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The address of Rajan Kadirgamar, former Principal, Jaffna College, at the following meeting is reproduced below:Meeting Thiru Arumugam in Toronto re "Nineteenth Century American?Medical?Missionaries in Jaffna,Ceylon "Milliken Methodist Church,Markham, Toronto, Canada - 16th July,2010???????????????????????????????????????????????????????*************Chairman's Introduction and comments:?I have the privilege to introduce Thiru Arumugam re his valuable contribution to the history of the American Ceylon Mission (ACM) and and its medical mission.?In doing so I refer briefly to: 'The insignificance of the ACM in the global context' and to????????????????????????????????????????????? ?"The great significance of the ACM in the context of Ceylon"First I refer to my teacher Prof.Kenneth Scott Latourette missionary in China of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) and later Professor of Church History with special reference to the?expansion of Christianity in the world.He?was professor?at the Yale Divinity School,New Haven,USA.Prof.Latourette was the author of seven volumes on the subject of global Christianity. The good professor in his retirement resident at Yale? used to visit us once a week for a two hour dinner lecture meeting at Union Theological Seminary, New York City for a whole semester in 1961.He summarised for us his voracious knowledge of the world- wide missionary movement based on his seven volumes. We were 18 Ecumenical Fellows from 16 countries. !He concluded his final lecture very dramatically and I see him in that posture as I address you now. He stood in front of a large map of the world with a? long pointer in his hand touching every country in the world except Tibet and said most emphatically that, "The Geographical distribution of Christianity in the world?was almost complete in the mid-19th century"?In this context where was tiny Ceylon, a tear drop off the chin of India?on the map ?Where was Jaffna ? And where the villages of Tellipallai, Vaddukoddai, Manipay, Uduvil, Pandaterrupu or Chavakachcheri the main centres of American missionary activity in Ceylon?in the mid 19th century?? And where was our illustrious missionary doctor Samuel Green ?Thiru also tables the names of 100? American Missionaries who served in Jaffna during years 1816 to 1916. I could think of another 50 missionaries who served from 1916 to the present day- 2010.This 150 again in the context of several hundred missionaries spread?around the globe at the turn of the 19th century was not a significant presence quantitatively. Therefore it is not a surprise that the American Board or its several counterparts in Europe and America?were ignorant of the great happenings of the ACM and its personnel like Samuel Green in far away Ceylon.On the other hand?what happened in Jaffna in the 19th century had a?tremendous significance?in the?splendid varied?history of the ACM. Lectures given at the centenary celebrations of the ACM in 1916 by Rev.C.D.Velupillai have been compiled into a book in Tamil titled the history of the ACM 1816 to 1916. It ranges from the very beginnings of the revival of Christianity in New England, America giving expression to a unique vibrant missionary movement to the 'uttermost parts' of the globe ! The late Prof.Kailasapathy in the presence of Prof.Indrapala and the late Dr.James Rutnam in his residence at Tinnevely at the Evelyn Rutnam Insitute requested me to have?Rev.Velupillai's book reprinted saying there is scope for more than seven Ph.D's on?a??wide range of topics in the book. I was able to have the book reprinted. It is my reference book on the ACM now. The medical mission of the ACM is just ?a small part of a wider mission portrayed in the book. It is said that a Ph.D. thesis researches on 'more and more of less and less'.Thiru Arumugam has done magnificent research and expanded for us the massive contribution of the?American Medical missionaries in Jaffna, high lighting the work of Dr.Samuel Green.Prof.Piyaratne, Professor of Education at the Vidiyodaya University wrote his Ph.D thesis more than three decades ago, at Michigan University, on the topic "American education in Ceylon - 1823 to 1855"- (This was the period of existence of the Batticotta Seminary at Vaddukoddai).The main contention of his findings is that American education in Jaffna resulted in the over-development of Jaffna in relation to the rest of Ceylon. Prof. Indrapala in his tribute to Thiru on his book refers to the advancement of Jaffna over every other district in Ceylon because of the contribution?of the American missionaries who were confined only to Jaffna free of any colonial interests.?What happened so significantly in Jaffna in the 19th century influenced by the ACM ??1.The Batticotta Seminary closed in 1855 and its students formed the first batch of students founding the Madras University in 1855 with its finest??product C.W.Thamotherampillai as the first graduate of the University with a B.A.,B.L.?2.The 'Morning Star' a bi-lingual newspaper with Henry Martyn a former student of the Seminary as one of the editors was published in Manipay in 1841.It is recorded as the first Tamil newspaper in the world and the second English newspaper in Ceylon.?3.The American missionaries brought to Vaddukoddai a brand new Eastman Kodak camera from?Rochester,?USA, but did not know how to use it. Henry Martyn again studied the brochure and took a photo of a group of missionaries and it was the first photograph taken in Ceylon?- 1855.?The brilliant American doctor Samuel Fisk Green it should be noted?comes into the scene in Manipay in 1847 in the fullness of time ! There was an elite group of Tamil scholars conversant in the sciences, English and Tamil literature, even some modern technology, some elementary medical studies, printing and publishing. They took to medical studies under the expert tutelage of Dr Green like fishes to water and the first batch followed by seven other batches of fully qualified doctors?in Ceylon emerged !?Thiru Arumugam now enters the scene bringing back to memory most refreshingly into the 21st century the life and work of the?19th century American Medical Missionaries. With his keen engineering skills he carves out with precision the essentials of the ?ACM medical service from an ocean of information available.Like a skilled, imaginative architect with a vision he constructs a magnificent masterpiece for us?.He narrates the adventurous story with all its tragedies, perseverance, endurance and hope with such ease like an endearing classical novel. There is not a single dull moment - I read the whole English section in one sitting the moment I opened the book the morning it arrived. A few days later while I was browsing through it my 13 year old grand-daughter looked into it and said Thaatha let me have the book when you have finished with it ! Young and old will read it with gratitude to Thiru. They will be motivated?for medical service to humanity in general and to the Tamils in particular.It is a remarkable labour of love and devotion to a noble human cause and to a missionary doctor who gave his all for the Tamils. Thiru had encouragement and help from his wife Malini, sister Sushila, his three sons and their spouses - a role model of a family.I now have the joy and privilege of calling upon Thiru Arumugam to tell his deeply moving story.Rajan KadirgamarPostscript: Thiru's narration kept us spellbound.? I have not heard such an account of the ACM in all my life of 81 years ! Surely the hand of God was there prodding Thiru in this divine enterprise in memorialising the life, work and times of Samuel Fisk Green. All the books available were bought with great enthusiasm. There are requests for more. I also want to thank the organisers of the meeting Sakthi Arumugam the brother of Thiru and Tony Chelvadoray a cousin of Thiru. Tony is the son of the?very lovable?late Dr. Chelvadoray of Moolai Cooperative Hospital?. Dr. Chelvadoray is the maternal uncle of Thiru. Another very significant event in this meeting was the presence and address of Carole Bentley the great grand daughter of Dr.Green. To all present it was an unusually inspiring meeting !? ................
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