CONCLUSION
“Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” +EPHESIANS+ iv. 13.
The spiritual heritage of the twentieth century is marked by extreme diversity and yet by a deep inward reality. The march of science and commerce, and the development of international relationships have given a new content and width to the world’s thought. Isolated life is powerless, and a larger synthesis links the human race together. All such relationship must inevitably have spiritual content. The social upheaval, the claim of the individual for recognition, have a determining influence on the interpretation of our faith. Pragmatism in modern philosophy tests religion by its results. The religious evolution necessitated by the play of international forces is all the more critical in that it is to a certain extent unconscious. There is a deep Christianity apart from the Church as it is, which has yet to make the Church its own. The demand is now for reality--an embodiment of religious principles in modern social conditions; for charity--a sympathy with the ethnic faiths which is the surer for belief in the finality of the Christian revelation; for unity, since the modern mind cannot accept a Christianity which does not transcend and interpret all political, social, and intellectual life. “It is not our duty to-day to fight for a new religion; we have but to awaken into freshness of life the fathomless depths of Christianity. In so far as we succeed in doing this, we can completely satisfy the requirements of the new situation; we can seek to realize a Christianity that shall be at once more universal and more active and intent on disengaging itself from its anthropomorphisms; at the same time we shall view as our very own the wealth of religious profundity and inward experience which the older Christianity has gathered through its centuries of service, and shall seek to realize them in our own life.”[166]
The growth of the desire to make Christianity universal is perhaps the most wonderful phase in the advance of thought; while in one sense it is very old and a return to the primitive times of the faith, its modern phase thrills with fresh content by the ever-present working of the Spirit of God. The fresh light which criticism has shed on the historical Jesus has thrown once more into relief His wonderful doctrine of the brotherhood of men in the Fatherhood of God. The desire is not so much to bring salvation to those whom a rigid theology long condemned as “heathen,” as to give freely of the fulness received in clear consciousness of the solidarity of the human race. The world’s best thought must be in terms of Christian philosophy; the Kingdom is conceived as present now in power; Christ is seen as the Fulfiller of all that is true and eternal in the ancient Faiths, and essentially the Saviour of the corporate life.
The appeal of this book is thus for the Christianizing of every factor in the education of women in India. None of the three contributing forces need be alien to the Spirit of Christ; their unity, their mutual relationship, and the necessity of their presence in a transitional period must be felt and realized. Can all this educational advance be made, if not directly in the Name of Christ, at least in the power of His Spirit? The Government influence must determine the tone and character of the whole frame-work. Can the Educational Service be supplied in all its branches with women who, while absolutely loyal to the great principle of neutrality, yet seek through it the spiritual in the material, and whose whole work in Empire-building is consciously related to the Kingdom of Christ? India has known men of this type in the Government Service, and has esteemed their strict neutrality the more because of the Christian conviction which lay behind it. The influence of Christian ethics in the Government schools behind such moral instruction as is possible is enormous, and it naturally enters into the teaching of secular subjects. The direct influence permitted out of school hours is a matter of great difficulty and calls for the utmost discretion. If the Government policy were ultimately modified so as to permit of parallel religious instruction, the direct opportunity would be present, but in the meantime indirect religious influence has a very definite place.
The spontaneous Indian element will have an important contribution to make in the determining of the curricula. Will the Indian committees, who need the help of English women, be able to secure those of the highest talent and educational qualifications, who for the sake of Christ will give them of their best and remain, if silent, yet strong in the Faith? This is hard and perplexing work, and calls for strong personalities, but it is fraught with endless possibility. India will never be won if she does not behold Christianity in her midst lived in the lives of those who pursue their ordinary vocation in the Spirit of the Master.
These suggestions are made with hesitation lest their attraction should weigh with those who could take the more definite line of associating themselves with the educational work in India which is done directly in the name of Christ. The development of this work on sound lines by women of experience and of the highest educational qualifications is, as has been indicated in the preceding chapter, the keynote to the whole problem. In no work is there such a magnificent sphere of influence as in this. A spiritual heritage involves responsibility and opportunity. Nearly a century of patient work for the women of India is written in the annals of the Church: the task of the present day is to enter into this work with the same earnest patience. The need for action is urgent. It is not only that there are endless opportunities for new work which are not being utilized, but that schools with an excellent tradition are not being raised to the modern standard of efficiency. They are inevitably handicapped by shortage in the English staff. A young girl of little experience may find herself almost at once at the head of some most complex institution, long before she would ever have had such a position of responsibility at home. The perpetual strain on those who work on at such tension prevents the due result. In other cases the needed and desired expansion is checked by lack of the trained educator who could supervise village schools and their teachers, or who could put her energy and talent into building up a first-class school for non-Christian girls in the centre of some district where the new spirit is manifest. Facts indicate the appointment in the future of women to act as Tutors or Directresses of Studies to the girl students in the mixed mission colleges. There is the possibility also of women’s Christian colleges. On every side the need is apparent, and the power to meet it lies with the women of the English-speaking countries. It is work which makes demands on intellect, on character, and on the religious nature. The hesitation to respond to it springs in part from the sense of reverence for things sacred. There are women in educational circles at home who hold the truth of Christianity and its sufficiency to meet the need of the whole world, but have not offered to share in educational missions lest their contribution be not of the required type. There is need in India for every type of worker. Christianity gains there, as at home, by interpretation through diverse personalities, and there is room for all who can reflect, it may be silently, its spirit and power in the daily routine of work. A sense of vocation is a sense of personal relationship to Him Who calls, and therein lies the motive power for all educational work done in the name of Christ.
Appendix A
+CURRICULA+
Matriculation subjects of the five Universities of Calcutta, Madras, Bombay, Panjāb, and Allahabad:--
English and Mathematics, compulsory in all.
History and Geography, compulsory in all except Calcutta.
Science, compulsory in Madras and Bombay; elective in the other three.
Classical language, compulsory in Calcutta, Bombay, Panjāb; alternative with vernacular in Madras; elective in Allahabad.
Vernacular compulsory in Calcutta and Bombay; alternative with classical in Madras; elective in Allahabad and Panjāb.
Drawing, elective in Allahabad and Panjāb.
+TEXT-BOOKS+
State Schools.--No choice.
Aided Schools.--Choice among authorized alternatives.
Unaided but recognized Schools.--Abstention from books disapproved by Government.
Text-book Committees.--In every case appointed by Government, and include official and non-official members; in some provinces places are reserved for members of the staff of mission schools.
From Analysis of Educational Codes in British India.
Appendix B
+COURSES FOR THE TRAINING OF TEACHERS+
Training colleges and classes:--
(1) Graduate Course--one year. } Both in (2) Undergraduate Course--two years. } English. (3) Vernacular Course--after Middle examination--two years. (4) Lower Vernacular Course--after Upper Primary examination (women only)--two years.
Courses (1) and (2) are pursued in the Universities, in special English Training schools for men, or in the Training Department of some European schools.
Courses (3) and (4) in Government or mission Vernacular Training schools for women. These consist frequently of very small groups in an ordinary Middle or High school. A few students are also found in mixed schools.
Appendix C
Diagram showing INCREASE OF FEMALE EDUCATION in India.
In Burma 9.6% of girls of school age are receiving education. ” Bombay 7.2% ” ” ” ” ” Madras 6.8% ” ” ” ” ” Bengal 4.3% ” ” ” ” ” Punjāb 3.1% ” ” ” ” ” United Provinces 1.3% ” ” ” ” ]
Bibliography
+BARODA+, Maharani of. _Position of Women in Indian Life_.
+BRADLEY BIRT, F. B.+ _Romance of an Eastern Capital_.
+CARPENTER, J. E.+ _Life of Mary Carpenter_.
+CARPENTER, M.+ _Six Months in India_.
+CHAILLEY, J.+ _Administrative Problems in British India_.
+CHIROL+, Sir +VALENTINE+. _Indian Unrest_.
+DAVIES, E.+ _Questions relating to Women_.
+DUTT, R. C.+ _Ancient India_.
+DUTT, R. C.+ Translation of _Ramāyana and Mahabhārata_.
+FESTINÉ, G.+ _From the Land of the Princes_.
+FRASER+, Sir +ANDREW+. _Among Rajahs and Ryots_.
+JAMES, H. R.+ _Education and Statesmanship in India_, 1797-1910.
+LOW, SIDNEY.+ _A Vision of India_.
+LYALL+, Sir +ALFRED+. _Asiatic Studies_.
+MITRA, S. C.+ _Indian Problems_.
+NEVINSON, H. W.+ _The New Spirit in India_.
+PURSER, W. C. B.+ _Christian Missions in Burma_.
+POOLE, F. F.+ _Woman’s Influence in the East_.
+RICE, B. L.+ _Mysore_.
+RULERS OF INDIA SERIES.+ Edited by Sir William Hunter.
+RICHTER, J.+ _History of Missions in India_.
+SCOTT+, Sir +GEO.+ _Burma_.
+SMITH, GEO.+ _Life of Alexander Duff_.
+SORABJI, C.+ _Between the Twilights_.
+STEELE, F. A.+ _India through the Ages_.
+STRACHEY+, Sir +JOHN+. _India_.
+ZIMMERN, ALICE.+ _Renaissance of Girls’ Education_.
_Imperial Gazetteer of India_.
_Quinquennial Report on Progress of Education in India, 1907_.
_Public Instruction Reports, 1860-1910_. Selections
_Statistical Abstract relating to British India, 1911_.
_Reports of Various Missionary Societies_.
Index
+AHMEDABAD+, 181
Ahmednagar, 180
Ajmer-Merwara, 156
Alexandra School, 173
All-Indian Moslem League, 24
Allahabad Conference, 231
Alwar, 154
American Baptist Mission, 67, 151
American Board, 178
Amherst, Lady, 36, 103
Anglo-Indian (Eurasian), 63, 69, 76, 90, 180
Anjuman-i-Islamia, 229
Ārya Samāj, 15, 133, 157
+BAPTISTS+, 67, 85, 151
Baroda: Maharani of, 15, 103, 221;
---- schools in, 148, 229
Benares, 133, 229
Bengali, 101
Besant, Mrs, 133
Bethune School and College, 36, 45, 110, 194, 206
Bharat Stri Mahamandal, 17
Bhopal, 27
Bhore, Miss, 181
Bombay, 160 ff.
Bose, Miss, 111, 201
Brāhma-Samāj, 14, 89, 102, 111, 123, 198
Buddhist, 60, 66, 196, 234
+CALCUTTA, SCHOOL SOCIETY+, 34, 103
Capitation grant, 130
Carpenter, Miss, 38, 42
Chanda Ramji, 167
Chichgar, 173
Chiefs’ College, 145
Christian students, 197 ff.
Church Missionary Society, 104, 139, 142, 194
Clewer Sisters, 116
Compulsory Education, 24, 149
Conversion, 242
Cook, Miss, 35, 103
Covernton, 210, 217
Curriculum, 53, 71, 95, 125, 144, 189, 203
Cursetji, 166
+DACCA+, 78
Danish missionaries, 35
Davies, Emily, 221
Dehra Dun, 133
Diocesan High School, Calcutta, 116, 194
Duff, Dr Alex., 35
Dufferin Fund, 212
+EDEN GIRLS’ HIGH SCHOOL+, 89
Education: Despatch, 1854: 34, 224;
---- Commission, 1884: 34, 46;
---- Despatch, 1904: 46
Elphinstone, Lord, 162;
---- College, 194
Eurasian, cp. Anglo-Indian
+FRERE, LADY+, 172
+GĀRGĀ+, 29
Gokhale, G. K., 20, 24
Gondal, Rani of, 15
Government, system of education, 22 ff.
Government: attitude to female education, 37, 46, 64, 109, 130, 156, 181, 193, 216;
---- Female Education Committee, 80
Grant Medical College, 208
Gujerati Stri Mandal, 17, 166, 170
+HASTINGS, LADY+, 36, 106
Hindu, 15, 17, 30, 35, 39, 87, 113, 143, 166 ff., 198, 230
Hindu Female Training School, 123
Hostels, 85, 208, 211, 216
Hyderabad, 151
+IDEALS OF WOMANHOOD+, 26, 29, 113, 144, 216, 240
Indian Church, 242
Indian National Congress, 24
Indian schools, 47, 66, 145, 167
Inspectress, 41, 46, 95, 131, 151, 156, 182, 246
International Moral League, 229
Isabella Thoburn School, 45, 137, 194
+JAIPUR+, 154
+LADIES’ SOCIETY FOR FEMALE NATIVE EDUCATION+, 106
Lawrence, Lord, 38
Learned ladies, 31 ff.
Lilavati Singh, 137, 201
Literacy, 25, 63, 150, 165
London Missionary Society, 152
Ludhiana, 215
+MADRAS+, 27, 36, 54, 194, 211, 237
Mahakali Pathshalas, 47, 84, 113 ff.
Maharani’s College, 194
Maitreyi, 30
Manu, Code of, 30
Marathi, 179
Marshman, Mrs, 103
Medical students, 212
Methodist Episcopal, 67
Minto, Lord, 22
Mission schools, 44, 50, 67, 93, 103, 115, 137, 141, 151, 155, 176, etc., 233
Missionary Settlement for University Women, 208
Mohommedan, 14, 17, 69, 82, 89, 111, 163, 171, 202, 229
Moral instruction, 223 ff.
Municipal schools, 36, 87, 182
Mysore, 151, 194
+NASIRABAD+, 156
National Indian Association, 18
Native States, 146, 195
Nauraji, 165
Neo-Hinduism, 133
Nivedita, Sister, 21
Normal schools, cp. Training
+OXFORD MISSION+, 85
+PARANJPE, PRINCIPAL+, 238
Parda: absence of, 163;
---- introduction of system, 33;
---- party, 18, 98;
---- schools, 90, 113, 123, 135, 158, 167
Parsi, 17, 36, 164, 171 ff., 198, 235
Poona, 167, 178, 181
Prabhu Brahmans, 164
Prārthanā Samāj, 170, 241
+QUEEN MARY COLLEGE+, 143
+RAJPUTANA+, 153
Ramabai, 180
Rangoon, 67, 194
Religious instruction, 225 ff.
Results, 241
Roman Catholic, 67, 117
+SARAH TUCKER SCHOOL+, 45, 194
Secondary training, 58, 125, 188
Seva Sadan, 17
Social life, 17, 207
Society for Propagation of the Gospel, 67, 142
Sorabji, Cornelia, 200
---- Lena, 89
---- Mrs, 178
Specialization, 219
Stages of education, 51, 125, 164
Stipends, 198
Students Literary and Scientific Society, 165 ff.
+TEACHERS+, 57, 74, 96, 122, 185
Training schools, 58, 75, 90, 93, 118, 123, 142, 149, 157, 174, 177 ff., 194
Travancore, 152
Trevandrum, 195
+UNITED FREE CHURCH MISSION+, 45, 118, 115, 179
University, 192 ff.
Unrest, political, 20, 208
+WELSH PRESBYTERIANS+, 85
Wesleyan, 139, 151
Whyte, Miss, 118
Widows, 58, 123, 149, 157
Wilson College, 194, 199
Wilson, Mrs, cp. Cook
Wilson, Mrs Margaret, 35, 165, 177
Wilson, Miss, 187
Women’s colleges, 194
---- University, 220
+Y.W.C.A+., 96, 209, 211, 216
+ZENANA BIBLE AND MEDICAL MISSION+, 37, 142, 178
Zenana, cp. parda
FOOTNOTES:
[1] An Indian Theistic sect eclectic in character, founded by Raja Rammohan Roy in Calcutta, 1828. _Cp. New Ideas in India_--John Morrison, D.D.
[2] Or Vedic Theistic Association, a patriotic and religious sect, chiefly in the United Provinces and the Punjāb. Founded in 1875 by Dyanand Saraswati. _Cp_. as above.
[3] Women who remain behind the curtain.
[4] _Among Indian Rajahs and Ryots_--Sir Andrew H. L. Fraser, K.C.S.I.
[5] _Between the Twilights_--Cornelia Sorabji.
[6] _Women in the Modern National Movements of the East_ (S.C.M. Pamphlet), by A. de Sélincourt.
[7] Seva Sadan Report.
[8] _Ruler of India Series_--Lord Amherst.
[9] Speech at the Education Congress, 1897--G. K. Gokhale.
[10] _Among Indian Rajahs and Ryots_--Sir A. H. L. Fraser, K.C.S.I.
[11] _Cp_. Diagram, Appendix C.
[12] Lodgings.
[13] 1911 Census Returns. In 1901, 9.8 per cent. men, 0.07 per cent. women.
[14] _Women in the Modern National Movements of the East_ (S.C.M. Pamphlet, 1912), A. de Sélincourt.
[15] _Vedic Quarterly_, 1911.
[16] _Koran Sura IV_. (Rodwell’s edition, _Sura_, C.).
[17] A secret phrase or password used for initiation into Hindu sects. _Cp. Primer of Hinduism_--J. N. Farquhar (C.L.S.).
[18] _Cf. Ancient India_. R. C. Dutt.
[19] _Vedic Quarterly_, 1911.
[20] Manu, ii. 67. S.B.E. The Vedic Sacrament had for its object the study of Vedic texts.
[21] Manu, ix. 18. S.B.E.
[22] _India through the Ages_. F. A. Steele.
[23] _India through the Ages_. F. A. Steele.
[24] Smriti=tradition (of philosophy).
[25] System of philosophy.
[26] _Calcutta Review_, September 1855.
[27] _India through the Ages_. F. A. Steele.
[28] _History of Missions in India_. J. Richter.
[29] _Biography of Alexander Duff_. George Smith.
[30] Appointed to the Subordinate Educational Service in 1876. India Office Note.
[31] Popular Education in the North Western Provinces.--_Government Report_, 1860.
[32] Popular Education in the North Western Provinces.--_Government Report_, 1860.
[33] An agricultural caste.
[34] Landowners.
[35] _North Western Provinces Report on Education_, 1875.
[36] _Life and Work of Mary Carpenter_. J. E. Carpenter, 1879.
[37] _Six Months in India_. Vol. I., p. 278. M. Carpenter.
[38] _North Western Provinces Report on Education_, 1877.
[39] _Ibid_.
[40] The Madras Report alone gives separate figures:
Secondary schools, Government, 2 Mission, 35 Indian, 0 Primary schools, ” 208 ” 523 ” 331
[41] Pathshala = school.
[42] _Quinquennial Survey of Progress of Education in India_, 1907.