Akbar Church: An epitome of religious tolerance
AGRA: Apart from tales of heroic victories, Mughal emperor Akbar is also known for ‘Sulah-kul’ – policy of religious tolerance. Over 400 years on, the Akbar Church is a standing example of his policy.
The land for the church was given by Akbar when the emperor also allowed Christians to build a Cathedral Church at Hooghly, now West Bengal.
Literature available at Bishop House here reveals that Father Jerome Xavier, who accompanied Akbar from Lahore to Delhi, expressed a desire to build a chapel in Agra, to which Akbar agreed and issued ‘firman’ (royal order) allowing building of a church. In 1600, Jesuit priests, with funds provided by Akbar, built a church. It came to be known as Akbar Church. His son and emperor Jehangir donated money to make the Akbar Church comparable to the one in Lahore in magnificence.
French traveler, Francois Bernier talks about the beauty of the Akbar Church and also about a tower whose bell could be heard in almost the entire city. In 1614 trouble broke out between the Mughals and Portuguese and Jehangir got built a wall in front of the church to deny entry to parishioners to the church. However, later he restored access to them. In 1628, Jehangir’s son Shahjehan came to power and attacked the Portuguese settlement at Hugli. In consequence, Christians (allies of the Portuguese) were persecuted and Shahjehan ordered destroying of church but in 1636 ordered its reconstruction.