Our host in Chennai this time is the Madras Theological Seminary an outgrowth of the Oriental Missionary Society which has now formed the Evangelical Church with training institutions at Dum Dum near Calcutta and Allahabad in Northern India.

We are housed in the Guest Room which is serviced with an air conditioner. Food is with the Students in their mess hall so basic Sth India style rice with sambar the spicy sauce and one other dish. They are kindly adding in some supplements like omelets and spiced noodles to the diet.

The Seminary must have been bigger in past eras as there are just 75 students and a lot of idle capacity. On the compound are the offices and homes of the officiating Bishops of this denomination so quite a lot of coming and going.

Our host is the Dean who was trained in the other college of this group which is in Dum Dum Calcutta. Calcutta is much more chaotic than Chennai but he was impressed with the potential for outreach which is there. In contrast the area around here is served with many capable Churches. His wife is the child of missionary parents in Gujarat. Due to the isolated areas of their ministry she was brought up in Dohnavur, made famous by Amy Carmichael in another era. She trained as practical nurse and served on the Nepal border at Raxaul before marrying.

The class is made up of 23 graduating students completing their 3 year B. Th course this year. There are 10 hours of lectures 14-16.30 – the somewhat sleepy time of the day! In addition to the theory they are required to go out at the weekends to share and assist in the 250 or so small churches and house groups scattered around Chennai. Church planting is a strong emphasis here with an ambitious goal of 20,000 house churches by 2020. I am setting them a project to enquire into some of the Anthropological aspects of the groups of people they are seeking to minister to.

The men are avid cricket and football fans so practice as well as they may in the short time after classes each day.

Sunday Church was at one of the congregations which is meeting in a substantial building in a housing colony with the auditorium seating about 500 upstairs. By the time it was all over the place was well filled. We were in with the robed choqua wallas so very much a Church of South India classic pattern. One testimony was given of a small girl who could barely walk but had been healed and was hobbling some but doing much better. All those who had birthdays and anniversaries were called up and prayed for. I was asked to speak it all being translated into Tamil by the Dean. Afterwards there were puris and a simple gram curry for those who wanted it. Many were going on into small bible studies etc so guess that is how they keep the momentum going. There was a lot of life and activity around the place.

The journey to Vishakapatnam, our next stop, was an easy flight of 1.5 hours in a small Avro turbo prop plane.

We had planned to go in the train but just as well as there is a general strike in the area which has brought a stoppage to all rail linkages.