The Andhra Christian College or A.C. College is one of the oldest colleges India: It started in 1885. AC College is part of the education enterprise of the Protestant churches. It admits intermediate, undergraduate and graduate students and awards degrees through the Acharya Nagarjuna University, Nagarjunanagar to which it is affiliated.
The Lutheran World Federation is a global communion of national and regional Lutheran denominations headquartered in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland. The federation was founded in the Swedish city of Lund in the aftermath of the Second World War in 1947 to coordinate the activities of the many differing Lutheran churches. Since 1984, the member churches are in pulpit and altar fellowship, with common doctrine as the basis of membership and mission activity.
Andhra Christian Theological College (ACTC) is a seminary in Telangana which was founded in 1964. It is affiliated with India's first university, the Senate of Serampore College (University), and has degree-granting authority under a Danish charter ratified by the government of West Bengal. ACTC is on the Hussain Sagar canal (north) in Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, about 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from the Secunderabad Junction railway station.
Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church (AELC) was constituted in the year 1927 in Andhra Pradesh, India. It is the Indian successor to the United Lutheran Church in America which was started as a self-supporting, self-governing, and self-propagating church among Telugu Christians.
M. Victor Paul was a biblical scholar who served as President of the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church from 1993 to 1997.
K. Devasahayam was President of the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church from 1965 to 1969.
United Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India (UELCI) is a communion of twelve Christian denominations in India. It has approximately four million members. It is a member of the World Council of Churches, Christian Conference of Asia, the National Council of Churches in India, the ACT Alliance and Lutheran World Federation. The churches belonging to the UELCI are:
Gossner Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chotanagpur and Assam (GELC) is a major Christian Protestant denomination in India. It has hundreds of thousands of members. It was established on 2 November 1845. It belongs to National Council of Churches in India, United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India, Lutheran World Federation and World Council of Churches. It is led by Moderator Bishop Johann Dang. It is one of the three Lutheran denominations in northeast India along with the Bodo Evangelical Lutheran Church and the Northern Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Arcot Lutheran Church is a Christian denomination in India. It has about 40,000 members. It belongs to National Council of Churches in India, United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India, Lutheran World Federation and World Council of Churches. The Bishop and the President of this church is Rt. Rev. V. Samuel Kennady Its headquarters are in Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu. The other churches belonging to the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India are:
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Madhya Pradesh is a Church belonging to the Lutheran denomination in India. It has about 22,000 members. The head office is situated in Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh. It is affiliated with United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India, National Council of Churches in India, Lutheran World Federation and Christian Conference of Asia. It is currently led by Bishop Dr Emmanuel Panchoo. It exists since 1926. The other churches belonging to the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India are:
Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Himalayan States is a Christian denomination in India. It has about 25,000 members. It belongs to the Lutheran World Federation. Its president is Godwin Nag. The other churches belonging to the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India are:
Good Samaritan Evangelical Lutheran Church is a Christian denomination in India. It has about 40,000 members. Its headquarters is in Bhadrachalam, Madhya Pradesh. It has been founded in 1972. It is led by T. Esther Rani. The other churches belonging to the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in India are:
Telugu Christians or Telugu Kraistava are an ethno-religious community who form the second-largest religious minority in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. According to the Census of India, there are over seven million Christians in Andhra Pradesh, constituting 15.1% of the state's population, although a decrease from the 1971 census figure which was 1.2%, as a result of low birth rates and emigration. Most Telugu Christians are Protestant, belonging to major Indian Protestant denominations such as the predominant Anglican Church of South India, Pentecostals such as Assemblies of God in India, India Pentecostal Church of God, The Pentecostal Mission, the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church, the Samavesam of Telugu Baptist Churches Bible Mission the Salvation Army and several others. There also is a significant number of Roman Catholics and Evangelicals. Although the Franciscans of the Roman Catholic Church brought Christianity to the Deccan area in 1535, it is only after 1759 AD, when the Northern Circars came under the rule of the East India Company, that the region opened up to greater Christian influence. The first Protestant missionaries in Andhra Pradesh were Rev. Cran and Rev. Des Granges who were sent out by the London Missionary Society. They set up their station at Visakhapatnam in 1805 AD. Regions with significant populations of Telugu Christians include the erstwhile Northern Circars, the coastal belt and the cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad. The Church in Andhra Pradesh runs thousands of educational institutions and hospitals contributing significantly to the development of the state. Telugu Christians are found in all walks of life and have contributed much to the development of the state. Telugu Christians have one of the highest literacy, work participation figures and most even male-to-female ratio figures among the various religious communities in the state.
E. Prakasam, a Lutheran, was the first Indian President of the Protestant Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church Society whose ministry was primarily based in the Guntur District and also in East Godavari District, West Godavari District, Krishna District, and Visakhapatnam District. Being one of the established Indian Pastors, Prakasam was elected as president and served from 1944 to 1950 after which he resumed his Pastoral duties as a Lutheran Pastor.
A. N. Gopal was the second Indian President of the Protestant Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church Society and served during the period 1951-1955. On completion of his term as President of the AELC, he was assigned the responsibility of President of the Lutheran Theological College, Rajahmundry.
G. Devasahayam was the Indian President of the Protestant Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church Society and served during the periods 1956–1960 and again from 1963–1964. During his second stint as President of the AELC, Devasahayam participated in the opening of the newly formed Andhra Christian Theological College then located in the same campus of the Lutheran Theological College in Rajahmundry.
Samuel William Schmitthenner was a Lutheran who served as the President of the Protestant Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church Society in Guntur District, Andhra Pradesh, India from 1969 to 1981.
K. Frederick Paradesi Babu is the current President of the Protestant Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church Society. He had his ministerial formation at the Andhra Christian Theological College, Hyderabad, a Seminary affiliated to the nation's first university, the Senate of Serampore College (University).
N. Ch. Joseph was the President of the Protestant Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church Society.
Ch. Victor Moses is President Emeritus of the Protestant Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church Society headquartered in Guntur. Victor Moses is an Old Testament Scholar and a member of the Society for Biblical Studies, India, an august body of learning having members well versed in Hebrew and Greek languages hailing from the Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox and Pentecostal traditions.
