Birth: 16.12.1867
Death: 18.01.1951
City: County Down
Country: Ireland
Place of Vision: India
Amy Beatrice Carmichael was born into a wealthy family in Ireland. At the age of 15, she accepted Christ as her savior. Being the eldest child, Amy worked hard to support her family after the death of her father. From her young age, Amy enthusiastically preached the gospel and was considerate about the poor. She worked among Shawlies (mill girls wearing cheap shawls) who were not welcomed in the churches. Hence, she rented temporary tin structures and conducted Sunday services for them. Amid such ministry, she heard Hudson Taylor speak about the missionary life at the Keswick Convention in 1887. There she became convinced of her calling to missionary work and applied for China Inland Mission. However, her health didn’t permit her to go to China.
In 1893 Amy went to Japan on missionary work but had to return after fifteen months due to her poor health conditions. Being a woman who wouldn’t easily give up, she joined the Zenana Missionary Society in 1894. In 1895 she arrived in India and initially worked with Thomas Walker in Tinnevelly. There she learned Tamil and adopted the Indian lifestyle. She worked especially among the women and brought many to Christ. She formed a group of women to reach out to others with the good news.
In 1900 Amy moved to Dhonavur and saw the plight of young girls (devadasi) who were sold or dedicated to Temples. These girls were usually forced into prostitution to earn money. Amy started rescuing such girls from temple prostitution and adopted them. She opened orphanages for such young girls and showed unconditional love towards them. She also founded the Dohnavur Fellowship to encourage and help the children grow in Christ. She also wrote and published 40 books. Amy, who was fondly called ‘Ammai’ (‘mother’ in Tamil) went to be with the Lord after faithfully finishing her worldly duties in 1951.
