January 1 marked the beginning of the year-long celebration of 125 years of St Stephen’s Hospital, Delhi. (January 1, 2010)

On the stage are:Dr Sudhir Joseph, director, Rev Scariah Rampachen, Rev Franco Mulakkal of the CBCI, Rev Pritham Santram, former CNI Bishop, Rev Karam Masih, former CNI Bishop, Rev I C Weathrall and Rev Monodeep Daniel of the Brotherhood, Rev Enos Das Pradhan, CNI general secretary, the Most Rev Purely Lyngdoh, moderator of the CNI.

Dr Joseph said from its humble beginnings as a maternity hospital, today St Stephens is a multi specialty general hospital with a bed strength of 700. It was started by a missionary, Ms Priscilla Winter, who came to Delhi when she was only 16. Medical assistance was hardly in existence, especially for the women in those days and she chose to dispense whatever knowledge she had to prevent and heal sicknesses in the women whom she befriended. Her medical service took the shape of a dispensary in Chandni Chowk.

When Jesus spoke of the fullness of life he came to give to mankind, he meant more than physical well being. The Church had taken up the mandate to bring to humans wholesomeness implying the health of body, mind and spirit. He also had declared that He came to serve, and not to be served. It is in this spirit, the hospital had served all these years.

The Hospital is named after St Stephen, the first martyr. The Bible records that he was ‘full of the Spirit; full of grace and power.’ Today we had entered another era. In keeping with His injunction, this institution rededicates itself for doing good to others with no selfish motive or desire for money, power or fame.

Different choir groups of the hospital, representing various categories of the staff presented hymns and songs of praise and thanksgiving adding colour to the function.

The chaplain ‘read out’ the thanksgiving note to God ‘for all that He has done for us and for the people of the city through the ministry of the St Stephens hospital and ‘to Christ the great healer who gives us the gift to bring healing to this broken world and His suffering people.’

By way of rededication, former Bishop Santram read out as follows:’ ‘Let us recall the beginnings of this great institution : St Stephen’s hospital began with the humble service of a woman missionary, Priscilla Winter in 1864. Her act of compassion was of distributing simple home made remedies from a box of medicines. She was just 22 years old then but she was able to see the needs of the poor and the purdah women living along the banks of the river Yamuna. This seed sown among the poorest of the walled city of Delhi, has become a harvest of medical service, which now stands as a monument of what love and compassion for fellow human beings can do. Let us therefore dedicate ourselves in the spirit of love and compassion with Priscilla Winter, founder of this institution as our inspiration.’

The function was a tribute to that missionary lady who came from far away England moved by the love of Christ. It was also a reminder to today’s Christians that their labour in the Lord is not in vain.