Rufus Anderson's History of the American Foreign Missions to the Oriental Churches is a substantial nineteenth-century account of Protestant missionary engagement with the ancient Christian communities of the Near East, especially Armenians, Greeks, Syrians, and Nestorians under Ottoman and Persian rule. Written in a lucid, documentary style, the book combines institutional history, travel narrative, ecclesiastical analysis, and apologetic reflection. Its literary context is the expansive missionary historiography of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, yet it is distinguished by Anderson's attention to indigenous churches rather than exclusively "heathen" fields. Anderson, long-serving secretary of the American Board, was one of the chief architects of American Protestant mission theory. His emphasis on self-governing, self-supporting, and self-propagating native churches shaped both his administrative decisions and his historical interpretation. This book reflects decades of correspondence, reports, and strategic reflection, revealing how his theology of reform sought to revive rather than simply replace Eastern Christianity. Readers interested in mission history, Ottoman religious life, Eastern Christianity, or nineteenth-century American Protestant thought will find this work invaluable. It is best read critically, but it remains a foundational source for understanding the ideals, tensions, and consequences of American missions in the Oriental churches.

This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.

Rufus Anderson (1796-1880) was an American minister who spent several decades organizing overseas missions. He worked at the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) as an assistant while studying at Andover. In 1822 he applied to go to India but was asked to remain at headquarters and later appointed assistant secretary. In 1832 he was given total responsibility for overseas work as a Secretary of the ABCFM. In this capacity, he corresponded with missionaries from around the world. He traveled in Latin America (1819, 1823-1824), the Mediterranean and Near East (1828-1829, 1843-1844), India, Ceylon, Syria, and Turkey (1854-1855), and Hawaii (1863).