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{{Use Indian English|date=October 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Infobox Christian leader
| type = Bishop
| name = A. Christopher Asir
| title = Bishop in Madurai Ramnad
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| church = Christian
| archdiocese =
| diocese =
| see = [[Church of South India]]
| term = 2004–2012
| predecessor = The Right Reverend D. Thavaraj David Eames
| successor = The Right Reverend Dr.M.Joseph M.A., B.G.L., B.D., M.Th., Ph.D.,

| ordination = 1977
| ordinated_by =
| consecration = 23 September 2004
| consecrated_by =
| rank =

| birth_date = 5 December 1947
| birth_place = [[Pannaivilai]], Tamil Nadu, India
| death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|2012|2|3|1947|12|5}}
| death_place = Madurai

}}
'''Asirwadham Christopher Asir''' (5 December 1947 – 3 February 2012) was the bishop of Madurai Ramnad Diocese of [[Church of South India]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/csi-bishop-dead/article2859454.ece|title=CSI Bishop dead|date=4 February 2012|newspaper=[[The Hindu]]|accessdate=16 August 2015}}</ref> He had also served as the Deputy moderator of [[Church of South India]].<ref>[http://www.anglicancommunion.org/tour/diocese.cfm?Idind=498 Anglican Communion, Provincial Directory: Madurai Ramnad]</ref>

==Early years==
'''Christopher Asir (1947–2012)''' was born on 5 December 1947 in Tamil Nadu.<ref>[http://www.pannaivilai.net/BPChristoperAsir.html Pannaivilai.net. Internet, accessed 20 May 2008] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071210063130/http://www.pannaivilai.net/BPChristoperAsir.html |date=10 December 2007 }}</ref> His parents were [[Sri]] P. Asir and [[Smt.]] Packiam Asir. He died on 3 February 2012 at the Madurai Meenakshi Mission Hospital after battling with cancer.

The young Asir was sent to CSI Tucker Higher Secondary School, [[Pannaivilai]] and later to the Pope's College, [[Sawyerpuram]]<ref name="Ibid">''[[Ibid.]]''</ref> for collegiate studies. Now his sister's son Rev. David Athisayam is a pastor working in Thoothukudi - Nazareth Diocese. He is a controversial figure in disintegrating the Prestigious American College — Madurai.

==Divinity & higher studies==
Since childhood, Asir had an inclination to pursue divinity.
He was sent to the Hindustan Bible Institute<ref name="Ibid" /> (''affiliated to the [[Senate of Serampore College (University)]]''), [[Chennai]], where he obtained a [[Licentiate in Theology]]. Later, he upgraded this with a [[Bachelor of Theology|B.Th.]] degree.

Starting from the academic year 1973, Asir joined the [[United Theological College (Bangalore)|United Theological College]], the only autonomous college under the [[Senate of Serampore College (University)]], Bangalore for pursuing the [[Bachelor of Divinity|B.D.]] degree. [[Joshua Russell Chandran]] was the Principal of the College at that time while [[D. S. Satyaranjan]] was the Registrar of the College. By 1975, Christopher completed his studies in UTC and was awarded the degree by the [[Senate of Serampore College (University)]] under the Registrarship of [[Chetti Devasahayam]].

His thesis submitted to the [[Senate of Serampore College (University)]] was entitled ''"A Historical Survey of the Sectarian Church Groups in the C.S.I. Diocese of Tinneveli in the 20th century"''.<ref>Robert Eric Frykenbert (Ed.), Christians and Missionaries in India: Cross-cultural communication since 1500 with special reference to caste, conversion, and colonialism, William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2003. [https://books.google.com/books?id=wB2hU35Ob0gC&pg=PA365&lpg=PA365&dq=christopher+asir&source=web&ots=YxHBw4FNp7&sig=wEsuHM_wzB7yGMyaT3nG2SnqUXg&hl=en]</ref>

==Ordination & Lecturership==
After returning from Bangalore, Asir was assigned a pastoral role<ref>Panaivilai.Net''[[op. cit.]]''</ref> in Kannivadi. Later, he was ordained as a Deacon of the Diocese of Madurai Ramnad of the [[Church of South India]] in 1976.

During his service in Vedachandur from 1976 to 1978, he was ordained as a Priest in 1977.<ref name="Ibid" />

Asir was also assigned a teaching role in his ''alma mater'', the Hindustan Bible Institute, Chennai.

==Bishopric==
The Diocese of Madurai Ramnad was founded in 1834. About six revenue districts fall under this diocese.<ref>Diocese of Madurai Ramnad, CSI Dental College site. Internet, accessed 20 May 2008.{{cite web |url=http://csidentalcollege.net/mr_diocese.html |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2008-05-20 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517171135/http://csidentalcollege.net/mr_diocese.html |archivedate=17 May 2008 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> [[Lesslie Newbigin]] was the first Bishop of this diocese.

On 23 September 2004 Asir was consecrated as the Bishop in Madurai Ramnad.<ref>''Panaivilai.Net [[op. cit.]]''</ref>

==Deputy Moderatorship==
The first Bishop in Madurai Ramnad, [[Lesslie Newbigin]] also served as Deputy Moderator of the CSI.<ref>Bibliography of the writings of Lesslie Newbigin, page 3. Internet, accessed 20 May 2008.[https://archive.today/20120708124834/http://igitur-archive.library.uu.nl/dissertations/1947080/bibl.pdf]</ref>

During the XXXI session of the Synod of the CSI held in Visakhapatnam from 11–14 January 2008, Asir was elected as the Deputy Moderator of the CSI for a biennium.<ref>Asia Pacific Ecumenical News, 20 May 2008, Indian Protestant Church elects new Moderator. Internet, accessed 20 May 2008 [https://web.archive.org/web/20110811143901/http://apenews.org/newsread.asp?nid=106]</ref> He succeeded the S. Vasantha Kumar (Bishop-in-Karnataka Central).

Bishop Asir died on 3 February 2012. He was receiving treatment for his lung cancer. His funeral was on 4 February 2012.

The Bishop of Madurai-Ramnad Diocese A Christopher Asir and 10 others in contravention of the conditions sold 6.74 acres of the total land in RS.No. 88 at Tallakulam Village on 5 February 2008 for Rs 16.79 crore.<ref>[https://archive.today/20130823143340/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/property-scam-rdo-summons-csi-bishop/189669-60-118.html ]</ref> It was alleged that Asir and 10 others misappropriated Rs 7 crore out of the total amount. Corruption charges against Bishop Christopher Asir of Madurai-Ramnad were brought by the Indian government for tax fraud. The District Revenue Collector of Madurai charged the bishop with being part of a criminal ring that defrauded the diocese of $1,400,000 by selling college land and pocketing the proceeds. The bishop died in February 2012 before he could be indicted.<ref>http://newindianexpress.com/states/tamil_nadu/article227653.ece?service=print</ref>

As part of the same charges, an Indian court in October 2012 overturned the appointment of the head of the Church of South India's American College, arguing that the now deceased bishop in Madurai-Ramnad had colluded with his son-in-law to engineer the younger man's appointment as principal.

As a result of a lawsuit brought by a member of the staff, Justice Vinod Kumar Sharma quashed the appointment of M. Davamani Christopher as principal of the American college. The court accepted the petitioner's claim that the bishop and his son-in-law had created a search committee composed of their cronies and had participated in subsequent board meetings "without revealing the fact that Mr. Christopher had applied to the post of Principal as early as 21 February 2011. It is clear proof of collusion between the two."

==Works==
* CSI College of Dental Sciences & Research, Madurai 625 001 [https://web.archive.org/web/20080517071242/http://csidentalcollege.net/].
* CSI arts an science college batalagundu

==Honours==
Prof. Dr Michael Bergunder,<ref>Faculty of Theology, University of Heidelberg, Germany. Internet, accessed 20 May 2008.[http://theologie.uni-hd.de/rm/personal/prof-dr-michael-bergunder?set_language=en]</ref> Professor of History of Religions and Mission Studies of the [[University of Heidelberg]], Germany quoted Rev. Christopher's [[B. D.]] thesis in an article entitled ''"From Pentecostal Healing Evangelist to Kalki Avatar: The Remarkable Life of Paulaseer Lawrie, alias Shree Lahari Krishna (1921–1989) – A Contribution to the Understanding of New Religious Movements"'' in a book published by William B. Eerdmans Publishing, Grand Rapids, Michigan with the title ''"Christians and Missionaries in India: Cross-cultural communication since 1500 with special reference to caste, conversion, and colonialism"'' in 2003.<ref>Robert Eric Frykenbert, ''[[op. cit.]]''</ref>

==Memberships==
* Chairperson
** CSI Dental College, Madurai
* Member, Chethana, a [[Bengaluru]]-based network of grassoot organisations.

==See also==

* [[Lesslie Newbigin]], previously Bishop-in-Madurai Ramnad
* [[Victor Premasagar]], previously Moderator of the CSI and Bishop-in-Medak
* [[J. W. Gladstone]], Moderator of the CSI and Bishop-in-South Kerala
* [[B. P. Sugandhar]], previously Moderator of the CSI and Bishop-in-Medak
* [[G. Dyvasirvadam]], Bishop-in-Krishna Godavari

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal
| author=Eyre Chatterton
| title=A History of the Church of England in India since the Early Days of the East India Company
| year=1924
| url =http://anglicanhistory.org/india/chatterton1924/23.html
}}

{{S-start}}
{{S-rel}}
{{Succession box
| before=The Right Reverend S. Vasantha Kumar
| title=Deputy Moderator [[Church of South India]]
| after=The Right Reverend G. Devakadasham
| years=11 January 2008 – 10 January 2010
}}
{{Succession box
| before=The Right Reverend D. Thavaraj David Eames
| title=Bishop in Madurai Ramnad [[Church of South India]]
| after=The Most Reverend Dr.M.Joseph M.A., B.G.L., B.D., M.Th., Ph.D.,
| years=2004–2012
}}
{{s-end}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Asir, Christopher}}
[[Category:1947 births]]
[[Category:2012 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Tamil Nadu]]
[[Category:20th-century Anglican bishops in India]]
[[Category:21st-century Anglican bishops in India]]
[[Category:Anglican bishops of Madurai Ramnad]]
[[Category:Indian Christian theologians]]
[[Category:Indian Anglican priests]]
[[Category:Senate of Serampore College (University) alumni]]
[[Category:Anglican bishops of Madurai-Ramnad]]

Christopher Asir - Revision history

CleanupBot II at 18:28, 13 August 2023