Bangladesh Baptist Sangha
Encyclopedia
The Bangladesh Baptist Sangha (Baptist Union of Bangladesh; BBS) is a national cooperative association of Baptist
churches in Bangladesh
. The BBS is the oldest Protestant
denomination in Bangladesh and traces its origins from the pioneering work started by William Carey and the Baptist Missionary Society in 1793 in Bengal
.
The church was one community known as the East Bengal Baptist Union (established in 1913 from the former Baptist Missionary Society's East Bengal Mission) until the partition of India
and Pakistan
in 1948 when it became known as the East Pakistan Baptist Union. With the independence
of Bangladesh
from Pakistan in 1971, the church took its current name. The current president of the BBS is Joyanto Adhikari with Milton Biswas serving as General-Secretary.
and educational work. This included the development of a Bengali
dictionary and grammar, the first translation of the Bible
in Bengali as well as the publication Digdarshan and Samachar Darpan, periodicals that represent the beginnings of the Bengali press. They also co-founded the Calcutta School Book Society in 1817 which published thousands of textbooks in modern science
, geography
and history
for the first time in Bengali.
and also operates hostel programs for students at college and university level. The BBS runs 2 high schools for girls and boys, a junior high school, 64 primary schools, a school for blind girls, two children’s homes with schools as well as a hospital, a leprosy hospital, and 4 clinics.
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
churches in Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
. The BBS is the oldest Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
denomination in Bangladesh and traces its origins from the pioneering work started by William Carey and the Baptist Missionary Society in 1793 in Bengal
Bengal Presidency
The Bengal Presidency originally comprising east and west Bengal, was a colonial region of the British Empire in South-Asia and beyond it. It comprised areas which are now within Bangladesh, and the present day Indian States of West Bengal, Assam, Bihar, Meghalaya, Orissa and Tripura.Penang and...
.
The church was one community known as the East Bengal Baptist Union (established in 1913 from the former Baptist Missionary Society's East Bengal Mission) until the partition of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
in 1948 when it became known as the East Pakistan Baptist Union. With the independence
Bangladesh Liberation War
The Bangladesh Liberation War was an armed conflict pitting East Pakistan and India against West Pakistan. The war resulted in the secession of East Pakistan, which became the independent nation of Bangladesh....
of Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
from Pakistan in 1971, the church took its current name. The current president of the BBS is Joyanto Adhikari with Milton Biswas serving as General-Secretary.
Contributions
One of the major contributions by the early Baptists missionaries to the development of modern Bengal in the area of linguisticsLinguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
and educational work. This included the development of a Bengali
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
dictionary and grammar, the first translation of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
in Bengali as well as the publication Digdarshan and Samachar Darpan, periodicals that represent the beginnings of the Bengali press. They also co-founded the Calcutta School Book Society in 1817 which published thousands of textbooks in modern science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, geography
Geography
Geography is the science that studies the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes...
and history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
for the first time in Bengali.
Ministries
The BBS participates as a partner with the College of Christian Theology in DhakaDhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
and also operates hostel programs for students at college and university level. The BBS runs 2 high schools for girls and boys, a junior high school, 64 primary schools, a school for blind girls, two children’s homes with schools as well as a hospital, a leprosy hospital, and 4 clinics.
Affiliations
The BBS participates actively in ecumenical relationships through:- National Council of Churches – Bangladesh
- Christian Conference of AsiaChristian Conference of AsiaThe Christian Conference of Asia is a regional ecumenical organisation representing 17 National Councils and 100 denominations in 21 countries:- Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Laos, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan,...
- World Council of ChurchesWorld Council of ChurchesThe World Council of Churches is a worldwide fellowship of 349 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service. It is a Christian ecumenical organization that is based in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland...
- Baptist World AllianceBaptist World AllianceThe Baptist World Alliance is a worldwide alliance of Baptist churches and organizations, formed in 1905 at Exeter Hall in London during the first Baptist World Congress.-History:...
- Asia Pacific Baptist FederationAsia Pacific Baptist FederationThe Asia Pacific Baptist Federation is a regional organization of the Baptist World Alliance, a worldwide fellowship of churches that subscribe to Baptist distinctives. The APBF was formed in the then British colony of Hong Kong in 1973 as the Asian Baptist Federation...
See also
- Asia Pacific Baptist FederationAsia Pacific Baptist FederationThe Asia Pacific Baptist Federation is a regional organization of the Baptist World Alliance, a worldwide fellowship of churches that subscribe to Baptist distinctives. The APBF was formed in the then British colony of Hong Kong in 1973 as the Asian Baptist Federation...
- Baptist World AllianceBaptist World AllianceThe Baptist World Alliance is a worldwide alliance of Baptist churches and organizations, formed in 1905 at Exeter Hall in London during the first Baptist World Congress.-History:...
- William Carey