In Odisha, the Community of Christ has experienced significant growth since the first members were baptized in November 1965. The American leadership of the church including Apostle Charles D. Neff believed that the gospel of Jesus Christ had to be indigenized in its own way by Indians, just as Americans had done with Christianity themselves. In this way, the church focused its teachings on physical and spiritual healing and well-being with the goal of improving people's lives here and now. In particular, the church has found success among the Sora people, oftentimes with whole villages converting to Christianity. The church has also found success among the Kui people many of whom had no contact with Christianity previously. As of 2015, there are 5,700 baptized members and 7,000 more people who identify as Christians who attend 102 Community of Christ congregations in Odisha.