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{{Short description|Indian evangelist (1935–2008)}}
{{Use Indian English|date=October 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2019}}
{{Infobox person
| honorific_prefix =
| name = D. G. S. Dhinakaran
| image = Image Copyright- Jesus Calls.jpg
| caption =
| birth_date = {{birth date|1935|07|01|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Surandai]], [[Tirunelveli district]], [[Madras Presidency]], [[British India]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|2008|02|20|1935|07|01|df=y}}
| death_place = [[Chennai]], India
| occupation = [[Evangelism|Evangelist]], [[record producer]]
| organization = Jesus Calls Ministries
| spouse = [[Stella Dhinakaran]] (married 1959-2008)
| children = 2, including [[Paul Dhinakaran]]
| parents =
| known_for = founding Jesus Calls Ministries and [[Karunya University]]
}}

'''Duraisamy Geoffery Samuel Dhinakaran''' (1 July 1935 – 20 February 2008) was an Indian evangelical preacher. He was the founder of Jesus Calls Ministries and [[Karunya University]].

== Early life ==

Dhinakaran was born on 1 July 1935 at [[Surandai]]<ref>[http://www.dgsdhinakaran.com/childhood.asp D. G. S. Dhinakaran Memorial Page]</ref> in [[Tirunelveli district]] of [[Madras Presidency]] (today [[Tamil Nadu]]), [[British India]].<ref name="Hindu2000221">{{cite web |url=http://www.hindu.com/2008/02/21/stories/2008022159540800.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080225175237/http://www.hindu.com/2008/02/21/stories/2008022159540800.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=25 February 2008 |title= Evangelist Dhinakaran dead |date=21 February 2008 |work=[[The Hindu]]|access-date=10 February 2010}}</ref> He attended St. John's college, [[Palayamkottai]], and received a BSc degree in mathematics from [[Madras University]] in 1955.<ref name=south>{{cite web|title=Jesus Calls Evangelist Dr. D.G.S. Dhinakaran Called To Glory|url=http://www.southasianconnection.com/articles/258/1/Jesus-Calls-Evangelist-Dr-DGS-Dhinakaran-Called-To-Glory/Page1.html|publisher=South Asian Connection - Portal for South Asian Christians.}}</ref>

== Ministry ==
Dhinakaran was involved in evangelical activities for some time prior to leaving his job at the bank in October 1962 to evangelise on a full-time basis.<ref>Dr.D.G.S.Dhinakaran, `En Paraloka Tharisanankal` (Tamil), / `Heavenly Visions of D.G.S. Dhinakaran (English)`, Jesus Calls Publication, Chennai, 2008, p. 20.</ref> He founded the Jesus Calls Ministries that, by the time of his death, had more than 20 bases in India and abroad<ref name="Hindu2000221" /> and during his lifetime was the most influential and best-known of the [[Charismatic evangelism|Charismatic evangelists]] working in India. Allan Anderson, an academic specialising in studies of [[Pentecostalism]], sees similarities between Dhinakaran's efforts and those of [[Oral Roberts]] in the US.<ref name="Anderson2004">{{cite book |title=An Introduction to Pentecostalism: Global Charismatic Christianity |first=Allan |last=Anderson |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2004 |isbn=9780521532808 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IPbPTOi0Rk4C&pg=PA127 |page=127}}</ref>

One of the parallels with Roberts was Dhinakaran's involvement in the establishment of Karunya University, a Christian institution at which he served as the first Chancellor.<ref name="Hindu2000221" /><ref name="Anderson2004" /> He also played a significant role in the formation of Seesha, a voluntary body concerned with educating underprivileged children and with assisting rural people.<ref name="Hindu2000221" />

Dhinakaran, who remained a member of the [[Church of South India]],<ref name="Anderson2004" /> was among the first Indian Christian leaders to appreciate the potential of television as a medium for evangelism. In doing this he was following a pattern established in the US and challenging the conservative opinions of his peers, who associated television with the perceived moral laxities of the [[Cinema of India|Indian cinema industry]]. He had been broadcasting his message on radio programmes since 1972, when he had used the [[Feba Radio|FEBA network]] for that purpose,<ref>{{cite book |title=Strong Religion, Zealous Media: Christian Fundamentalism and Communication in India |first=Pradip |last=Thomas |publisher=SAGE Publications |year=2008 |isbn=9788178298344 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vpCtebpmtnMC&pg=PA110 |pages=110–113}}</ref> and the Jesus Calls Ministry began using television broadcasts in the mid-1990s. The broadcasting entity is now sizable and during his lifetime he was assisted in it by his son, Paul Dhinakaran, who subsequently took charge of the Ministry following Dhinakaran's death. The introduction of his son as co-anchor so soon after Roberts had adopted a similar course in the US was, according to Jonathan James, probably not a coincidence. Only a small proportion of the broadcast output was religious in nature and that used devices—such as addressing the audience in a mixture of speech and song . Cultural empathies with the audience were encouraged by predominant use of the local [[Tamil language]] rather than alternatives such as English and by recognising local traditions of oral storytelling.<ref name="James2012">{{cite book |title=Global and Local Televangelism |editor1-first=Pradip Ninan |editor1-last=Thomas |editor2-first=Philip |editor2-last=Lee |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |year=2012 |isbn=9781137149909 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V2hPPPP9aUgC&pg=RA1-PA1961 |chapter=The Global in the Local: The Ambivalence and Ambition of Christian Televangelism in India |first=Jonathan D. |last=James |pages=1960–1964, 1969–1970}}</ref>

Following methods used in the US, which included building a massive prayer tower in [[Chennai]] and others throughout India, were not always appreciated. Dhinakaran presented his television shows wearing Western clothing and he used Western songs and music, as well as addressing his audience in a Western style rather than sitting on the ground as [[guru]]s did, all of which evoked some dis-satisfaction.<ref name="James2012" />

He wrote more than 15 books and recorded many Christian musical albums.<ref name="Hindu2000221" />

== Death ==
D.G.S Dhinakaran died in hospital on 20 February 2008.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hindu|first1=The|title=Evangelist Dhinakaran dead|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-tamilnadu/article1206172.ece|access-date=17 January 2015|publisher=The Hindu|date=21 February 2008}}</ref> He had been suffering from heart and kidney ailments.<ref>{{cite news|last1=India|first1=One|title=Evangelist D G S Dinakaran dead|url=http://www.oneindia.com/2008/02/20/evangelist-d-g-s-dinakaran-dead-1203505859.html|access-date=17 January 2015|publisher=One India|date=20 February 2008}}</ref> He was survived by his wife Stella, and his son, Paul.<ref name="Hindu2000221" />

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
*{{cite book |title=To the Ends of the Earth: Pentecostalism and the Transformation of World Christianity |first=Allan Heaton |last=Anderson |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2013 |isbn=9780199911820 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cZaJYVQK_WkC}}
*{{cite book |title=The South Indian Pentecostal Movement in the Twentieth Century |first=Michael |last=Bergunder |publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing |year=2008 |isbn=9780802827340 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XGiv3riaunQC}}
*{{cite book |title=The World's Christians: Who they are, Where they are, and How they got there |first=Douglas |last=Jacobsen |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |year=2011 |isbn=9781444397284 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o072t0qKPkwC&pg=PA125}}
*{{cite book |title=The Century of the Holy Spirit : 100 Years of Pentecostal and Charismatic Renewal, 1901-2001 |first=Vinson |last=Synan |publisher=Thomas Nelson Inc |year=2001 |isbn=9781418587536 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Qq-kWdqNJVEC}}

== External links ==
* {{Official website|http://www.prayertoweronline.org|Jesus Calls Ministries official website}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dhinakaran, D. G. S.}}
[[Category:1935 births]]
[[Category:2008 deaths]]
[[Category:Indian Charismatics]]

D. G. S. Dhinakaran - Revision history

UpdateBot at 02:26, 7 December 2021