a contextual missiology of the spirit - eTheses Repository ...

meetings conducted by Philip and his team. John, 53 a participant of these
meetings, has described with enthusiasm the many healings that took place, such
as the complete healing of the blind and deaf. His wife’s grandmother was one of
those who received sight. These healing events enabled Philip to receive a warm
welcome in the church. After a month-long visit Philip left Udaipur but came back
a few months later to establish his Pentecostal mission in Udaipur. As mentioned
earlier, Doulat’s family were very much influenced by this Pentecostal message
and experience, and so the situation was conducive for Philip to spread
Pentecostalism among these existing Christians in the initial period of his
ministry. However, when Devadasan from UP came and preached about water
baptism after an invitation from Philip, the situation began to change. The church
came to know that Philip was also a ‘dubki vala,’ and that is why they began to
oppose him until he moved to Jodhpur. John says that he went to Jodhpur to take
baptism under Philip on 07 October 1963. Although Philip moved to Jodhpur, the
CNI people, particularly the young men and women at the mission compound,
continued prayer meetings every evening.
Philip continued his ministry in Rajasthan until his death in 1979 when he was in
his early forties. He established a Pentecostal congregation in Jodhpur, and it was
affiliated to IPCoG. P.M. Thomas, his son-in-law, is currently serving as the
pastor of this congregation. Philip used to travel to various places spreading the
Pentecostal message. Thomas Mathews’ words illustrate his commitment to north
Indian mission:
53 J. Masih, interview, 15 May 2006.
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