Expectation Vs. Reality

After reading the assigned chapters in The Saint in the Banyan Tree, I noticed a common theme in the attempts of Jesuits to pursue their missionary work in India, which was paradoxical. These Catholic Jesuits despised any practice that was pagan, contrary to their religion. In order to emphasize the stark separation between religion and pagan, these Jesuits tried to explain sole Catholic beliefs, such as with saints, to the Tamil individuals in such a way so that they would abandon any heretical practices. However, the irony in this is that the way in which the saints were explained actually confirmed and justified the existence of pagan gods since the Tamil parishioners noticed a parallel between the two groups. The Jesuits devoted much time and effort to teaching the Indians about saints so that they would avoid paganism, but the paradox is that they created a larger division between the Christian faith and anything that contradicted it. These Jesuits should have explained Christian beliefs in a clearer and more comprehendible way so that their argument would have been more effective and sensible for the Indians. This way, the Indians would have noticed the evil in paganism in a more distinct and apparent way. Doing this would have prevented irony in the Jesuits' attempts since they expected the Indians to believe them, but in reality, the Indians were persuaded in the exact opposite way. In another example, the Jesuits taught about exorcisms so that their presence could decrease, but in doing so, they frightened the Indians and made them more vulnerable to possession. Since the Jesuits seemed to use strict and alarming tones rather than reassuring the Indians, they caused these people to be more paranoid and uncertain, which might have generated the false notion that they were occupied by the devil. This paradox created a larger distinction between possession and confession. These Jesuits tried to bridge gaps in religion, but in doing so, they exacerbated them, which demonstrates that humans cannot control everything. Every time they tried to control the outcome of something so that it would turn out in a way that aligned with their expectations, their mission backfired. To increase the prevalence of Catholicism and witness success, these Jesuits should have thought about following their own religion's teachings of compassion and patience so that the Indians would have been persuaded. Maybe they could have benefitted from others teaching them instead of the Jesuits teaching others.