A Missionary Congregation
By K. Rajaratnam
51 pages
Rs. 25; Available in paperback

Church, since its inception has been institutionalised. As an institution, it could withstand the stress and strains of forces that are opposed to Christianity. But then the disadvantage is much greater than the aforesaid advantage. The institutional concerns overshadow sometimes even dethrone from the centre the message of Christ, the gospel. How can we reconstruct the church in terms of the altitude and function to enable local congregation to function as the basic unit of the church, so that it is propelled to move forward? This book is all about the various secular and Christian concerns in terms of the gospel.

Bhakti Pancha Pushpanjali
By K. Rajaratnam
54 pages; Published in 1992
Rs.15; Available in paperback

Five devotional floral offerings are the offspring of the deliberations by vibrant people of faith who wished to have the salient features of 'Indian-ness' in worship. Care has been taken to in-cultrate the true spirit of worship as envisaged in the Bible but in diverse cultural settings. Quite an arduous task to integrate Indian elements of worship to Christ-centred to worship service and texture them around five 'cries' of Indian society.

Bible and the Believer
By S. Immanuel David
27 pages; Published in 1987
Rs.10; Available in paperback

The Bible is exalted as the word of God, the guide to life and the most precious of all books. But then the earnest reader who tries to get at a systematic progression of tenets - is often lost in the woods. This book helps ever ardent seeker to find ways and means of understanding the Bible as God's word for people in all ages. Valuable suggestions and techniques contained in the book will provide for profitable reading of the word of God.

Building God's Kingdom on Earth: Writings in Honour of D. W. Jesudoss
By Samuel W. Meshack (ed.)
124 pages; Published in 1999
Rs.50; Available in paperback

Building God's kingdom here on earth requires much reflection. To this effect, there are thought provoking articles entitled 'A Just Church Government for the New Millennium', 'Experiment in Ecumenism', 'Reformation as a Rediscovery of the Evangelical Faith', 'The Power of United Prayer' and such provide the motivation. A reflection on the question of Jesus 'But whom do you say that I am?' is enlightening. A wonderful hand book for all those who pray earnestly 'Thy kingdom come: Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven'.

Christian Fredrick Schwartz
By Daniel Jeyaraj (ed.)
273 pages
Rs.100; Available in paperback

It's a wonderful account of C. F. Schwartz in this collection. The dimensions of his life include his social concerns. Among other topics, there are articles on his impact on the history of Tamilnadu and also references to Clarinda, Sathianathan, King Serfogi and Vedanayakar Sastriar of Tanjore. There is an analytical essay too on the materials available in Tamilnadu Archives about C. F. Schwartz. His association with William Carey and his thrust in the field of missions are also documented in this valuable book.

Christian Gurus: A Study on the Life and Work
of Christian Charismatic Leaders in South India
By Werner Hoerschlelman
541 pages; Published in 1998
Rs.120; Available in paperback

The book is exhaustive in its study on the life of the charismatic leaders from the platform of the setting for the phenomenon of the Christian gurus. It contains within its contents an empirical enquiry into the phenomenon. There are as many as 20 life sketches of these leaders drawn from urban and rural areas that provide a wide spectrum of their style of functioning.

Churchless Christianity
By Herbert E. Hoefer
325 pages; Published in 1991
Rs.40; Available in paperback

The book is a fascinating research on lovers of Jesus Christ who stay away from Christianity and the church. Three parts deal with such people in rural Tamilnadu and gives a detailed report of the author's personal interactions with many individuals and families. Part two is a statistical survey of Madras city with detailed analysis of the results. Part three is stimulating theological reflections on church, caste and the phenomena of "churchless Christians". With a brief bibliography and over 80 pages of appendixes giving charts of statistical data.

Contemporary Reflections of the Faith
of Our Mothers & Fathers: Personal Witness (Vol.1)
By M. Mani Chacko (ed.)
122 pages; Published in 1994
Rs.75; Available in paperback

The book comprises of 5 lectures from Kunchala Rajaratnam Endowment Lectures - delivered by renowned scholars with a wide range of topics such as Ecological Dimension of our Faith, Contextualisation of Feminist Theology and reflections on contemporary issues such as Reconciliation, Indigenous Traditions and Concept of justice are being dealt extensively with commendable scholarship.

Contemporary Reflections of the Faith
of Our Mothers & Fathers: Personal Witness (Vol.2)
By P. Victor Premasagar (ed.)
168 pages
Rs.300; Available in paperback

This book comprises of 7 lectures from Kunchala Rajaratnam Endowment Lectures - the topic includes vital issues such as Faith and Culture in Indian Christian Identity, Emergence of a Local Community in North East India. The other lectures are on matters concerning neighbour-Love, Faith & Reflection with reference to the Life among Dalits and the Religious relevance of Mass Media. The Knowledge that liberates is all about the straight jackets into which the learners are filled into and the need to liberate the learners from that tight situation. The lecture on the Lutheran Piety with reference to August H. Francke's impact on the author is a worth while contribution in the series.

Ordination of First Indian Pastor: Aaron
By Daniel Jeyaraj
188 pages
Rs.50; Available in paperback

The ordination of Aaron, whose original name was Arumugam, was indeed a turning point in the history of the church. Till that point of time there were only European missionaries and it was felt necessary to engage local people and the first one to take on the mantle was Aaron. The reader can get information on this event as traced from the arrival of Ziegenbalg, the beginning of Tranquebar Mission and the Seminarium Studiosorum at Tranquebar.

Ten Commandments and Today's Challenges
By K. Rajaratnam & V. Devasahayam (eds.)
83 pages
Rs.30; Available in paperback

It's exciting to discern the mutual enrichment and dialectical interaction between the context and the Biblical text of the Ten Commandments. The book makes Christian faith spiritually helpful, intellectually satisfying and pastorally helpful. It attempts to bridge the gap between profession and practice.

Violence and Non-violence
By D. W. Jesudoss
83 pages; Published in 1989
Rs.30; Available in paperback

Violence, an everyday occurrence, is dealt within this book comprising of essays of erudite scholars. Selected topics are: Violence as reflected in the everyday life of women, civil disobedience and non-violent resistance; Violence as seen in movies and violence against dalits. The other victims of violence are children in their home situation and in their society. Systematic invisible violence and the struggles against it is yet another dimension that has been dealt within this compilation.