Dan Beach Bradley

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Dan Beach Bradley

Dan Beach Bradley (born July 18, 1804 in Marcellus , New York , † June 23, 1873 in Bangkok ) was an American Protestant missionary in Siam (now Thailand ) from 1835 until his death .

Living in the USA

Dan Beach Bradley was the son of Judge Dan Bradley of Whitehall, New York, and Eunice Beach, who died shortly after their son was born. He was studying medicine at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York and hoped to work as a missionary in the healing ministry. Bradley studied medicine at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City .

In November 1832 he was accepted by the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) as a missionary doctor. He graduated in April 1833 as Dr. med. (MD) and married Emilie Royce in 1834 after a brief letter acquaintance, who also wanted to work as a "missionary among pagans".

Mission in Siam

On July 2, 1834, the Bradleys and a group of the ABCFM and Baptist missionaries set sail, accompanied by prayers and chants. They arrived in Singapore after six tough months, but had to wait another six months before continuing their journey to Siam. During this time Bradley acquired a printing press with Siamese characters, on which pamphlets and Bible translations were to be printed. They finally reached Bangkok on July 18, 1835.

Emilie has not been doing well since she began her stay in Siam. In August 1845 she died of tuberculosis . Bradley, too, initially suffered from chronic diarrhea , but later enjoyed excellent health for thirty years. He followed a daily routine of cold baths, simple meals, and complete abstinence .

His travels between 1835 and 1850 included:

Faith Problems

Bradley believed in the turn of so-called Christian perfectionism ("Christian Perfectionism") that deliverance from sin is possible in life on earth. The ABCFM viewed this attitude as heresy and called him back to America. On December 4, 1847, he had to resign from his mission and leave the mission in Siam without support.

In 1848 he went to the American Missionary Association (AMA) while he was still in the United States. There he also met Sarah Blachley, his future second wife, whom he married on October 1, 1848. This was the first and last stay outside Siam in the 35 years of his stay in Siam. They set sail for Siam in late October of the following year, and after an even more difficult journey than the first, they reached Bangkok before the end of May 1850.

The AMA provided limited assistance, so Bradley had to spend considerable time earning a living and serving the mission. Among other things, he used donations for otherwise free medical help that he provided.

Results

Despite many years of sermons and tracts distribution, Bradley could only convert one Buddhist to Christianity. His greatest success was in the field of the press, in his advice to King Mongkut (Rama IV.) And King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) and in consular questions of the Americans in Siam. Bradley also introduced western medicine to Siam. He performed the first modern operation on January 13, 1837, during which he amputated a monk's arm after a fireworks accident and was one of the first, if not the first, to use the smallpox vaccination in Siam.

With the permission of the ABCFM, Bradley brought the original Thai script clichés, made by Ann Hasseltine Judson and George H. Hough in 1817, from Singapore to Thailand to print religious books. In 1839, King Phra Nang Klao (Rama III) hired the press to print and distribute 9,000 copies of his decree against opium on May 18 . The subtitle read “ it being the first official document ever printed in Siam DBB ”. A copy of this print is in the library of Harvard University . Since he was dissatisfied with the letters, he made a new sentence in 1841.

Bradley founded the very first newspaper in Siam, the Bangkok Recorder , which appeared monthly between July 4, 1844 and 1845, and later between 1865 and 1867. From 1859 until his death, he also edited the Bangkok Calendar almanac .

Death and legacy

A few months before his 69th birthday, Dan Beach Bradley died on June 23, 1873. He was buried in the "Bangkok Protestant Cemetery" on Thanon Charoen Krung (Charoen Krung Street).

In 1981 the Bangkok Christian Hospital built a new 13-story building, named after Bradley as the "Mo Bradley Building" ( Thai อาคาร หมอ บรัด เลย ) and opened on August 3, 1987.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Barend Jan Terwiel : Through Travelers' Eyes: An approach to early nineteenth-century Thai history. Duang Kamol, Bangkok 1989, ISBN 974-210-455-7 .
  2. ^ Department of State: Celebrating the Birthday of Dr. Dan Beach Bradley ( Memento of May 27, 2010 on the Internet Archive ), accessed March 12, 2010
  3. ↑ The Protestant Cemetery Bangkok ( Memento from September 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) with pictures of Bradley's grave, accessed on March 12, 2010 (English)
  4. ^ History of Bangkok Christian Hospital ( July 16, 2011 memento in the Internet Archive ), accessed March 12, 2010
personal data
SURNAME Bradley, Dan Beach
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American missionary
DATE OF BIRTH July 18, 1804
PLACE OF BIRTH Marcellus , New York
DATE OF DEATH June 23, 1873
Place of death Bangkok