Believers Eastern Church
| Believers Eastern Church | |
|---|---|
| Classification | Independent Church |
| Polity | Episcopal |
| Metropolitan bishop | Samuel Mor Theophilus |
| Bishops | 30 (2017) |
| Dioceses | 91 |
| Associations | Kerala Council of Churches and National Council of Churches in India |
| Liturgy | Orthodox Liturgy |
| Headquarters | St. Thomas Community, Thiruvalla, Kerala |
| Founder | Moran Mor Athanasius Yohan I Metropolitan |
| Origin | 1993 |
| Members | 3,500,000 |
| Places of worship | 15000 parishes worldwide |
| Hospitals | Believers Church Medical College Hospital, Believers City Clinic, Believers Hospital - Konni |
| Secondary schools | Believers Church Residential School - Thiruvalla, Believers Church Residential School, Believers Church Mahatma Central School, Believers Church English Medium School Alappuzha, Believers Church Vijayagiri Public School, Believers Church Grace Garden School and many other schools |
| Other name | Believers Church (formerly) |
| Official website | www |
Believers Eastern Church (BEC, previously Believers Church) is a church of Indian origin with congregations and parishes worldwide. It follows an episcopal governance and structure. It holds Christ as its head (Col 1:18) and further requires that bishops and ordained ministers submit to its metropolitan and his successors. It is governed by a committee of bishops, the synod, with one central bishop holding the honorary title of "first among equals" and follows Evangelical Christian doctrine. BEC is administratively based in the state of Kerala in southwestern India. The church has 91 dioceses in 14 nations. It claims a membership of more than 3.5 million in 10 countries speaking a hundred languages. It has 30 bishops, and the Metropolitan Bishop is Moran Mor Samuel Theophilus who replaced Moran Mor Athanasius Yohan I Metropolitan (formerly known as K. P. Yohannan).