Karnam Chengalvaraya Pillai (1900–1970) was a

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

, Antiochean Succession,

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

(Madras),

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. He spent the last twenty years of his life in the

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on a special mission to acquaint Christians with the

orientalism In art history, literature and cultural studies, Orientalism is the imitation or depiction of aspects in the Eastern world. These depictions are usually done by writers, designers, and artists from the Western world. In particular, Orientalist p ...

s of the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

. He wrote books and worked with western Christians to help clarify what he believed were difficult

Scriptural Religious texts, including scripture, are texts which various religions consider to be of central importance to their religious tradition. They differ from literature by being a compilation or discussion of beliefs, mythologies, ritual prac ...

passages through an understanding of the eastern manners and customs. During his time in the United States, he became associated with

Victor Paul Wierwille Victor Paul Wierwille (December 31, 1916 – May 20, 1985) was the founder of The Way International (TWI). Biography Victor Paul Wierwille was born on December 31, 1916, in New Knoxville, Ohio, to Ernst Henry Wierwille and Emma Sophia Niemeyer ...

, the founding president of The Way International and according to the book ''Born Again to Serve'' by the

American Christian Press American Christian Press serves as the publishing arm of The Way International Biblical research, teaching and fellowship ministry, operating out of New Knoxville, Ohio New Knoxville is a village in Auglaize County, Ohio, United States. It was es ...

, Pillai and Wierwille worked through every orientalism in the Bible from

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

through Revelation over a six-week period in 1953.''Born Again to Serve''.

. 1996. His books include: * ''Light Through an Eastern Window'' **Robert Speller & Sons; Publishers (1963) **The Way International:

(1987). * ''Orientalisms of the Bible'' - Volumes 1 & 2 **Munkus Publishing Company, INC. (1969, 1974) **The Way International:

(1984). In 1980, Reverend Bo Reahard compiled several of Pillai's teachings in his work ''Old and New Testament Orientalisms - Teachings of Bishop K.C. Pillai'' and in 2010, Jeanie Strand Chilton published the work ''Eastern Customs of the Bible: The Teachings of Bishop K. C. Pillai''.

References

External links

Bishop KC Pillai
1900 births 1970 deaths Indian Christian theologians Indian Oriental Orthodox Christians 20th-century Oriental Orthodox bishops Oriental Orthodox biblical scholars {{OrientalOrthodox-clergy-stub