Church of South India

Church of South India
Logo of the Church of South India
Classification	Anglican and Protestant
Orientation	Ecumenical
Polity	Episcopal
Moderator	Most Rev. Thomas K. Oommen
Associations	Anglican Communion, World Council of Churches, World Communion of Reformed Churches, Christian Conference of Asia, Communion of Churches in India, National Council of Churches in India
Region	Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Sri Lanka (CSI churches in North India are under the respective CNI bishops. CSI churches in Europe are under the respective Anglican Bishops)
Origin	27 September 1947 (Day of Union, not a day of establishment) Chennai, Tamil Nadu
Merger of	Anglican and Protestant including some Methodist, Presbyterian and Baptist
Separations	[Anglican Church of India]
Congregations	14,000
Members	4,000,000
Ministers	11,214
Hospitals	104
Secondary schools	2000 schools, 130 colleges

The Church of South India is the second largest church in India based on the population of members, next to the Roman Catholic Church, and also the largest Protestant denomination in the country. The Church of South India (CSI) is the successor of a number of Protestant denominations in India, including the Church of England, the Methodist Church and the Church of Scotland after Indian Independence. It came into being by a union of Anglican and Protestant churches in South India. It combined the South India United Church (union of the Congregationalists and the Presbyterians); the then 14 Anglican Dioceses of South India and one in Sri Lanka; and the South Indian District of the Methodist church With a membership of over four million, CSI is one of three united churches in the Anglican Communion, the others being the Church of North India and the Church of Pakistan.

The inspiration for the Church of South India was born from ecumenism and inspired by the words of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Gospel of John (17.21). Just like the United Church of Christ (Congregationalist), one of their forbearer denominations, their motto is:

That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.'