The Diocese of Vellore is one among the 24 dioceses of Church of South India. The motto chosen for the diocese was "In the Cross of Christ I Glory" (based on Galatians chapter 6 verse 14). Its emblem includes a banyan tree - the tree under which the Scudder brothers prayed before they decided to begin their work in the area of Vellore.
History
The diocese was created by bifurcating the western half of the Diocese of Madras and was officially formed on 26 January 1976. Vellore Diocese is predominantly rural and crosses the state boundaries of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. So Vellore Diocese can be also called a bilingual diocese.
Area Councils
Eastern Area Council - 26 Pastorates
Central Area Council - 37 Pastorates
Southern Area Council - 17 Pastorates
Northern Area Council - 24 Pastorates
Two more Councils were in proposal, (Viz: Central Urban Area Council & Western Area Council)
Bishops of the diocese
Sam J. Ponniah (1978–1987) R. Trinity Baskeran Mahimai Rufus Y. William (2008–2012) A. Rajavelu (201230 June 2018) Elected from CSI Christ Church, Gandhinagar, Vellore Sharma Nithiyanandam (as of 2019)Elected from CSI Christ Church, Gandhinagar, Vellore
Institutions under CSI Vellore Diocese
Church of South India Vellore Diocese has 105 elementary schools, 5 high schools, 5 higher secondary schools, 2 teachers' training institutes, 4 primary schools, 1 arts & science college, 3 Matriculation higher secondary schools, 2 nursing schools and 2 hospitals. Hospitals CSI Hospital, Vandavasi Scudder Memorial Hospital, Ranipet Nursing Schools School of Nursing, Ranipet School of Nursing, Vandavasi Higher Secondary Schools Wyckoff Higher Secondary School, Muttathur Voorhees Higher Secondary School, Vellore CSI Christ Matriculation School for Girls, Tirupattur CSI SIPCOT Matriculation Higher Secondary School Arts & Science College Voorhees College, Vellore
St. John's Church, Vellore Fort
St. John's Church, Vellore located inside the Vellore Fort was raised in 1846 by the Government of Madras for the officers and men of the East India Company military station. The church is named after St. John the Evangelist. However, the church was never officially consecrated and hence not officially named St. John’s Church. St. John's Church is the oldest standing church in the Vellore Diocese.
See also
Church of South India
Diocese of Coimbatore
Diocese of Madras
Madurai-Ramnad Diocese
Thoothukudi - Nazareth Diocese
Tirunelveli Diocese
Trichy-Tanjore Diocese
Diocese of Kanyakumari
Joseph John (minister)