“I followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly… Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day.” Joshua 14:8,12 NIV.
The Caleb Institute is a theological training college located in North India, that works to equip and grow Christ centred leaders who have a calling to reach the church in India. OMS NZ is connected with this institute through our late missionary, Dr Graham Houghton. He was our first missionary we sent out to the field in the 1960s, and was a fundamental part of founding the Caleb Institute. His desire for ministry and theology training in India was his God given mission. Together with an amazing team of locals, this desire for many has turned into a reality!
The Caleb Institute was founded to address three main issues:
After 300 years of missionary work, no post-graduate institution had been started that taught theology in Hindi, a language that over 600 million people speak!
Theological education had become too ‘bookish and academic’. There was a need for studies that are Christ-centred and done in a passionate way that could help our Muslim and Hindu friends understand and follow Him.
There is a need to learn what being a Christ-follower looks like through practical learning. Since Caleb started in 2016, there have been new students coming in every year. It is already producing fruit as they have students, staff and faculty coming from almost every region of North India. God is doing a new thing in India!
According to the principal of Caleb Institute, Rev. Dr. Richard Howell, the “present student body comes from fourteen states and neighboring countries. They represent many ethnic and denominational backgrounds from North India and beyond. Harmonious living and collaborative learning in this diverse community, equips students for Christ centered leadership in culturally diverse mission fields.”
We encourage you to join us prayerfully, financially, or just by sharing about this amazing institute with the people around you. It has been incredible to see the growth of strong Christian leaders over the years since Caleb began.
If you’d like to learn more about this institute, you can visit their website www.calebinstitute.in. You can also send us a message to find out more information!
Originally written 10 June 2019.
Revised March 2024.