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Self and Community

In Vellore Diocese the Christian Church has many different projects underway to support members of the Dalit Community. "Dalit" is the name given to the poorest people in India who are seen as being born as such low caste people that they do not even count as Hindus. They are literally "outcastes" of scociety. They frequently live in the poorest rural areas, or on the outskirts of villages, and are discriminated against by society and local government. If the Dalits are also Christians they suffer even more, because they are not eligible for government grants and subsidies to improve their lifestyle. The name dalit actually means broken, cracked, trodden down, scattered, crushed or destroyed.

Many dalits became Christians because Christians teach of the equality of all men and women in the eyes of God: they were no longer lesser people, fit only to be slaves, but members of God's family. In the Diocese of Vellore over 90% of the Christians come from families which were dalit in origin, including the senior pastors who now lead the church.

This huge noticeboard at Ranipet tells the story of Jesus' parable of the sheep and the goats in Mathew chapter 25 and encourages Christians to help the sick, the hungry and the poor. The projects supported by the Dioceseof Vellore fulfil the words of Jesus - they are run not only for the benefit of Christian dalits, but they are for any of the poor who need their support. Many of the institutions you can find out about below will work chiefly with Hindu dalits, although they will be staffed and funded by Christians. You can also find out about church supported medical institutions on the Natural World pages of this website.

The Diocese includes:

Find out about:

Church Schools

Voorhees College

Industrial Institutes and computer training

Women's self help groups

Beattie Memorial Teacher Training College

Responding to the 2004 Tsunami

Relationships between Hindus and Christians in the Diocese