Indian Christians

Indian Christians

Christianity is India's third-largest religion, with approximately 24 million followers, constituting 2.3 per cent of India's population. The works of scholars and Eastern Christian writings state that Christianity was introduced to India by Thomas the Apostle, who visited Muziris in Kerala in 52 AD to spread the gospel amongst Kerala's Jewish settlements using an early copy of the Hebrew Gospel. Although the exact origins of Christianity in India remain unclear, there is a general scholarly consensus that Christianity was rooted in India by the 6th century AD, including some communities who used Syriac liturgically, and it is a possibility that the religion's existence there extends to as far back as the 1st century. Christianity was as such established in India even before some nations of Europe had been Christianised.

Christians are found all across India and in all walks of life, with major populations in parts of South India, the Konkan Coast, North-East, Punjab and the capital, New Delhi. Indian Christians have contributed significantly to and are well represented in various spheres of national life. They include former and current chief ministers, governors and chief election commissioners. Indian Christians have the highest literacy, work participation and sex ratio figures among the various religious communities in India.

Most Christians in India are Catholics of the Latin Church. The state of Kerala is home to the Saint Thomas Christian community, an ancient body of Christians (Syriac Christianity) who are now divided into several different churches and traditions. There are two Eastern Catholic Saint Thomas Christian churches: the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church and the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church. There are also several Oriental Orthodox and independent churches in the Saint Thomas Christian community, including the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, the Malankara Jacobite Syrian Church and the Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church. Since the 19th century Protestant churches have also been present; major denominations include the Church of South India (CSI), the Church of North India (CNI), the Presbyterian Church of India, Baptists, Lutherans, Anglicans and other evangelical groups. The Christian Church runs thousands of educational institutions and hospitals contributing significantly to the development of the nation.