Friends Missionary Prayer Band

History

The main emphasis of the early period was evangelization of the nation. In the late 1950s, the movement began in the southern part of Tamil Nadu P. Samuel pioneered the VBS (Vacation Bible School) movement in India in 1952. A few other young people, including Sam Kamalesan, Theodore Williams helped him.

In 1937, the World Gospel Mission started the South India Bible Institute (now SIBS Ministries), which in turn created the Vacation Bible School movement in India. In 1952, in a small village called Kovilpatti in south Tamil Nadu, a VBS session was held with 75 children and 8 teachers.

Then, on 26–30 December 1959 at 211, Dhanaskodi Street, Kovilpatti of Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu, nearly 25 Vacation Bible School Friends (committed young people) gathered. They had started a Praying Movement which was later named Friends Missionary Prayer Band. In that time it was declared that it was only a praying group, not an organization, Church or society. This group began to start small prayer cells in every city of Tamil Nadu. Bishop Jebaraj of the Tirunelveli Diocese was the first Patron of the FMPB. Later Bishop Leslie Newbigin of Madras Diocese became the Patron of this movement. Seeing the work of FMPB, he said "this indigenous movement is nothing but the work of the Holy Spirit". Following his advice, the constitution of FMPB incorporated in its constitution, the three historic creeds of the universal church to be added to the statement of faith of the Organization. Consequently, FMPB works as an arm of the Church.

The growth of Friends Missionary Prayer Band

Started as a prayer group

Friends Missionary Prayer Band was started in 1959 at a house, 211, Thanakodi street, Kovilpatti, (a town near Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu) in a missionary camp held from 26 to 30 December 1959. It functioned as a prayer group. The first president of the FMPB was Mr. Theodore Williams, the first General Secretary was Miss Angela James. Araikooval was the magazine launched in 1960 as a prayer bulletin. It was published thrice a year. Christians were challenged to pray for the nation. Prayer groups were started in different places in Tamil Nadu. All the prayer warriors became prayer members of Friends Missionary Prayer Band. They also collected money for the magazine as well as to send money to support needy missions.

Praying movement became sending movement

During summer vacation, in 1965 and 1966, the friends of FMPB conducted outreach work among the remote corners in their own state, Tamil Nadu. One such team went to Pettamugulalam in Panchamalai (Periyamalai) a hill close to Hosur, about 100 km from Bangalore. It was here they stationed a missionary permanently. This challenge was brought to the notice of the friends who had gathered at Koilpatti on April 30, 1967 for a Mission Challenge Meeting (namely ‘Araikooval’) organized by the FMPB. Harris Hilton became the first missionary with the full support of his wife Padma Hilton. They were dedicated and sponsored by the BHEL Thiruvarambur prayer group, Trichirapalli, Tamil Nadu.

The first mission station was started on June 9, 1967 at Periamalai. Mr. Harris Hilton, Dr. Pushparaj and Mr. Emil Jebasingh, then General Secretary landed in Periamalai and put a hut for them and called it as Moriah. They bought a piece of land from Chendurayane Chetty and called that place as Jehovah Jireh. Mr. Esau and John Jacob joined Mr. Hilton in the same year. The first office of FMPB was started in the house of Mrs. Swamy Adiyal in the Press street, Sayerpuram and it was registered as a Society, the registration number was S. 54/1968. Their first converts were Raman and Allimuthu of Periamalai. They were baptized in 1979 at Bethel, Danishpet. Trichirapalli prayer group leaders Mr. Hemachandran and Mr. Jacob organized first sponsoring Missionary prayer group and supported financially Mr. Harris Hilton family. The first convert of the mission was Raman, who was the runner in the Postal department. Mr. Simon Roberts became the full-time promotional secretary. The yearly income reached up to Rs. 10,000/-.

As the vision enlarged and the burden to reach the whole of India arose in 1971, the first mission field was opened in North India. Mr. Hilkiah and Mrs. Daisy Hilkiah were sent to Bhasti in Uttar Pradesh on 23 July 1971.

A ten-year plan was formulated which had the following goals:

Evangelization of the nation was its prime target. Operation Mobilization trained the missionaries in Literature evangelism. So, open air preaching and distributing the Christian literatures in the form of tracts were started. Also Gospel portions, New Testaments and Bibles were distributed. Every missionary was given a target in proclaiming the Gospel. In the book Re-thinking of Missions, William Earnest Hocking had written that, “Of the many changes in the world during the last century, a century of sweeping changes in the life of the Orient as well as in the life of the West, there are peculiarly pertinent to the mission enterprise, an altered theological outlook, the emergence of a basic world-culture, the rise of nationalism in the East”.

Office bearers

The first Office bearer of the Friends Missionary Prayer Band

Regional Leaders

Basic structure of FMPB

There are three major divisions in FMPB. One is Headquarters, where the general Administration, Finance, Communication, and HRD and other departments are functioning. The Second one is the mission mobilization department which raises all the resources like manpower, finance. The third is Mission Field department, where all the frontline missionaries are planting the Churches among the responding people groups in India. FMPB is registered as a society with the Government of Tamil Nadu (S). General body is supreme body which controls this organization. It appointed a board called Executive Committee, which makes the policies for the organization. President, Vice-President, Treasurer and the General Secretary are the key official positions.