“YOUR MINISTRY IS YOUR SERVICE TO THE BELIEVERS,
YOUR MISSION IS YOUR SERVICE TO THE UNBELIEVERS”

The 2009 India Mission Trip conducted as per the decision of the Diocesan Council of North America and Europe, was a great blessing and wonderful experience for the participants involved. The Tour commenced on Oct 5th 2009 and was completed by Oct 18th 2009. There were a total of 6 participants (2 youths and 4 adults), .Throughout the tour, we strongly experienced God’s providence and grace.

Upon arrival in Delhi on Thursday, Oct 8th, 2009, we were received by the Delhi Diocesan Bishop Rt. Rev. Dr. Abraham Mar Paulos and diocesan secretary, Rev. Jayan Thomas. After we had lunch with Thirumeni, we left Delhi by  train on Oct 8th evening at 4 PM and arrived at Christa Panthi Ashram, Sihora on 9th Oct morning.

Rev. James Idiculla Acharya and   Rev. Mathew K Chandy welcomed us and we stayed there for three days and also attended the Christa Panthi Ashram Day celebration.

Rev. James Idiculla, Acharya

It was the most blessed and memorable moment of our lives. The Ashram day celebration started with convention meetings and songs which were spiritually empowering the villagers and all the participants.  Mar Thoma church members from Bhopal, Bhilai, Itarsi, Ahmedabad, Kerala and the seminary students from Jabalpur and Kottayam and so many nativel members attended this celebration. The Rt. Rev. Dr Zacharias Mar Theophilus Suffragan Metropolitan and Rt. Rev. Dr. Abraham Mar Paulos were the main guests.  The Christa Panthi Ashram works for the marginalized and downtrodden people of the villages around the Ashram. The ministry and mission of the Ashram for the last 66 years have been to spread the Good news and love of Christ. The serene and spiritual atmosphere of the Ashram makes it a pilgrimage site for the believers.

We arrived in Bhopal on Oct 12th 2009 morning and Rev. George Cherian, director of Bhopal Mission received us and took us to  the residence of one of the members of the St. Peter’s Mar Thoma Church, Bhopal. After breakfast we visited the Christa Prema Kulam Mar Thoma Mission in Bhopal. 

The purpose of this Mission field is to reach out to the unreached villagers around the Mission center with the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ through its various evangelistic educational development and spiritual programs. We met the students of the Tribal Boys hostel and Gram Jyoti English Medium School, Sehatganj and attended the evening worship with the Hostel children. The worship was  led by one of the village orphan students.

The  driving principle of the Mission is to educate a child, enlighten a family and empower/edify the village. In the evening, we visited St. Peter’s Mar Thoma Church in Bhopal where we met Rev. Biju S. Cherian, our former Diocesan Secretary, who came to attend the Delhi Diocesen Youth conference.

On Oct 13th, morning we left Bhopal to Itarsi Mission centers with Rev. Varghese George, Vicar of both Bethel Mar Thoma church, Bhopal and Itarsi Mar Thoma Church. . The warm welcome by the Itarsi Mar Thoma parish members and the Itarsi villagers and their great enthusiasm helped  us to understand the mission field. The gospel of Christ penetrates into the hearts of the people because of the mission activities.

Itarsi Mar Thoma Mission center is located in Jai Prakash Nagar. It is a tribal area. People are very poor and illiterate. At the request of Itarsi Mar Thoma parish and under the guidance of Rt. Rev. Dr.Isaac Mar Philoxenos Episcopa, Itarsi Mission field started its activities in 1997. This Mission is  nowflourishing under the able guidance of Rt. Rev. Dr. Abraham Mar Paulos. We visited first the Gram Jyoti School, in Jai Prakash Nagar, which was started in 2000.  This school has been proved to be strong medium to lead the rural children to the world of knowledge from the darkness of ignorance. At present the school has a strength of 110 students from nursery to class V. It  has 7 teachers. The dedicated  and volunteer service of the headmaster Mr. Gopala Pillai, from a Hindu family in Kerala is highly appreciated by the Parish members.  A new school building is constructed and it is dedicated by Mar Paulos Thirumeni on Oct 18th 2009. Then we visited the Tailoring School for village women. Fifty five women had already undergone training at this center. At present ten trainers take advantage of this program.

The improvement of rural health has become a priority in this mission. The  services of a medical clinic are made available to the needy villagers and children twice a month.

Medical Camp of Itari Mission in progress at Nagpur Kala village

The day we arrived, the youths and adults of the Itarsi Mar Thoma Parish  arranged a Medical Clinic in Nagpur Kala village. Mrs. Anita Patel, the only Hindu girl from that village who got a M.A degree extends the space of a house to conduct the Medial Clinic. Two doctors attend the sick people of that village and medicines are provided by the church members.

Itarsi Mission has launched an Adult Literacy program for the villagers. At present there are two centers in the villages with 20 adults and 2 instructors. We were able to meet the villagers  and sing with them and pray for them . We experienced the love of God through these villagers.

Women of Adult Education class in Nagpur Kala performing a tribal folk song for us

The Mission center is located in a slum area. The slum dwellers are educated on the importance of  health and hygiene.  The Itarsi Mission is also planning to start  a Mother-child Care center in Nagpurkala village. This year the Mission conducted  VBS for 180 slum children. The untiring and dedicated service of the Evangelist, Mr. Jithin Lawrence is very commendable.

From Bhopal we came to Delhi Diocesan center on  15th octOct early morning . On 16th Oct, we went to Dharma  Jyoti Vidya Peeth at Faridabad. We were able to meet the students  from eight states of India representing diverse linguistic, ethnic, cultural and denominational backgrounds , doing their B.Th. studies. 

We enjoyed the natural beauty of that place. We visited the vegetable gardens, rice and tapioca field cultivated by the students. We also met the principal Rev. Dr. P.G. George and  the vice principal Rev. Mathew Muthalaly.  At the center of the Dharma Jyoti Campus is the Chapel. In the evening we were able to praise and worship with the students and faculty. We stayed there one night. On  17th octOct morning we left Faridabad and visited Agra and came back to Delhi  in the evening.

Let me thank God Almighty for giving us the opportunity to travel the northern part of India and visit Mission centers of our church and meet the less fortunate villagers of the different parts of the State. I take this opportunity to thank our Diocesan Bishop, Rt. Rev. Dr. Geevarghese Mar Theodosius and the Diocesan council members for permitting to coordinate this Mission tour.