About Our Church

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CSI Malayalam Congregation of Greater New York

3833 Jerusalem Avenue, Seaford, NY 11783

Immigrants from the South Indian state of Kerala started arriving in the United States in the early 1960s.  A majority of them were Christians of different denominations.  At first, they worshipped in the local congregations.  By the late 60s, there were enough Kerala Christians to begin combined worship services in their own language - Malayalam.  In the early 70s, each denomination started their own worship services.  The Church of South India (CSI) members also did the same, and their first worship service was inaugurated by Rev. Thomas Samuel at the St. James Chapel of the Union Theological Seminary.  By 1979, a full-fledged congregation with some 30 families, were conducting regular worship services - under the name "CSI Malayalam Congregation of New York" - in a church on 57th Street in Manhattan.  In February 1982, a majority of this congregation moved to Woodhaven, Queens.

The members who moved from Manhattan to Queens started congregating under the name "The CSI Malayalam Congregation of Greater New York."  Their first worship service was held on March 14, 1982 at the Christ Congregational Church in Woodhaven, Queens.

In 1994, the Congregation unanimously decided to acquire a church building in Queens or Nassau County.  Our dream came true only in 2001 when our Search Committee located a church building at Seaford, Long Island, a building built in 1958 as a Baptist church.  A formal contract was signed on April 9, 2001 to buy the property and the deal closed on August 22, 2001.  After the closing a Building Committee was formed to oversee the complete renovation and furnishing of the church.  All the furnishings were sponsored by our members. 

The church was inaugurated on December 22, 2001.

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