The Congregation of Holy Cross in East Bengal, East Pakistan and Bangladesh: History and Mission

The history of Christianity in Bengal extends for about five hundred years. Although the total number of Christians is not large, theirs is a complex and exciting history. Accompanied by the Portuguese traders, the Jesuits, the Dominicans, the Franciscans, and the Augustinian missionaries belonging to Roman Catholicism came to Bengal. The Protestant missionaries came to Bengal about two hundred years after the Roman Catholics. The Congregation of Holy Cross is one of the Roman Catholic religious orders which has been working in Bangladesh since 1853. Holy Cross missionaries had started their activities only with very little hope of making any progress in this region. However, with their missionary zeal and dedication, they have founded themselves in Bangladesh both in terms of evangelization and education in a country where the majority population is Muslim, which seems to be an excellent achievement for a religious congregation. Holy Cross is the most successful religious order that has been preaching Christianity among the tribal people in Bangladesh. Of the total Christian population in Bangladesh, 50 percent are of tribal peoples. They are also very successful in providing the leadership for the whole Catholic Church and themselves. The Congregation is successful at raising local clergy through secular and theological education. The paper presents a historical review of the Holy Cross Congregation in Bangladesh from its arrival to the present day.