Bengali: খ্রীষ্ট সেবিকা সংঘ | |
Abbreviation | CSS |
---|---|
Formation | 25th of January 1970 (54 years ago) |
Founder | Mother Susila, SE |
Founded at | Barisal, Bangladesh |
Type | National religious congregation for women of Church of Bangladesh |
Headquarters | Oxford Mission Church |
Membership | 14 as of 2024 |
Primarily Apostolic | |
Evangelical courses or Benedictine vows including celibacy | |
Sr. Dorothy, CSS | |
Parent organization | Church of Bangladesh |
Website | churchofbangladesh |
The Christa Sevika Sangha (Handmaids of Christ), CSS, is an Anglican religious order for women based in Jobarpar, Church of Bangladesh Diocese of Barisal, in Bangladesh. It is a vow for women in the Anglican Church of Bangladesh.
In 1970, the Sisterhood of the Epiphany, a group of largely British-ethnicity sisters working in Bangladesh, formed a parallel community for sisters of Bangladeshi nationality, and chose the name Christa Sevika Sangha (Handmaids of Christ). The key founder was Sr Susila SE. In 1986 the order became fully independent. [1] At that time the foundress, Sr Susila SE, left the Sisterhood of the Epiphany to become the first Mother Superior CSS, an office she continued to hold until her death on 16 May 2011. [2] In total she led the community for 41 years, and was Mother Superior for 26 years. The Sevikas have a longstanding attachment to the Oxford Mission Church, and are often referred to simply as the "Oxford Mission Sisters".
The sisters supervise hostels for young girls, and a play centre for small children. They are involved in work at local schools and other community projects. They offer a four-fold daily office in Bengali language, as well as a daily eucharist, and a daily informal quiet prayer session.
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A monk is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many religions and in philosophy.
Christians in Bangladesh account for 0.30% of the nation's population as of 2022 census. Together with Judaism and Buddhism, they account for 1% of the population. Islam accounts for 91.04% of the country's religion, followed by Hinduism at 7.95% as per 2022 census.
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Jack Copley Winslow, also known by names John Copley Winslow or J.C. Winslow or John C. Winslow or Jack C. Winslow, was an English Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (SPG) missionary to Konkan and Pune, then-Poona—both part of then-Bombay Presidency. He was an evangelist, hymnist, and the founder of Christa Seva Sangh—interpreted as Community of the Servants of Christ or The Fellowship of the Servants of Christ and/or The Christian Fellowship of Service.
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Oxford Mission Epiphany Cathedral Church, commonly known as Oxford Mission Church and the Church of Bangladesh Diocese of Barisal is a United Protestant church in Barisal, a southern city in Bangladesh. It is one of the oldest and arguably the second largest church in Asia by land area and the largest Church in Bangladesh. It was built in 1904 as part of the Church of India, Burma and Ceylon, the Anglican province in colonial India, and became a part of the United Protestant Church of Bangladesh at the time of the merger between various Protestant denominations in that country.
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