William Wallace, SJ
Encyclopedia
William Wallace, born 2 March 1863, in Battibrack, Dublin (Ireland) and dead 2 March 1922 in Kurseong
, West Bengal
(India), was an anglican
pastor who became a Jesuit
priest and Indologist
.
, West Bengal
, in 1889. Disillusioned with the Christianity practiced by his fellow Anglicans, he left the Mission quarters and took up residence in a little hut in Krishnagar where he devoted himself to the study of Bengali and Gaudiya Vaisnavism. His life of simplicity and seeking endeared him to his Indian neighbours. His contact with Bengali Hindus led him to the opinion that Protestant spiritualty was inadequate to meet the needs of his deeply spiritual Vaisnava friends.
After serving seven years in Bengal, he returned to Ireland on home leave. There he made a study of Catholic doctrine and spirituality, and became convinced that only Catholicism
could provide him with the means of dialoguing with his Hindu associates, and that only Catholic spirituality was worth preaching to the Bengalis. Having been rejected by the Mill Hill Fathers, he requested admission to the Jesuit Order
whose members were active in Bengal
. He was accepted by the Belgian
provincial and entered the novitiate
on the 15 February 1898. Upon finishing the two years spiritual training in England, he arrived in Calcutta on 13 December 1901.
He engaged in further studies in philosophy and theology at Shembaganur and St Mary’s, Kurseong
before being appointed as a lecturer in English literature at St Xavier’s College, Calcutta. He was later sent to Darjeeling as lecturer and parish priest among the Anglo-Indians. It was at this time that he composed his autobiography, From Evangelical to Catholic by Way of the East, and also several works on Hindu philosophy and yoga. He wanted to make use of Indian philosophy to make an acceptable presentation of Christianity to the Hindus. With his health beginning to fail, he was transferred back to St Mary’s, Kurseong, in 1921. He died on 13 June 1922.
Wallace was inspired by the efforts of Brahmabandhab Upadhyay and Animananda. With them he felt that Christianity had to be Indianized if it had to gain a successful hearing in Bengal. He had read Upadhyay’s articles in Sophia and had been impressed by his basic motivations. In his own writings, he reiterated Upadhyay’s approach regarding the suitability of Indian philosophy as a natural foundation for supernatural religion.
Kurseong
Kurseong is a hill station situated in Darjeeling district of West Bengal, India.Located at an altitude of 1458 metres , Kurseong is just 30 km from Darjeeling...
, West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
(India), was an anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
pastor who became a Jesuit
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
priest and Indologist
Indology
Indology is the academic study of the history and cultures, languages, and literature of the Indian subcontinent , and as such is a subset of Asian studies....
.
Life
William Wallace was personally tutored by his father, an Evangelical minister. He attended Dublin University in 1882, received a degree in Divinity, and sought ordination in the Anglican Church at the age of 24. He took up parish work in the Midlands in England, but, after an illness, returned to Ireland to recuperate. Two years later, he decided to become a missionary with the Church Missionary Society, and was appointed to KrishnagarKrishnagar
Krishnanagar is a municipality and administrative headquarters of Nadia district in the Indian state of West Bengal.-Geography:Krishnanagar is located at . It has an average elevation of 14 metres...
, West Bengal
West Bengal
West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
, in 1889. Disillusioned with the Christianity practiced by his fellow Anglicans, he left the Mission quarters and took up residence in a little hut in Krishnagar where he devoted himself to the study of Bengali and Gaudiya Vaisnavism. His life of simplicity and seeking endeared him to his Indian neighbours. His contact with Bengali Hindus led him to the opinion that Protestant spiritualty was inadequate to meet the needs of his deeply spiritual Vaisnava friends.
After serving seven years in Bengal, he returned to Ireland on home leave. There he made a study of Catholic doctrine and spirituality, and became convinced that only Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
could provide him with the means of dialoguing with his Hindu associates, and that only Catholic spirituality was worth preaching to the Bengalis. Having been rejected by the Mill Hill Fathers, he requested admission to the Jesuit Order
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
whose members were active in Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
. He was accepted by the Belgian
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
provincial and entered the novitiate
Novitiate
Novitiate, alt. noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a novice monastic or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether they are called to the religious life....
on the 15 February 1898. Upon finishing the two years spiritual training in England, he arrived in Calcutta on 13 December 1901.
He engaged in further studies in philosophy and theology at Shembaganur and St Mary’s, Kurseong
Vidyajyoti College of Theology
Vidyajyoti College of Theology , Delhi, India, is a institute and faculty of theology run by the Jesuits. It was started in 1879 in Asansol, West Bengal, as a modest 'Saint Joseph’s Seminary'. From 1889 to 1971 it developed in the mountains of Kurseong, near Darjeeling, where it was renamed Saint...
before being appointed as a lecturer in English literature at St Xavier’s College, Calcutta. He was later sent to Darjeeling as lecturer and parish priest among the Anglo-Indians. It was at this time that he composed his autobiography, From Evangelical to Catholic by Way of the East, and also several works on Hindu philosophy and yoga. He wanted to make use of Indian philosophy to make an acceptable presentation of Christianity to the Hindus. With his health beginning to fail, he was transferred back to St Mary’s, Kurseong, in 1921. He died on 13 June 1922.
Significance
Wallace’s significance rests on the influence he exerted upon his contemporaries and on younger Jesuits about the way mission was done in Bengal. He helped shift the mentality toward Indian spirituality among the Jesuits and influence the spiritual formation of the novices who were preparing for service in India. He entreated his superiors in Belgium to send their most talented scholastics to engage in the deep study of Hindu texts. Pierre Johanns and Georges Dandoy were fruits of this vision of Wallace. These St Xavier’s Jesuits “produced a durable synthesis of Catholicism and Hinduism.... The ‘Bengal School,’ which these came to be clubbed under, was the lasting contribution to India of Father William Wallace.” The 'Bengal School' is also known as the 'Calcutta School of Indology'.Wallace was inspired by the efforts of Brahmabandhab Upadhyay and Animananda. With them he felt that Christianity had to be Indianized if it had to gain a successful hearing in Bengal. He had read Upadhyay’s articles in Sophia and had been impressed by his basic motivations. In his own writings, he reiterated Upadhyay’s approach regarding the suitability of Indian philosophy as a natural foundation for supernatural religion.
Primary bibliography
- From Evangelical to Catholic by Way of the East. The Light of the East Series, no. 35. Calcutta: Catholic Orphan Press, 1923.
- Introduction to Hindoo Clairvoyance. Kurseong, 1920. Typescript, unpublished. MS at Goethals Library, St Xavier’s College, Calcutta.
- A Bengali Commentary on the Yoga Philosophy. 1923. Polycopied, unpublished. MS at Goethals Library, St Xavier’s College, Calcutta.
- The Everlasting Religion of the Hindoo Sages in Relation to the Catholic Religion of the Christian Fathers. Typescript, unpublished. Varia of Wallace, Goethals Library, St Xavier’s College, Calcutta.
Secondary bibliography
- Doyle, Sean. Synthesizing the Veda: The Theology of Pierre Johanns, S.J. Bern: Peter Lang, 2006. 123-126.
- Hosten, Henry. “In Memoriam: William Wallace, 1863-1922.” The Catholic Herald of India 5 (22 November 1922) 803-4.
- Namboodiry, Udayan. St Xavier’s: The Making of a Calcutta Institution. New Delhi: Viking/Penguin Books India, 1995.