ABSTRACT
I have argued that in the context of Chennai’s growing economy and urbanization, contemporary Catholic renewal can be seen through the construction and refurbishment of new and old church edifices of varying historical significance. According to Mary Hancock, Chennai “is one of India’s mega-cities and one of the nodes through which forces of neoliberal globalization are transforming the country …. the city is poised to follow other South Indian metropoles as a center for global software production, export processing, and back-office services.”1 Only as recently as the mid 1990s has Chennai fully embraced and transformed itself into a modern city befitting its burgeoning economy and growing middle class. Chennai has also seen the development of new forms of local religiosity that implement more modernized forms of urbanization and technology, directly reflecting its higher quality of living. In this context, Catholic renewal and revival are movements initiated by members of the Church hierarchy, using various marketing strategies, towards the goals of evangelization, faith preservation, and fostering global awareness.
