Caravaggio he Incredulity of Saint Thomas 1602
India has had a thriving community of Eastern Orthodox Christians, their Church being an Apostolic Church brought by Saint Thomas the Apostle to India, and they like the Byzantine Orthodox Christians also have had a history of struggle against the Latin West, the readers would get to know more about the history of this community as they keep reading. As per the book Acta Thomae, written at Edessa in CE 2- 4 centuries. Indian Orthodox Church is a strictly Asian-African Church, an Apostolic Church in continuity with the ancient West Asian Apostolic Church. This Church was established in India in the very first century by the Apostle. St. Thomas, one of the twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. It is one of the 40 or so ancient Apostolic Churches of the world. St. Thomas the Apostle, on his first mission, reached the capital of the Parthian King Gondophares, who ruled Afghanistan and Punjab with Takshasila as capital, along with the trader Abbanes, and on his second mission, he travelled to a kingdom in South India ruled by a 1st Century dynasty. According to tradition, St.Thomas evangelised this area and then crossed over to the Coromandel Coast of Southeast India. He was martyred while he was carrying out his mission at Mylapore near Madras. His body was laid to rest there and subsequently moved to Edessa in the fourth century and from there in 1141, the relics were taken to Chios, a Greek island, and on 1257 Orthano in Italy. The bone of the right hand of St. Thomas was brought to India with the permission of the Vatican. This is conserved at the church in Azhikode in Kodungalloor where St. Thomas first arrived in a ship. The original Christian tradition, followed by the Syrian Christians of Kerala in India, is described as the path of St. Thomas.
The Doubting Thomas
The description of Doubting Thomas is found in the Holy Bible, John 20:24-29 which is as follows “Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.’ Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.'”
Saint Thomas’s Mission
The apostles were together in Jerusalem and drew lots to divide the countries of the earth among themselves , so that each one should travel to the land where the Lord sent him. India fell to the lot of Thomas. He, however, was unwilling to go there, and said that because of his weakness he could not make the journey; “How can I, who am a Hebrew, travel there and, preach the Gospel to the Indians?” While he was considering this, the Saviour appeared to him in the night and said to him: Fear not, Thomas, go to India, and preach the Word there, for my spirit is with you.” He did not obey, but said: “Send me somewhere else, wherever thou wilt, for I will not go to India.” Then it happened that a merchant, named Habbanv( Abbanes ), arrived, who had received instructions from king Gundafor ( Gondophares ) to buy a carpenter and bring him to India. The’ Lord saw him, towards noon, in the market and said: “Dost thou wish to buy a carpenter? I have a slave who is a carpenter, and I wish. to sell him.” He pointed to Thomas in the distance, and agreed with Habban ( Abbanes ) to sell him for three pounds of silver. He wrote a bill of sale, which read as follows: “I Jesus, son” of Joseph the carpenter, confirm that I have sold my slave, named Judas, to you, Habban, merchant of Gundafor, king of the Indians.” When the bill of sale was ready the Saviour took Judas who was also called Thomas and led him to Habban the merchant. When Habban saw him, he said to him: Is this man your Master? The apostle answered and said: “Yes, he is my Master.” Habban said: I have bought you from him. The apostle was silent. The following morning, during his prayers, Thomas said “I shall go wherever thou wilt, Jesus. Thy will be done.”
Saint Thomas in Kerala
The beginning of Thomas mission, lay in the west of the Malabar coast of India, where according to Indian; tradition he stepped ashore for the first time in South India: in 52 A. D. at Maliankara or Malancara, Kodungalloor (Cranganore). The day of his landing was celebrated in earlier centuries with a procession of boats and the singing of songs. This place formerly lay on the north bank of the river Periyar, but is now on a small island off the coast, a few miles from the earlier capital, Muziris. Ezharappallikal or Seven and half Churches were founded across the west coast of India by St Thomas the Apostle in the first century. The churches were built at Maliankara in Kodungallur, Kollam, Niranam, Nilackal, Kokkamangalam, Kottakavu, Palayoor and Thiruvithamkode which are located in the present-day Kanyakumari. The Marthoma Pontifical Shrine – Kodungallur is considered to be the first one to be built by St Thomas after his arrival to Kodungallur in 52 AD.
Martyrdom of Saint Thomas
Saint Thomas became a martyr in 72 AD. There are different traditions regarding his death, right from a king ordering a high priest to stab him, to the Brahmins stabbing Thomas for converting multitude to Christian faith. The traditions of Malabar, Coromandel and the Persian Church held that Thomas the Apostle died near the ancient town of Mylapore. St.Thomas became a martyr in A.D.72 and was buried in Mylapore. After he was martyred at Little Mount (Chinnamala) his body was brought to Mylapore and buried inside the church he had built there. A pot containing earth, probably moistured by his blood and the lance with which he was pierced were both buried in his tomb. Today, the Shrine preserves a small bone of the Saint and the head of the lance with which the Saint was pierced. The first time Raja Mahadevan before 200 A.D. opened the tomb to get the soil where the St.Thomas was buried to cure his ailing son, the second time Merchant Khabin around 232 A.D opened the tomb to take the Apostle’s Relics to Edessa. The third time by Portuguese for renovation of church around 1523. The fourth time in 1729 as per believes during a miracle where light came out from the tomb. The fifth time in 2004 to construct underground tomb chapel. Come to India and learn more about Saint Thomas’s life and legacy, from Mar Thoma Christians, one of the many Christian communities that inhabit this great country.
Catholic Orthodox Tension in India
Church of St. Thomas Christians in the 16th century came in contact with the Roman Catholic Church through Portuguese colonialism, which after a century’s contact and interactions resulted in the enforced domination of Roman Catholicism over the church of the St. Thomas Christians. The Synod of Udayamperoor – 1599 played the decisive role in this regard. Thus this synod laid the firm foundation for all the problems which arose later on in this church. For about 54 years thereafter the St. Thomas Christians remained under Rome’s occupation and then onwards in a divided state. In 1653 through an Oath, the St. Thomas Christians’ Church as a whole overthrew their enforced subjection to Roman Catholicism and resolved to restore their freedom as a church of India and to revive their Oriental Church heritage and indigenous characteristics. Let’s Pray that not just different denominations of Christianity, but all communities live in bonhomie as Lord Jesus Christ told the world “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” Mar Thoma Christians have contributed a lot in the development of India, let’s hope that more visitors to India learn about their religion, and visit the Mar Thoma religious sites in India, the government should also develop a Mar Thoma pilgrimage circuit.
