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Evangelical aid groups have come under some criticism for preaching the gospel alongside providing aid to the survivors of the Indian Ocean tsunami. "Some evangelical groups are mixing Christian missionary work with humanitarian aid in countries ravaged by the tsunamis and earthquake, a provocative approach shunned by the majority of faith-based relief organizations," writes The Baltimore Sun. "Spreading faith this way can antagonize the people they're trying to help, and there's evidence of concern among Muslims, Hindus, and others."

The Sun relies on anonymous e-mails and Web postings as "evidence of concern." It even says e-mails and postings "exaggerate or sensationalize" the truth. Most religious aid groups defer to the local culture, writes The Sun, but some missionary groups are not culturally sensitive, upsetting locals.

Apparently, Christians can be motivated by Jesus to provide relief but shouldn't share that motivation with those receiving aid.

Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan's Purse, is cited as one of those spreading the gospel behind relief dollars. He told The Sun aid should "share the love of Christ. … I would hope that they would come to know the God I know."

Other groups, like World Relief, refrain from sharing the gospel at first, writes The Sun. But once they have established a relationship with a group, they return to the scene years later and begin planting churches. World Relief however disputes The Sun's portrayal of them as developing relationships after a disaster only to exploit those relationships in order to plant churches. According to the aid organization, "It is not the duty of World Relief to move beyond its mandate of enabling local churches to respond to suffering - World Relief is not a mission agency; we do not proselytize or use aid as a pretext for another agenda."

K.P. Yohannan, president of the Texas-based Gospel for Asia, isn't bothered that the gospel could offend people. "This [disaster] is one of the greatest opportunities God has given us to share his love with people," Yohannan told the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Though local Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist groups sometimes violently oppose the presence of Christian evangelists, and their presence has already created tensions, surprisingly, the US has done nothing to stop these Christian groups, says the Inquirer. "The U.S. government has said it hopes American tsunami aid improves its image abroad, particularly with Muslims. At the same time, it has not tried to impede evangelical efforts."

Southern Baptist relief coordinator Pat Julian said the tsunami provided "a phenomenal opportunity" to share the gospel with a certain fishing community in Thailand. Another group is planning to build Christian villages along the destroyed coastline. The Inquirer says, "Not all evangelicals agree with these tactics."

"It's not appropriate in a crisis like this to take advantage of people who are hurting and suffering," said the Rev. Franklin Graham. "Maybe another day, if they ask why I come, I'd say I'm a Christian and I believe the Bible tells me to do this. But now isn't the time. We have to save lives."

The fact that Franklin Graham can be used to support either side of this argument shows that reporters have a lot to learn about the nuances and diversity in the evangelical community. Christian groups must be careful when presenting the gospel to a culture that finds such efforts offensive. Three people died in a recent clash between Hindus and Christians in Sri Lanka. But expecting or forbidding all mission and relief groups to simply refrain from mentioning Christ is offensive to Christian beliefs.

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January (Web-only) 2005, Vol. 49