Graham Houghton
Encyclopedia
Graham Houghton, founding principal of the South Asia Institute of Advanced Christian Studies
(SAIACS), in Bangalore
, India
, was born in 1938 and raised in New Zealand
, on a dairy farm in the Manawatu near Palmerston North
.
Houghton left high school during his fifth form year with an intention to expand the family farm. However, after a personal religious
experience he left the farm, trained for two years (1960–61) at the Bible College of New Zealand, and became the first NZ missionary sent out by OMS International, a multinational Christian
evangelism
organization. He arrived in India to do village evangelism in 1965 and has worked in that country for many years.
Houghton completed undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, eventually earning his Ph.D.
in Indian history
from the University of California, Los Angeles
with a dissertation titled "The Impoverishment of Dependence." His wife Carol moved to India
from Virginia
in the United States
at an early age with her parents, who were Assemblies of God
missionaries, and she has lived in India almost continuously since, with the exception of her university education. Her marriage to Houghton in 1968 was arranged according to Indian custom by her father.
Houghton taught for many years at the Madras Bible Seminary before founding SAIACS in 1982. The SAIACS campus now occupies about four hectares (ten acres) of land on the outskirts of Bangalore, a fast growing city of six million, just over 300 km west of Chennai (Madras) in South India
. SAIACS has now expanded to a total of about 100 full-time students, all studying at the masters or doctoral level. Students come from many parts of India, and other nations such as Indonesia
, Malaysia, Nepal
, Myanmar
(formerly Burma), Sri Lanka
, Thailand
, and also Australia
and New Zealand. Several have come from Africa
and Central America
.
In 1997 SAIACS was recognized by the University of Mysore
as an accredited research institution to the university, enabling SAIACS to offer an accredited Indian Ph.D. programme. This is the first Protestant institution to be so recognized since William Carey's Serampore College
in 1818. SAIACS graduates are working as organizational and denominational leaders, faculty at a number of bible colleges, seminaries, and graduate school
s, and pastor
s and missionaries with many indigenous missionary agencies throughout South Asia
.
In 2001 the Houghtons were part of a group invited to establish a department of Christianity at Peking University
, Beijing
, People's Republic of China
. Teaching at the masters level has already begun, with a doctoral program planned. The courses have reached both Christian (from the Three Self Church and other Christian groups) and non-Christian students. A new building to house the department is in the planning stage.
After Houghton's formal handing over of the SAIACS principalship in March, 2004 to Ashish Chrispal, he and his wife moved to Cambridge, New Zealand
. Houghton is still active in international evangelism, especially the Peking University project.
South Asia Institute of Advanced Christian Studies
South Asia Institute of Advanced Christian Studies is an institute for post-graduate theological studies and research in Bangalore, India. It has an evangelical ethos...
(SAIACS), in Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, was born in 1938 and raised in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, on a dairy farm in the Manawatu near Palmerston North
Palmerston North
Palmerston North is the main city of the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is an inland city with a population of and is the country's seventh largest city and eighth largest urban area. Palmerston North is located in the eastern Manawatu Plains near the north bank...
.
Houghton left high school during his fifth form year with an intention to expand the family farm. However, after a personal religious
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
experience he left the farm, trained for two years (1960–61) at the Bible College of New Zealand, and became the first NZ missionary sent out by OMS International, a multinational Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
evangelism
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
organization. He arrived in India to do village evangelism in 1965 and has worked in that country for many years.
Houghton completed undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, eventually earning his Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in Indian history
History of India
The history of India begins with evidence of human activity of Homo sapiens as long as 75,000 years ago, or with earlier hominids including Homo erectus from about 500,000 years ago. The Indus Valley Civilization, which spread and flourished in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent from...
from the University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
with a dissertation titled "The Impoverishment of Dependence." His wife Carol moved to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
from Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
at an early age with her parents, who were Assemblies of God
Assemblies of God
The Assemblies of God , officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 140 autonomous but loosely-associated national groupings of churches which together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination...
missionaries, and she has lived in India almost continuously since, with the exception of her university education. Her marriage to Houghton in 1968 was arranged according to Indian custom by her father.
Houghton taught for many years at the Madras Bible Seminary before founding SAIACS in 1982. The SAIACS campus now occupies about four hectares (ten acres) of land on the outskirts of Bangalore, a fast growing city of six million, just over 300 km west of Chennai (Madras) in South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
. SAIACS has now expanded to a total of about 100 full-time students, all studying at the masters or doctoral level. Students come from many parts of India, and other nations such as Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Malaysia, Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, Myanmar
Myanmar
Burma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
(formerly Burma), Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, and also Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand. Several have come from Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
.
In 1997 SAIACS was recognized by the University of Mysore
University of Mysore
The University of Mysore , is a public university in India. The University founded during the reign of Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV, the Maharaja of Mysore, and was conceptualized on the basis of a report on educational progress in the United States and Australia, submitted by Messrs Thomas Denham and...
as an accredited research institution to the university, enabling SAIACS to offer an accredited Indian Ph.D. programme. This is the first Protestant institution to be so recognized since William Carey's Serampore College
Serampore College
Serampore College is located in Serampore Town, in Hooghly District, West Bengal, India.The college consists of two entities:*The theological faculty*A separate college with faculties of arts, science, commerce...
in 1818. SAIACS graduates are working as organizational and denominational leaders, faculty at a number of bible colleges, seminaries, and graduate school
Graduate school
A graduate school is a school that awards advanced academic degrees with the general requirement that students must have earned a previous undergraduate degree...
s, and pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
s and missionaries with many indigenous missionary agencies throughout South Asia
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
.
In 2001 the Houghtons were part of a group invited to establish a department of Christianity at Peking University
Peking University
Peking University , colloquially known in Chinese as Beida , is a major research university located in Beijing, China, and a member of the C9 League. It is the first established modern national university of China. It was founded as Imperial University of Peking in 1898 as a replacement of the...
, Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
. Teaching at the masters level has already begun, with a doctoral program planned. The courses have reached both Christian (from the Three Self Church and other Christian groups) and non-Christian students. A new building to house the department is in the planning stage.
After Houghton's formal handing over of the SAIACS principalship in March, 2004 to Ashish Chrispal, he and his wife moved to Cambridge, New Zealand
Cambridge, New Zealand
Cambridge is a town in the Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand. Situated 24 kilometres southeast of Hamilton, on the banks of the Waikato River, Cambridge is known as "The Town of Trees & Champions".In the 1840s Cambridge had a Maori population but in the 1850's missionaries and...
. Houghton is still active in international evangelism, especially the Peking University project.