Christianity in Madagascar


Christianity in Madagascar is practiced by 41% of Madagascans, according to the U.S. Department of State in 2011, or by 85% of them according to the Pew Research Center in 2010, often in syncretic form with traditional religious practices. Protestantism was introduced by the first envoys of the London Missionary Society in 1818, who proselytized and taught literacy through a Malagasy language Bible at the public schools they established in the highlands at the request of King Radama I. The number of converts remained low but gradually grew under repression during the reign of his successor, Queen Ranavalona I, and the more permissive religious policies of her son, Radama II, and his widow, Queen Rasoherina. The spread of Protestantism among the Merina upper classes by the mid-19th century, including Queen Ranavalona II, coupled with the growing political influence of the British missionaries, led Prime Minister Rainilaiarivony to legislate the conversion of the royal court. This prompted widespread popular conversion to Protestantism throughout the highlands in the late 19th century.
Roman Catholicism was introduced principally through French diplomats and missionaries beginning in the mid-19th century but only gained significant converts under French colonization of Madagascar beginning in 1896. The early spread of Protestantism among the Merina elite resulted in a degree of class and ethnic differentiation among practitioners of Christianity, with the association of Protestantism with the upper classes and Merina ethnic group, and Catholicism attracting more adherents among the popular classes and coastal regions. Practitioners of Protestantism slightly outnumber adherents to Catholicism.

Background

Approximately half of the country's population practice traditional religion, according to the U.S. Department of State in 2011, though only 4.5% of them do so according to the Pew Research Center in 2010. This traditional religion attributes all of creation to a single god, called Zanahary or Andriamanitra. In addition, it tends to emphasize links between the living and the razana. The veneration of ancestors has led to the widespread tradition of tomb building, as well as the highlands practice of the famadihana, whereby a deceased family member's remains may be exhumed to be periodically re-wrapped in fresh silk shrouds before being replaced in the tomb.

History

Initial spread

Portuguese and French began the first Christianization of Madagascar during the 17th century. They preached in the southeastern parts of the country.
The antanosy prince Andriandramaka is the first known malagasy receiving
baptism. The first formal European-style school was established in 1818 on the east coast of Madagascar at Toamasina by members of the London Missionary Society. King Radama I, the first sovereign to bring about half the island of Madagascar under his rule, was interested in strengthening ties with European powers; to this end, he invited LMS missionaries to open a school in his capital at Antananarivo within the Rova palace compound to instruct the royal family in literacy, numeracy and basic education. This first school, known as the Palace School, was established by LMS missionary David Jones on 8 December 1820 within Besakana, a Rova building of great historic and cultural significance. Within months, classes were transferred to a larger, purpose-built structure on the Rova grounds.
Beginning in December 1820, LMS missionaries established workshops in Antananarivo to teach trades and technical skills, and developed a network of public schools. By 1822, LMS missionaries had successfully transcribed the Merina dialect of the Malagasy language using the Latin alphabet. This dialect, spoken in the central highlands around Antananarivo, was declared the official version of the Malagasy language that year – a status that the highlands dialect has retained ever since. The Bible, which was incrementally translated into this dialect and printed on a press, was the first book printed in the Malagasy language and became the standard text used to teach literacy.
Convinced that Western schooling was vital to developing Madagascar's political and economic strength, in 1825 Radama declared primary schooling to be compulsory for the andriana throughout Imerina. Schools were constructed in larger towns throughout the central highlands and staffed with teachers from the LMS and other missionary organizations. By the end of Radama's reign in 1829, 38 schools were providing basic education to over 4,000 students in addition to the 300 students studying at the Palace School, teaching dual messages of loyalty and obedience to Radama's rule and the fundamentals of Christian theology. These schools also provided Radama with a ready pool of educated conscripts for his military activities; consequently, some andriana families sent slave children to spare their own offspring from the perils of military life, exposing an educated minority among the lower classes of Merina society to the tenets of Christianity. An additional 600 students received vocational training under Scottish missionary James Cameron. Despite high attendance at the schools, the LMS were initially unsuccessful in converting pupils to Christianity. Near the end of Radama's reign, the king perceived the few Malagasy who had been converted as irreverent toward royal authority. He forbade Malagasy people from being baptized or attending Christian services.

Repression

Legitimization and mass conversion

Upon Ranavalona's death in 1861, she was succeeded by her reformist son, Radama II, who rapidly repealed many of his mother's policies. Freedom of religion was declared, persecution of Christians ceased, missionaries returned to the island, and their schools were authorized to be reopened. However, Radama's disregard for the counsel of his advisers' warning against too abrupt a process of modernization produced a coup d'état, in which Radama was presumably killed and power effectively transferred to Prime Minister Rainivoninahitriniony. He was succeeded by Rainilaiarivony, who wed Radama's widow Rasoherina and governed from 1864 until his exile in 1895 following French capture of the capital in September 1894. Rainilaiarivony's second royal wife, Ranavalona II, was a pupil of Protestant missionaries and had converted to Christianity. Rainilaiarivony recognized the growing power of Christianity on the island and identified the need to bring it under his influence in order to avert destabilizing cultural and political power struggles. The prime minister encouraged the new queen to Christianize the court through a public baptism ceremony at Andohalo on 21 February 1869, the day of their marriage. In this ceremony the supernatural royal talismans were ordered to be destroyed and replaced by the Bible. The Christianization of the court and the establishment of the independent royal Protestant chapel on the palace grounds prompted the wide-scale conversion of hundreds of thousands of Malagasy.
These conversions were commonly motivated by a desire to express political allegiance to the Crown, and as such were largely nominal, with the majority of converts practicing a syncretic blend of Christian and traditional religions. Rainilaiarivony's biographers conclude that his conversion was also largely a political gesture and most likely did not denote a genuine spiritual shift until late in his life, if ever. Some local officials attempted to force conversions to Protestantism by mandating church attendance and persecuting Catholics, but Rainilaiarivony quickly responded to quell these overzealous practices. The prime minister's criminalization of polygamy and alcohol consumption, as well as the declaration of Sunday as a day of rest, were likewise inspired by the growing British and Protestant influences in the country.

Syncretic practice

Today, many Christians integrate their religious beliefs with traditional ones related to honoring the ancestors. For instance, the Malagasy may bless their dead at church before proceeding with traditional burial rites or invite a Christian minister to consecrate a famadihana reburial.

Denominations and organizations

Approximately 25% of the population is Protestant. The Church of Jesus Christ in Madagascar, a Reformed Protestant church with 2.5 million adherents, is the most important religious association in Madagascar; former President Marc Ravalomanana served as its vice-president. About 20% of the population is Catholic. There are 21 Catholic dioceses in Madagascar, including five archdioceses.
The Malagasy Council of Churches comprises the four oldest and most prominent Christian denominations and has been an influential force in Malagasy politics. In the disputed 2001 presidential elections, the council rallied behind Protestant candidate Ravalomanana, whose electoral slogan was "Don't be afraid, only believe."