Police are investigating the death of the Church of South India’s Bishop in Erode–Salem diocese, the Rt. Rev. Dr. A. Jacob Livingston, after his body was discovered early Saturday morning. Local reports state Bishop Livingston was taking his regular morning walk on 14 February 2026 when he fell from a flyover, or road overpass, in Erode and sustained fatal injuries. Emergency services attended the scene, but he was later declared dead. Police have opened an inquiry into the circumstances of the fall, which at this stage is being treated as an accident.
Dr. Jacob Livingston was the first Bishop of the newly constituted CSI Diocese of Erode–Salem, carved out of the historic Coimbatore Diocese as part of a wider reorganisation of CSI diocesan boundaries in Tamil Nadu. The Erode–Salem Diocese, which groups congregations and institutions in Erode, Namakkal, Salem, Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts, formally began functioning in 2023 after a feasibility study and synodical approval.
Following diocesan elections held under the CSI Constitution, Livingston was elected bishop and subsequently consecrated on 16 August 2025 at CSI Brough Memorial Church, Erode. The consecration was presided over by the CSI Moderator, the Most Rev. Reuben Mark, in the presence of the CSI General Secretary, Treasurer, and other bishops and synod officers.
Born on 2 May 1969, A. Jacob Livingston earned an M.A. in History from Annamalai University, a Bachelor of Divinity from Tamil Nadu Theological Seminary, and a Doctorate in Divinity from the World Change Seminary & Research Institute. Ordained deacon in 2005 and presbyter in 2006, he ministered in pastorates including Gobi, Salem, Erode, Sivagiri, and Bhavani.
Prior to his episcopal election, Dr. Livingston served as Administrative Secretary and Diocesan Secretary of the newly formed Erode–Salem Diocese, helping steer the complex transition from the Coimbatore Diocese, including the sharing of institutions, churches, properties and income. His leadership roles placed him at the centre of efforts to stabilise diocesan governance, resolve congregational disputes, and oversee educational and social ministries across the new jurisdiction.
Dr. Livingston’s episcopate and senior diocesan roles unfolded against a background of contention over the bifurcation of the Coimbatore Diocese and the administration of key congregations. A report commissioned by the CSI Synod, approved by the Synod Executive Committee in December 2022 and by the Synod Council in January 2023, set out the re-drawing of boundaries between Coimbatore and the new Erode–Salem Diocese and guided the subsequent division of institutions and properties.
In 2024–2025 he was a petitioner in criminal revision proceedings in the Madras High Court arising from disputes over diocesan meetings and administrative control in the Erode–Salem Diocese. The court record notes that a diocesan meeting held at a Christian women’s college auditorium was disrupted by opponents, leading authorities to issue orders maintaining a status quo in church administration to preserve public order while civil and ecclesiastical processes continued.
CSI bodies and allied Anglican partners had only recently welcomed Livingston’s consecration, hailing his appointment as historic for the Erode–Salem Diocese and promising close mission partnership. The JDCSI (Jaffna Diocese of the Church of South India), among others, publicly expressed joy on social media at his consecration and pledged a “mutual mission partnership in the days to come.” His sudden death leaves the Erode–Salem Diocese without its founding bishop less than six months after his consecration, at a time when the new structure was still consolidating its governance and mission. The CSI Synod is now expected to issue formal condolences and set out interim episcopal oversight arrangements while procedures for the election or appointment of a successor begin.