The Church of South India (CSI) is a united church resonating the faith experience and witness of four million Christians in more than 16,000 local congregations across the five southern states of India viz., Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamilnadu, and Telangana, and also Jaffna in Srilanka.

Even before the Government of India woke up to the challenges of the girl child, the Church of South India had initiated the Girl Child Campaign, “Little One Arise!” to raise awareness in communities about girl-child neglect and empower the girl child with knowledge of child rights. Responding to the rising violence against girl children the CSI renewed this campaign in 2014 with the theme “Assuring her future” with a church and community mobilization strategy to raise awareness about child rights and child abuse.

CSI has, through all the trainings of congregations, listening processes with children, and capacity building processes with caregivers strived to make the congregations of the CSI realize the role and relevance of Children both in church and society.

The trainings on child abuse and child rights and the awareness about the responsibility of the church towards children benefits not only the children in the congregation but in the local communities around the church as well as children are capacitated to take up the issues of children in community.

To commemorate the National Girl Child Day, CSI-SEVA, conducted a Special Service in the Chapel today. Rev. Belshiya Ruth, Presbyter, of Madras Diocese shared the word of God, based on St. Mark, Chapter 5.

Team SEVA members led the worship service and as a part of instilling continued commitment among the SYNOD staff, fragrant candles were given not to be kept for themselves but to in turn give it to ‘a girl child’ acknowledging their presence and affirming their gifts amidst us.

Mrs. Aruna Stephen

Program Executive

CSI SEVA