Indians in South Africa

By Dale Marshfield

I respectfully beg to ask your honour for help in the following matter.

My name is Narayanan, no. 128851. I arrived here in January of this year, and was allotted to the Umzimkulu Estate Ltd. My wife Chinnama, and child-a girl one month old-arrived with me, but she was detained at the depot on account of illness. To this day I am ignorant of the whereabouts of my wife and child, or as to whether they are living or dead.

I implore your honour to set at rest the anxiety that I feel as a husband and father by giving me some information as to whether I shall ever see them again.

Your most humble servant,
Narayanan
Port Shepstone, Natal, South Africa
7 September 1907

This true letter quoted from A Documentary History of Indian South Africans reflects the hardships and world-shattering experiences of the more than 80,000 Indians who came to Durban, South Africa between 1864 and 1907. Most were indentured workers, impoverished pawns tangled in a contractual web spun by the Indian, British, and South African governments. They were needed to work on the sugar cane plantations and were enticed by promises that they would make enough money in South Africa to live as kings for the rest of their lives. The majority never returned to India. Few, if any, ever lived as kings. Like Narayanan, who learned that his family was returned to India because of illness, most found life in South Africa very hard.

Today, over one million Indians live in South Africa. The largest group live within the Greater Durban area, making up 32% of the city's population as of 1994. Recent studies show they are the largest market sector in metropolitan Durban. Their mother tongue is now English, though many still speak Tamil, Telugu, or Hindi. Religiously 43% are Hindu, 32% claim no religion, 11% are Moslem, and 13% Christian. Without a doubt, these loving people represent a significant mission field within the country of South Africa.

ABWE's pioneer church planters among the Indian people of Durban are Howdy and Virginia McClure. Since 1988 the McClures have worked in an Indian township called Phoenix, a community of over 300,000. Painstakingly, they have developed the people's knowledge of God's word and confidence in God's ability to use them to build and lead the church. As a result, God has raised up a good group of leaders within the Phoenix Bible Baptist Church. This includes two young men training for ministry in the Baptist Bible College of Natal. One is Leo Govender.

Leo Govender grew up in a Hindu home. His father was an alcoholic, and his mother dealt with the problems this created by frequent trips to Hindu temples. The Hindu priests prescribed offerings and rituals, but nothing helped. In the midst of these despairing circumstances, a Christian aunt and uncle invited the family to the Phoenix Bible Baptist Church. Leo's parents refused to go, but Leo and his sister attended. There, Leo heard and understood John 3:16. As he says, "I thought to myself, God loved me so much that he gave His only begotten Son." That moment Leo asked Christ to come into his life.

The next year the uncle, who had been instrumental in leading Leo to Christ, was killed in a car accident, leaving a wife and two little girls. Leo was crushed and wandered away from the Lord. Through the testimony of the McClures and his aunt, Leo realized Jesus Christ was the only way. God used John 14:6 to challenge his life and once again create a desire to live for God. Eventually Leo's parents and sister accepted Christ, and the entire family was baptized together in 1989. This is how Leo describes his life from that point:

"At the age of 20, I realized I wanted to serve God. I talked to Pastor Howdy about being more involved in the ministry. I am now 25 and have a wonderful fiancée named Caroline. I have learned that as Christians we have to face trials and tribulations because God works in mysterious ways. Uncle was killed right after I was saved; last year my brother committed suicide, my father had a heart attack, and my sister walked out on the family. But God has been good. Auntie Devi, Pastor Howdy and my fiancée stood by me, so I am still serving God. I am looking to the future wondering how God will use me. I am excited to be involved in the Baptist Bible College of Natal. I have been blessed by God's grace."

In 1997 Dale and Karen Marshfield and Dave and Karen Hamrick began work as another church planting team in Phoenix. Even with this new team, however, ABWE is only scratching the surface of the Indian population of Durban. We need at least one more team in Phoenix. Chatsworth, Shallcross, Asherville, Overport, and Newlands are other predominantly Indian communities that need churches.

When the Indians first came to South Africa, very few were Christians. During the first 50 years of their residence in South Africa the percentage of at least name "Christians" grew remarkably. During the past 20 years, however, the growth rate of Islam has surpassed the growth rate of Christianity. Pray that God will raise up a new generation of workers committed to reaching the Indian South Africans.

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