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A brief history of Christianity in Kerala

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Beginning of Christianity

Following the ascension of Jesus, the bestowal of the Holy Spirit on the disciples at Pentecost, the Apostles followed Jesus' command to preach the Gospel on the streets of Jerusalem. From Jerusalem, St. Thomas chose to travel eastwards along the trade routes. He  preached in Mesopotamia , between 35-37 A.D. After preaching the gospel to his fellowmen in the Jewish communities, and baptizing several of them, he travelled to the Malabar coast. Some Heretical Gnostic sects in Syria believe that St. Thomas was the twin brother of Jesus Christ because of his striking resemblence to Jesus and Thoma in Syriac, means Twin.

Church tradition maintains that the See of Antioch was founded by Saint Peter the Apostle in A.D. 37 who came to Antioch to spread the gospel. Since 2nd century A.D., Christianity has flourished in Mesopotamia among the descendent of the two great and ancient nations of Chaldea and Assyria. Once they were baptized, both nations preferred the name "Christian" to their old national name. Thus the church which was comprised of these two nations was called simply "the Church of the East." This Church prospered and expanded into the whole of Chaldea, Assyria, Persia, Arabia, the steppes of Mongolia in Asia, the malabar Coast of india, and even into China. Their jurisdiction was excercised independently from the Patriarchate of Antioch. After spending seven years in Antioch, Peter returned to Rome and worked among the Greek speaking Jews in the city. He established the Roman Church during this period. The world of christianity was eventually, over the centuries, divided between these two churches. St. Thomas followed the Syrian tradition and did not establish any Church by himself.

The world Christianity - major divisions

In the first four centuries A.D, there were four Christian Churches i.e. the Syrian Church of Antioch, the Latin Church of Rome, the Coptic Church of Alexandria and the Byzantine Church of Constantinople. In early 5th century, a certain Patriarch of Constantinople, Nestor, came up with a new teaching that contradicted the faith of the holy Universal Church. He claimed that "there are two natures and two persons in Christ, therefore - one is son of God, and the other is son of man; and that Mary did not give birth to an incarnate God, but to a pure human who is Jesus Christ, on whom, the word of God dwelled later. This teaching of Nestor was accepted by some Syrians in areas under Persian rule, and in some parts in Syria, Palestine and Cyprus. They split from the Syrian church of Antioch and established themselves a center of leadership in Madaen, Iraq, and later on, to Baghdad in 762 A.D. Until recently, their church was known as "the Syrian church of the East", or the "Syrian Nestorian Church", which in the  2Oth century changed to "the Assyrian church". From this Church branched off the Chaldean Catholics in 1553 A.D. Their Patriarch took the name " Patriarch of Babylon 1713 A.D. Later, they called themselves the "Assyrian - Chaldean Catholic church".

The four major Christian churches split into two groups after the council of Chalcedon in 451 AD: the first embraced the Syrian Church of Antioch and the Coptic church of Egypt which believed in one nature in Christ after the union of the two natures, i.e. the non-Chaldeonians. The second group embraced the Latin Church of Rome and the Byzantine Church of Constantinople, who believed in two natures in Jesus Christ even after the union of the two natures, i.e, the Chaldeonian faith. A group of Antiochian Syrians split from the mother Church and followed the Byzantine Chalcedonians.

The Reformation and Protestants

By the early 1500's, the conditions in the Roman church became worse and led to the Reformation movement. The church Curia was incredibly corrupt and many bishops lived like princes and ignored the faithful. In 1517, Martin Luther, a member of the Augustinian order, issued his famous Ninety-Five Theses in Wittenberg Germany, attacking the church's doctrine of indulgences. By the late 1500's, the Reformation had divided Western Europe into Protestant and Roman Catholic lands. Catholicism was reduced primarily to the Mediterranean countries, as well as to Hungary, Poland, and small areas within the Holy Roman Empire. In England, Henry VIII declared himself head of the Church in England by the Act of Supremacy (1534). Within the next 25 years,England had become a Protestant nation. Beginning in the 1520's,  the papacy initiated counter reformation efforts to regain to supremacy. A leading force in the Counter Reformation was the Society of Jesus, commonly called the Jesuits based in Portuguese. Saint Ignatius Loyola founded the Jesuits in 1534, and Pope Paul III confirmed the order in 1540.

St. Thomas in Malabar

From very early times, India carried on a flourishing trade with the Middle East and the Western countries, particularly with Antioch, Alexandria and Rome by both land and sea.

It was St. Thomas the apostle who introduced Christianity to Kerala.  St. Thomas came to Kerala in 52 A.D. on a merchant ship from Osselis in Arabia and landed in Kodungallur, 50 Km north of Cochin, to convert the Jews in India. There was a colony of normadic Jews at Kodungallur, which was a flourishing sea port in those days. According to historians, the Jewish contact with Kerala dates back to 973 BC (King Solomon's first fleet) and the first Jewish settlement in Kerala was soon after the Babylonian conquest of Judea in 586 BC. Many locals along with the Jews accepted Christianity. While the Apostle was going to the Jewish colony nearby, he had to cross the village of Palayur, where he saw the Hindu temple and the temple tank. Some Namboothiris (Brahmins) were bathing in the tank. St. Thomas worked a miracle there. The Nambooris took water in their palms and threw it upwards reciting "mantras" (prayers). Seeing the same water falling down, the apostle asked them why their deity refused to accept their offering. He then took some water from the pond, and calling on the Name of Jesus Christ, threw it upwards. Those water drops assumed the shape of rose flowers and remained suspended in midair. Because of this manifestation many of the Namboothiris believed in Christ and received baptism.

The high caste Brahmin families that adorned Christianity were mainly Namboothiri families and four of the leading Brahmin families (Palamattam or Pakalomattom, Sankarapuri, Kalli and Kalliankavu) at Palayur, near Guruvayoor are believed to have been raised to the privilege of the priesthood. The head of the Malabar Church - the Archdeacon - had to be selected from Pakalomattom. This practice was continued till 1816 AD. Though Malankara Church had connection with the Persian Church so far as leadership was concerned, in administrative matters the Archdeacon was the supreme regional spiritual leader. The Archdeacon guided the believers in all things relating to the religious, social and political. The position of "Archdeacon" with elaborate powers and authority is unique in the administrative structure in the Eastern Syrian church.

Then the Apostle travelled in all parts of the country and established the seven churches in Malabar along the coast, each identified with a miracle he performed. He also setup a small church or prayer hall at Malayatoor often called a half church.

Early St. Thomas Christians

The followers were called St. Thomas Christians. There is no documentary evidence referring to the way the Indian Church was governed during early centuries. This is because Archbishop Menezis destroyed all the historical records in 1599 AD. The church established by St. Thomas in the Malabar Coast remained as an independent group, and got their bishops from Eastern Orthodox Church in Antioch in Syria. 

They had their own practices and ways of life - It was mostly Hindu in culture and Christian in belief. The St. Thomas Christians used the East Syrian liturgy from the earliest times, since Aramaic (East Syriac) was the language spoken by Jesus and His disciples. This liturgy is attributed to Addai, the disciple of St. Thomas, whom the Apostle sent to Edessa and Mari the disciple of Addai who worked in Seleucia. Addai and Mari are considered the Apostles of Edessa and Seleucia. They received the fundamental structure of the liturgy from St. Thomas himself. The Malabar Christians were aware of the developments of the liturgy in Edessa and Seleucia. They accepted these developments in East Syrian liturgy because they were connected with the name of their Apostle Thomas and were resplendent with resonances of what they themselves had originally received from St. Thomas.

As a Church that existed outside the Roman Empire, the Church of the St. Thomas Christians had little contact with Rome. They maintained communion with the Church of Persian Empire, which later came to be known as the East Syrian or Chaldean or Babylonian Church which was under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Antioch until 498 AD. This Church, with its liturgical center in Edessa, had also claimed its origin from St. Thomas. Thus the East Syrian or Chaldean liturgy was used by the St. Thomas Christians. This East Syrian Church and its liturgy developed by Mar Addai and Mar Mari from Palestinian Christianity through Antioch and Edessa and they resisted the influence of Constantinople.

A Catholicate of the East was established at the Jerusalem Synod in 231 A.D. The headquarters of the Church was first in Edessa in Persia. The Patriarch of Antioch used to appoint a Archbishop entitled CATHOLICOSE to administer this Eastern Dioceses (parts of Persian Empire) beyond the boundaries of the Roman Empire. This institution was setup to serve as a link between the Patriarch of Antioch, and the Syrian Christian Community in Persia who found the journey to the Patriarchate at Antioch, hazardous because of the bitter political rivalry between the Roman and Persian empires. The Indian Church was administered by these Maphriyono's of the East and Metropolitans.  But due to local persecutions and other restraints it was not easy to send bishops frequently to Malabar to administer Holy Mooron and sacraments. Hence, except for ecclesiastical assistance, the Malankara Church remained independent.
 

Thomas Kanai  & Syrian Colonization of Malankara in 345

With the Nicene council of 325, the St. Thomas christians became subjects of the Patriarch of Antioch. In the fourth century (345 AD), it is said, the Metropolitan Bishop of Edessa had a vision in which the apostle asked him to help his Indian flock. Informed of this saintly appeal, in 345 AD, a group of Jewish-Christian emigrants from Cana (Southern Mesopotamia) to Kodungallur were sent by the Catholicos of the East in Seleucia, for the  purpose of re-invigorating the Church of St Thomas Christians. The original community consisted of about 400 persons belonging to 72 families headed by Thomas of Cana (Kanai Thomman), who was a merchant familiar with Kodungallur. A bishop by name Uraha Mar Yousef, four priests and several deacons were also among them. There is also a view that Thomas of Cana migrated to Kodungallur to escape from the Persian persecution.  The new migrants settled to the south of the palace street and were called Southists (Thekkumbhagar) while the early st. Thomas christians settled at the North of the palace street came to be refered then onwards as Northists (Vadakkumbhagar).

This is a turning point in the history of St Thomas Christians of Malabar. Knai Thoma presented valuables to the King. King Perumal was well pleased with the newcomers and gave them freedom and many civic honors. The King conferred 72 honors written in copper plates to Christians. Thus for the first time St. Thomas Christians were free to worship, preach and enjoy equal civic liberties. From then onwards St. Thomas Christians were known as Syrian Christians.

The entire Malankara Christian community thereon adopted the rites & liturgies of the Syrian Church of Antioch and became a part of that ancient Patriarchal See. From thence in the fourth century, the 'Malankara Church' became known as the “Syrian Church” or the “Malankara Syrian Church”. The name Malankara Church, is  mentioned as such, for the entire Christian Church of Kerala, from this period and remained monolithic till the advent of European missionaries in the 15th century.

While the St. Thomas Christians sometimes inter married with higher-caste non-Christians (such as Nairs), the new Syrian Christians practiced strict endogamy (marriage within the group), choosing not to marry even the St. Thomas Christians. This led to the division between the Northists and the Southists. The descendents of these Christians from Cana, called "Knanaya Christians", continue even today to practice strict endogamy. Nevertheless, their arrival marks the beginning of Syrian influence upon the St. Thomas Christians.

As the Catholicos of the East had promised, Uraha Mar Yousef had successors till the end of the 16th century. Under the East Syrian Bishops, the Knanaya Community had their own churches and priests distinct from those of the non-Knanaya St Thomas Christians. The Southists and the Northists had separate parishes and only priests of the respective community as parish priests.  Each had their own archdeacons who exercised ecclesiastical jurisdiction over their own respective communities. For St Thomas Christians  a priest of the Pakalomattom family traditionally  held the position of the archdeacons. The Persian bishops who came to Malankara had only oversight over spiritual matters like ordination of the clergy. Even such things were done as per the direction of the Archdeacon. In the course of the time the Southists spread out to other parts of Kerala and they had five churches of their own: Udayamperoor, Kaduthuruthy, Kottayam, Thodupuzha (Chunkom) and Kallissery. In some other churches they had one half the share along with other Syrians (Northists). So Knanites were also called Ancharapallikkar (owners of five and half churches).

Shifting to Angamaly

Kodungalloor subsequently became less hospitable to Christians due to the adverse relations between the different trading communities. In 384 AD, when they fled from their old settlement of Kodungalloor, they split into three groups. One group settled at the northern Hindu kingdom of Kaduthuruthy and another at Angamali where they were given asylum and land by the Nair chieftain Mangattachan and granted them many privileges including the right to establish a church, market and a town. Angamäli became a principal centre of those people. The Metropolitan of the Malankara church also shifted to Angamaly. A church was established at Angamaly in 409 AD. The remaining third group continued at Kodungalloor.

Further migration from Syria

There was migration of Syrian Christians from Edessa  in the year 435 AD to Kerala. They were followers of Bishop Nestorius, who was condemned in 431 AD by the Council of Ephesus because he  denied the unity of Christ’s divine and human nature. Also in 8^th century, Assyrian christians from Persia migrated to Malankara. They were mainly merchant class and were welcomed by the local rulers. In AD 825 two bishops, Mor Sabor Easo and Mor Porth along with several settlers landed in Quilon consequent to Muslim persecution of Christians  in the middle east. King Cheraman Perumal gave them land and extended special privileges. The two bishops belonged to the  Chaldean catholic church, with Mor Sabor Easo at Kollam and Mor Porth at Udayamperoor.

 
Mor Aphroth has been instrumental in the conversion of the royal family of Udayamperoor to Christianity - perhaps the only Christian Royal family in Kerala. According to one tradition, the Malayalam Calendar era (Kolla Varsham) started with these holy fathers who settled at Kollam in  825 AD. 

Upto 15th century

The Catholicos with his seat at Seleucia Ctesiphon began to be called also Patriarch of the East (Babylon) and in 486 A. D. the Church officially accepted Nestorian faith. This decision was not however accepted by a minority of Persian Christians in Mosul, Niniveh and Tigris (Tagrit) who continued to keep their loyalty to the old faith. A few decades later in 629 AD, the Orthodox wing of the Church in Persia that continued to be under the Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch & all the East, got reorganized under an office of the 'Maphrianate (Catholicate) of the East’ at Tigrit (Tagrit).

During the 10th and to the 14th centuries the Malankara Church stayed with the Syrian Orthodox belief within the authority of the Patriarch of Antioch. There were times in this long period when the Christians in India had been without a bishop and were led by an Archdeacon. And requests were sent, sometimes with success, to one or another of the eastern prelates to help restore the episcopate in India. Meanwhile the church in Persia and much of west Asia declined by internal causes and the impact of Islam, affecting both the Nestorian Patriarchate of the East (Babylon) and the Jacobite Catholicate of the East (Tigris). The bishops came to Malankara from any of these Patriarchates. The Bishops who came from Babylonian Patriarchate were Nestorians and those from Antioch or Catholicose of the East were Jacobites. However, till 1490 Malankara church remained with Jacobite / Orthodox faith. 

Nestorian influence

Mar Nestorius was the bishop of Constantinople (428 AD) who argued that Jesus has two seperate natures.  He preached against the title Theotokos, "Mother of God," that was given to the Virgin Mary. He claimed a more authentic title should be the Mother of Christ. This came to be known as the Nestorian controversy. This doctrine was challenged by Cyril of Alexandria and, later, Pope Celestine, who anathematized Nestorius and condemned him as a heretic at the Council of Ephesus in 431.

From the 14th century onwards, the Syrian (Jacobite) Patriarchate of Antioch, gradually became weak following the continued persecution by Romans, Mohammedans and also because of internal squabbles.  In this period of serious crisis, the Patriarch was not in a position to send any dignitaries to Malankara.  By the 15th century, the Episcopal ties, which the Malankara Church had with its parental church at Antioch, was completely broken.  

In 1490 the Christians of Malabar dispatched three messengers to the Nestorian Patriarch to send out bishops; the Patriarch consecrated two bishops, assigning to one the name of St. Thomas and to the other that of John. The two bishops started on their journey to India accompanied by the messengers. On arrival they were received with great joy by Malankara Christians without any opposition. Since there was certain similarities in the liturgy and rituals of both the Jacobites and Nestorians, Malankara Syrian Christians who until then followed the Jacobite faith, were not reluctant to accept these Nestorian bishops.

From AD 1490 until the time of Udumperor Synod of AD 1599, Malankara Church had received Metropolitans from the Nestorian patriarchs of Persia. The last of the Mesopotamian Bishops died 2 years before the Synod, and for 40 years thereafter, the Syrians were placed under Portuguese Jesuit Bishops.  

Portuguese colonization & Introduction of Roman Catholic faith in Malankara

The Roman Catholic faith started to have its foothold in Malankara with the arrival of Vasco De Gama, the famous Portuguese sailor in 1498 on the Malabar coast. In 1498 Portuguese missionaries made contact with malankara church and were received as brothers of the same faith; communion with Rome ensued. Initially the Portuguese Priests concentrated on the poor people living on the sea coast of Kerala and Goa and converted many to the Latin Catholic faith, some times even forcibly. These converts came to be known as Latin Roman Catholics. The Portuguese, who were under the Roman Church, considered everything outside Roman as heretic and later tried to introduce their faith among the Syrian Christians of Kerala by all means.  For the Portuguese in general the ideal of a "true" Catholic was to be of the Latin rite.

There were difficulties for Syrian bishops to arrive in India since Goa was under the control of the Portuguese. They favoured only Catholics and did not allow others to reach India. The move against the Syrian Church was followed by Western Church establishing a European diocese in Goa in 1534 AD. In 1557, Pope Paul IV declared Goa an archdiocese with its supremacy extending from the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa to China, and all Christians, including the East Syrian Church, brought under its jurisdiction. 

When the Malankara church Metropolitan Mar Abraham the last Nestorian bishop from Mesopotamia died in 1597, Archbishop Dom Menezes of Goa, entered Malabar, claimed he had authority from the Pope, and visited the churches of Thomas Christians exercising jurisdiction. Synod at Udayamperoor (Diamper) in 1599 On June 20, 1599, the Portugese Archbishop Menezes of Goa called a synod at Udayamperoor (Diamper) for commandeering obedience to the supreme Bishop of Rome. In his zeal to eliminate any trace of the Syrian traditions among the Malankara Christians, he summoned the liturgical books and other church records and burned them. Those who denied were threatened by local kings and Chieftans to attend the Udayamperur Synod, as commanded by the Portuguese. The Raja of Cochin even decreed that all assets of Syrian churches which abstain from the Synod  will be confiscated. However, some parishes around Angamaly did not attend the synod. The site of  the Synod of Diamper, where St Thomas Christians surrendered to Roman Catholicism     The delegates  headed by the Syrian Archdeacon George, who attended the synod were forced to accept the decrees read out by the Archbishop Menezes. Thus the Syrian Christians of Malabar, were made part of the Roman Catholic Church under the Pope. The result was the destruction of the heritage and history of the St. Thomas Christians.

St. Francis Xavier Leading a Jesuit group to India, St. Francis Xavier, popularly known as the Second Apostle of India, landed in Goa in 1542, and arrived at Cochin in 1544. He worked among the coastal Christians and fishermen.  He would go through the streets ringing a little bell and inviting the children to hear the word of God. When he had gathered a number, he would take them to a certain church and would there explain the catechism to them. He devoted almost three years to the work of preaching to the people of Western India, converting many. St. Francis Xavier died on December 3, 1552 on the Chinese island Sancian at the early age of 46. His body was  brought to Goa on March 15th, 1554. Even after sixteen months the body was still fresh. Many miracles are attributed to this Saint.  St. Francis is called by all Goans as Goencho Saib, meaning - Lord of Goa.

Those who accepted allegiance to Pope came to be known as Syrian Roman Catholic. There are also Roman Catholics converted by European missionaries known as Latin Roman Catholics.

Aftermath of Synod of Diamper

After the synod of Diamper (1599), there was a conscious attempt to neutralise and nullify, the position of the Archdeacon and the system of Church administration. Subsequently Roman system of administration with the Latin Archbishop at the centre was established. The status and authority of the Archdeacon was thrown to the winds. Francis Roz S.J. was nominated by the Portuguese as the first Latin Bishop of Angamaly as successor to Mar Abraham, on Nov. 5, 1599. The Metropolitan see of Angamaly was reduced to a suffragan see of Goa under the Padroado of the king of Portugal and the title of Angamaly was changed into that of Kodungallur. The Thomas Christians were thus placed under Latin jurisdiction. But for retaining the Syriac language, Roz S.J. latinised and mutilated the liturgy adding to it translations from the Latin liturgy. He curtailed the time-honored powers of the Archdeacon treating him as a Vicar General. of the Latin Church and established the Roman system of administration with the Latin Archbishop at the centre. The relationship with the Eastern Syrian Church was thus virtually cut off. In 1608 the archdeacon sent his complaints to the Papal Nuncio in Lisbon, but got no reply. The archdeacon was even excommunicated, though absolved in 1615. Quarrels again broke out in 1618, since  the archdeacon was not made Administrator when Roz S.J. went to Goa as Archbishop.  

The entire Malankara Church remained under Roman Empire for half a century. The Thomas Christians remained very attached to the bishops of their own Rite and merely tolerated the governance of the Latin bishops. The  forced Latinization efforts caused many of the St. Thomas Christians to turn away. When Archdeacon George died in 1637 his nephew Thomas assumed leadership, and a spirit of revolt seized the Syrians. Since 1641, a regular fight ensued between the new archbishop Garcia S.J. and the new archdeacon Thomas. In 1647, Archbishop Garcia appointed Fr. Jerome Furtado as Vicar General in place of the traditional Archdeacon. The Portuguease (by Moran Patriarch Bava who arrived in Malankara in 1653) ousted the Pakalomattom family, who for centuries had been the heads of St. Thomas Christians, as Archdeacons and then as Syrian Metrans. As the situation became intolerable, the St. Thomas Christians (Syrian Christians of Malankara) send several representations to the prelates of their mother Church in the Middle East.   

Oath of Coonen Cross in 1653 AD

On hearing about the persecution suffered by his flock in Malankara, the Patriarch of Antioch, Mor Ignatius Ahathulla, set out to Malankara in 1653.  He was captured by the Portugese enroute and was taken to Madras. Two Syrian Christian deacons from Malankara, Itty and Kurian, who were on pilgrimage to Mylapore heard about the incident. They managed to meet Mor Ahathulla and secured a 'Statikon' from him appointing Archdeacon Thomas as the episcopa of Malankara [with the condition that a proper ordination would be obtained as soon as the situation permitted]. In the meantime, Mor Ahathulla was brought to Cochin. On hearing about his arrival, hoards of Syrian Christians rushed to the Cochin Port to free their holy father. They were unable to free Mor Ahathulla. He was taken to Goa in a ship and burnt on the stake. But news spread that he was drowned in the Arabian Sea with a millstone tied to his neck. As the news of this cruelty spread, the Syrian Christians were on the verge of an emotional outburst.

On 3rd January 1653 AD at Mattancherry, under the leadership of Archdeacon Thomas and a Knanaya priest, Anjilimmoottil Ittythomman Kathanar (Rev. Itty Thomas), about 25000 Syrian Christians held on to a rope tied to a leaning cross (an ancient assyrian cross that had become leaning with the passage of centuries) and pledged to never surrender to Portuguese Archbishop of Goa, Francis Garcia under the Roman yoke and always remain under the Holy Apostolic See of Antioch maintaining their ancient rites and traditions. Rev. Itty Thomas was the main  organizer of  the rally for Koonan Cross Oath. This historic event is known as the Koonen Kurishu Sathyam (The Leaning Cross Oath). There began the division in the Church of the St.Thomas Christians which remained monolithic till that time.

Immediately after the Coonan Cross oath, they assembled at Alangatt, and twelve priests of Syrian community consecrated the Archdecon Thomas of Pakalomattom family, who had received a "Statikon" the authority of order from Patriarch Ahathalla and declared him the episcopa of Malankara, giving him the name Mar Thoma I (1653 - 1670), the first in the long line up to Mar Thoma IX till 1816. He was thus the first indigenous bishop of Malankara church. They also appointed a four-member council of priests to assist Mor Thoma. They were Anjilimootil Fr. Itty Thoman, Fr Kadavil Chandy, Fr Vengoor Geevarghese and Fr Parampil Chandy. The seat of Mor Thoma I was at Ankamaly. And once again, Malankara Church became the integral part of the Syrian Orthodox Church, adopting its rituals, rites and liturgy as before.  

This revolt thus split the Church into two: one group continued to recognize the prelates appointed by Rome and the other broke away from Rome and joined the West-Syrian Jacobite Church of Antioch.  This latter group came to be known as the Jacobites (Puthankootukar) or Syrian Orthodox Church of India. Those remained with Romans came to be known as Syrian Roman Catholics (now Syro-Malabar Rite, with liturgical language as Syriac) and others were called Syrian Christians.

The Romans strike back

After the Coonan Cross Oath, Rome began to take an active interest in the Kerala Christians. The Portuguese Jesuits lost the confidence of the entire Christian community. Several Italian Carmelite fathers  (another missionary group under the Roman Catholic heresy) were sent to Kerala by Pope Alexander VII  to reconcile the malcontents. They initially acted as an adversary of the Jesuits and supported the Malankara Syrian Christians. Meanwhile the Malankara Syrian Church under the leadership of MarThoma (Thomas Arkadiyokan) was trying hard to rebuild the Church. But the lack of proper Episcopacy, which he was conscience of, prevented him from executing full authority as a Bishop. Carmalite priests tactfully exploited this weakness of the Malankara Syrian Church. They spread rumors that a bishop cannot be consecrated without laying of hands and the  sacraments of a bishop without proper consecration were invalid. This caused confusion and many faithful deserted the Jacobite Church and re-joined Romans. And during the next 12 years 84 Syrian congregations returned to communion with Rome while 32 congregations remained with the “Bishop” Thomas. As these foreign missionaries had the support of local rulers, these conversions were much easier for them. The Pope erected the Vicariate of Malabar in Cranganore and appointed Fr. Joseph Sebastiani as Apostolic Administrator of the Roman Catholics (Latin rite) of Malabar in 1659 which was renamed as Verapoly in 1709. In 1662, after a papal delegation visited Malabar, many of the Syrian Christians reunited under Rome supremacy. Fr. Kadavil Chandy and Fr. Chandy Parampil who were with the Arkadiyokan until then also defected. While Bishop Joseph administered the Roman Catholic followers with their headquarters at Udayamperoor church, Thomas Arakadiyokan and Itty Thommen Kathanar led the Malankara Syrian Church staying at the Mulanthuruthy MarThoman church. In 1663 when Sebastiani left for Goa under instruction from the Dutch, Fr. Chandy Parambil (Mar Alexander) was made the first Vicar Apostolic of Malabar for the section of Syrian Christians who adorned the Roman Catholic faith. After the demise of Mar Alexander, no indigenous Syrian bishop was appointed to succeed him.

The difficulties experienced by the St. Thomas Christians under the foreign missionaries resulted in a number of protest meetings in Angamali and other places. In one such major convention held in 1778 it was decided to send a delegation to Rome, to inform the Pope directly, the grievances of the St. Thomas Christians and to seek his intervention. However nothing actually happened immediately. It was after a few years that two  persons  Fr. Joseph Kariattil and Fr. Thomas Paremmakal were sent to Pope to get an Archbishop to the See of Kodungalloor.   Kariattil was consecrated as the Archbishop of Kodungalloor in 1782 at Lisbon, but on his way back, before reaching Kerala, he died in 1786 at Goa. There were ugly rumors about death of Archbishop Kariattil and the bitterness consumed the hearts of the expectant crowd gathered at Cochin to welcome their own first ever archbishop. In 1787, representatives from 84 churches assembled in Angamaly and drew up a document called Angamaly Padiyola which made a strong demand to Rome for native bishops, in the hope that this might heal the rift. But Rome was undecided. However, it did not change the situation much for a long time to come. In 1930 the matter was settled to some extent with the formation of the Syro-Malankara Church, which enabled the Syrian Christians and Latin Christians to follow their own practices under the jurisdiction of Rome.

SYRIAN CHRISTIAN GROUPS

Jacobite faith in Malankara

Mor Thoma I remained with the orthodox church and was aware of his infirmity and never executed anything that would jeopardize his conscience. Meanwhile, Pope sent Bishop Joseph Sebastiani to lure Mor Thoma. But Mor Thoma devoutly resisted him. The enraged bishop Joseph influenced the king of Cochin and inflicted a false case on Mor Thoma in Oct 1961. Mar Thoma I took asylum in Mulanthuruthy church along with  Fr. Itty Thomman. King of Cochin joined hands with Portuguese and kept them in the palace prison to hand over to Portuguese. Luckily, two faithful visited Mor Thoma and Fr. Itty in the prison. The visiting faithful were eager on the safety of their spiritual leaders and upon mutual consent the faithful disguised in bishop and priests attire and in turn Mor Thoma and Fr. Itty took layman's dress and came out. Hindu guards failed to recognize them and thus both Mor Thoma and Fr. Itty Thomman miraculously escaped unhurt. Bishop Joseph came with men to kill them in prison, but understood the trickery. Thomas Arkadiyokan continued to contact the mother Church at Antioch.  During this period the Portuguese power in India declined and the Dutch began to establish their authority in 1663. But the Portuguese influence that continued in the Arabian Sea and other parts of India, made the communication difficult. He wrote detailed letters to the Patriarch of Antioch insisting to send bishops to regularize his position. When the news reached the Church headquarters at Turabdin, the Patriarch of Antioch in AD.1665 summoned the Holy Synod and decided to depute a Metropolitan for the Malankara Church. At that time no bishops came from the Church in Baghdad (east syrian church) since the Patriarchate had been moved from Baghdad due to political resons to different places and finally it was in Qudshanis in Kurdistan. With the help of  Dutch Protestants, the Patriarch of Antioch sent Mar Gregorious Abdul Jaleel of Jerusalem (who belonged to the West Syrian Church) and he duly consecrated ‘Mar Thoma’ in 1665  as head of the Syrian Orthodox Church in India. Thus he became the first valid indegenious bishop of Malankara. Together they visited most of the churches in Malankara and reaffirmed the ancient faith and traditions of the Syrian Christians.

In 1902, the Episcopal Synod of Malankara Jacobite Syrian Church held under the then Malankara Metropolitan, Pulikottil Mor Dionysius V, selected two Metropolitan designates and in 1908 they were ordained as Mor Kurilose Paulose and Mor Dionysius Geevarghese Vattasseril by the Patriarch of Antioch. The next year the Malankara Metropolitan Pulikottil Mor Dionysius V died and was buried in the old Seminary Church in Kottayam. Mor Dionysius Vattasseril was instituted in 1906, with the title Mor Dionysius VI by Patrirach Mor Abdulla II. But unfortunately within a short period, the new Metropolitan had differences of opinion with the other co-trustees and within a short time, this conflict became serious.  Patriarch Mar Abdullah II was determined to establish that he had full authority over the Malankara Church, With this intention he came to Kerala in 1909 and pressed the issue. The Patriarch wanted Mar Dionysios Vattasseril to sign a document declaring that the Patriarch had temporal powers over the Malankara Church. Mar Dionysios refused to sign this document. This again caused a rift in the church. While the patriarch insisted on comprehensive jurisdiction over the Malabar Church, Dionysius would allow him only the spiritual power - the right to consecrate bishops and chrism (holy oil) for the Church. Mar Abdulla then excommunicated Mar Dionysios Vattasseril. This resulted in formation of groups within the Church - one supporting the Bishop or Methran (Methran Group) and other supporting the Patriarch (Bava Group). Mar Dionysios Vattasseril stood against him and wanted to keep up the independence of Malankara Church. Cyril, another Malabar Jacobite bishop was the leader of the Patriarch group.

Besides this, there are other churches/associations, independent of each other, that came into existence in the last century, established on the desire of orginal faith and are under the direct jurisdiction of the Patriarch. They are the Simhasana (Thronal) Churches, the St. Antony's congregation and Honawar Mission based at Mangalore (founded by Mor Julius Alwarez),  the Evangelical Association of the East ('Pourasthya Suvisesha Samagam') and the Syrian Orthodox Archdiocese of Greater India (comprising of Outside Kerala dioceses-in India). All of these are administered by Metropolitans appointed by the Patriarch of Antioch. Also there is a Knanaya diocese that was established in early 20th century for the migrant Knanaites (KNANAYA JACOBITE SYRIAN CHURCH) and is under the administration of a Metropolitan. All of the above dioceses have their own associations and decisions pertaining them are taken by themselves and with the approval of the Patriarch of Antioch.

Those Syrian Christians who kept away from the Synod of Udayamperur continued as a small separate group. After the Coonan Cross oath in 1653 , they did not also accept Mar Gregorius Abdul Jaleel from the Jacobite West Syrian church. They remained within the Roman Control and waited for East Syrian bishops as before. In 1796, Saktan Thampuram the then king of Cochin State invited 52 families to Thrissur for the promotion of trade and commerce. They were given land and other privileges. This consisted mainly the above group and they built the  Martha Mariam Valiya Pally of Thrissur in 1814. The original name of this church, was “Vyakula Mathavin Pally or Our Lady of Dolours”. From 1814 to 1838, this church was under the jurisdiction of the Canannore Archdiocese.  On 24, April, 1838,  H.H. Pope Gregory XVI issued a proclamation, whereby the Canannore diocese ceased to exist and it came under the authority of the Bishop of Verapoly which continued till 1861. Since the Roman Catholics began to argue that this church was a Catholic Church, the authorities of this church changed  the name to Marth Mariam, which is the Syriac translation of the name St. Mary. 

This community flourished and wanted to retain their identity.  They tried to get bishops from Chaldean church. The Chaldean Patriarch Mar Joseph Audo sent Bishop  Mar Thoma Rocos in 1861 and was sent back in 1862. He was, however, not welcomed by the Carmelite Vicar Apostolic of Verapoly and was excommunicated indicating that he came here without the necessary permission from the pope. Rocos was forced to go back in 1862 owing to strong protest from the Carmelites, but this created a division within the Christian community. Melus was another Chaldean bishop sent by the Chaldean Patriarch in 1874. He was also not accepted and was compelled to leave in 1882. The Syrian Christians of Trichur and surrounding areas, known as Surais, are the followers of the Schism that resulted. They owe allegiance to the East Syrian Nestorian Patriarch and remained as a seperate Churuch. Mar Abdisho Thondanat Metropolitan was consecrated by the Assyrian Patriarch Mar Ruwel Shimun of Kurdistan in 1862 (eventhough Latin authorities in Mosul did not permit the Patriarch to consecrate a bishop for India) after the return of Mar Thoma Rocos to the Middle East.   After Mar Elia Mellus left India in 1882 Mar Abdisho Thondanat was head of the group. In 1887, Pope separated the Kerala Syrian Catholics from Verapoly and brought them under the Syro Malabar Vicariates of Trichur and Kottayam. Bishop Adolph Medlycott, the first Vicar Apostolic appointed by the Pope for the Trichur vicariate in 1887, filed a suit in 1888 for the possession of the church in Trichur.  Bishop did not succeed in this suit. During the time of his successor Bishop John Menachery, the appeal on the suit of Bishop Medlycott was decided against him. The Trichur church people immediately sent a memorandum to Chaldean Patriarch Mar Benyamin Shimun  (1903 – 1918) to send a Metropolitan to Trichur, as Mar Abdisho Thondanat had expired in November 1900.

Mar Abimalek Timotheus Metropolitan from Turkey arrived in Trichur on 27 February 1908. He spoke against the use of images in the altar of the MartMariamChurch. Another suit was filed by Michael Augustine cor-episcopa (1900-1908) against the Metropolitan whom he brought to India. In this suit the supporters of Michael Augustine cor-episcopa argued that the Trichur Christians are independent of the Patriarch as well as the Pope. His successor from Assyria, Metropolitan Mar Timotheus (1908-1945) won this suit. The Award of Political Agent to the Travancore and Cochin governments Mr. C.W.E. Cotton in April 1925 finally settled this suit that started in 1911. After the Cotton’s Award the church in Trichur removed all the statues from the altar. The name of the Church was removed fromVyakulamathavin Church to Mart Mariam (in Syriac). The Catholics who lost the suit built Vyakulamathavin  Church, known as puthanpally, near the old church. The work started in 1929 and completed in 1940. 

Efforts were made for unity in the Church, which got realised in Nov. 1995. Both the groups accepted the Gregorian calendar. Now, head of the church is Mar Aprem Metropolitan residing at Trichur and Mar Timotheos as delegate of the Patriarch in India. This Church is under the Catholicos Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East. The present Catholicos Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East H.H. Mar Dinkha IV is residing in Chicago, U.S.A. The Church in India has 29 parishes, out of which five are outside Kerala - Coimbatore, Chennai, Mumbai, Bangalore and Delhi. 

The Latin Catholic Church

The Cochin area was occupied by a large community of Christians claiming to have been converted by St. Thomas the Apostle, and using a Syrian Rite. These were brought under the jurisdiction of the Portuguese after the Synod of Diamper in 1599, and ruled by Jesuit archbishops at Angamaly, and afterwards at Cranganore After the Coonan Cross oath in 1653,   Pope Alexander deputed Carmelite Missionaries in 1657 to Malabar, most prominent among whom was Father Joseph of St. Mary, better known as Joseph Sebastiani to effect reconciliation of St. Thomas Christians of the Syro–Chaldean Rite, who left the Roman catholic church. By the efforts of Sebastiani a large  number of seceders were brought back to the Roman fold. Nevertheless, they refused to be under the authority of their lawful Archbishop or under any prelate of the Jesuit Order. Rome, being informed of the situation by Sebastiani in person, decided to entrust, the Carmelites with the spiritual care of the Syro – Chaldiaic Rite.  For this purpose the Vicariate of Malabar was erected by Pope Alexanded VII  on the 3rd December, 1659 at Cranganore and  Sebastiani was consecrated as Bishop and sent back to Malabar with the title of Vicar Apostolic and Administrator of the Archbishopric of Cranganore for the syrian catholics, while those of the Latin Rite, who had been converted by Portuguese missionaries, were attached to the Diocese of Cochin. The new Vicariate eventually established its headquarters in the island of Verapoly. The erection of the Vicariate, independent of the control of Portugal, increased the tensions between the Padroado and the Carmelites.

The conquest of Portuguese territories in Malabar and especially of Cochin in 1663 by the Dutch and the consequent explusion of all Catholic Missionaries from the territories occupied by the Dutch and elsewhere, threatened the very existence of the Malabar Vicariate. In 1663 when Sebastiani left for Goa under instruction from the Dutch, Fr. Chandy Parambil (Mar Alexander de Campo) was made the first Vicar Apostolic of Malabar for the section of Syrian Christians who adorned the Roman Catholic faith. Before long, Carmelites were allowed to resume their ministration which was by then extended also to the Catholics of the Latin Rite who were under Portuguese Protection. After the demise of Mar Alexander, no indigenous Syrian bishop was appointed to succeed him. In 1709,  the Malabar Vicariate was renamed as Vicariate of Verapoly with Bishop Agnelos Francisco as its first Vicar Apostolic. During this time the lines between the two jurisdictions were practically indefinite, and the faithful passed freely from one side to the other. In 1886, the Latin hierarchy of India was established by Pope Leo XIII, and the Vicariate of Verapoly was raised to the status of an Archdiocese, with the Rev. Dr. Leonard Mellano of St. Louis, as its first Archbishop. Along with this, the Diocese of Cochin was also resuscitated and reconstituted with 34 Latin Churches taken from the Archdiocese of Verapoly and the Diocese of Quilon. 

In 1887, Pope Leo XIII created the first Vicariates of Kottayam and Trichur exclusively for the Syrian catholics exempting them from the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Verapoly. The Archdiocese of Verapoly has thus become exclusive for Latin Catholics.

Syro-Malabar Church

Those who remained in communion of Pope after the Coonan Cross Oath later came to be known as the Syro-Malabarians. It was a name given by the Roman authorities to refer to the Catholic  St.Thomas Christians. The name Syro-Malabar was chosen apparently to avoid confusion with the Malabar rite which existed as a part of the Latin Church in the Coromandel coast of India. From 1662, European Carmelites continued to serve as bishops in the Syro-Malabar Church until 1896.

In 1858, a conflict arose between the new Apostolic Vicar of the Latin rite in Kerala, Bishop Baccinelli, and Syro-Malabar priests. In their dissatisfaction, the latter had made an appeal to the Chaldean patriarch Joseph VI Audo, who asked Rome for permission to ordain a bishop for the Syro-Malabars. The response was negative, but in spite of that the Patriarch consecrated Bishop Rocos, then set out for Rome in hopes of winning his case there.

Upon his arrival in Kerala, Bishop Rocos applied himself to persuading the local Catholics of the regularity of his mission, saying that the Chaldean Patriarch had been ordered by the Holy See to consecrate him for the care of the Patriarch's Christian communities. His fallacious claims weakened the faithful and were a source of great divisions. Soon, the majority of Syro-Malabar parishioners had left their rightful shepherd of the Latin rite, the Apostolic Vicar of Verapoly, in order to place themselves under the authority of the intruder bishop. Indeed, faithful and priests alike were very happy to welcome a bishop of their rite, whom they had hoped for for some time, and they supported Bishop Rocos' aims and behavior as best they could. Of 154 Syro-Malabar parishes, 86 joined Bishop Rocos completely and another 30 partially; only 38 remained faithful to the legitimate authority. Father Chavara of Mannanam monastry sent the Pope a petition asking him to establish the line that the Syro-Malabars were to follow. In response, Pope clearly indicated that Bishop Rocos had come to Kerala in spite of the interdiction of the Apostolic See. A few days later, even Patriarch Joseph VI Audo himself wrote from Rome to Bishop Rocos to request his return to Mesopotamia. Bishop Rocos, who had been excommunicated by the Apostolic Vicar of Verapoly, ended up submitting himself to him and obtaining his pardon and returned to Mesopotamia.

In 1887, Pope Leo XIII decreed the separation of Rite of St.Thomas Catholics from that of the Latins and created the first Vicariates of Kottayam and Trichur for the Syrian catholics (exempting them from the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Verapoly), but the Vicars Apostolic Dr Charles Lavigne and Dr Adolph Medlycott respectively appointed for them were of the Latin Rite.  Charles Lavigne, the Vicar Apostolic of Kottayam, appointed two pontifically privileged Vicars General, Msgr Mathew Makil for the Southists and Msgr Emmanuel Nidhiri for the Northists.  

In 1896 there took place a reorganization and as a result three vicariates, namely Trichur, Ernakulam and Changanacherry (shifting from Kottayam) came into existence. Three indigenous Syro-Malabar priests were ordained bishops and put in charge of these units.  After 230 years of Latin rule, on December 21, 1923 Pope Pius XI established the Syro-Malabar Hierarchy in India with Ernakulam as the Metropolitan See and Changanacherry and Trichur as its suffragans. In 1957 the diocese of Changanacherry also was made archdiocese. This resulted in an anomalous juridical situation in the Syro - Malabar Church with two archbishops of equal rank with no common head. So on 16 December 1992 Pope John Paul II declared the Syro-Malabar Church as a Major Archiepiscopal Church and appointed Cardinal Antony Padiyara, the then Archbishop of Ernakulam as the first Major Archbishop. Taking into consideration the particular situation of the Syro - Malabar Church and the poor state of health of Cardinal Antony Padiyara the Pope had appointed also a delegate of him to discharge the duties of the Major Archbishop. He was Archbishop Abraham Kattumana, who was a Vatican Ambassador in African countries. Archbishop Kattumana died unexpectedly during his visit to Rome in April 1995. Since the post was a temporary one none else was appointed to take his place. Ernakulam-Angamaly is the See of the Major Archbishop. As Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly he has his office at Ernakulam. His office as Major Archbishop is at Mount St. Thomas, 12kms away from Ernakulam town towards Kakkanad. The present Major Archbishop is Cardinal Varkey Vithayathil.

The Knanaya church

Knanaya Catholic diocese of Kottayam 

The Knanites or Southists, desendents of Kanai Thoma remained an endogamous community.  The Southists remained an autonomous unit also ecclesiastically with their own churches and priests distinct from those of the Northists. In the course of the time the Southists spread out to other parts of Kerala, especially to the capital towns of several kingdoms, such as Diamper, Thodupuzha (Chunkom), Kaduthuruthy, Kottayam and Kallissery. All the Kananites were Syrian Christians until the Koonan Cross oath when about one third joined the Jacobites. Under the East Syrian Bishops, the Knanaya Community had their own churches and priests distinct from those of the non-Knanaya St Thomas Christians. This system continued also under the Latin Rite European bishops, who governed the St Thomas Christians. In 1896 as a result  of reorganization in Syro-Malabar Church, three vicariates - Trichur, Ernakulam and Changanacherry came into existence headed by indigenous bishops. Mathew Makeil a Knanite was made the bishop of Changanacherry. Bishop Makeil appointed two Vicar General, one for the Northists and one for the Southists (Knanites). Bishop Makil had suffered considerably at the hands of the Northists who did not like a Southist to be their bishop. So Bishop Makeil,  went to Rome and requested Pope Pius X to create a separate Diocese for Knanaya people. Pope Pius X established the Diocese of Kottayam exclusively for the Kananaya Catholics on 29th of August 1911. Bishop Makil became the first Bishop of Kottayam, who has jurisdiction over all the Kananaya faithful within the provinces of Ernakulam, Changanacherry, Trichur and Tellicherry. The auxiliary bishop of Kottayam as Syncellus or representative of the Bishop of Kottayam resides at Kannur in Northern Kerala and looks after the needs of the Kananaya faithful in the Northern Kerala. In 1923, the Vicariate Apostolic of Kottayam was raised to an eparchy along with the eparchies of Trichur and Changanacherry. Bishop Kuriakose Kunnacherry presently heads the Diocese of Kottayam.

In 1921, Mar. Alexander Chulaparambil obtained from the Holy See to practice Syro-Malankara rite for the reunified people from Knanaya Jacobite church. Thus with this privilege, a few people from Knanaya Jacobite Church accepted Catholic faith and started practicing Syro-Malankara rite in the years that followed. After the re-union of Mar Ivanios and Mar Theophilos in 1930, some of the Kananaya parishes also followed the same. However instead of joining the Syro-Malankara Church they joined the diocese of Kottayam in the Syro-Malabar Church even though they follow the Antiochean liturgy. They have separate parishes and parish priests within the diocese of Kottayam.

Knanaya Jacobite diocese of Chingavanam 

The Knanaya group who accepted Jacobite faith  (about a third of the total Kananites) after the Koonan Kurisu oath continued as part of the Jacobite church. In 1910, they got their own bishopric and personal jurisdiction. This bishopric is known as Chingavanam Knanaya Bhadrasanam.The diocese was erected in 1910, with jurisdiction over all Knanaya Jacobites wherever they may be.  Mor Severios Geevarghese was the first Metropolitan of the Knanaya diocese. On 31st August 1910, Patriarch Mor Ignatius `Abded Aloho ordained Fr. Geevarghese Edavazhickal as the first Knanaya Bishop with the name Mor Severios. Mor Severios administered the Knanaya diocese residing at Kottayam Valiyapalli. Around that period, the reformation movement that was very active in Malankara rocked the Knanya Community also. At Kottayam, Kallissery and Ranny many faithful of the Knanaya community along with some priests joined the new movement and created a rift in the churches.The present Metropoletan is Koobberneethi Hakkeemo Abraham Mar Clemis, with the title "Chief Metropolitan of the East" . At present there are 1,00,000 faithful with 60 churches in India and 10 abroad. Later the Knanaya Bishop's House was shifted to Chingavanam where the 'Mor Ephrem Seminary' was established. This Knanaya diocese is directly under the holy throne of Antioch.

When the re-establishment of communion came about in 1930 some of the Kananaya parishes also followed the same. However instead of joining the Syro-Malankara Church they joined the diocese of Kottayam in the Syro-Malabar Church even though they follow the Antiochean liturgy. They have separate parishes and parish priests within the diocese of Kottayam.

Syro-Malankara church or The Malankara Rite (1930 AD)

During the 1930s one of the leading Bishops- Mar Ivanios in charge of Bethany Ashram and two other bishops of the Syrian Christians, disillusioned by the split between the Catholicos group and the Patriarch group left the Church and moved to the Roman Catholic Church, forming a group called "Reethu" (Malankara Roman Rite). Nearly a hundred thousand people went over to this new rite from the Syrian Orthodox Church. They asked only that their liturgy be preserved and that the bishops be allowed to retain their dioceses. After discussions, Rome required only that the bishops make a profession of faith and that their baptisms and ordinations be proven valid in each case. The cradle of the re-union movement was Bethany Ashram which is  officially known as Order of the Imitation of Christ (O.I.C.), founded by Mar Ivanios in 1919 at Mundanmala, Perunnad, Ranni. There are now four dioceses for over 325,000 faithful, all in Kerala State, India. The Church HQ is at Arch Bishop house, Pattom, Trivandrum.

The Malankara Rite (locally called as Malankara Reeth) is not having any difference in faith from Jacobite Church except that they accept Roman Pope as head of the Church instead of the Patriarch. The Roman Holy See accepted it as a separate Catholic Church with the name of Syro-Malankara Church. The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church is an Indian branch of the Eastern Rite. The Eastern Rites are the rites used by many of the ancient Christian churches of Eastern Europe and the Middle East that are in full communion with the Roman Catholic Church but do not follow the Latin Rite. They are also called Eastern Catholic or Uniate churches.

Anglican churches - Protestant and Episcopal Churches

There are numerous Protestant Churches and Groups in Kerala, which have origin in USA or other European Countries. Chief among them are CSI, Assemblies of God, Ceylon Pentecost, Salvation Army, Seventh Day Adventist, Church of God, Luther Mission etc. Most of these Churches have their origin after the 16^th century when the Protestant Church broke off from the Catholic Church.

Church of South India (CSI)

The Church of South India (CSI) is the result of the union of churches of varying traditions Anglican, Methodist, Congregational, Presbyterian, and Reformed-in that area. It was inaugurated in September 1947, after protracted negotiation among the churches concerned. Organized into 16 dioceses, each under the spiritual supervision of a bishop, the church as a whole is governed by a synod, which elects a moderator (presiding bishop) every 2 years. Episcopacy is thus combined with synodical government, and the church explicitly recognizes that Episcopal, Presbyterian, and congregational elements are all necessary for the church's life. The Scriptures are the ultimate standard of faith and practice. The historic creeds are accepted as interpreting the biblical faith, and the sacraments of baptism and the Lord's Supper are recognized as of binding obligation. 

Discussions concerning union had begun at a conference at Tranquebar (now Tarangambadi) in 1919, and in 1947, after India attained independence, the union was completed. The Church of South India has its own service book and communion service, both of which draw from several denominational sources. It is in limited communion with the Anglican Church and the Episcopal Church of the United States. The union, especially in its reconciliation of the Anglican doctrine of apostolic succession with the views of other denominations, is often cited as a landmark in the ecumenical movement. The Church of South India has 3.8 million members and 14000 congregations in 21 dioceses (including one diocese in northern Sri Lanka).