History of St. Andrew's Church, Chengalpattu: Centenary (1883-1993)

P. Dayanandan and Anne Dayanandan September 2018

One Hundred Years of St. Andrew's Church, Chengalpattu 1893-1993

September 2018 marked the 125th year of the St. Andrew's Church, Chengalpattu. The history of St. Andrew's Church was originally written in 1993 for the centenary celebration. It was titled: "One Hundred Years Of St. Andrew's Church, Chengalpattu 1893-1993". For us this was a decisive occasion with unexpected results. The six page article kindled the interest of several other congregations, who wanted details of their sacred history to be researched and written for their jubilee celebrations.

This augmented article has two sections: 1. An update of the 1993 article describing the first hundred years of the church 2. A brief account of how the centenary was celebrated

While writing the history in 1993 we were limited by the availability of documented information. Over the past 25 years additional information has come to light that enabled us to expand the original article. Here we include an updated list of pastors to the present time as well as information about the new mission fields developed and churches recently built by St. Andrew's in neighboring villages. A centenary celebration is an important part of the life and history of any church; it should not be allowed to fade in memory. Therefore, snippets from the centenary celebration and some photographs are reproduced here as well.

The book "St. Andrew's Church 1893-2018: Celebrating 125 Years" published by the church in April 2018 contains additional information and suggestions for celebrating a church jubilee. Valuable photographs and information on six missionaries who served in Chengalpattu area are included. This publication has inspired the Chengalpattu congregation to learn more about the history of the arrival and spread of the Good News, and to emulate the life and example of the missionaries by carrying out several programs.

The beautiful St. Andrew's Church of Chengalpattu was one hundred years old in 1993. It was dedicated on 30th September 1893. Over 500 persons including more than 300 Christians from the villages of the district celebrated that joyous event of dedication. Andrew described 1893 as “a year of ingathering and of congregational extension never before experienced in the history of our mission.” No fewer than 246 adults and children in different villages of Chengalpattu District were baptized in that year. St. Andrew's church was built as the largest parent church in the mission headquarters. Across four generations the Church has grown steadily and has been the centre of Christian witness and service and a source of gathering of many congregations all over the district. It is a joy and an enriching experience to explore the origin and history of this Church and the influence it had in shaping the growth and life of the Christian congregations and people in the large area of Chengalpattu District.

Church & Jubilees - The life of a church is intimately associated with its congregation, church building, ministers and governing committees. What we celebrated as a centenary in 1993 marked the dedication of the building of St. Andrew's Church and not the founding of the congregation or the pastorate at Chengalpattu. 1840-41 can be considered as the year when a handful of Christians emerged at Chengalpattu. This was the year when John Anderson took charge of a school on behalf of the Church of Scotland Mission. Thus, in 2020 the Chengalpattu Christians and the St. Columba's School can jointly celebrate this 180-year-old heritage. Only in 1844 a Free Church congregation was formed in Madras. The few Christians in Chengalpattu were members of that congregation. 2

Rev. Adam Andrew came to Chengalpattu in 1879. He separated the Chengalpattu (and Kanchipuram and Sriperumbudur) Christians from the George Town congregation in 1883 and established the new Chengalpattu pastorate.

Founding of the Mission & Schools - St. Andrew's Church owes its origin to two great pioneers, Rev. John Anderson and Rev. Adam Andrew. John Anderson was the first missionary of the Church of Scotland to South India. Shortly after arriving in Madras in February 1837 he developed a school which later grew into the Madras Christian College. In 1839 he founded a school in Kanchipuram which is now the Anderson Higher Secondary School. A year later, in August 1840, Anderson accepted the offer of Dr. Frederic Cooper to take over a school that a doctor had founded to educate the youth at Nellore.

Rev. John Anderson, Founder, Church of Scotland Mission in Madras (1837-1855) (From color portrait painted by John Watson Gordon, Royal Scottish Academy in 1849; now in the Madras Christian College Council room)

In 1840 Anderson accepted an offer from William Morehead and took over a school in 1841 in Chengalpattu. This school was founded by Morehead and had about 50 students. This school later became the St. Columba's School. On his retirement in 1862, Morehead bought and gifted to the Mission the land where St. Columba's School now stands in a little more than 3 acres. When Morehead died in Edinburgh in 1863 his friends and family raised funds to fulfill his wish and built the Morehead Memorial Hall. As part of the 150th year celebration of the school, the Morehead Hall was renovated and dedicated by Bishop M. Azariah on 3 July 1998.

Early photo of St. Columba's School & Dedication plaque of the Morehead Memorial Hall Anderson was concerned about the need for education of girls. In 1845 he started a wing for girls in the Chengalpattu school with just five students. Anderson sent Mr. Paezold to take charge of the boys' school while Mrs. Paezold looked after the girls' school. After Mrs. Paezold, the girls' school was managed by Mrs. Metzger and then by Mrs. Zynool Abideen. This girls' school is now known as the Alison Cassie Girls' School.

A split in the Church of Scotland - In 1843 there was a major split in the Church of Scotland back in Scotland. Two groups emerged: the Free Church and The Established Church. This split is known as the Disruption. In Madras, John Anderson and his two fellow missionaries Rev. Robert Johnston and Rev. Braidwood chose to become members of the Free Church of Scotland. The Established Church of Scotland sent three new missionaries to Madras in 1845. They purchased new buildings in the Black Town and established a school. By 1851 there were 600 boys and girls in the school. By 1868 the Established Church was running about fifteen schools, including eight schools for girls in the city of Madras. An Indian congregation was also formed with servants of the Christian lay members of the Egmore Kirk. Starting from 1856 the Madras missionaries were joined by other missionaries of the Established Church such as Rev. Walker, Mr. David Sinclair, Rev. Henry Rice and Rev. Alexander Silver. They made significant contributions in the city of Madras and around Vellore, Arakkonam and Sholinghur areas. The two churches rejoined again only in 1929.

Another change in terminology occurred in 1900 when the Free Church in Scotland joined with the United Presbyterian Church resulting in the United Free Church of Scotland. Naturally the Free Church functioning in Madras and the Chengalpattu district then became the United Free Church of Scotland Mission (UFCSM). This is the reason why we had the well known press of the mission in Chengalpattu town by the name UFCSM Press.

Churches of the Free Church of Scotland - In the beginning there was only one congregation for the Free Church of Scotland. It was constituted in 1844 by Anderson and consisted of his missionaries, converts and friends with a total membership of only 17 communicants in Madras. They met in a hall in the school established by Anderson in Black Town (George Town). After Anderson's death in 1855, his first convert Rev. Rajahgopaul was inducted as the pastor of this church in 1858. He served for 29 years till his death in 1887. Several important events happened during this period. One was the building of the first church in 1862 (see picture). This was the parent church known as the 4

Free Church or Esplanade Church or Anderson Church. The small number of Christians connected with schools in Kanchipuram and Chengalpattu were members of this church under the pastoral care of Rev. Rajahgopaul. Thus when Rev. Adam Andrew arrived in 1879, he too was a member of the Anderson Church in George Town. After 39 years, in 1883, the Chengalpattu congregation was separated from the Anderson Church and constituted as a separate pastorate that included Christians worshipping in other towns in the District.

The old Anderson Church (first church of the Free Church of Scotland) dedicated in 1862, with the school on the right and the Evangelistic Hall on the left (arrow). Photo on the right is the CSI

Anderson Church as it appears today.

The present Anderson Church shown in the picture above is not the same as the one that was opened in 1862. In 1893 Rev. Miller helped to remodel the old Evangelistic Hall into the Anderson Church. In the place where the old church stood a hall was constructed and named as the Anderson Hall. When the Madras Christian College moved to Tambaram in 1937 a new large Anderson Hall was built at the center of the campus.

During this period a congregation was developed by Free Church medical missionaries at Royapuram. In 1874 a father and son were baptized at Royapuram. Five years later the Royapuram Church became independent of the Black Town Esplanade Church. Rev. William Miller was the first presbyter of this church. Thus, in 1879, when Rev. Andrew arrived there were only two churches of the Free Church of Scotland: Anderson Church and Royapuram Church (only in 1979 it was named as Ulaga Meetpar Alayam).

5 Rev. P. Rajahgopaul, first convert of Anderson and first Indian minister of the Anderson Church

After Rev. John Anderson - John Anderson died in March 1855. However his work was continued by a few other missionaries and his converts. They started a school at Thiruvallur in 1857. The Thiruvallur branch school was handed over to the Wesleyan Methodist Missionary Society in 1891 and it is now known as the CSI Goudie School. A girls' school was also started in Kanchipuram in 1845. It is remarkable that the Chengalpattu and Kanchipuram schools have been serving uninterruptedly ever since.

Anderson hoped that students studying in the schools started by him would seek baptism and become Christians. The first converts of the Chengalpattu school were V. Ponnambalam and E. Raghavaloo. 17-year-old Ponnambalam travelled all night on foot from Chengalpattu to Madras and after staying with Anderson for a month he was baptised by him on 13 May 1846. However, such conversions did not continue. During the first four decades after 1840 the small number of Christians in Chengalpattu were almost all working in the school. Raghavaloo's son Peter B. Ragaviah served 25 years as a much loved pastor at Anderson Church, and later Peter B. Ragaviah's son, Alexander Samuel Ragaviah, was a pastor at Chengalpattu St. Andrew's Church.

First resident missionary at Chengalpattu - Rev. Gottfried Jakob Metzger was the first resident missionary at Chengalpattu. Metzger was born in Lauffen in Germany and came in 1860 to work for the Basel Mission in the Kerala region, in Palakkad. The Free Church of Scotland appointed him as its agent in August 1864 to look after both the boys' and girls' school in Chengalpattu. Metzger was married in 1866 to Ms. Y. Dierlamm. Their marriage was solemnized by Rev. William Miller. The Metzgers had two boys and a girl. The Metzgers were proficient in Tamil and preached in the town and neighbouring villages and regularly visited homes to share the gospel. Looked after by Mrs. Metzger, the girls' school was then located in a wing of the boys' school. The Metzgers were assisted by two of Anderson's converts from the central institution, catechists P.N. Appavu and Zynool Abideen. The Metzgers had to leave in 1871 for health reasons, but they kept in touch with the Free Church and its work in Madras area.

Rev. Gottfried Jakob Metzger first resident missionary at Chengalpattu

After the Metzgers left there was no resident missionary for the next eight years. For a brief period of 3 months Rev. Alexander Todd was in charge of the schools. There was NO church then. During most of the eight years the two schools and the few Christians in the town were under the supervision of Rev. W. Stevenson, Secretary of the Mission, who was residing in Madras.

Rev. Adam Andrew - The second resident missionary of the Free Church sent to Chengalpattu was Rev. Adam Andrew. Before his arrival some evangelistic work was carried out in Chengalpattu area by missionaries living in Madras: Rev. Blyth, Rev. McCallum, and Rev. P. Rajahgopaul. The arrival of Adam Andrew and his wife Elizabeth in 1879 is a landmark in the history of Christianity and education and empowerment of the rural people in the Chengalpattu district. When they arrived there were only 23 Indian Christian communicants connected with the mission work in all of Chengalpattu, Madhuranthakam, Walajabad, Kanchipuram and Sriperumbudur areas. Soon after their arrival the Madhuranthakam Taluk mission work was handed over to the Wesleyan Methodist Mission.

Andrew concentrated his efforts on Chengalpattu, Walajabad, Sriperumbudur and Kanchipuram and villages around them. We may wonder why there were only about 23 communicants since the mission had been established about 40 years earlier by John Anderson. The reason had to do with the policy of the Free Church and the influence of a missionary like Rev. William Miller. He sought to concentrate resources on the education of caste students and not on evangelism at large, as pursued by missions such as the Wesleyan Methodists and the Reformed Church in Arcot. Miller’s policy did result in the development of a great institution, the Madras Christian College. However, it did not help in gathering a large Christian community. Later when Adam Andrew and his fellow missionaries established Christian communities in Dalit villages, the youth in these villages did not have access to education at the Madras Christian College established by the very same Free Church of Scotland. The college was still interested in educating the so-called upper caste students.

Concerned by the lack of church growth, the Free Church sent Rev. Andrew to Chengalpattu to focus on evangelism in the rural field. Rev. Adam Andrew was born in Dailly, Ayrshire, Scotland in 1851 and was educated at Alton, Galston Paisley Commercial Academy, Glasgow, and the United Free Church Theological College, Glasgow. He was married to Elizabeth Macfarlane. In addition to his work at Chengalpattu he was also in charge of the Free Church mission work in Madras for 11 months. He wrote many articles, reports and books including: “Indian Problems”, "New Movement", “The New Testaments in India”, “Prices of Food Grains and Wages in India”, “Elementary Education”, “Uneducated Children of the Presidency”, and “The Depressed Classes of the Presidency”. In recognition of his service to the society he received the Kaiser-i-Hind medal in 1903 and an additional bar to it in 1915. He retired on 31 December 1915. After returning to Scotland, he died in Edinburgh on 17th May 1921, aged 70. The Andrews did not have any children. Before leaving India Andrew surveyed 16 villages in the Chengalpattu District to gather detailed information on the condition of the people to find if they had made any significant progress in education or economic conditions. This report was submitted to the Government and is now preserved in the Tamil Nadu Government Archives, Egmore.

Rev. Adam Andrew (Free Church Missionary 1879-1915)

Before leaving India in December 1915 Andrew laid the foundation stone for the construction of terraced class rooms and a drawing hall for the high school on 18 February 1915. The same day Mrs. Andrew laid a foundation stone for a High School Hostel. The High School Hostel housed students till 1949 when the Hostel was converted into the Primary School. Rev. Sutherland reported that in 1923 there were 40 residents in the High School Hostel while there were 50 residents in the Boys' Boarding Home in the Church compound.

Tablets laid by Rev. Andrew and Mrs. Andrew in the year of their retirement

As mentioned above Andrew became the first pastor of the new pastorate at Chengalpattu in 1883. Even at this stage the number of Christians in the district was only about 30 and there were just two catechists to assist Andrew. In 1883 five widows in Scotland provided funds to support five more catechists. Encouraged by this, the Chengalpattu Christians came together and provided funds to support one more catechist. Thus in 1884, Andrew had 8 catechists for evangelistic work in the district. One of the catechists, Samuel Jaganathan, assisted Andrew and Elizabeth Andrew as they evangelized in the Kanchipuram area, resulting in the conversion of a family of three people in 1885.

Twelve years after the arrival of Andrew the number of Christians increased due to group movements that began in 1891 in villages. The Chengalpattu Church played a key role in the early years since this was the only pastorate to which hundreds of new Free Church converts were connected throughout the district.

Building a Church - Andrew and his colleagues were looking for a suitable site to build a church. By 1887 Andrew had obtained land for the mission compound; it measured nearly 13.16 acres in 1905. Land for building the church was obtained in 1889-90. In this place of about 2 acres the church, the pastor's house and later, the Boys' Boarding home were built. The Church was built at a cost of Rs.6000/- and dedicated on 30th September 1893. Over 500 persons including more than 300 Christians from the villages of the district celebrated that joyous event of dedication. Andrew recorded: "The Chengalpattu congregation has now been supplied with a substantial church. With the contribution of friends, and grants from home, there remains only Rs.145 of debt on the church which, we hope, will soon be removed. This small amount of debt is a matter for congratulation for the congregation and all interested in the Native Church." Andrew also noted that the: "Church can accommodate about 300 people. 60 feet long by 20 feet wide in the interior, and built of best materials, it presents an elegant appearance and is well fitted for the object for which it was erected". Andrew described 1893 as “a year of ingathering and of congregational extension never before experienced in the history of our mission.” No fewer than 246 adults and children in different villages of Chengalpattu District were baptized in that year. St. Andrew's was built as the largest parent church in the mission headquarters. It is unfortunate that this majestic and historical heritage church was demolished in 2012.

An early photograph of the St. Andrew's Church & drawing of the Church from the

1937 Centenary Booklet

The original stained glass window was donated by the Andrews. The bell that was to ring for generations was gifted by a Hindu friend, Mr. P. Venkatachalam, who also gave Rs.52.11 for erecting the bell! On the day of the dedication, Saturday 30th September, 1893, more than 300 Christians from the village congregations were "brought into contact with their Christian brethren in Chengalpattu, and made to realize that they were partakers in a common brotherhood and a common faith". During the previous two and a half years since the beginning of the first group movement in May 1891, Andrew had baptized 417 new persons in several villages. The distinguished educational missionary, Dr. William Miller of the Madras Christian College, was present at the dedication ceremony. While Andrew was the missionary, Rev. P. N. Appavu was the pastor of the church. The communicants then numbered 84; the baptised adherents, 447; and the catechumens, 425. Rs.555 was spent that 10

day for the dedication of the church. Local subscription and collections contributed Rs.286 towards this expense.

St. Andrew's is the 'mother church' of all other churches of the Free Church of Scotland throughout the Chengalpattu District. As days passed the St. Andrew's congregation was able to raise necessary funds for expansion of the Church. A balcony was built and dedicated by Bishop David Chellappa on 16 December 1961; a Parish Hall in 1979 and an extension to the Church in 1988. In the Centenary year (1993) the Church had 1,346 communicants and 1,874 baptised members and an annual giving of Rs.3,23,000. It is of interest to note that our neighbouring St. Joseph's Catholic church was established in 1896 with Fr. Arokianader as the first priest.

St. Andrew or Rev. Adam Andrew - The Chengalpattu Church is named after Andrew, one of Jesus' twelve disciples who was the brother of Peter. Andrew is revered as the patron Saint of Scotland. "St. Andrew's" is perhaps the most common name given to churches built by the Church of Scotland Mission in many countries of the world. The Chengalpattu church is not named after Rev. Adam Andrew who built the church! Two other saints popular in Scotland are St. Margaret and St. Columba. St. Columba was the Irish nobleman who was sent to Scotland as punishment for killing men in battle. He settled on Iona in 563 AD and established a monastic community. Members of this monastery took the Gospel to Scotland and parts of England and Europe. The Chengalpattu school is named after this saint. Many other schools founded by the Church of Scotland in India and other countries are also named after him.

Left: circa 500 year-old wooden carving of St. Andrew in the National Museum of Scotland. Right: Commonly used portrait of St. Columba

Schools and Boarding Homes - Andrew was a man of great organizational ability. His headquarters was established at the sprawling Mission Compound of 13.16 acres. A portion of the land for this compound was first obtained from A. Krishnasamy Chetty in February 1887 (from Hanumanthaputheri village) and another portion later in February 1905 (from Melamaiyur village). Andrew established schools in several distant villages and provided teachers and catechists. He travelled extensively and preached the gospel in Tamil. He and his wife looked after the boys' and girls' schools at Chengalpattu. On 15th April 1885 Andrew started another school for girls in Natham with 20 children. Children of the early converts in several villages were attending schools established in their villages. Soon there was a need for providing higher and better education for them. Rev. and Mrs. Andrew responded by making provisions for them. Thus, in 1893, a Boys' Boarding Home was opened in the Chengalpattu mission compound. It began with two caste boys who desired to become Christians. A Girls' Boarding Home was opened in 1895 in the town with fifteen girls brought from villages congregations. In 1898 this Girls' Boarding Home was moved to the mission compound and the Boys' Boarding Home was moved next to St. Andrew’s Church. A foundation stone for the Andrew Christian Hostel for High School students was laid by Mrs. Andrew in the High School compound on 18 February 1915. In 1923 there were 40 students in the hostel. When this hostel building housed the Primary School the hostel students were moved to the Boys' Boarding Home in the church compound.

Chengalpattu Boys' and Girls' Boarding Homes

We can now appreciate the importance of the pioneering work of the Andrews: boys and girls from Christian villages have been coming to Chengalpattu for more than 120 years to stay at the boarding homes and study in our schools. With education mostly up to 8th standard, many of the village boys and girls became teacher-catechists and found employment in the mission schools. Some became nurses, and a few found employment in government service. Missionaries envisioned boarding homes for girls and boys as an integral part of a major mission center. Life revolved around church, school, and boarding home. They ensured that a worshipping and learning community included people of all ages so that a variety of activities could be pursued. We need to build on the facilities inherited from missionaries and provide enhanced educational, vocational and boarding services suitable for this time and rapidly emerging needs.

In 1902 one of our most beloved of missionaries, Miss Alison Cassie, arrived in Chengalpattu. Andrew built and dedicated on 12th March a bungalow in the mission compound for the accommodation of Miss Cassie, Miss Sage and others who followed them. During World War I, the military took over the Northwick school buildings and the students 12

came to stay in the mission compound at Chengalpattu, in Rev. Mackenzie's house, and study at the Alison Cassie School. Mrs. Andrew also wanted to help the village girls learn lace making so that they could enjoy a skill and even make a small income by selling the lace. She started the lace making in 1902. The Bible Class in Rutherglen, Scotland gave money to build a special hall for this purpose. The hall was built in 1908 in the mission compound. The name 'Chingleput' is known in Scotland for its lace because all the Moderators of the Church of Scotland wore lace made by students in Rutherglen Hall.

1938. Lace making for Church of Scotland Moderator

From left: Nesamanie, Lily, Ruth, Mary Selvam. Opposite: A. Mercy

The Chengalpattu Lace School founded by Mrs. Elizabeth Andrew

The Chengalpattu Church compound and the adjoining Boarding Home was a lively place that witnessed the gathering of many people to celebrate jubilees, harvest festivals, meetings of the mission agents and missionaries and South India United Church (SIUC) members. The United Church Herald reported one such meeting held on 12 March 1910 to celebrate the SIUC anniversary at St. Andrew's Church. On that day, as often repeated on harvest festival days, people brought tables, dress, books, chicken, pigeons, cookies, flowers and banana bunches as offerings. On that day they were auctioned for Rs.185. St. Andrew's celebrated the 23rd annual day and a harvest festival on 18 February 1911. The Herald reported that there were 329 Christians on the roll in St. Andrew's and an additional 150 who were worshipping at Gundur, Vallam, Kunnavakkam, Nedunkundram and other attached congregations. All these congregations were directly established by the St. Andrew's Church. Rev. D.G.M. Leith of the Wesleyan Methodist Mission and Rev. Vedhanayagam preached.

As the St. Andrew's Church expanded its mission activities there was a need to provide accommodation for mission workers. This was the reason for building a set of cottages opposite the church and Boys' Boarding home complex.

Do not Drink - Like today in India, and like in Scotland now and in those days, alcoholism was a major problem in the society. In 1909 the "Catch My Pal" temperance movement was started in Armagh in Northern Ireland. Its members were dedicated to getting their friends off the habit of drinking alcohol. Branches soon spread to Scotland and England. Rev. Adam Andrew suggested to the members gathered for the annual day in March 1910 at Chengalpattu that they should start such a movement (called: ). Andrew hoped that such a movement would help de-addict people and also offer an opportunity to talk about Jesus to their non-Christian friends.

Golden Jubilee (50th year) Celebration - 18th November 1939

Pastors - As mentioned earlier the Chengalpattu congregation was disjoined from the Esplanade Anderson Church congregation in 1883. Adam Andrew was the first pastor of the Chengalpattu congregation, serving for five years from 1883 to 1888. After 1888 missionaries were not the pastors except for times of vacancies: in the 1920's when Rev. W. Sutherland was in-charge and between 1955-58 when Rev. Shaw was in-charge, assisted by the catechist Arulpragasam. From 1888 onward the Chengalpattu Church had Indian pastors. Andrew concentrated his efforts on mission work in the extended field, providing pastoral care and education to the new Christians in these villages. Rev. P.N. Appavu was the first Indian pastor between 1888 and 1904. Appavu's relative Ruth Phanuel was a Bible woman in Chengalpattu. P. N. Appavu was originally from Puthur village in Tiruppatur Taluk which

Dedication of the Balcony on 16 December 1961. Bishop David Chellappa is seated in the middle. Mrs. Mary and Rev. Shaw are seen to his left. was then a part of Salem District. Appavu studied at John Anderson's school in George Town and was baptized there on 4 March 1855 by Rev. P. Rajahgopaul. Appavu was a catechist of the mission for 30 years from 1858 to 1888. After his ordination in 1888 he served 15 years as a pastor.

Rev. M. L. Jivaratnam, who was a close associate of Adam Andrew, became the pastor in 1904 when Rev. Appavu retired. Jivaratnam was baptised as a Christian at Chengalpattu in 1889. Appavu was an uncle of Jivaratnam. Since then a succession of able Indian pastors, catechists, pastorate committee members and devoted lay people have nurtured the St. Andrew's Church as a place where a vibrant congregation is singing, praising and worshipping.

At the time Appavu was appointed as pastor in 1888, the Chengalpattu church was part of the Free Church of Scotland. In 1900 a merger formed the United Free Church of Scotland. Madras and its surrounding areas hosted a number of missions and churches located in close proximity to each other. Meeting together and enjoying some level of cooperation was the norm. The gradual move toward unity of the missions as well as toward independence of the nation reflected world trends. Two missions that shared a Presbyterian administrative structure were the Arcot Mission of the Reformed Church in America, and the United Free Church of Scotland Madras Mission. They joined together as native congregations in 1901-1902 in a new united body called the South Indian United Church. It was an important initial step towards the SIUC that took shape in 1908.

When Appavu retired in 1904 it was the Presbytery of Madras that met at Chengalpattu to confirm Rev. M. L. Jivaratnam as the new pastor. Rev. Jivaratnam was then serving as pastor at Melrosapuram. The service was held on Friday 21st October 1904 by 16

members of the Presbytery in the presence of the congregation. Rev. Dr. L. R. Scudder of the Arcot Mission was elected as the Moderator in the absence of Rev. T. K. Itty of Royapuram Church. After Jivaratnam was solemnly accepted as pastor, Dr. Scudder addressed the newly inducted pastor from Gal: 4.19; Rev. Meshach Peter addressed the gathering from Phil 4.1.

The Chengalpattu congregation has been a part of the worldwide body of Christ for totally 174 years (up to 2018) since the first native Free Church Congregation was constituted by John Anderson in 1844. It is interesting to note that the affiliations included several denominations over these years as seen in the table below.

History of Affiliation of Chengalpattu Church 1844 - 1900 56 years Free Church of Scotland 1900 - 1902 2 years United Free Church of Scotland 1902 - 1947 45 years South Indian United Church 1902-1908 South India United Church 1908-1947 1947 - 2018 71 years Church of South India, Diocese of Madras

South India United Church 1908-1947

List of Pastors of Chengalpattu Church - There is a board in St. Andrew's Church that lists the names of the pastors and their years of service. An updated, expanded table can be found below. Although the names and dates have been carefully researched in original sources, a few details still need to be ascertained. The period of service of Rev. D. Jesudoss needs further confirmation. The pastor who was in-charge during 1946 is unknown in the records researched. Revs. Krishniah, William Sutherland and E. O. Shaw were not appointed as pastors; they were in charge during times when regular pastors were not available or appointed by the Presbytery.

Pastors of St. Andrew’s Church, Chengalpattu (Including missionaries, Hon. and Assistant Presbyters and Catechist in-charge)

Pastors Dates Notes Rev. John Anderson 1844-1855 Small number of Christians in the district cared for by Anderson in Madras since the inauguration of the Free Church Congregation in 1844 Rev. P. Rajahgopaul 1858-1882 Chengalpattu district Christians were members of Anderson Church, Madras Rev. Adam Andrew 1883 - 1888 Andrew constituted a separate congregation at Chengalpattu in 1883. Missionary, 1879-1915 Rev. P. N. Appavu 1888 - 1904 First Indian Pastor when Church became a fully Indian church in 1888. Retired 1904 Rev. M. L. Jivaratnam 1904 - 1915 Asst. Missionary to Rev. W. Sutherland from 1915 Rev. A. Krishniah, In-Charge 1915 - 1916 Was Pastor at Melrosapuram Rev. S. Daniel 1916 - 1924 Ordained 23 July 1916 at Chengalpattu Rev. William Sutherland, In-charge 1925 - Free Church of Scotland missionary, 1905-1945. Jivaratnam assisted Rev. D. Jesudoss - 1929 Served in Vellore High School before ordination; died April 1929 Rev. Silas Doraiswamy 1929 - 1940 Ordained at Chengalpattu in 1929 Rev. Alexander Samuel Raghaviah 1941 - 1945 Son of P. B. Raghaviah, Pastor of Anderson Church, 1895-1920 1946 Rev. E. R. Isaac was Circle Chairman Rev. C. Samuel 1947 - 1952 Rev. J. Selvaraj 1952 - 1955 Rev E. O. Shaw, In-charge 1955 - 1957 Catechist J. Arulpragasam assisted Shaw, and resided at Parsonage, 1957-58 Rev. C. S. Vethakan 1958 - 1964 Pastor at Kanchipuram 1950 - 1957 Rev. S. Gnanasundaramani 1964 - 1969 Son-in-law of Silas Doraiswamy Rev. A. David Purushothaman 1969 - 1974 Rev. John Wilson, Hon. Presbyter 1972 - 1976 HM of St Columba’s HSS 1966-81 Rev. A. John Victor 1974 - 1979 Rev. D. Gabriel 1979 - 1981 Rev. V.S. Vijayakumar 1981 -1982 Rev. Samuel Madavaraj 1982 - 1986

Rev. M. Samuel Jeyaraj, Assoc. Pastor 1984 - 1985 Rev. S. James Christian 1986 - 1991 Rev. D. Rajasekaran 1991 - 1992 Rev. Asir Ebenezer, Pastoral Asst. 1991 - 1992 At Vallam Sub-pastorate in 1992-93 Rev. S. John Wesley 1992 - 1996 Celebrated St. Andrew's Centenary in 1993 Pastors who served after the 1993 Centenary Rev. R. John Giridharan 1996 - 2001

Rev. P. Selvam, Pastoral Assist. 2000 - 2001 Probationer 1999-2000; Ordained at Chengalpattu

Rev. J. Daniel Paulraj 2001 - 2006

Rev. A. Solomon Victor Rajasekaran 2006 - 2010

Rev. Johnson Jebakumar 2010 - 2015

Rev. S. Devairakkam 2015 -

Evangelists who served in the Chengalpattu area Rev. M. Iswariah, Evangelist 1909 - 1914 Ordained 28.3.1909 at Chengalpatttu Asst. Missionary to Adam Andrew d. 16.11.1914 Jesudason E.M., Evangelist 1921 - 1924

Note: Ordained evangelists, ministers and missionaries from other areas such as Kanchipuram, Sriperumbudur, Royapuram and Madras, as well as visitors from abroad, sometimes baptized people at Chengalpattu.

Photographs of Pastors- A set of photographs of twenty pastors who served between 1883 and 1993 is included in this article. Some of them, as noted in the list, were temporarily in charge of the pastorate. Only a poor quality image of Rev. Appavu, the first Indian pastor of the church is available. We have not been able to obtain photos of Jesudoss, A.S. Ragaviah and Selvaraj. More photographs should be obtained to complete this photo gallery. The church should consider maintaining a photo album of all pastors and missionaries who served in Chengalpattu town and throughout the District.

Rev. P. N. Appavu, First Indian Pastor of St. Andrew's St. Andrew's 19

Reverends who served as Pastors up to the Centenary Year 1893 - 1993 Row 1 (Top). Adam Andrew, M. L. Jivaratnam, A. Krishniah, William Sutherland, Silas Doraisamy Row 2. C. Samuel, E. O. Shaw, C. S. Vethakan, S. Gnanasundaramani, A. David Purushothaman Row 3. John Wilson, A. John Victor, D. Gabriel, V. S. Vijayakumar, Samuel Madavaraj Row 4. M. Samuel Jeyaraj, S. James Christian, D. Rajasekaran, Asir Ebenezer, Rev. S. John Wesley

Catechist Arulpragasam and Bishop Subramanian - Arulpragasam was perhaps the most familiar and much loved evangelist associated with St. Andrew's Church. After serving as Headmaster of Free Church school at Natham he obtained a diploma in theology at Pasumalai. He was the first Indian missionary to serve at Thirumani Leprosy settlement. He used a bullock-cart to travel and provide pastoral care to patients. As an evangelist in and around Chengalpattu he visited more than 40 villages. He was a warden of the Boys' Boarding Home, and resided at the parsonage to assist missionary Rev. E. O. Shaw who was in-charge of the church between 1955-1957. During this period Catechist Arulpragasam conducted services and provided pastoral care. People enjoyed listening to his sermons and admired his knowledge of the Bible, simple life style and concern for the poor and sick. He was a well known name in every household in Chengalpattu and distant villages. He also had many Hindu and Muslim friends with whom he shared the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.

Catechist J. Arulpragasam and Bishop Joseph Samuel

We should remember Bishop S. Joseph Samuel, who was the first to become a bishop from Chengalpattu area. Bishop Samuel is often remembered by the more familiar name, Bishop Subramanian. He was a student of St. Columba's School. He was consecrated as a bishop of Coimbatore Diocese in 1958. After retirement he settled in Thirukalukundram.

Missionaries of Chengalpattu Area - About 50 missionaries have been associated with the congregation and institutions of Chengalpattu. Some such as John Anderson came on visits while others like Adam Andrew and Alison Cassie stayed at Chengalpattu throughout their period of service. Andrew stayed in Chengalpattu but he was also looking after congregations throughout the Chengalpattu District and was connected with institutions such as the Northwick school in Royapuram. Thus, we should not make any narrow listing of missionaries for Chengalpattu; the Church of Scotland Mission sent their missionaries to work wherever they were needed in Madras and Chengalpattu District. There were also missionaries at Rainy Hospital and Northwick School, and some of them came to the Chengalpattu area. Some who were serving in Rainy Hospital established by the Free Church in Royapuram came to Chengalpattu to serve in the Lady Willingdon settlement of leprosy patients. Chengalpattu, Kanchipuram, Sriperumbudur, and Walajabad and other towns and 21

villages were all one extended field of service for all the missionaries. There were also several missionaries of the Established Church of Scotland who are not included in this list. In 1929 the Free and Established Churches reunited, and the missionaries who came to Chengalpattu after that, for example Rev. Silver and Rev. Coombes, are included here.

A table of Missionaries who served in Chengalpattu District is presented below. This table is still incomplete since the periods of service of all missionaries are not available. A few missionaries who served here may not have been included for lack of reliable information. This list does not include missionaries who served full time at Madras Christian College.

Missionaries who served in Chengalpattu District

Names Year* Notes Free Church of Scotland Rev. John Anderson 1837 Anderson first visited Chengalpattu in 1841. (died in Rev. Robert Johnston 1839 1855 in Madras). The three pioneers were not resident Rev. John Braidwood 1841 missionaries in Chengalpattu. Rev. G. J. Metzger; Y. Dierlamm 1864 First Resident missionary, married 1865. 1864-1871 Rev. William Stevenson 1864 Secretary, FCoS Mission visited for 8 years, 1871-1879 (years of service 1864-1884) Rev. Alexander Todd 1876 Resident for 3 months in 1878 (1876-1879) Rev. Adam Andrew; Elizabeth 1879 Chengalpattu, Retired 1915 Dr. William Walker 1889 Kanchipuram / Walajabad (1889-1902) Dr. Matilda Macphail 1888 Founder of Rainy Hospital, Royapuram Rev. J. Colville Peattie 1890 In charge of Chengalpattu in 1891 when Andrew was on furlough (1884-1894) Rev. James H. Maclean 1895 Sriperumbudur / Kanchipuram (1895-1939) Ms. Ella Thallon Hogg 1897 Chengalpattu (married Maclean in 1909) (1897-1939) Ms. Margaret W. H. McNeil (Nurse) 1899 Rainy Hospital, Royapuram Free Church of Scotland became United Free Church of Scotland 1900 Dr. G. W. Hardie 1901 Established Kanchipuram Hospital in 1907. (1901-1926) Ms. Alison M. Cassie 1902 Chengalpattu (1902-1936) Rev. William S. Sutherland 1905 Sriperumbudur / Chengalpattu. Married Elsie Ruth South India United Church (SIUC) 1908 Rev. Alexander Silver; Mary 1910 Arakkonam / Chengalpattu Ms. Helen MacGregor 1918 Kanchipuram Ms. Helena W. Sutherland (Nurse) 1919 Chengalpattu / Rainy Ms. Elizabeth B. Miller 1920 Kanchipuram / Sriperumbudur Ms. Effie W. Young 1923 Kanchipuram / Chengalpattu Rev. Joseph G. Haldane; Mrs. Haldane 1924 Chengalpattu left March 1934 Dr. R. S. Donaldson 1924 Lady Willingdon Leper Settlement (LWLS) Ms. M. L. N. Moir (Nurse) -- LWLS, Left 1929 Ms. Margaret D. Salmond (Nurse) 1924 LWLS Ms. Nancy Duncan 1927 Kanchipuram (Temporary) Dr. David F. Baxter 1928 LWLS Reunion of United Free Church and Established Church of Scotland 1929 Ms. Mary Campbell 1929 LWLS Ms. F. L. Davidson (Nurse) 1929 LWLS Ms. Grace N. Aitken - Chengalpattu, Left 1929 Ms. Dorothy E. Watson 1930 Kanchipuram / Rainy Rev. Alexander S. Renton 1930 Chengalpattu Rev. Victor Willam Coombes; Lily 1931 Chengalpattu, Australian Presbyterian Mission Rev. Ellis Owen Shaw; Mary 1934 Arakkonam / Chengalpattu / Tambaram (1934-1971) E. E. Legh, C. I. E.# 1934 Visiting from Royapuram, before and after 1934 Rev. Lesslie Newbigin; Helen 1936 (1936-1974) Rev. R. P. Mackenzie 1940s Chengalpattu / Sriperumbudur / Kanchipuram Ms. J. M. Anderson 1950s Chengalpattu CSI (Union of SIUC + Wesleyan Methodists + Anglicans in 1947) Ms. Gertrude Hughes 1955 Chengalpattu (1955-1980) Robert L. Manson; Noreen 1955 Ordained in Madras in 1956 Rev. Douglas 1961 Melrosapuram * Year refers to either date of appointment or arrival. # Companion, Order of the Indian Empire

How Andrew spread the Good News - Rev. Adam Andrew and the St. Andrew's Church played a key role in shaping the Christian character of the Chengalpattu district. Most of the people now worshipping at St. Andrew's or other Protestant churches throughout the district entered the Christian fold as part of a remarkable group movement of conversion that occurred during Andrew's time. Soon after his arrival in 1879 Andrew took the gospel to the villages throughout the extensive Chengalpattu district. He personally trained several catechists who could then preach the gospel in the villages. In 1884 over 2,000 villages were visited by the catechists, and Andrew himself made eight tours to the adjoining villages. In 1888 there were 7 evangelists, one licensed preacher and some Bible women and Zenana workers (who visited girls and women in their homes to educate them). In that year these workers made 5,340 addresses to an estimated 177,000 persons. 1,542 visits were made to Hindu houses and 25,000 tracts and handbills and 1,669 Bibles and Bible portions were sold. Such evangelistic work was repeated every year.

Andrew established schools as early as 1881 in Guduvancheri, Singaperumal Koil, Walajabad, Rajampettai and Muthialpet. Every year Andrew was steadily establishing new schools in remote villages and by 1893 there were 22 schools with 656 children studying. Andrew's village ministry was ably supported by the devoted team of preachers and catechists he trained. In 1884 A.T. Krishniah was stationed at Guduvancheri; Luke Valukannu at Singaperumalkoil; Joseph Simeon at Thirupporur; John David at Thirukkalukundram; G. Nallathambi at Sriperumbudur and others at Kanchipuram, Chengalpattu, Walajabad, Nellore, and Thiruvallur. This was a period of sowing, and it took about ten years before those who listened to the Good News of Jesus responded in small groups. Several villages wanted Andrew to send teachers and catechists to run schools and teach them about Christianity. Andrew responded by sending more catechists or teacher- catechists. Some of these evangelists include: S. Arumugam Naidu at Narasamangalam, P. S Mathurandram and Bartholomew at Vedal, J. Christian at Andreyapuram, S. M. Lazarus Thandalam, Y. Vedhanayagam at Tattanur, Moses David at Senkunram (Melrosapuram), J. Narayana Chetty at Echur, G. Arumainayagam at Puthpedu, D. Vedakkan at Araneri, S. V. Packianathan at Ariyambakkam, S.A. Samraju Kuttaranpakkam, P. Paranjothi at Kottivakkam, E. David at Athur and D. Arunachalla Chetty, Tirumanikuppam.

First Baptisms at Chengalpattu - During the first 10 years of Andrew's mission only a small number of non-Christians were baptised. Even though the Chengalpattu congregation became a separate pastorate in 1883 Andrew had already started baptizing some Christians three years before that. The first person Andrew baptised at Chengalpattu on 26th May 1880 was a ten month old child, Harold, son of John and Margaret Bonjour. During the first ten years 59 people were baptised. 36 of these were baptisms of children of Christian parents. Of the 23 converts baptised at Chengalpattu town during this period, 14 were Sudras, 8 were Dalits and one was a Brahmin. The Brahmin convert, 19 year old Alexander Mahadevan Ayyar, was from Jaffna. The Sudra converts were from Chetty, Naidu and Achari castes. Many of the Chetty conversions at Chengalpattu could be traced back to the Puthur village in Salem district. It was from here that P.N. Appavu went to Anderson’s school in Madras and was baptised there on 4th March 1855. Zynool Abideen was a Muslim convert who was baptised along with Appavu and five others on the same day. Zynool served in the mission for more than thirty years. He and his wife Barbara settled at Dhimmavaram, near Chengalpattu, along the banks of river Palar to serve the mission. Their 4-month-old son Samuel Zynool Abideen was baptised at Chengalpattu by Adam Andrew on 16th January 1885. On 1st March 1885 a young Dalit woman from Patalam was baptised by Andrew as Rachel Ellammal at Chengalpattu. She married a teacher catechist E. David stationed at Athur. Their four children were baptised by Rev. Appavu in January 1890 at Chengalpattu. 24

A Bible woman teaching in front of Thathanur Church

Beginning of the Group Movements - The persistent hard work of Andrew and his colleagues began to yield unexpected results in 1891. In the region of Sriperumbudur, leading men from some of the villages desired to become Christians. Mari from the village of Narasamangalam took the bold decision and was the first to ask for baptism along with his family members and relatives in the village. On 27 May 1891 Mari, aged 62, became Paul Maurry along with his young wife Bakkiam (25) and children David (8), Jacob (6) and Mary (2) and another member of the family (Hannah, 45). The same day two other families, those of Samuel Annamaly and Luke Veeran, were baptised at Narasamangalam. Rev. J. Colville Peattie, Free Church of Scotland missionary, baptised these converts at Narasamangalam since Rev. and Mrs. Andrew were away on furlough that year. This small group movement at Narasamangalam was the beginning of many such movements that followed. Descendants of these early converts of Narasamangalam have long been residents of Chengalpattu and members of the St. Andrew's Church. One of them, Mr. K. P. Devadas, was a distinguished teacher at St. Columba's School. The group movement rapidly spread to neighbouring and several distant villages in the district. Along with those baptised many others were admitted as catechumens (or purasabaiyars) for further instruction before baptism.

Christian Villages connected with Chengalpattu - From 1883 until 1896, for 13 years, there was only one pastorate in Chengalpattu. It can be seen in the list below that during this period, starting from 1891, some 14 villages and Chengalpattu town each had more than 10 baptised Christians. In 1896 all of them were members of the Chengalpattu pastorate under the pastoral care of Rev. Appavu. Their baptisms were recorded in the register kept at Chengalpattu. In addition to these places there were about 17 places that had some Christian converts. These included the following places: Thenneri, Gunduperumbedu, Thachur, Papankuli, Kanchipuram, Kutharambakkam, Muthialpet, Thirukkalukunram, Patalam, Rajampet, Iluppappattu, Arumbakkam, Thirupporur, Sriperumbudur. 25

Group Conversions of more than ten persons in Chengalpattu District (1891-1898)

Year Village Number Baptised 1891 Narasamangalam 18 " Araneri 15 " Thathanur 24 1892 Walajabad 47 " Thathanur 37 " Pudhupedu 35 " Vedal 48 " Thandalam 17 " Andreyapuram 33 1893 Kutharambakkam 24 " Ariyambakkam 32 " Echur 17 1894 Andreyapuram 21 " Melrosapuram 55 1895 Athur 19 1896 Kayar 16 1897 Vallam 10 " Overtounpettai 19 1898 Kayar 15 " Melamaiyur 10

Vedal village congregation in front of the church

Establishment of new Pastorates - The number of Christians of the Chengalpattu congregation rose from 23 in 1879 to 30 in 1883 to 74 in 1886 and 245 in 1891; it further increased to 1,143 in 1893 and 1,408 in 1895. Andrew decided to establish new pastorates in the Chengalpattu District. First, in 1896, Kanchipuram became a separate pastorate under the

care of Rev. James H. Maclean by disjoining 343 Christians from the Chengalpattu congregation. Kanchipuram itself did not have many Christians, but several villages around Kanchipuram with Christians converts became part of this new pastorate. Further separations occurred in 1898. Sriperumbudur became a separate pastorate with 466 members. Melrosapuram too became a separate pastorate in the same year with 276 Christians. In course of time Thirukalukundram, Andreyapuram, Thirupporur and other places became separate pastorates. Unfortunately the baptism, membership, marriage and other registers of these pastorates have all been lost. These would have provided valuable information on the establishment of congregations and names of families and people who became Christians.

The Chengalpattu Pastorate - St. Andrew's became a separate self-supporting, self-governing and self-propagating organization from 1901. In 1907 it decided to carry out its own mission work and support smaller congregations by constructing church and school buildings, supporting Bible women and in some places running night schools. The Church took over the responsibility for several churches in the neighbourhood, such as the Vallam congregation, in 1903. In 1897 Andrew had baptised 11 people at Vallam: Solomon and Annammal with 3 children; Martha with 4 children; and a 12-year-old Andrew William, son of C. G. Siromony and Sundaram. St. Andrew's also built a Church in Gundur in 1911. As mentioned above, four children of Christian parents E. David and Rachel Ellammal from Athur were baptised in 1890 by Rev. P. N. Appavu at Chengalpattu. Five years later, in 1895 several families in Athur sought baptism and Andrew baptised a total of 19 persons on 14th May that year at Athur. Melamaiyur became a Free Church Christian village when on 18 December 1898 Andrew baptised John and Kirubai along with their 4 children, as well as Chinniah and Annal and their 2 children.

Besides Vallam, Athur and Melamaiyur, over a period St. Andrew's has also been the parent Church of the congregations at Ichankaranai, Kamaraj Nagar, Kannapet, Pattaraivakkam, Ammanambakkam, Nedunkundram, Kunnavakkam, Meleripakkam, Mission Compound, N.G.O. Nagar, Palur, Pazhaveli, Paranur and V.O.C. Nagar. Kannapet was a small village of about three families and ten people, all of whom became Christians in 1908. Revs. Sutherland, Jivaratnam, S. Doraiswamy, C. Samuel and E. O. Shaw baptised people in these villages. About six people in Pattaraivakkam also became Christians. The Nedunkundram congregation near Guduvanchery was supported by raising a special Birthday Fund at Chengalpattu. Nedunkundram church was later handed over to the Wesleyan Methodist Mission. In nearby Ammanambakkam, supported by St. Andrew's Chengalpattu congregation, Rev. Sutherland first baptised 117 people in 1917. Mr. G. S. Henry from Nayakkan Kuppam near Walajabad area was a catechist in Ammanambakkam. His son, born in that village in 1925, was Rev. H. S. Thanaraj who later became Assistant Bishop of Madras Diocese.

The Lady Willingdon Leprosy Sanatorium was associated with the Chengalpattu congregation when the government established it in 1924 and handed over its management to the United Free Church of Scotland Mission. The table below gives information about the congregations and Christian population of the Chengalpattu Pastorate in 1990, i.e. three years before we celebrated the centenary:

April 1990 - Congregations and Christians of Chengalpattu Pastorate Name of the Congregation # of Families Baptised Christians 1 St. Andrew's, Chengalpattu 354 2,129 2 St. Peter's, Mission Compound 27 232 3 St. John's, Gundur 65 373 4 St. Andrew's, Vallam 73 401 5 Meleripakkam 8 62 6 Melamaiyur 58 164 7 St. Paul's, NGGO Nagar 16 83 8 Kamaraj Nagar 12 51 9 Kunnavakkam 10 34 10 VOC Nagar 10 41 11 Pazhaveli 36 166 12 Sunder Nagar 10 39 13 Athur & Palur 12 49 14 Ichankaranai 7 26 15 CLT & RI - - 16 Paranur - - Total 698 3,875

The above table shows that 16 different worshipping communities were included under the Chengalpattu Pastorate in 1990. During the next 10-20 years several changes took place as new pastorates were created, namely Vallam, Gundur and Melamaiyur. The congregations listed above now belong to one of these three pastorates, as follows: Vallam Pastorate - Vallam, NGGO Nagar, Kamaraj Nagar, Kunnavakkam, Meleripakkam, VOC Nagar, Ichankaranai and Sunder Nagar. Sunder Nagar appears to be the same as Kannapettai. Nearby Selvi Nagar has a Christian presence and is now in the Vallam pastorate. A recent congregation, Ammanambakkam, is also now part of the Vallam Pastorate; Melamaiyur Pastorate - Melamaiyur, CLT & RI Chapel); Gundur Pastorate - St. Peter's, Mission Compound, and St. John's, Gundur. Also, some of the congregations once transferred from Uthiramerur Pastorate and a few others are now part of the Gundur Pastorate. These include Vichur, Kavithandalam, Karumbakkam and Kaliyapettai.

Thus, only Pazhaveli (St. Peter's), Athur (Bishop Lesslie Newbigin) and Paranur congregations are now part of the Chengalpattu St. Andrew's Pastorate. Paranur is a Leprosy Rehabilitation Center where worship services are shared by the CSI and the Catholic Church in the latter's worship place. In recent time St. Andrew's has established new churches and mission fields. Churches include the Good Shepherd Church at Maiyur, St. Luke's at Vadapathi, St. Mathew's at Ambedkar Nagar, Rev. E. O. Shaw Memorial Church at Pazhaveli Irular settlement, Pulipakkam Church (named after Bishop Masilamani Azariah in 2019) and Rev. Adam Andrew Chapel at Karimedu. The current mission fields are at: Padavettamman, Sasthri Nahar, Anumanthaputheri, Patchaiyamman Koil (two stations), Athur Thenpathy, Athur Balu Nahar, Athur Vasapathy, Athur Anna Nagar, Palur, Palur-Melacheri, Ullavur, Ullavur-Varadhapuram and Thimmavaram.

Persecution of the Early Christians in villages - The early Dalit Christians in the villages had to endure persecution. The converts were denied labour in the fields of the land owners, thus cutting off their means of livelihood. Those who had kept them oppressed and in

bondage now ousted the Christians from the lands they had cultivated for a long time as sub- tenants. Lawsuits were brought by the mirasidars to recover money supposedly due but not actually lent; false criminal charges were foisted; water was cut off from their rice fields; the thatched school buildings were set on fire; and people were beaten up while sleeping in their huts. The mirasidars threatened to evict them from their homes in the cheris claiming that the land belonged to them. Sites or houses for catechists were refused. Most early Christians stood firm and endured such persecution, and a few migrated to other villages.

The descendants of these early persecuted Christians are now the village Christians of the CSI Diocese of Madras. It must be remembered that they all had small mud and thatched and later simple brick and lime churches. But the Church they all looked up to as their parent church was the St. Andrew's at Chengalpattu built by Rev. Adam Andrew in 1893. For Christians in the more than 50 villages around Chengalpattu, St. Andrew's and Rev. Andrew all had a special revered place in their hearts.

Andrew Responds - Rev. William Goudie, a Wesleyan Methodist missionary, was working at this time in the Chengalpattu District with his headquarters at Ikkadu. The present Thiruvallur District was then part of the larger Chengalpattu District. Rev. Johannes Kabis was ministering to Dalit Christians at Pandur, near Thiruvallur. He was a missionary of the German Leipzig Evangelical Lutheran Mission (now part of the TELC). Kabis was also at the Lutheran Church in Chengalpattu for a short period. Andrew, Goudie and Kabis were already fully aware of the plight of the Dalits in villages. They were pioneers who took up the cause of the depressed class people. They were particularly concerned that the people placed at the bottom of the society had no land of their own and were totally dependent on the land owners for their minimal requirements for survival. Andrew was a pioneer in the struggle for the rights of the depressed class to own land and to obtain education.

When on furlough in 1890, Andrew brought the matter to the notice of the Under Secretary of State for India and impressed upon a member of Parliament to raise the issue in the British Parliament. Mr. Tremenheere, Collector of the Chengalpattu District, also corroborated the missionaries’ findings on the disabilities and landlessness of the Dalits. The Madras Government finally responded by issuing two government orders, one dealing with land (G.O. 1010-1010A, Sept. 1892) and the other on education (G.O. 68, Feb. 1893). These orders provided for land and educational support to the Dalits, both Christian as well as non- Christian Dalits. Many such assigned pieces of land later came to be known as Panchami land. The missionaries applied to the government to get such lands assigned to them to settle Dalit Christians. For example, the land that Andrew obtained for the Melrosapuram settlement is Panchami land. Andrew and fellow missionaries also helped defend the innocent villagers in false court cases brought by the land owners. Andrew also held several public offices and he was frequently consulted by the government on matters pertaining to education, agriculture and uplift of outcastes. The prestigious Kaiser-i-Hind medal was awarded to Andrew for his outstanding 35 years of public service to the poor people and society at large.

As the group movement spread to many villages and the suffering of the new Christians increased, Andrew responded by resettling some of the Christians into a new locality. Thus was born the first exclusively Christian village of Andreyapuram. In 1892 about 60 people who became Christians in Perunthandalam were settled on a piece of land at Konerikuppam. The settlers named their village as Andreyapuram. In 1893 a number of newly converted Christian families were settled on a site of 72 acres. The villagers named 29

this site Melrosapuram in appreciation of Mrs. Melrose who supported the mission work in the district. (Melrose was not a missionary). Similarly thirteen acres of land were purchased with money given by Mr. Overtoun and yet another Christian settlement of converts, again from Perunthandalam, was established in 1896 as Overtounpettai. This is where our Bishop Azariah was born, as we see below. The large number of people who became Christians at Vallam in 1897 stayed on in the same village along with their non-Christian relatives.

The Melrosapuram Settlement - Of the three early settlements established by Adam Andrew, i.e. Andreyapuram, Melrosapuram and Overtounpettai, Melrosapuram stands out for the size, kind of work carried on, contribution to the Christian community and society at large, and its continuing witness as a center of Christian mission. Andrew made Melrosapuram a remarkable place of worship, education and training in horticulture and agriculture. Andrew was an expert in irrigation and water management. At Melrosapuram he carried out pioneering experiments in well irrigation. The Government donated an oil engine and a pump as well as a large 16-foot Canadian wind engine and pump set. Andrew kept careful records of water levels and water requirements of various crops. Because of his recommendations, five years later there were more than 200 oil engines and pumps in use in the Madras Presidency.

Melrosapuram was a thriving farm colony and a model for other such colonies elsewhere in India. A church, a school with boarding facilities, and training in horticulture/agriculture made this an important center for students from many other villages to come for training. It was a rich field of rice, ragi, bananas, chillies, sugarcane, coconut, jackfruit, papaya, many varieties of mangoes, orange and other fruits and vegetables, all

cultivated by the school boys. Andrew helped them learn making ropes from banana fibers, mat and cloth weaving, dyeing, pottery, poultry and bee keeping and other trades. It has been said that anyone who visited Melrosapuram rejoiced and never forgot the appearance of the settlement, the cleanliness of the place and the well-stocked gardens, and the happy and intelligent faces of the people. Many visitors came to Melrosapuram to learn scientific farming and irrigation techniques to establish farms elsewhere: the Basel Mission in Karnataka, Friends’ Mission in Central Provinces and Abraham Pandithar from Thanjavur.

At Overtounpettai, Andrew established another Christian settlement for a second group of people from Perunthandalam. Andrew put to great use his expertise in agriculture and irrigation by providing land, wells, and a windmill for the new settlers. Andrew excavated an irrigation tank in the typical ancient South Indian style, an eri, that is still functioning after more than 100 years.

Andrew Remembered - Andrew's name is remembered today by the small settlement named by the first Christians as Andrewpuram (Andreyapuram). In 1940 a hall was erected at the school in Melrosapuram in memory of Andrew: the Andrew Memorial Hall. Thanks to the foresight of Mr. Arthur Devadawson of Ford India, this central beautiful building in the school was expertly restored in 2017 and continues to provide classrooms for students.

Clockwise, top: Stone laid by Mrs. Andrew for Melrosapuram Church, Andrew Memorial Hall built in 1940; Restored in 2017 31

From Andrew to Azariah: An enduring Legacy - On 31 December 1897, Rev. Andrew baptised 35-year-old Samuel and his 32-year-old wife Annal and their four children including one-year-old Masilamony at Overtounpettai. How prophetic that in the centenary year of 1993, Mr. Masilamony's son, Azariah, was the Bishop of CSI Madras Diocese! The picture below was given to Bishop Azariah as a Christmas card in 1993. It is the baptism record signed by Rev. Andrew. 35-year-old Tambiran and 32-year-old Erammal were baptised as Samuel and Annal.

Baptism at Overtounpettai by Adam Andrew on 31 December 1897 One year old Munusami was baptized as Masilamany; father of Bishop Azariah

It took about 100 years before Rev. Andrew's efforts and dreams came to be fulfilled. For the first time in the history of the CSI Diocese of Madras, a descendant of converts in the Chengalpattu District and areas surrounding Madras became a bishop. Rev. M. Azariah, a Dalit from a village established by Adam Andrew was consecrated as Bishop in Madras in 1990.

Consecration of Bishop Azariah - 2 January 1990

True to the legacy of Andrew, Bishop Azariah too changed the lives and perception of the Christians and non-Christians in India and even abroad. Like Andrew, his priority was evangelism and the uplift of Dalits. If Andrew gave Panchami lands to Dalits, Azariah was recovering the same from usurpers. If Andrew took up the plight of Dalits with the government and the British Parliament, Azariah was taking up their present condition with the government and the World Council of Churches. Azariah was challenging the local church to respond to the unChristian practice of caste discrimination. Along with other thinkers Azariah developed Dalit Theology. If Elizabeth Andrew was establishing a lace school for empowering women, Azariah was organizing training of thousands of women and school dropouts and providing them capital for a self-supporting life. If Andrew struggled to give dignity to Dalits, Azariah was empowering them with schemes such as BBC: Bible, Bicycle and Chappals for a life of “Self–Realization, Self–Reliance and Self–Respect”.

CSI Ewart College and Hostel, Melrosapuram

Bishop Azariah with students in front of the College. Left to right: Chandra, Sona Shanthakumari, Soniya, Amudha, Bishop, Rajeswari, Vennila, Sulokshana May 2007

Bishop Azariah was a student and boarder at Melrosapuram. If Andrew established schools and training centers, Azariah was now upgrading schools to have English medium sections. Exactly 100 years after the baptism of his father and grandfather, Bishop Azariah established the Ewart College in 1997 for "the education of poor, oppressed and less privileged women, especially village women, and provide them opportunities for a fuller life". Like Andrew who established agricultural and technical training centers in Melrosapuram, Azariah established a Rural Community College there, laying the foundation stone in 1997.

Andrew trained and sent out catechists and teachers; Azariah was sending out local Diocesan missionaries to spread the Gospel and bring people to Christ. Andrew accounted for every penny contributed by people, rich and poor; so did Azariah. Andrew became a household name throughout the District for his contributions, integrity, humility and identification with the poorest and the needy. So too Azariah is today a household name throughout the Diocese and beyond for his simplicity, integrity, humility and firm faith in the good news of Jesus Christ. The Chengalpattu St. Andrew's Church is fortunate to have Andrew and Azariah as their model leaders and to celebrate this legacy.

It was in 1891 that the first village movement occurred when Mari and his relatives were baptized at Narasamangalam. One hundred years later, in 1991, Bishop Azariah conducted his first Madras Diocesan Council meeting at Chengalpattu after he was consecrated as a Bishop in 1990.

1891-1991 Hundred years after first village group conversion by Rev. Adam Andrew Madras Diocesan Council Meeting at Chengalpattu. January 13-16, 1991, St. Columba's School

1991 MDC Meeting, Chengalpattu.

Bishop M. Azariah, Rev. Y. Rajaratnam, Moderator Rt. Rev. Premsagar and Mr. Stephen Rajaratnam

1991 MDC Meeting delegates at Chengalpattu. Above: Bishop and Mrs. Josephine Azariah with Bishop's Chaplain, Rev. Noel Jason. Below: Group photo 35 of delegates.

How we celebrated the Centenary of St. Andrew's in 1993

In his message to Rev. John Wesley for the Centenary Souvenir volume, Bishop Azariah recalled his association with great servants of God at Chengalpattu and appreciated the "great tradition of pioneering mission outreach and leadership building" of St. Andrew's Church. The Bishop also expressed his joy that his own father was baptized by Rev. Adam Andrew. We are reproducing his full message in this article.

25 years have passed since the Centenary was celebrated. Copies of the Centenary Souvenir are not easily available now. In order to remember that event, we are presenting some observations and reproducing several photographs from the 1993 Centenary Souvenir.

1993: Pastorate Committee (above) & Celebration Committee 36 (below)

The 1993 centenary celebration was organized by the initiative of the much loved presbyter Rev. S. John Wesley and gifted officers Mr. S. Charles Vetrikannan (Secretary), Mr. S. Franklin Jeevaoli (Treasurer) and Mr. S. C. Sridharan (Convener). They were assisted by members of the Pastorate and Centenary Celebration Committees.

38 1993: Lay Preachers (above) & Women's Fellowship (below)

1993: Youth Fellowship (above) & Church Choir (below)

Several well-wishers and distinguished church leaders sent greetings to St. Andrew's. Their messages should be preserved for posterity. Those who greeted the pastor and the congregation are: Bishop M. Azariah, Rev. P. Rajaratnam (Vice-President, MDC), Mr. A. K. Antony (Union Minister), Rev. S. D. Soundararaj (Secretary, MDC), Rt. Rev. Ezra Sargunam (Bishop, ECI), Rev. Stanly Bower, Rt. Rev. H. S. Thanaraj (Retired Asst. Bishop), Scott Libbey (United Church Board for World Ministries), James D. Brown (Presbyterian Church, USA), Mary Shaw (Wife of Rev. E. O. Shaw, Scotland), Rev. J. Paul Sathyamurthy (TELC), Rev. D. Rajasekaran (John the Baptist Church), Rev. Duncan B. Forrester (Principal, New College, Edinburgh), Sister Moreggiolo (Australia), Rev. V. S. Vijayakumar (Church of the

Victorious Cross), Rev. John C. B. Webster (Presbyterian Church, Waterford, Connecticut), Rev. S. James Christian, Rev. Y. L. Babu Rao (Redeemer Church/Christ Church), Rev. Asir Ebenezer (Poonamallee). Before moving to St. Mary Magdalene sub-pastorate at Poonamallee, Rev. Asir Ebenezer was in Vallam and Chengalpattu and was familiar with the planning of the centenary celebration. It is matter of joy that in the 125th year of St. Andrew's, Rev. Asir Ebenezer has been appointed as the General Secretary of the National Council of Churches in India.

Some Centenary Celebration Events: July to November 1993

A Centenary of Poetry, Music, Songs, Dance & Drama - The Centenary celebration in 1993 was filled with lovely music, dance and drama. Between July and November there were performances by St. Andrew's youth, choir, institutions, and women's fellowship. Well known music director Mr. Shyam and his team presented a musical feast in August while Vedanayagam Sastriar presented a kalatshepam in November.

Chengalpattu produced many Christian preachers, teachers, scholars, healthcare personnel and administrators. Prof. Ponnu A. Sathiasatchy was one such outstanding scholar. He was a descendant of the early converts of Adam Andrew with his family roots in both Vallam and Thathanur where Adam Andrew established Christian communities. He had intimate knowledge of the history of St. Andrew's and the ministry of Adam Andrew. A Tamil scholar, poet, singer, theologian and Bible translator, Prof. Sathiasatchy always spoke his mind with conviction and hope. Reproduced below is a Tamil poem he wrote for the Centenary Souvenir. He describes the beauty of Chengalpattu town, the work of the missionaries, and the people who worshipped in the church; also of the ethos and culture of those days.

Prof. P. A. Sathiasatchy

Vallam Church and Congregation circa 1907

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Several other talented church members such as Samuel Chandran and Pulavar Charles Vetrikannan also wrote poems for the Centenary volume. (Please see the 1993 Centenary Souvenir for all the contributors). Long-term Choir Master and Headmaster of the St. Columba's Primary School, Mr. R. Ratnaraj, is a descendant of people baptised by Adam Andrew at Vedal. He composed about 18 Tamil songs that were sung by the Choir on September 28 at a special Sunday evening program. One of the songs, comparing the church to a banyan tree is reproduced below: 46

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-2

The song reproduced below is a famous Christmas carol that used to be sung in St. Andrew's in the 1950s. This inspiring song with its bright rhythm and tune had mostly been forgotten. Fortunately, the musical family of Mr. S. Nehru, former choir master, and Mr. Kambar, especially Padigam, Mary Angeline and Jebakani not only remember the tune but also the lyrics. This carol might be of interest to the choir and congregation.

வானாதி பரனனாரு நரனுருவானார்

வானாதி பரனனாரு நரனுருவானார் பாடிப்பபாற்றுபவாம் -2

ஆனாய் மகவானார் ம垿ழ் வாபனார் 鏁தி பாடிடபவ -2 தானாய் தயாபரனார் திரு பேயாய் புힿ அவதரித்பத - திரு தத்鏁வ முற்றி翁ம் அத்தனும் னபத்தலை ேத்திர மத்தியில் 殿த்திர முன்னலை கந்லதயணிந்鏁னின் நிந்லத னதாலைந்தினி 殿ந்லத ம垿ழ்ந்鏁பம ேந்ததம் வாழ்ந்திட தந்பதாம் உயிர்மாபலியா垿ட வந்பதாம் புힿ வாழ்ந்திட என்றிட

தத்திமி தத்திமி தத்திமி யித்தினம் னபத்தலை யுதித்த நம் கர்தனுக்பக 鏁தி த垿ர்த ஜனததரி த垿ர்த்த ஜனததரி 毁垿ர்த 毁ரார்鏁தி 毁ரபரா翁 நரரினி தாம் தாம் தி쏀垿ட தீம் எனத் தீம் தீம் என்றாடிப் பண் பாடிட - வானாதி 47

எல்ைா உை埁ம் னேய்த பரம பிதாலவப் பாடிப்பபாற்றுபவாம் னபால்ைாலர 므ட்க வந்த புண்ணிய 毁தலனப் பாடி வாழ்த்鏁பவாம் பாவ இருள் நீக்埁ம் பரி 毁த்த ஆힿலய பபாற்றி翁பவாம் - 2 பதவா திரித்鏁வ மா垿ய பதவாதி பதவலனப் பா翁பவாம் லமந்தனாய் ힿந்லதயாய் வந்鏁யிர் தந்鏁 நம் நிந்லதகள் லநந்திட நாம் இனி வாழ்ந்திட திரிமுத னைாருவலன தினமடி யவர்க்கருள் தருமனுபவைலன தீன தயாளலன தீங்埁ரல் யான ா翁 வான் புힿ பதவாதிபாைலனப் பா翁பவாம்

For Further Reading

John Braidwood, "True Yoke-Fellows in the Mission Field: The Life and Labours of the Rev. John Anderson and the Rev. Robert Johnston", London, 1862.

G. Pittendrigh and W. Meston, Missions of the United Free Church of Scotland: Story of our Madras Mission, United Free Church, Edinburgh, 1907.

Centenary Booklet, Madras Mission, Church of Scotland, 1937.

Elizabeth Hewat, "Vision and Achievement 1796-1956", Thomas Nelson & Sons Ltd., 1960.

Anne and P. Dayanandan, "One hundred years of St. Andrew’s Church, Chengalpattu: 1893- 1993". Centenary Souvenir, CSI St. Andrew's Church, Chengalpattu 1993.

Beth Walpole, "Venture of Faith", CLS Press, 1993.

P. Dayanandan, “Dalit Christians of Chengalpattu area and the Church of Scotland”. In: Local Dalit Christian History. Ed: George Oommen and John C.B. Webster. ISPCK, 2002, 15-64.

P. Dayanandan, "One hundred years of Christianity at Overtounpettai: 1897-1997". Released at the Centenary of Overtounpettai. 1997. Tamil translation published in “Bodhi”, April 2005, 42-44.

P. Dayanandan, "SIUC 1908: Origins of Momentous Church Union". In: South India United Church 1908-2008, Centenary of Church Union in South India, CSI Diocese of Madras, 2009.

P. Dayanandan and Anne Dayanandan, St. Andrew's Church 1893-2018. Celebrating 125 Years. CSI St. Andrew's Church, Chengalpattu, April 2018.

P. Dayanandan and Anne Dayanandan, History and Celebration of 100th year (1883-1993) of St. Andrew's Church, Chengalpattu. 125th Year Souvenir, 2019. (Print version of this article)

Ruban Yesudoss, Chengalpattu Pastorate between the years 1993 and 2018. 125th Year Souvenir, 2019.

Various publications, documents and reports related to the Mission work of Church of Scotland including: In and Around Madras, Foreign Mission Committee Reports at the Archives of the United Theological College, Bangalore.

Various Minutes of the South India United Church, 1908-1929 available online. ______

Acknowledgements - We thank Rev. S. Devairakkam, Deacon Thomas Selvarajan, Secretary Mr. S. Franklin Jeevaoli, Treasurer Mr. P. Sudhagar Francis and other Pastorate Committee members, and members of the 125th Year Celebration Committee of St. Andrew's Church for inviting us to update the historical sketch we wrote in 1993 under the title "One hundred years of St. Andrew's Church, Chengalpattu - 1893-1993". We also thank them for encouraging us to record the contributions of six missionaries who served in the Chengalpattu area and publishing the book titled "St. Andrew's Church, 1893-2018: Celebrating 125 years". We recall with joy how in 1993, Rev. S. John Wesley took great interest in the history of St. Andrew's Church and provided us material and motivated us to write the original article. We also recall how our much-loved Bishop Masilamony Azariah was overjoyed to see our past come alive and wished that all Christians throughout the Diocese learn to appreciate our past. Recording and remembering our past give us a sense of our place in history and empower us to witness for the Great Teacher and His Good News!

Several people have helped us in writing this updated version, we thank them all. Mr. M. Kingston at the Madras Diocesan Archives searched many records to provide accurate information about the pastors who served during different periods and places. Mr. S. Kamban and family gave us the Tamil song, 'வானாதி பரனனாரு நரனுருவானார்'. We thank the pastors who supplied information or photographs: Rev. Prabhakaran Isaac, Rev. Christopher Solomon, Rev. Devaputhiran and Rev. John David. We appreciate everyone who helped provide photographs: Mr. Manoharan Samuel Johnson, Mr. Benjamin Isaac, Suvisedagan Aruliah, Mr. Jeevaoli, Dr. Anburaj Barnabas (American College), Rev. Chinnamuthu Simon (USA), Ms. Esther Kathiroli (Tamil Nadu Christian Council), Rev. Joshua Samuel (USA), Mr. P. Karuna Moorthy (Diocesan Finance Officer), Mr. M. Kingston, Mr. Rathnaraj, Mr.Jeyaraj, and Mrs. Amudha Solomon (Diocesan Office). ______

Prof. Dayanandan taught botany at Madras Christian College. He grew up in several Church of Scotland Christian villages. ([email protected]). Anne Dayanandan is a librarian, archivist, reading specialist, educationist and writer. Both have written about the history of the people, congregations, and their churches.