Chris is the Director of Training for Outreach To Asia Nationals. OTAN serves in over nine countries in Asia where traditional missions is ‘restricted’, by equipping and empowering national, pastoral leaders to fulfill the great commission. He is also Missions Pastor at Bangor Baptist Church, Bangor, ME USA.
Chris, a native of Bangalore, worked as an electrician in MICO factory for 3 years before theological studies at the Word of Life Bible Institute and School of Youth Mission (New York). He obtained a Bachelor’s Degree from Tennessee Temple University and went on to do a Master’s in Divinity at Temple Baptist Seminary that he completed at the Asia Graduate School of Theology.
Chris was a youth pastor and ordained at Emmanuel Baptist Church. In 1990 he founded Banaswadi Bible Church where he was the pastor-teacher for over 10 years. He is known as a Youth, Bible & Mission conference speaker and for his radio broadcast with FEBA (Transforming Truth) and TWR (Thru the Bible). His passion is for evangelism, whole-life discipleship, mentoring, training leaders & empowering the Church in Mission.
Chris lectures on and produces curriculum for ‘Biblical Mandate for Evangelism’ at the Haggai Institute for Leadership Development (since 1999 at Maui & Singapore). As an evangelical, he has served as a consultant with the Commission on World Mission & Evangelism on-site London, Switzerland, Athens, Germany, Ghana, Kenya, Chile and with Urban Missions in Thailand, Hong Kong, Philippines and China.
During his stay and PhD research in the UK, Chris was a Teaching Assistance at the University of Leeds in the department of Theology & Religious Studies and also served as a minister at the South Parade Baptist Church, where he developed outreach & care cells. Chris teaches ‘Clinical Pastoral Education’ at the Bangalore Baptist Hospital. He is chairman for the Christian Forum for Child Development & Samaritan Purse’s regional Prescription for Hope program.
Since 1995, Chris joined SAIACS as Professor and HoD of Pastoral Theology & Counseling and Dean of Chapel. Here, for 13 years, he trained leaders for ministry and mission in India’s globalizing context and is passionate doing ”Evangelism through Local Churches”. In June of 2009 he became Director of Training for OTAN (Outreach To Asia Nationals) and Missions Pastor at Bangor Baptist Church, Bangor, ME USA. Learn more about Chris Gnanakan at www.chrisgnanakan.com.
Chris is happily married to Dorothy, an IT software educator, and they have two daughters Alethea and Charis. Chris enjoys memorizing poems on the Bible and football
Below is a list of distinguished educational achievements that Chris has attained.
- Diploma in Electrical Engineering, Motor Industries (MICO) Bangalore, 1984
- Diploma in Biblical Studies, Word of Life Bible Institute and the School of Youth, Missions & Evangelism (WOLBI/SYME) Albany, New York, 1985 (honors)
- BA (Pastoral Studies and Psychology) Tennessee Temple University, USA – 1987 (summa cum laude)
- MDiv (Pastoral Theology) Asia Graduate School of Theology, 1993
- MTh (Pastoral Theology & Counseling) – SAIACS, Bangalore 1995
- DMin (A Theology of Suffering & Glory in 1 Peter) SAIACS, Bangalore 1998
- International Faculty, Haggai Institute for Leadership Training – since 1999
- Consultant with the Commission on World Mission & Evangelism, 2001-2007
- PhD (Health, Wealth & Charismatic Studies) University of Leeds, UK – 2006 (distinction)