In light of creating new partnerships and remaining true to the founding mission of Christian Medical College (CMC) in Vellore, Dr. Chandra Singh, Associate Director at CMC reached out to the Vellore CMC Foundation to co-host a webinar on ‘Remaining Mission True.” The keynote speaker for this event was Mr. Peter Greer, a Christian advocate for those living in poverty, an author and the president and CEO of Hope International, a global faith-based microfinance organization based in Lancaster, PA.
Mr. Greer (Co-author of the book Mission Drift: The Unspoken Crisis Facing Leaders, Charities, and Churches) stressed the importance of remaining Christ centered in Christian mission organizations. He said that “mission drift was inevitable in all organizations and believing that the Gospel matters, having clarity of mission and intentionality of practice” are significant aspects of remaining mission true. The book Mission Drift was named 2015 leadership book of the year by both Christianity today and WORLD Magazine. In 2017, Dr. Chandra Singh ordered one hundred copies of this book and distributed it to key staff as CMC was in the process of selecting new leadership.
The event was blessed by Reverend Dr. Arul Dhas’ (Senior Chaplain at CMC) opening invocation and was well attended by CMC alumni, staff and friends of CMC and the Vellore CMC Foundation from all over the world. Together with the help of one hundred and thirty participants, Mr. Greer highlighted and discussed ways in which Christian organizations can prevent mission drift by re-aligning with God and His calling, having God’s priorities and remaining true to their original visions and goals. Dr.Thomas Samuel Ram, Associate Director, Missions, CMC Vellore moderated the Q&A session and thanked Mr. Greer for sharing his knowledge and research with the CMC community. He also mentioned that Mr. Greer had a free workbook designed to help with introspection in remaining mission true. The free workbook can be found here.
For nearly one hundred years, the Vellore CMC foundation has helped connect individuals and organizations to CMC in support of their mission to be witness to the healing ministry of Christ through excellence in education, research, and service to the most vulnerable.
Even though the mission field has changed and is now fraught with danger in a COVID era, CMC, empowered by God, continues to share the hope of Christ, bringing healing to many at “such a time as this.” Esther 4:14 .
The full webinar may be viewed here.
