[Buddha-l] Christendom vs Buddhism in Cambodia

[Christopher Fynn]

On 13/06/2012, Jo <jkirk at spro.net> wrote:

>> This is one incident illustrating that Protestants actually accomplish
>> some good--no drink no smoke-- for a change.

> Chris:
> Many of the Protestants converting people in these countries tend to be on
> the extreme fringe. In Bhutan there was recently a case of some Protestants
> killing a woman for  "being possessed by satan"

> JK
> Horrible. But I DID say 'for a change", as I'm very dubious about Christian
> missionaries. You know, after independence in 1947, India passed a law
> against admitting missionaries that held up for a few years. The
> mission-built hospitals were acceptable.  Finally, because India has had
> Christians there for centuries, the law was nullified.
> But Bhutan has always been Buddhist, right?  Why cannot the Bhutan kingdom
> keep them out?

Officially Bhutan is Buddhist & Hindu.and proselytism is forbidden.

However there are  Bhutanese educated at Catholic or Protestant
missionary schools in Kalimpong and Darjeeling who have converted -
and a few of these people, because of their education or family, are
in high places.  There was also a Canadian Jesuit, Father William
Joseph Mackey S.J.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Mackey_%28priest%29>, who was
active in establishing schools in Bhutan. While he supposedly didn't
convert anyone - some of his colleagues did.

Indians can visit Bhutan more or less freely - and are not subject  to
the same restrictions other visitors are - so protestant "pastors"
come here frequently in the guise of tourists or Indian business
people. In the south the border is also fairly porous and some places
are practically reachable only by travelling through Indian territory.
There seems to be quite a lot of missionary activity there. It was in
one  these paces that the woman was killed  for  being possessed by
satan by a group of Christians.

- Chris