Posts

National Consultation on “Violence: Nature and Types”

NCCI – Policy, Governance and Public Witness is organizing a National Consultation on “Violence: Nature and Types” on 30th November 2018 and 1st December 2018 at CNI Bhavan, Pandit Pant Marg 16, New Delhi- 1.

The consultation aims to bring to light the depths and types of violence instigated against the constitutional fundamental rights of religious minorities in India, through the findings of a research project initiated by NCCI in 2016 to examine whether violence against religious minorities has increased in contemporary India in recent times. Further, through this deliberation we intend to facilitate discussion on the topic and provide a platform to share experiences and opinions through which we can offer new insights to the civil societies about the ways to move forward to foster harmonious living in India.

/8 Comments/by

Executive Secretary of NCCI Policy, Governance and Public Witness

Rev. Dr. Abraham Mathew was installed as the next Executive Secretary of NCCI Policy, Governance and Public Witness at NCCI’s Office in New Delhi on October 1, 2018.

Rev. Dr. Mathew belongs to the Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church, has a Ph.D  from Trinity College, Bristol, and has worked extensively in Churches, seminaries and the mission field. Having had several responsibilities in various forums, having published several books and articles, and having represented the Church in important national and international events, his vast experience is expected to greatly benefit the council and its wide ministry.

After the installation, Rt. Rev. Gregorios Mar Stephanos Episcopa dedicated Rev. Dr. Mathew in prayer. Mrs. Aleyamma Thomas, Vice-President of NCCI, felicitated the new Executive Secretary on behalf of the NCCI and the Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church. Important Church dignitaries including Rt. Rev. Collin C. Theodore (Secretary of North West India Council of Churches), Mr. Alwan Masih (General Secretary of Church of North India), Mrs. Lidwina Cedric (Director of Ecumenical Church Loan Fund India), Dr. Mary Verghese (Executive Director of The Leprosy Mission), Mr. Samuel Jayakumar (Former Executive Secretary of NCCI Policy, Governance and Public Witness) and Prof. T. K. Oomen (Professor Emeritus at Jawaharlal Nehru University), along with Clergymen, other Church leaders and NCCI Delhi office staff, graced the occasion and wished the ministry of Mrs. and Rev. Dr. Abraham Mathew to be blessed with success and good fruit.

Ms. Catherine Christopher Nair.
Intern, NCCI Policy, Governance and Public Witness.

 

/5 Comments/by

Maharashtra Manthan 2018: Strengthening secularism

,

Report of Maharashtra Manthan 2018-19: Strengthening Secularism
NCCI , EFI, UM | 30th April – 2nd May 2018 | M.L.A. Hostel, Nagpur.

“Maharashtra Manthan : Strengthening Secularism”, a 3 days seminar organized by National Council of Churches in India (NCCI), Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI) and United Maharashtra (UM), was held at MLA Hostel, Nagpur from April 30 to May 2, 2018. More than 75 people which included youth and female participants from different cities of Maharashtra state participated in this seminar. There were 8 women participants and about 25 young people.

30th April 2018 (Day 1)

Maharashtra Manthan started at 12:45 pm with an opening prayer by Pastor Amit Manwatkar. The Coordinator of the Maharashtra Manthan was Rev. Devashish Dubey who introduced the concept of Maharashtra Manthan to the participants. He emphasized that the main objective of Maharashtra Manthan 2018 is to bring awareness about the contemporary contextual situation in the country among the participants and to guide the community and society in building new, sensitized and responsible leadership through the training.  Mr. Pradip Bansrior (NCCI Representative) presented the guidelines for the two and half day’s seminar to all participants.

Read more

/3 Comments/by

Open Letter to Prime Minister of India | End Culture of Rape & Sexual Violence on Girls, Children & Women in India!

,

Date: 16th April 2018

To

Sri Narendra Modi,
Honourable Prime Minister in India,
South Block, Raisina Hill,
New Delhi -110011

Open Letter to Prime Minister of India
End Culture of Rape & Sexual Violence on Girls, Children & Women in India !

 

Honourable Prime Minister Sri Narendra Modi,

Greetings from the National Council of Churches in India.

National Council of Churches represents around 14 million Christians in India from Reformation and Syrian Christian Traditions.

We write this letter at the darkest hour of our country when our Government is failing to protect girls, women and children. We express our deep anguish and pain, regarding the barbaric and heinous act of gang rape and murder of the little eight year old girl in Kathua and the rape of young 20 year old girl from Unnao in Uttar Pradesh.

Read more

/1 Comment/by

Call for applications to the post of NCCI Executive Secretary – Policy, Governance and Public Witness.

Kindly download a copy of the advertisement of the NCCI calling for applications to the post of NCCI Executive Secretary – Policy Governance and Public Witness.

Please encourage suitable candidates to apply for the same.

Thanking you,

Sincerely,

Rev. Dr. Roger Gaikwad,
General Secretary, NCCI

 

Download

 

/4 Comments/by

Special Service with Ecumenical Delegation from the Christian Council of Sweden

 

Respected Bishops, Priests and Heads of Ecumenical Organizations,

We are happy to invite you to a special service along with an ecumenical delegation from the Christian Council of Sweden on 28th January, 2018 at Free Church at 5.30 pm (Sansad Marg, Parliament Street, New Delhi).

Since this service will be held in the month of January when Christians all over the world observe the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, this service would also be an expression of that prayerful vision of Jesus that we may all be one (cf. John 17:21).The theme for the 2018 Week   of Prayer for Christian Unity is “Your Right Hand, O Lord, Glorious in Power” (Ex.15:6)

The message in this service will be delivered by Rev. Lasse Svensson, President of Uniting Church in Sweden and Swedish Free Church Council.

Archbishop Ms. Antje Jackelen, Church of Sweden and His Eminence Cardinal Anders Arborelius will bring greetings.

Kindly encourage your congregation to participate in the worship service. We shall be grateful if your church/organization choir/song group would present a special song during the service.

Rev. Dr. Roger Gaikwad
General Secretary,
National Council of Churches in India		 Rev. Dr. Suresh Kumar
Presbyter- in –Charge
Free Church

 

Invitation January 28, 2018 worship

 

Kindly confirm your participation through email at samncci@gmail.com / joynamlongvah73100@gmail.com or you could call Rev. Dr. Suresh Kumar: Mob: 9810561382 (WA) Off: 23361331/ Ms. Joynam: 9958774840

/0 Comments/by

Appeal to Churches in the context of Unity Octave, Republic Day and Martyrs Day

While we participate in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (January 18-25) and focus on the theme, “Your Right Hand, O Lord, Glorious In Power” (Ex. 15:6), reminding ourselves of God’s engagement to liberate people from the bondage of political, social and economic oppression, it is but apt that churches also observe important days in the life of our country . As citizens of India, on Republic Day, let us affirm the  Nazareth Manifesto (Luke 4:18-19) of Jesus Christ, standing for justice,  liberation and holistic well being of all, and as disciples of the Crucified Jesus Christ be reminded of the cost of discipleship on Martyrs Day, as we move on in the resurrection hope of a new just peaceful eco-integrated world of love!

The following appeal has been drafted for your deliberation and action.

Rev. Dr. Roger Gaikwad
General Secretary, NCCI.

A Call to Churches to be Committed to a Campaign

To DEFEND Democracy

&

     PRACTICE Non-violence

(REMEMBERING AMBEDKAR & GANDHI)

26th to 30th January, 2018

Threats looming large over the Indian Democracy have become more real today than ever before; and the country is witnessing an escalation in the violent attacks on minorities, dalits, adivasis, intellectuals, workers, writers, journalists, artists, students and community leaders who raise their voices honestly and express dissent and disagreement.  Proclamations by the fascist and corporate forces to alter the Indian Constitution is part-and-parcel of a grand design to establish autocracy, especially with regard to removing “Socialism” and “Secularism” from the Preamble, and are also definitely designed to change the basic character of the Indian Constitution & Sovereignty of the State and, in turn, pave the way for establishing the ‘Hindu Rashtra’ in its place.

Read more

/3 Comments/by

Report of Regional Seminar on Transparency, Accountability and Responsibility (Dumka | Nov. 28 – 29, 2017)

Report of Church Leaders Seminar On Transparency, Accountability and Responsibility (TAR)

November 28-29, 2017 |Dumka, Santal Parganas, Jharkhand

Organised by: National Council of Churches in India (NCCI), Christian Service Agency (CSA) and Santalia Council of Churches (SCC)

DAY I, SESSION I

The TAR Conference was initiated by the Grace of the Lord, with a session of Devotion, led jointly by Revd Francis Hansdak’ and Revd Roshan Hansdak’.

The Keynote Address to the Conference was also delivered by Revd Roshan Hansdak’.

Then Revd Caesar David deliberated upon “the Historical Necessity of Strengthening Good Practices in Our Churches and Organisations”. He emphasised upon the necessity of stringent upkeep of Ethics and Values in these challenging times, when a focused invigilatory approach is being adopted by the Government, and the FCRA Compliant Bank A/cs. of many Organisations are being closed due to detection of irregularities. He explained, to upkeep Ethics and Values, our Churches and CBOs need to do no new things, as these are the same set of Christian Values of Honesty, Love, Kindness and Integrity, we are supposed to adhere in all of our Activities. This of course doesn’t mean that the Church and its affiliate CBOs have been lax in upkeep of Ethics and Values, but merely is indicative of the Grey Areas of Ethics, which is open to opportunistic interpretations to suit the situation at hand. As an example he cited the rampant but inappropriate use of pirated proprietary softwares in our Churches, instead of Freewares and Sharewares.

There is also a shyness on the part of us in acknowledging corruption in our Churches. But denying the existence of corruption is doing disservice to our Churches in actuality. Contrary to the popular perception that, corruption comprises solely of monetary malpractices, Revd Caesar explained, there are various types of corruption involving Power Abuses, Illegalities, Handling of Donations, Procurement Acceleration, Sexual Abuses and Favours, Manipulations and Collusions etc. which erodes the Values, stems the Church growth, perpetuates inefficiencies, and lessens the faith upon the Church. All these factors ultimately compounds towards a weak Church. In contrast, adherence to the Global indicators of Ethics, Freedom and Transparency leads to a Sustainable and Strengthened Church.

Read more

/6 Comments/by

A Round Table Discussion on 1st October 2017

,

A round table discussion on “Religious Minorities in India: Challenges and Responses” was held on 1st October 2017, at New Delhi YMCA. 44 members attended the meeting representing NCCI member churches, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI), Evangelical Organisations and Civil Society Organisations. It was moderated by Rev. Dr. Roger Gaikwad, General Secretary of National Council of Churches in India (NCCI). Three presentations were made by Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveit, General Secretary of World Council of Churches (WCC); Prof. T.K. Oommen, Emeritus Professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and Adv. Irfan Engineer, Director of Institute for Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution. Mrs. Aleyamma Thomas, Vice-President, NCCI felicitated the Chief Guest and the two panelists. Rev. Dr. Peniel Jesudason Rufus Rajkumar, a WCC Executive Secretary, delivered the vote of thanks.

 

Mr. Samuel Jayakumar
Executive Secretary
Policy, Governance and Public Witness
National Council of Churches in India

/2 Comments/by

Independence Day 2017 – Open letter to The Prime Minister of India

, , ,

To,
Shri Narendra Modi,
The Prime Minister of India.

Dear Prime Minister,

Greetings!

On Good Friday 14th April 2017 (The Day commemorating the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ, instigated by the communal minded right wing religious and political leaders of the time), I had written an open letter to you expressing my concern as an Indian citizen about the state of affairs in the country. Perhaps you were too busy to respond to that letter or you thought it unnecessary to respond to an ordinary Indian citizen’s mann ki baat (which I could not transmit on national communication systems).

This time I write to you as an Indian spiritual seeker of God’s reign of justice, love and peace in our beloved country India.  As all Indians go on to celebrate Independence day on 15th August 2017, and as we keep on hearing statements which stereotype Christians as being aliens or as being people whose patriotism is questioned, I would like to draw your attention to a very strong statement (with my added emphasis) made on “Church and State in Post-War India” by the National Council of Churches in India (an ecumenical body of Indian Protestant and Orthodox Tradition churches representing around 14 million Christians today) in its Council meeting in 1944[1]:

Read more

/1 Comment/by

Events

Nothing Found

Sorry, no posts matched your criteria