MADISON, WISCONSIN, January 5, 2008: The International Student Ministry has published two documents on how to convert Hindu college students to Christianity. Some excerpts are provided below. The articles lament the difficulties in converting Hindus, are recommends a method known as “friendship evangelism” by which the Christian feigns friendship with the Hindu for the purpose of converting him or her. The same site has a document on how to approach Muslim students. We note the instructions for the Christians to “be a part of the Hindu student club on campus,” and encourage such organizations to examine their membership rolls for such missionaries.
“Some East Asian students come from secular, atheist, or other backgrounds where public religious discussions are not common. They may arrive in North America with a lot of curiosity about the Bible and Christianity. Sometimes they may be very open to modern apologetic approaches to sharing the gospel. However, Indians have a very rich spiritual heritage. “Nominal Hindus” who uphold a fraction of their religious traditions find themselves much more devoted than most sincere Christians they encounter in North America. Fellowship meetings that are largely social entertainment may serve to solidify the idea that Christianity is a shallow and sterile faith. Indians enjoy good fun, but do not appreciate it as bait for religious activities. A more attractive approach would be devotion modeled by those following Jesus. Ideally this would happen regularly as part of daily life and not just at a religious meeting. Hindus should be welcomed to join in devotional activities, but not always directly invited until they expressed their thirst for such devotion.”
“Ministries that connect well with the Hindu culture are marked by authentic friendships, focus on people and relationships (rather than on Christian programs), and demonstrate faith lived out through devotion, prayer, and study of Scripture.”
And from http://www.intervarsity.org/ism/article/7624
“The students who are most effective with Hindus are the ones who form authentic friendships, showing genuine love and care.”
“As a student group, we encourage our members to be a part of the Hindu student club on campus. Together we go to their festivals and parties. We also attend important community functions like dance recitals and Diwali. In these ways, we connect to the culture and have a natural meeting place to develop friendships with Hindus. Once the friendships are formed, it is important to train students to go deeper in friendships and really get to know one another through giving to and receiving from our Hindu friends.”