Great Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of the Eastern Orthodox Church also have plans to establish their parishes in ThailandFar Eastern Orthodoxy, History. They have often organized Church services and Divine Liturgy for their members in Thailand with the help of the Embassy of Greece in BangkokFIRST DIVINE LITURGY BY METROPOLITAN NIKITAS IN BANGKOK, THAILAND.
==See also==
*Roman Catholicism in Thailand
*Protestants in Thailand
*Catholic Office for Emergency Relief and Refugees
*Camillian social center in Rayong
*Christian Care Foundation for Children with Disabilities
*Christian Foundation for the Blind in Thailand
*Christ Church Bangkok
*Worldwide Faith Missions
*Sister Joan Evans
*Dan Beach Bradley
*Sarnelli House
*Hand in Hand Ministries
==References==
==External links==
*Blogs of Christian missionaries in Thailand
*Thai Gospel Resources on Ethnic Harvest Ministry Directory
*Hope of Bangkok Church, International Fellowship - A Non-dominational Church in Bangkok, Thailand
*Christian Outreach service operating in Thailand
*Bangkok church and other religious worship centers
*Hope of Bangkok Church
*Directory of Thai Christian Churches in America
*Mission Thailand, under renovation
*OMF International (formerly China Inland Mission and Overseas Missionary Fellowship)
Thailand
 
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