CONTETNS
5.
Differences
Again, Hopes of Unity
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The
Church of St. Thomas
St. Thomas, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ,
came to India in 52 A.D., and landed at Kodungallur on western coast of
India. He preached the Gospel to the Namboodhiri Brahmin families of Kerala,
many of whom received the faith. He established seven Churches there:
Kodungallur, Kottakkavu, Palayur, Kollam, Kokkamangalam, Niranam and Chayil.
It is also a tradition that he frequently visited Malayattoor hills for
prayer. Tradition has it that the Apostle ordained two bishops, Kepha and
Paul, respectively for Malabar and Coromandal (Mylapore). This supposedly
marks the beginnings of the first hierarchy of India. Later, he moved on to
the east coast of India. He was martyred in 72 A.D. by a fanatic at Little
Mount (near Madras) and his body was brought to Mylapore (near Madras) and
was buried there. His tomb is venerated until this day. |
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There are people who doubt about the apostolate of St. Thomas in India clamiming that the travel from the Middle East to India was not possible in AD 52. There is a wealth of corroborative evidence to support, and no good reason to doubt the living tradition of St. Thomas Christians that the Apostle arrived in Kodungalloor (Muziris) in Kerala in 52 AD, preached the gospel, established seven churches, and moved on to other kingdom, returning to Madras (Mylapore) in 72 AD where he was martyred that year. Extensive trade relations existed between Malankara (Kerala) and the Mediterranean countries even before the Christian era. The numerous golden coins of the Roman Empire which have been found all over the south, as well as many recent discoveries, offer abundant proof that Roman trade centers existed along the southern coasts of India. While King Solomon was ruling over the Israelites (B.C. 970-930), his warships brought back to his country valuable merchandise supposed to be from Muziris (Cranganore), a defunct international port of Malankara (Kerala). While discussing the dealings of the Phoenicians with Muziris, the Roman historian Pliny (A.D. 23-79) complained that every year they were sending large sum of money to India for silk, pearls, gems and spices. He also remarked that the (Kerala) Malankara ships were visiting the Persian Gulf, Aden, the Red Sea and Egypt. Pliny, Ptolemy (A.D. 100-160) and the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea give much detailed information about the trading centers of Malabar (Kerala). Diplomatic relations between India and Roman Empire existed even before the Christian era. There were Jewish colonies in Kerala in the first century. Against the background of trade between India and west Asia since ancient times, travel close to the coast of Arabia was feasible and not uncommon, reaching Malabar, the Tamil country, Sindh (Scythia) and western India (Kalyan), around the time St. Thomas came to India. That the Church in India was founded by St. Thomas the apostle is attested by West Asian writings since the 2nd century. In the year 189 A.D. Pantaenus who was a missionary sent by Bishop Demetrius of Alexandria arrived in Malabar. He found a Christian group with an Aramaic version of the Gospel of St. Mathew. The visit of Pantaenus has been mentioned in the writings of Eusebius of Caesarea, and St. Jerome. Mention is made in the records of the Council of Nicea, of the presence of a Bishop John of India (A D 325). More clear evidence is found in the writings of Cosmas who was a merchant from Alexandria and sailed in the Indian seas in 522 A.D.. He records that he had seen Christians in the Island of Taprobani (Ceylon) with clergy and a congregation of believers, and also in the land called Male (Malabar) where pepper grows. He has written that there the clergy are ordained by a Bishop sent from Persia. From the mention of Malabar as the place where pepper grows it is quite clear that he mentions the presence of a strong Christian community in this area in the early years of the sixth century with strong connections with the church in Persia. The Church founded by St. Thomas must have been rather spread out in the subcontinent, including the North-West, the Western and Eastern coasts of the peninsula, probably also reaching Sri Lanka. Tradition associates the ministry of St. Thomas with the Indo-Parthian king, Gondophares in the north and with king Vasudeva (Mazdeo) of the Kushan dynasty in the south. It was the latter who condemned the apostle to death. The early Church in India remained one and at peace, treasuring the same ethnic and cultural characteristics as the rest of the local community. Its members enjoyed the good will of the other religious communities as well as the political support of the Hindu rulers. The Thomas Christians welcomed missionaries and migrants from other churches, some of whom sought to escape persecution in their own countries. The language of worship in the early centuries must have been the local language, probably a form of Tamil. In later centuries, the liturgical language mingled with Syriac received through the fathers from the Syrian Orthodox Church. By the 7th century, specific references of the Indian Church began to appear in Persian records. The Metropolitan of India and the Metropolitan of China are mentioned in the consecration records of Patriarchs of the east. Immigration of Christians from the Middle EastThere is a tradition that a group of 400 immigrants from Persia arrived in Malabar in 345 A.D. under the leadership of a merchant named Thomas of Cana, known as Knaye Thommen. They came as a result of persecution of Christians in Persia at that time, and they were received kindly by the Hindu rulers. Mention is made also of another immigration from Persia in the year 825 A.D. under the leadership of a Persian merchant named Marwan Sabriso with two Bishops named Mor Sabor and Mor Aphroth. They landed in Quilon. King Cheraman Perumal gave them land and extended to them special privileges, inscribed in two sets of copper plates. Three of these are still in the Old Seminary in Kottayarn and two are with the Mar Thoma Church, Tiruvalla. They established churches in Quilon, Kayankulam, Udayamperoor and Akaparambu. |
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