ABSTRACT
The 'planting' of churches in various parts of the world from the beginning of the nineteenth century could never have been accomplished without the active initiatives of local people, who freely appropriated the Christian message for themselves and commanded that message both within their own societies and beyond. In addition to these, local informants and advisors contributed to the effective organization of missionary work by providing information about the country, its climatic conditions, or its social structure. The cooperation between missionaries and South Indian employees was particularly intensive in the early years of the mission. Reports on the work of local mission employees were coloured, to a great extent, by the personal attitude of the missionary concerned towards the use of Tamilians in the mission. With only a few exceptions, the South Indian employees of the Tranquebar Mission were Christians.
