To understand missionaries, one must understand how it all started. According to Christian beliefs, Christ told his 12 disciples to go tell the world about salvation through Christ Jesus (in what is known as the Great Commission, found in Matthew 28:16-20). Peter, John, Mark Thomas, and the rest of the disciples were the first actual missionaries in Christian History. They were not from the western world, but rather from the Middle East. In simple and general terms this is the Christian view of Missions: Once a person believes in and accepts Christ as his/her personal savior, they are to go out and tell others the Good News (the message of Jesus Christ, as we are commissioned to in Matthew 28). The goal of missions is not so much about actually converting people, as it is conveying the message itself. Some people have been more receptive to this message than others, which is seen throughout history, but many people have been converted to Christianity as a result. And all of this was started by those 12 disciples. Europeans took the idea of missions to a level that was not intended during the Crusades of the Middle Ages. Greed, selfishness and pride took people completely off the track of what Jesus actually taught. Many atrocities were committed in the name of Christianity, as well as economic superiority, as crusaders forcibly converted anyone who didn’t agree with the beliefs of the Church of that day. This is in reality the complete opposite of what Jesus taught. “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you”, says Matthew 5:43. Jesus is a message of hope and love. There have been many changes in how mission work is done since the days of the Crusades. Many Christian reformers have come along since then and have moved everything back on track with the original intention of the Great Commission. These days, Missionaries are very sensitive and respectful to the culture of the people they will be witnessing to. I’m sure there are a few bad apples, but for the most part this is the case. Christian mission does not have a perfect record, maybe not even 50%. But there definitely has been some good mission work done around the world. It is all about sharing HOPE and LOVE and helping people in need. In doing so, people have been converted to Christianity. My dad is one of these people. I was born into a Christian family. I am a Christian and proud to be one. I am Nepali and also love my country and culture. I have no intention of “converting” anyone, nor to I hate any other religion. If someone wants to know what I believe I will share with people how I feel about Christ. I might not agree 100% with missionaries or what they are doing, but they are helping our country (Nepal). They are not doing it out of pity and mercy, but rather out of love and responsibility, according to their beliefs.