Church of South India

The CSI was inaugurated in September 1947 at St. George's Cathedral Chennai. It was formed from the union of the South India United Church (itself a union of churches from the Congregational, Presbyterian and Reformed traditions) and the southern provinces of the Anglican Church of India, Pakistan, Burma and Ceylon and the Methodist Church of South India. . In the 1990s, a small number of Baptist and Pentecostal churches also joined the union .

The church accepts the Lambeth Quadrilateral as its basis and recognises the historical episcopate in its constitutional form . The CSI Church is the second largest church in India based on the population of members, next to Catholic church and The largest Protestant denomination in the country is the Church of South India

The church runs 2000 schools, 130 colleges and 104 hospitals in South India. In the 1960s the church became conscious of its social responsibility and started organising rural development projects. There are 50 such projects all over India, 50 training centres for young people and 500 residential hostels for a total of 35,000 children.

The logo of the CSI is a cross superimposed on a stylized lotus and surrounded by the motto and the name of the church. The symbols of the lotus and the Christian cross used in the logo possess a rich cultural heritage in India and is used to symbolize the call and mission of the CSI.

The petals of the lotus and the cross are knitted together with the symbol of the fiery-tongues of the Holy Spirit as referenced in the book of the Acts of the Apostles. It is an expression of the people's communion with God. The original colors, red (for life) and purple (for piety and ecclesiastical) on a white backdrop communicate the nature of the mystical union where an inseparable companionship is established between God and humanity.

The central position of the cross in the logo conveys the idea that it was the sacrifice that was made by Jesus on the cross that is the foundation of the Church. The four ends of the cross painted in deep color indicates that it is the cross that guides all Christians to join in one stream to pray and labor united for a peaceful coexistence and communal harmony.

The CSI, CNI, and Mar Thoma Church jointly formed the Communion of Churches in India (CCI) in 1978 for mutual recognition of the ministry and leaders, intercommunal relationship, and to explore possibilities of working together especially in the field of evangelization in India and other areas of cooperation in the fulfillment of the mission of the Church.

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