The View of “Modernity” of the American Protestant Missionaries in XIX Century Syria

What is it about?

The role of the American Protestant Missionaries in Ottoman Syria is bound to the educational institution they founded and guided, namely the Syrian Protestant College (later American University of Beirut), which is believed to have had a significant cultural and political influence in the area in the XIX century. Yet which ideas and contents inspired their educational policy? Which ideas did they aim to transmit and share? This article addresses the views of some of the main representatives of American Protestant Missionaries and the educational policy of the Syrian Protestant College to find out some main reference points concerning their ideas and in some cases to trace some lines of influence on them. In this way, it suggests the proximity of some of their views to (an interpretation of) the thoughts of the German philosopher G.W.F. Hegel.

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Why is it important?

This study is unique and significant for two reasons: 1) it helps understand the views of the American Protestant Missionaries in XIX century Syria about “modernity” and “progress”, also in the field of religion. In this way, it can help to shed light on their interaction with the cultural, political, and religious context in which they carried out their missionary and (mainly) educational activities. In this frame, it also proposes a peculiar view on the “Darwin crisis”. 2) It suggests the proximity of the American Missionaries’ views with some main views of the philosopher G.W.F. Hegel, although re-interpreted. This represents a new line of research, which seems to be fruitful and worth further pursuit.