Diocese of Dornakal of the Church of South India

2025-06-08T16:47:14Z

103.197.113.61:

{{Short description|Church Diocese}}
{{more citations needed|date=August 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=February 2020}}
{{Infobox diocese
| jurisdiction = Diocese
| name = Dornakal
| image = Ephiphany Cathedral Dornakal Diocese, Dornakal.jpg
| caption = Epiphany Cathedral, Dornakal

| country = [[India]]
| province = [[Church of South India]]

| congregations =
| members =

| cathedral = Epiphany Cathedral, Dornakal
| priests =

| bishop = ''[[The. Rt. Rev. Kodirekka Padma Rao]]''


| website =
}}

'''Dornakal Diocese''' is a [[diocese]] of the [[Church of South India]] in [[Telangana]] state of [[India]]. The diocese mainly covers the pastorates in [[Warangal]], [[Nalgonda]], [[East Godavari]] and [[Khammam]] districts and also has churches in [[Odissha]] state. The Church of South India is a [[United Protestant]] denomination.

==History==

The Diocese of [[Dornakal]]<ref>[https://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00221343108987303 K. J. G. Sundaram (1931): A Deccan Village in India, Journal of Geography, 30:2, 49-57]</ref>
was formed in December 1912. [[Vedanayagam Samuel Azariah]] was consecrated as its first bishop in [[St. Paul's Cathedral, Calcutta]]. Azariah was the first Indian to be consecrated a bishop in the Anglican Communion<ref>Chatterton, Eyre. ''The Diocese of Dornakal, 1912. A Diocese of Mass Movements''.
<u>IN,</u>: <u>[http://anglicanhistory.org/india/chatterton1924/25.html Project Canterbury: A History of the Church of England in India since the early days of the East India Company]</u>, London, SPCK, 1924</ref> and was a leader in the Christian evangelistic movement in South Asia during the early twentieth century.<ref>Harper, S. B., ''In the Shadow of the Mahatma: Bishop V. S. Azariah and the Travails of Christianity in British India''. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2000.</ref>

When the diocese was first formed, it was a small district in the southeast corner of the [[Hyderabad State|Nizam's dominions]]. A few years later, it was enlarged by the addition of the Dummugudem district, in which the [[Church Mission Society|Church Missionary Society]] (CMS) was working.

In 1920, a resolution of the Episcopal Synod placed all of the districts of both the CMS and the [[United Society Partners in the Gospel|Society for the Propagation of the Gospel]] (SPG) in the Telugu country under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Dornakal.

The Cathedral of the Epiphany in Dornakal was consecrated on 6 January 1939.<ref>[https://www.gloucester.anglican.org/about-us/our-global-partners/dornakal-india/ Diocese of Gloucester website]</ref>

In 1940, the Presbyterian, Methodist, Congregational and Anglican churches of the region came together to form the Church of South India.

==Geography==

The present Diocese of Dornakal includes a large portion of the [[Krishna district|Krishna]] district, part of the Godavari districts, parts of the [[Kurnool district|Kurnool]] and [[Kadapa district|Kadapa]] districts to the south served by the SPG, the areas in the Hyderabad State served by the [[Indian Missionary Society]] of Tinnevelly (IMST), the [[Singareni]] [[Mission (station)|Mission]], the Khammamett Mission, and the recently formed Dornakal Diocesan Mission, which started in the Mulag Taluq.

The main towns in the diocese are Khammam and [[Kothagudem]], and they host the largest congregations. The diocese has approximately 900 congregations.<ref>[https://www.gloucester.anglican.org/about-us/our-global-partners/dornakal-india/ Diocese of Gloucester website]</ref>

The diocese is partnered with the Diocese of Gloucester in England.<ref>[https://www.gloucester.anglican.org/about-us/our-global-partners/ Diocese of Gloucester website]</ref><ref>[https://www.thekingsschool.co.uk/news/2021-06-22/new-bishop-is-consecrated-in-dornakal The King’s School website]</ref>

==Funding==
The former president bishop of the church Rt. Rev. Dr Vadapalli Prasada Rao stated that the church is run entirely on Indian funds, which he says helps ensure the churches continued independence from the "Anglican Communion".<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[Deccan Chronicle]] |url=https://www.deccanchronicle.com/151221/nation-current-affairs/article/epiphany-church-stands-pride-dornakal-town |title=Epiphany church stands as pride of Dornakal town |author=Anudeep Ceremilla |date=21 December 2015}}</ref>

==Bishops==
*[[Vedanayagam Samuel Azariah]] (1912–45)
* [[A. B. Elliott]] (1945–1955)
** [[Yeddu Muthyalu]], assistant bishop (1945–1947; became first [[Diocese of Krishna-Godavari of the Church of South India|Bishop in Krishna-Godavari]])
* [[P. Solomon]] (1956–1979)
* [[G. S. Luke]] (1980–1985)
* [[D. N. Samuel]] (1986–1996)
* [[A. Rajarathnam]] (1997–2006)
* [[B. S. Devamani]] (2006–2012)
* Dr.[[V. Prasada Rao]] (2012–7.9.2020)
* Dr.[[K. Padma Rao]] (20.06.2021–Present)(as at 2023)

==Group church councils and chairman==
*Rev.K. N. Bhushanam Dornakal GCC
*Rev.B. Abhijith, singareni GCC
*Rev. P. Sunil Sreedhar, Yellandu GCC
*Rev. P. Ramesh Kodad GCC
*Rev. V. viswam, Khammam GCC
*
*
*Rev. R. Israel manuguru GCC
*
*Rev. Srinivas paul, NSP GCC

==Churches==
*CSI Epiphany Cathedral Church, [[Dornakal]]
*St. Andrew's Church, [[Kothagudem]]
*St. Andrew'sChurch, kalyanapuram
*St. Mary's Church, [[Khammam]]
*St. Paul's Church, [[Aswapuram]]
*St. Paul's Church, P.V. Colony
*Christ Church, [[Bhadrachalam]]
*St. Peter's Church [[Kodad]]
*St. Paul's Church, [[Mahabubabad]]
*St. Paul's Church, [[Palwancha]]
*St. Timothy Church, [[Huzurnagar]]
*St. John's Church, [[Yellandu]]
*St. John's Church, J.K colony, Yellandu
*St. Philip's Church, Nava bharat
*Christ Church, Indira Nagar, KMM
*St. Mark's Church, NSP, Khammam
*St. Luke Church, Singabhupalem, KTDM
*St. Thomas Church, Ramavaram, KTDM
*St. James Church, Gouthampur
*St Peter's Church, Rudrampur
*Christ Church, Parsibandam, khammam
*St. John's Church v.m.banjara,
*St. Peter's church, Madiripuram, Near Bangla
*Church Of South India, Miryalaguda, Dornakal Diocese
* St. Andrew's Church, Anisettipally
*

== Educational institutions ==
*Bishop Azariah High School for Girls, Dornakal
*Bishop Azariah Junior college for Girls, Dornakal
*Bishop Azariah Degree College, Dornakal
*Dornakal Diocese. Junior College, Dornakal
*Dornakal Diocese. High School, Dornakal
*St. Mary's High school, Khammam
*St. Andrew's High School, Kothagudem
*St. Christ Church Primary School, Bhadrachalam
*St. Peter's Primary School, Thoorubaka, Bhadrachalam
*Dorkal Diocese Hostel, Chadrupatla
* Mission High school (Aided), Madiripuram

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal
| author=M. Edwin Rao (Compiled)
| title=Prophet Azariah and the Blessed Dornakal: A centenary revisit 1912-2012
| year=2012
}}
* {{cite book
|author = K. M. George
|title = Church of South India: Life in Union, 1947-1997
|year = 1999
|isbn = 978-8172145125
|oclc = 1039224320
}}
* {{cite journal
| author=Isaac Ethan Paul(Compiled)
| title=The Glorious Fifty Years of The Epiphany Cathedral
| year=1988
| url =https://books.google.com/books?id=VmJVQwAACAAJ
}}

==External links ==
*[https://www.dornakal.csi1947.com Dornakal Diocese official website]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{authority control}}
{{Dioceses in the Church of South India}}
{{Churches in India}}

[[Category:Church of South India dioceses|Dornakal]]
[[Category:Christianity in Telangana]]
[[Category:Christian organizations established in 1912]]
[[Category:1912 establishments in India]]
[[Category:Church of India, Burma and Ceylon]]

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Diocese of Dornakal of the Church of South India