Diocese of South Kerala of the Church of South India

Diocese of South Kerala

Location
Country	India
Ecclesiastical province	Church of South India
Statistics
Congregations	623
Information
Cathedral	L.M.S Trivandrum
Secular priests	352
Current leadership
Bishop	A. Dharmaraj Rasalam
Website
www.csiskd.in

South Kerala Diocese is a diocese of the Church of South India which consists of CSI churches in Trivandrum and Kollam districts of Kerala. It is one of the biggest dioceses in the Church of South India. In Kerala, there are three other CSI Dioceses viz: North Kerala Diocese, Madhya Kerala Diocese, East Kerala Diocese. In 2010 the diocese had 352 ordained pastors, 49 retired pastors and more than 200 church workers. There are 60 districts and 623 churches in this diocese.

History

The history of the Protestant Missions in South Kerala begins with the arrival of William Tobias Ringeltaube on 25 April 1806 at Mylaudy near Cape Comorin. As missionary work was already started in Tranquebar, a Danish colony, Ringeltaube travelling in a Danish ship arrived at Tranquebar, invited by Vedamanikan Maharasan the first convert from this region. Travancore was then a native state under British protection ruled by its Maharaja. It was with great difficulty and largely through the intervention of the British Resident in Travancore, Colin Macaulay, that Ringeltaube obtained permission to construct a Church at Mylaudy. In May 1809 the foundation stone was laid for the Church. The construction of a modest structure was dedicated in September that year. The Mylaudy Church was the first Protestant church built in the erstwhile princely state of Travancore, and it formed the nucleus of the present South Kerala Dioceses of Kanayakumari and South Kerala.

Bishops of the South Kerala Diocese

A. H. Legg (1947-1965)
William Paul Vachalan (1967 -1972)
Isaiah Jesudason (1973-1990)
Samuel Amirtham (1990-1997)
J. W. Gladstone (1997-2011)
Dharmaraj Rasalam (2011 -till date)

Notable Churches under South Kerala Diocese

Mateer Memorial Church, LMS,Trivandrum

Mateer Memorial Church

The Mateer Memorial Church, situated in the heart of the city of Trivandrum, is one of the oldest of its kind in South India. The origin of the Trivandrum Church dates back to the arrival of the Rev. John Cox, the first LMS missionary in Trivandrum, in 1838 .The new church building for the church was dedicated on the first day of December 1906.The church was dedicated by Rev. R. W. Thompson, the Foreign Secretary of the LMS who was heading a deputation as part of the centenary of the Travancore Mission.The new church building was named Mateer Memorial Church in honour of the second missionary Rev. Samuel Mateer.

Institutions under South Kerala Diocese

Medical College

Dr. Somervell Memorial CSI Medical College, Karakonam

Nursing College

CSI College of Nursing, Karakonam

Engineering College

John Cox Memorial CSI Institute of Technology, Kannammola

Arts & Science College

Christian College, Kattakada

Hostels

LMS Wills Hostel for Men
LMS Women's Hostel

Administration

Vice Chairman - Rev.T. Selvarajan
Secretary - Mr D.Lawrance
Joint Secretary -Rev.Bhanu Samuel
Treasurer - Rev. D. Jacob

Board For Youth Work

Rev.Dr.J.W.Prakash (Co ordinator)
Dr.G.J.Shyju (Secretary)

Board For Young Family Fellowship

Rt.Rev.A.Dharmaraj Rasalam (Chairman)
Mr.Suresh Devarajan (Secretary)
Rev.Shabu Lawrence (Coordinator)
Rev.Sunin Spenzer (Area coordinator)
Mr.Jose Rajeevan (Area Convener)
Dr.Sindhuja Suresh (Area convener)

External links

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