21 November- Feast commemorating the entry of Saint Mary the Theotokos into the Jerusalem Temple.

Icon showing Joachim and Anna submitting
 the baby Mary to the Temple.
On the top left we see the angel giving food to St Mary.

Today the liturgical calendar of the Indian Orthodox Church commemorates yet another feast relating to St Mary - the feast of the entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple of Jerusalem.

The pious parents of St Mary-the Theotokos, Joachim and Anna were childless for a long time and hence had to face the shame and humiliation of the society. With tears and prayers both Joachim and Anna sought a child; Anna made a vow to dedicate the child to God. When St Mary was two years old, Joachim proposed that they take the child to the Temple to dedicate her to God, but Anna suggested that they wait one more year so that the child may not seek the father or the mother.

When the child was three years old, Joachim invited Hebrew females to accompany Mary while they take her to the Temple. As a child eager to go to her Father’s home, the young child joyfully climbed the steps of the Temple. The parents marveled, and praised the Lord, that the child had not turned back nor was she weeping for her parents.

And the priest received her, and kissed her, and blessed her, saying: “The Lord has magnified your name in all generations. In you, on the last of the days, the Lord will manifest His redemption to the sons of Israel”.

And he set her down upon the third step of the altar, and the Lord God sent grace upon her; and she danced with her feet, and all the house of Israel loved her!

St Mary-Theotokos was in the Temple of the Lord as if she were a dove that dwelt there, and she received food from the hand of an angel. She was there in the temple until her betrothal to St Joseph the Righteous.

By the intercessions of St Mary-the Theotokos and St Joseph the Righteous, may the Lord have mercy upon us.

In Christ,

Rincy John

(Ref: The Protoevangelium of James; Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume VIII, edited by Roberts and Donaldson)

16 November- National Press Day/ Alvares Thirumeni as the patron saint of the journalists.

Glory to the Triune God.

His Grace Alvares Mar Julius (of blessed memory)

November 16^th is celebrated as National Press Day in India to commemorate the establishment of the Press Council of India. This day personifies a responsible and free press in the country even though we live in an age where the fourth pillar of the democracy is seen with a questioning eye as a major chunk seems to be the mouthpiece of the ruling establishments rather than being the voice of the people.

Roughly 150 years back there lived a saintly man who used the medium of press to fearlessly expose the ills and shortcomings of the authorities- whether it was government, ecclesiastical and spoke for the rights of the common man. The Orthodox bishop- His Grace Alvares Mar Julius (of blessed memory), who also donned the garb of a journalist along with his episcopal duties and whose unorthodox, non-conformist stance on Roman church and Portuguese rule earned him the ire of the authorities.

Bishop Alvares was born and raised in Goa- a state we now associate with beaches and vacations only. Goa hardly comes to our mind when we are asked about independence movement against colonial powers. This tiny state of Goa has produced over 300 journals in a span of 140 years with a focus against colonial occupation and was home to several notable freedom fighters.

Alvares Thirumeni’s stint with journalism started somewhere in 1876/77 when he took over the editorship of ‘A Cruz’, a weekly started by Fr MA de Carvalho, as Fr Carvalho was struck with pulmonary tuberculosis. [Alvares Thirumeni is also credited with publishing a booklet on the treatment of Cholera].

Not the one to mince words Fr Alvares wasn’t afraid to call a spade a spade. For e.g. writing scathing pieces against the excesses of the Portuguese rule, he said thus about the arrival of Vasco da Gama and the conquest of Goa by Albuquerque;

“The banditry and piracy through which the rich city of Goa—the celebrated empire of the Orient—was taken, has no justification in the laws of divinity or of humankind. All manner of oratory and poetry are unable to render holy, just, and right, what was in fact the work of piracy”.

Speaking against the brutal plunder and oppression of the Portuguese, Fr Alvares said that though India was invaded many times, all forces apart from Portuguese were naturalized. Such statements were considered blasphemous in those times!

Fr Alvares critiques didn’t go well with the Portuguese ecclesiastical hierarchy and he had to soon bear the brunt when the new Archbishop Dom Antonio Sebastio Valente, known for authoritarian mindset, through a pastoral decree banned A Cruz. Fr Alvares appealed to the Crown and though he got a favorable ruling from the Goa High Court, A Cruz had lost its readers because of Archbishop’s orders which forced Fr Alvares to start another weekly- A Verdade wherein he carried his fight on what he felt was the truth (Verdade means truth).

Fr Alvares is also credited to bring out the first journal to experiment in English (in Goa)- ‘The Times of Goa. For a renaissance of the Goan political environment, he suggested to have a ‘journal in English-which is today almost a universal language’.

Fr Alvares was also a vocal opponent of the economic policies of the Portuguese. Citing the miserable economic situation of the common man, he declared that ‘a middle class Goan with land had about 650 rupees in hand annually, after paying all dues and taxes. This was scarcely sufficient to meet the needs of a family in 1877’ and that the Portuguese economic policies had strengthened Portuguese as well as British markets. In 1895 he tried to initiate a campaign to boycott all Portuguese imports.

In Alvares Thirumeni’s periodical 'O Brado Indiano' one finds the beginning of genuine Indian protest as indicated in its title. In one of its editorials in 1895, it cried to drive the beggars (the Portuguese) out from the country and proclaimed independence.

Through his newspaper Alvares Thirumeni conducted a determined campaign against the corrupt and negligent officials of the Portuguese administration of Goa. It was only a matter of time that Alvares Thirumeni’s periodicals and newspapers would become subject to state surveillance.

In the July 1985 issue of O Brado Indiano, the newspaper carried an article which invited its readers to identify the corrupt government official with the help of riddles. The administrator of Ilhas- Manuel Gomes DaCosta, thoroughly offended by the article, slapped sedition charges on Alvares Thirumeni. In the evening of 19^th August, 6 policemen in disguise stopped Alvares Thirumeni on his way back home, took advantage of his poor health, forced him into their car and took him to the police station. He was kept in a filthy, dark cell without ventilation which was 3 metres long and 1.5 metres wide. After questioning Thirumeni, the judge soon released him as he noted that the police hadn’t adopted the correct procedure. Thirumeni was arrested following evening on the charges of apostasy and to humiliate him, Thirumeni was stripped of his episcopal attire and paraded to the court in his undergarments.

In the month of September, the same year, the sepoys of the Portuguese Indian army staged a mutiny protesting the orders of moving to Mozambique. Gomes da Costa had blamed prominent Goans like the Viscount of Bardez (the mayor)- Mr. Ignacio Caetano de Carvalho and Alvares Thirumeni for instigating the sepoys and the general public to unite and fight for the cause of “India for the Indians.”! Mr. Carvalho was a Goan employed in the judiciary and owned and edited a number of newspapers in Goa (all of these were anti-establishment papers). Mr. Carvalho published a pamphlet in Bombay in defense of himself and Alvares Thirumeni stating that the rebellion had nothing to do with newspapers but had been prompted by bad governance and callousness.

The Viscount of Bardez lamented thus when writing about the unlawful sedition charges against Alvares Thirumeni-

“In all governments that are not absolutely corrupt, the functionaries are obliged when questioned, to justify themselves through legal organs and through the press. In Goa, things proceeded directly to the contrary…The attitude of the administration in India will pull back Indian society by more than 400 years”. Seems so true in today’s times!

This article just gives glimpses of Alvares Thirumeni’s stint with journalism in Goa and is not an exhaustive coverage of his works. He lived in an era with press restrictions and where harassment was a norm when one wrote against the authorities or questioned them. Even when faced with great tribulations there are fearless men and women who like Alvares Thirumeni bring truth to the public and fight on their behalf. May our Lord bless them!

May the memory of Alvares Thirumeni be eternal and may his prayers and intercession be a source of strength and refuge to the ‘truth-informers’ of our country!

In Christ,

Rincy John

****************************************

Some details about Alvares Thirumeni's publications/periodicals/newspapers in Goa are as follows:

1) Name: O Progresso de Goa

Periodicity: Weekly

Duration: Began and ended in 1883

2) O Brado Indian(The Indian Cry)       

Periodicity: Weekly

Duration: Dec. 15, 1894 to Oct. 12, 1895 (10 months)

3) Name: A Cruz

Periodicity: Fortnightly

Duration: July15, 1876 to July18, 1882.

Editors-Fr. Manuel Agostinho de Carvalho and Fr. Antonio F. X. Alvares

4) Verdade (A)

Periodicity: Weekly Periodical

Duration: July 16, 1882 to Dec. 31, 1885.

5) The Times of Goa

Periodicity: Weekly

Duration: Sep. 21, 1885 to 1889

************************************************

References: 

1. Rochelle Pinto, BETWEEN EMPIRES: Print and Politics in Goa, Oxford University Press, New Delhi © Oxford University Press 2007, Pgs 37, 40, 49, 146-9)
2. Rochelle Pinto. (2005). A Time to Publish: Pamphlets and Politics in Colonial Goa. Economic and Political Weekly, 40(9), 877-885. Retrieved from www.jstor.org/stable/4416278
3. Carmo Azevedo; ‘Public Life in Goa (1867-1887)’; Patriot and Saint- The Life Story of Bishop Mar Julius –I Page 19-23, Panjim 1988
4. Rekha Mishra, History Of The Press In Goa, Doctoral Thesis, Goa University, 2004- http://irgu.unigoa.ac.in/drs/handle/unigoa/3905; Accessed on 03 September 2019.
5. Uma Página Negra dos Annaes da História Colonial Portugueza, , Nova Goa, 1895, Pg 118- 120 (translation from Portuguese to English were done using google translate).
6. Pratima Kamat, Mutiny in the Portuguese Indian Army, Pg 92, Link here.
7. Pratima Kamat, H.G. MAR JULIUS ALVARES METROPOLITAN OF CEYLON, GOA AND INDIA: AN APOSTLE OF ‘FAITH, HOPE AND CHARITY’, Link here.
8. Henry Scholberg, Journalism in Portuguese India 1821-1961, Link here.

Journey with the Holy Bible (Posting 1)

Journey with the Holy Bible.

Verse for reflection: St Mathew 1:1

When the new year arrives most of us do make resolutions-e.g. lose weight, spend less, learn some new skills etc. In few days time we will welcome the liturgical new year ‘Kudosh Etho’ – the theme of Kudosh Etho Sunday being sanctification. Let us try as we usher in the spiritual new year to read the Holy Bible a bit more habitually- may the Lord illumine our hearts and may the prayers of the saints and holy fathers and mothers help us in this journey.

P.S. The postings will be on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Let us begin where the New Testament starts- the Gospel of St Mathew. The gospel begin begins with the genealogy of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The story starts with how the Lord became one among us.

We will ponder over two questions-

1) What was the reason for this Gospel to begin with the genealogy and

2) why did the story of salvation have our Lord become human?

Regarding the first question, St. Matthew was writing to the Jews about our Lord Jesus Christ being the Messiah King. The Israelites were waiting for the Messiah who would be a descendant of King David to redeem them (hence for the Jews the genealogy held great importance). Several Old Testament prophecies attests to this:

The Lord spoke to king David through Nathan the prophet-

"And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.” (2 Samuel 7: 16; NKJV).

““Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.

In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called:THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.”(Jeremiah 23: 5-6 and Jeremiah 33:15; NKJV).

We also see a similar prophecy in the book of Isaiah –

“And in that day there shall be a Root of Jesse, Who shall stand as a banner to the people; For the Gentiles shall seek Him, And His resting place shall be glorious.”(Isaiah 11:10; NKJV).

St John Chrysostom says that though the genealogy begins with Abraham in verse 2 onwards, the Gospel verse addresses Jesus Christ as Son of David first. It is because the memory of King David was recent in the minds of the people as compared to Abraham.

Another reason to mention the lineage is to answer heretic groups like the agnostics who hated the physical body and thus denied the incarnation of the Lord claiming Christ to be a mirage or shadow. Though this movement was prominent in second century, its roots began at a very early age. So, mentioning the lineage is an assurance of the truthfulness of God’s incarnation. (Ref: Fr Tadros Malaty, commentary on Gospel of Matthew).

In Christ,

Rincy John

18th October- Commemorating St Luke the Evangelist.

The liturgical calendar of the Indian Orthodox Church commemorates St Luke the Evangelist on 18^th October.

St Luke the evangelist was a native of Antioch, a trusted aide of St Paul, a physician, the author of the Gospel (St Luke) and Acts of the Apostles. 

The Church historian Eusebius tells us about St Luke thus:

“But Luke, who was of Antiochian parentage and a physician by profession, and who was especially intimate with Paul and well acquainted with the rest of the apostles, has left us, in two inspired books, proofs of that spiritual healing art which he learned from them. One of these books is the Gospel, …. The other book is the Acts of the Apostles which he composed not from the accounts of others, but from what he had seen himself.”- Eusebius, Church History Book III, Chapter 4, NPNF Series II, Volume I.

St Jerome states:

“Luke a physician of Antioch, as his writings indicate, was not unskilled in the Greek language. An adherent of the apostle Paul, and companion of all his journeying, he wrote a Gospel,.. He also wrote another excellent volume to which he prefixed the title Acts of the Apostles, a history which extends to the second year of Paul's sojourn at Rome, that is to the fourth year of Nero, from which we learn that the book was composed in that same city….. Some suppose that whenever Paul in his epistle says “according to my gospel” he means the book of Luke and that Luke not only was taught the gospel history by the apostle Paul who was not with the Lord in the flesh, but also by other apostles. This he too at the beginning of his work declares, saying “Even as they delivered unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word. “So he wrote the gospel as he had heard it, but composed the Acts of the apostles as he himself had seen. He was buried at Constantinople to which city, in the twentieth year of Constantius, his bones together with the remains of Andrew the apostle were transferred.” – Jerome, On Illustrious Men, Chapter 7, NPNF Series II, Volume III.

St Paul addresses St Luke the evangelist as the ‘beloved physician’ (Colossians 4:14); in the same chapter (verses 7 onwards) wherein the final greetings is given- St Luke’s name is not counted among the ones who are ‘of circumcision’, so it is unlikely that St Luke was of a Jewish ancestry.

The tradition attributes that the other disciple in the road to Emmaus to be St Luke (Gospel of St Luke 24: 13 onwards) and credits St Luke with writing the first icons of St Mary-the Theotokos.St Luke accompanied St Paul on his second missionary journey, and in St Luke, St Paul found a friend who was to be with him, in happiness and troubles alike.

We first encounter St Luke in the Acts chapter 16- St Luke gives the details in the third person (‘they’) and here we see him changing to first person plural (‘we’). “Therefore, sailing from Troas, we ran a straight course to Samothrace, and the next day came to Neapolis, and from there to Philippi..” (Acts 16:11 onwards). The reference to ‘we’ continues till the group departs from Philippi. Perhaps, St Luke was asked to be in Philippi to carry on the gospel work.

St Luke forsook a promising life to be a fellow worker to St Paul in his ministry. Couple of years back, I happen to study in a Sunday School Teacher’s conference that we often wrongly use the word ‘Enthusiasm’ in our day to day conversations. If we see the etymological root of the word ‘Enthusiasm’, we learn that it focuses on ‘en-theos’ which means ‘divinely inspired’.

When you are divinely inspired to do a work- you do not worry about the ups and downs that come in your way rather you just march ahead. When we see references to St Luke by St Paul in his various letters and of course in the book of Acts of the Apostles- we see a physician, an artist, a fellow worker who is ‘enthusiastic’ about his Christian mission. He provides his unflinching support to St Paul through thick and thin of his ministry, not bothered about the problems he is facing/will face nor interested in getting any due recognition.

Such marvelous was his enthusiasm for his support to St Paul’s ministry throughout his life, that in his farewell epistle, St Paul exclaims ‘Only Luke is with me’ !(2 Timothy 4:11)

May the intercessions of St Luke help us to be faithful to our Lord no matter what the situation is and may by his prayers may we be divinely inspired in all our good works which we render unto our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!

In Christ,
Rincy John

Never be boastful about the offerings to church or charity.

Gems from the desert fathers- ‘Never be boastful about the offerings to church or charity.’

St. Melania the Elder, in a visit she made to the holy solitaries who inhabited the deserts of Egypt, came to Abba Pambo's monastery on mount Nitria. She found the holy abbot sitting at his work, making mats. She gave him three hundred pounds weight of silver, desiring him to accept that part of her store for the necessities of the poor among the brethren.

Abba Pambo, without interrupting his work, or looking at her or her present, said to her that God would reward her charity. Then turning to his disciple, he bade him take the silver, and distribute it among all the brethren in Lybia and the isles who were most needy, but charged him to give nothing to those of Egypt, that country being rich and plentiful.

Melania continued some time standing, and at length said: "Father, do you know that here is three hundred pounds weight of silver?"

The abbot, without casting his eye upon the chest of silver, replied: "Daughter, He to whom you made this offering, very well knows how much it weighs without being told. If you give it to God who did not despise the widow's two mites, and even preferred them to the great presents of the rich, say no more about it."  

(Ref: The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints, Rev. Alban Butler, Volume VII, Published by D. & J. Sadlier, New York).

************************

“And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury,  and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites.  So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.” (St Luke 21:1-4, NKJV)

14th October- Commemorating St Athanasius of Alexandria

Coptic icon of St Athanasius of Alexandria

The liturgical calendar of the Indian Orthodox Church commemorates the ‘Defender of Orthodoxy’- St Athanasius of Alexandra on October 14th.

There is a beautiful song penned by Guru Rabindranath Tagore in Bengali - “Jodi tor dak shune keu na ashe tobe ekla cholo re” (translated as ‘If no one responds to your call, then go on your way alone’). 

This song exhorts the listener to continue their journey even if they face abandonment or don’t receive any support from near and dear ones.

Today we commemorate a man whose very life echoes this song- St Athanasius of Alexandria. For his steadfastness to the Christian faith, the world described him by the saying: "Athanasius against the world." (‘Athanasius contra mundum’). 
When it seemed that the entire world was siding upto Arian heresy, God prepared one man- to act courageously, to act alone, and hold aloft the banner of Orthodoxy!

The following tradition on the childhood of St Athanasius has a vague resemblance to the life of Prophet Samuel and how in his infancy he lived under the care of priest Eli and later on guided the people of Israel.

The then Pope of Alexandrian Church- Pope Alexandros after being elevated to the Patriarchal throne invited all the clergy to his patriarchal palace. (In fact Arius wanted the patriarchal throne for himself, however through Divine Guidance it was St Alexandros who was chosen for the apostolic throne. Arius, full of vengeance was determined to go to any extent to inflict harm on the Church).

While Pope Alexandros was waiting for the arrival of his guests, he looked out from the windows of his palace which faced the sea, and saw a joyful gathering of children on the beach. Upon closer observation, the Pope noted that the children were seriously imitating the sacrament of Holy Baptism. One child was ‘made the bishop’ who was administering the Sacrament with much devotion. This child was none other than Athanasius!

The Pope was astonished to see how perfect and beautifully were the children ‘performing’ the sacrament. He summoned some clergy and asked them to bring the children to the Patriarchal Palace. With much love and care, Pope Alexandros interacted with the children and inquired them of the Sacrament of Holy Baptism that they were imitating. The ‘bishop’ Athanasius came forward and answered all the questions. The Pope was amazed at the knowledge of Christian Faith that this child possessed. He gave sweets to the little children and asked them to bring their parents to him the next day.

The next day when the parents of the little children came to the Patriarchal palace, the Pope gave an account of what happened the previous day and made them promise that they would give to the Church such sons who had prematurely exercised such holy functions. It is in this way, that Athanasius, who was so eager to serve God, took his place among the clergy, in the same way that the prophet Samuel was brought up in the temple. He lived there during the years of his youth, and he was destined to wear the pontifical crown in his old years.

As the trusted secretary of the Pope of Alexandria (who was advanced in years during the Council of Nicaea), the young deacon Athanasius (now in his twenties) was zealous in upholding the True Christian faith. The magnificence courtroom of Emperor Constantine witnessed the significant Ecumenical Council- The Council of Nicaea attended by 318 venerable fathers. In the midst of these noteworthy individuals, there spoke this young brilliant deacon, defending the Divinity of Lord Christ against the heretic Arius.

St Athanasius endured all the harassment and trials that Arius and his team came up with- false accusations, lies, character assassinations and so on.After the departure of Pope Alexandros, St Athanasius was chosen as the worthy successor to the apostolic throne. Suffering five exiles and various tribulations by Arians, St Athanasius was indeed the caring shepherd who was ready to undergo and face any misery to protect his sheep from the incorrect doctrines and false teachers. 

In one of his exiles, he spent time with the blessed Anthony and other desert monastics. St Antony willed that after he died, St Athanasius be given one of his sheepskins. St Athanasius reminisces that ‘even to look on them (the sheepskin) is as it were to behold Antony’.

The contribution of St Athanasius to the theological world is immense. His work ‘On the Incarnation’ is a classic. He also wrote ‘The Life of St Antony’ and many other treatises.

The faithful shepherd departed in peace after a tenure of 45 years on the apostolic throne.

Below are his final words from the work ‘On the Incarnation’; may we be blessed with the grace to follow this holy father’s advice:

“But for the searching and right understanding of the Scriptures there is need of a good life and a pure soul, and for Christian virtue to guide the mind to grasp, so far as human nature can, the truth concerning God the Word. One cannot possibly understand the teaching of the saints unless one has a pure mind and is trying to imitate their life.”

O holy father St Athanasius, pray for us- particularly the children and youth that their hearts be directed towards the loving call of the Lord and may they grow in zeal and love for the Lord. May the prayers and intercessions of St Athanasius be our refuge.

In Christ,
Rincy John

(Ref: ‘St Alexandros’- Works of late Deacon Youssef Habib Youssef & his brother Meleka Habib Youssef, Pg 11-12; St Athanasius- ‘On the Incarnation’)

Little pearls from the Pearl Island -Part-4

Glory to the Triune God!

Our Lady of Good Death church/Bouna Morte Church.

The Hulftsdorf region in Colombo was once the the administrative center for the successive Portuguese, Dutch and British colonial governments. The region now is a business district; while driving through busier congested lanes one reaches the church compound adjoining a school whose name you are bound to look at twice- St Sebastian Muslim Mahavidyalayam. This church is 'Our Lady of Good Death church/Bouna Morte church' that had a splendid past of being the cathedral church of the Independent Catholic mission in Ceylon spearheaded by Alvares Thirumeni.

The origin of this church goes back to 21 February 1845 when a piece of land in Belmont Street, Hulsdorf, was granted by the British authorities to a group of Burghers, self-identified as “Independent Catholics”, to build on it a Cathedral entitled to Our Lady of Good Death, often known as Buona Morte Church. The leader of this group, the Catholic surgeon Dr. John Bonifacio Misso (1797-1864), was Consul General of Portugal and an adamant supporter of Padroado, the royal patronage of the Portuguese crown over the Catholic missions in Asia.¹

For centuries, following the principle of Padroado/Royal Patronage, the King of Portugal had nominated the bishops of the Latin rite in India and the diocese of the other former Portuguese colonies. The Padroado Real had provided Goans an opportunity to serve in Ceylon. With the signing of the signing of the Concordat between the Holy See and Portugal in 1886- Portugal renounced its claims in Ceylon and Goa’s religious jurisdiction in that territory ceased. This abolishment of Padroado caused an unrest amongst several Goan and Ceylonese Catholics who still had strong sentimental links to Portugal.

In 1887, a Goan priest, Padre Alvares, journeyed to Ceylon to rally the Goan clergy posted there in their fight against the Concordat of 1886 (Padre Alvares in later times visited Ceylon in the capacity as the Metropolitan of Goa, India excluding Kerala and Ceylon to perform his episcopal duties). It was in Colombo that Padre Alvares met Malankara Metropolitan Pulikkottil  Joseph Mar Dionysius II and it was probably then when the journey of Padre Alvares to the Orthodox church initiated. Independent Catholic Mission was the name of the group/parishes (of Goa, Ceylon) which along with Padre Alvares, broke from Roman catholic church and joined the Malankara Orthodox church. Alvares Thirumeni’s consecration as a bishop was held on July 29^th, 1889 at Old Seminary, Kottayam.

In its initial years the mission had around 5000 members- however as the time progressed, because of the lack of qualified priests by 1903 the situation had worsened. After the departure of Alvares Thirumeni, the mission had begun to weaken and disintegrate.

Vijaya Vidyasagara, noted Sri Lankan socialist and St Paul’s Kynsey road parish member provides the below information about this church in year around 1937-38 when a Russian Orthodox delegation led by Archbishop Nestor had visited Ceylon:

Archbishop Nestor wanted to have a church that could be used fully by the Orthodox community then in Colombo. He was able to secure a church that was formerly Roman Catholic, which had been taken over by the Independent Catholic mission with the current vicar as Fr Joseph Alvares (believed to be a nephew of Alvares Thirumeni). Fr Alvares’s parish comprised of seventy people representing the remnants of the Independent catholic mission. It had at one time had outstanding laymen like Dr Lisboa Pinto and Armand Dsouza among its members. Fr Alvares wanted to leave for India and therefore was ready to have the Archbishop take over his church. The author was able to join the Anglican and the Orthodox clergy when they visited that church.

The church had several altars with life size statues but were removed as the Orthodox people preferred not to have them and had plans to cover them with altar frontals. The author’s aunt (mother’s sister) helped much in some of the sewing and adaptation of the high altar to suit Orthodox norms. 

Fr Alvares left for India and Fr Basil Jeyawardene, the Anglican priest of St Paul’s Church Kynsey Road, (who had very cordial and friendly relationship with the Malankara and the Russian Orthodox church) secured the services of a Syrian Orthodox priest to look after the Independent Catholic congregation and the Russian Orthodox community.

The Syrian Orthodox priest sought to minister to the congregation and when it came to the Mass, the author notes that the priest would have had difficulty for he used his Syrian rite in place of Latin then being used by the church. The author also feels that it might have been easier for an Anglican priest to say the Mass according to the Latin rite but perhaps these matters were not thought properly.

So, the result was that influential persons in the congregation created dissension and sought to engineer a return back to Rome. Once day some muscle men were deployed to chase the Syrian priest and take over the church and the Papal flag was hoisted that day the church. Archbishop Mason of the Roman Catholic Church was present to bless the hoodlums and the Roman Catholic faithful who thereafter took over the church. So, came to an end what might have been an interesting and unique experiment in inter-church relation.*

Vijaya Vidyasagara was a member of the Lanka Sama Samaj Party. One of the founding members of this party was Ms Susan DeSilva whose grandfather Stephen DeSilva was the secretary of the Independent Catholic mission in Colombo. While the mission faced various challenges -most importantly that of the lack of priests, he had sent letters to another independent catholic movement based in Philippines and requested two priests intelligent and of good moral conduct as they were not getting sufficient priests to work independent of Rome.

As John Achen, I and baby Alvares were about to leave the church, the caretaker lady who stays in nearby convent asked baby (in Tamil) if he came to visit the church. To which baby Alvares (who usually doesn’t respond to strangers) said promptly in Malayalam- Alvares Thirumeni is here. Perhaps infants because of their pure heart can see angelic beings and departed holy fathers and mothers. We went back with immense thanksgiving to the Lord in our hearts knowing very well that our departed holy fathers and mothers are pleading for the Church unceasingly.

To be continued…

In Christ,

Rincy John

References:

1) First para of the Invitation letter for the workshop on- A Global and Local History of the Buona Morte Church oraganised by The St. Sebastian Parish of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Colombo, the Madras Diocese of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, and the Forum Internationale Wissenschaft of Universität Bonn on 22-23 November 2018.

2) Azevedo Carmo; ‘On Joining the Syrian Orthodox Church (1887-1894); Patriot and Saint- The Life Story of Bishop Mar Julius –I Page 25-26, Panjim 1988

3) Kamat, P.P., (2014). The Goa-Ceylon religious connection: a review of the ‘The Indian Cry’ of Alvares Mar Julius, Archbishop of Ceylon, Goa and India. Sabaragamuwa University Journal.

4) Peter-Ben-Smit, Old Catholic and Philippine Independent Ecclesiologies in History, Brill’s Series in Church History, Volume 52, Copyright 2011 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands, Pg 196.

5) HERMANN, A. (2014). The Early Periodicals of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente (1903–1904) and the Emergence of a Transregional and Transcontinental Indigenous-Christian Public Sphere. Philippine Studies: Historical & Ethnographic Viewpoints, 62(3/4), 549-565. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/24672324

6) * Vijaya Vidyasagara, Memoirs of a Christian and a Socialist, The Ecumenical Institute for Study and Dialogue, Colombo, © 2016, Pgs 11,12 with minor edits. Also included are minor updates from Perpetual Embers: A Chronicle of ROCOR’s Missionary Efforts in India, Rassophore Monk Angelos, Holy Trinity Orthodox Seminary, Pg-31

Little pearls from the Pearl Island -Part-3

Glory to the Triune God!

Church of St Paul the Apostle, Kynsey Road and Fr. Basil Jeyawardane (d.1958)- A close friend of the Malankara Orthodox Church.

Church of St Paul the Apostle, Kynsey Road, Colombo

Looking at the dome of church building adjacent to the Colombo National hospital, one wonders if they have encountered an Orthodox church in the city. This is the Church of St Paul the Apostle, Kynsey Road in Colombo, an Anglican church which celebrated 200 years of existence on September 18, 2016.

The construction of the St Paul’s Church was initiated by Rev Basil Jeyawardene in June 1930. The parish was originally located in a placed called Pettah in Colombo, where noise rendered the holding of the services impossible. In 1926, the decision was made to sell the church premises and use the funds to build a new church, in closer proximity to the homes of the people. On June 1, 1930 Rev Basil Jeyawardene assumed charge and addressed the very important need to construct the new Church at Kynsey Road.

Some preliminary thinking had already taken place and the general inclination was in the direction of a parish building modeled on traditional Gothic lines. However, Fr Basil did not favour this line of thought. Having examined many possibilities, they decided to adopt the Byzantine architecture based on the model of St Sofia Cathedral, in Istanbul Turkey. 
(Ref:  Rev Basil Jeyawardene, Church of St Paul the Apostle, Ceylon Today, December 1954, Vol III, No. 12, Page-23 and Church of St Paul the Apostle, Kynsey Road, Second Centenary Commemoration, 1816-2016, Pg-6).

The church built in Easter Orthodox style, has the priest facing the Altar during the Mass unlike the Anglican tradition wherein the priest faces the people. According to Rev Fr Dushyanta, the current vicar, the church didn’t have mics up until recently as the architecture supplemented the voices to be heard in the whole church.

Altar

Dome of the church

This parish did have a fruitful association with the Malankara Orthodox Church during the life and times of Rev Basil Jeyawardene. The magazines of Church of St Paul the Apostle note the following:

• A memorable occasion of such contact was the visit in October 1937, of His Holiness Baselios Geevarghese II, Catholicose of the East accompanied by Abo Alexios (later his Grace Alexio Mar Theodosius Thirumeni)- Abbott of the Bethany Monastery, Fr Matthew and deacon Koshy. The liturgy of St James was celebrated by Abo Alexios with the full majesty of the ritual of the Syrian church. It was an inspiring act of worship for the 360 persons who were present.

•  In June 1939, the parish was again honoured by the visit of His Grace Alexios Mar Theodosius Thirumeni, Bishop of Quilon/Kollam accompanied by Rev Fr Isaac and Rev Fr Mathews of the Syrian church. They joined the congregation of 16 priests and 327 lay persons in the Mass officiated by rev Fr Basil Jeyawardene.
• A year later, on 30^th June 1940- the Sunday of the Octave of SS Peter and Paul, St Paul’s parish had the pleasure of the presence of the His Grace Alexios Mar Theodosius Thirumeni on the occasion of a service celebrated by the Lord Bishop of Colombo the Rt Rev. Cecil D Horsley.

• After a lapse of many years the parish received yet another delegation from the Malankara Orthodox Church on Sept 15, 2015 led by His Grace Yuhanon Mar Diascoros Metropolitan along with few priests. They jointly celebrated the Holy Eucharist in the tradition of the Syrian liturgy assisted by Rev Jeyaraj (current vicar of St Thomas Church Gintupitiya) and Rev Cannon Joshua Rutnam, which was attended by parishioners as well as visitors.

The parish also remembers the services rendered by the Orthodox priest from India- Rev Fr KM Simon as a member of the Clergy staff from January 1941 to June 1944. During this period, he was for a short time the Priest- in -charge whilst Fr Basil was on an overseas holiday.

(Ref: Pg 22, Church of St Paul the Apostle, Kynsey Road, Fifty Years of Worship-1934-1984 and Pgs 29-30, Church of St Paul the Apostle, Kynsey Road, Second Centenary Commemoration, 1816-2016)

St Paul’s Kynsey Road was also visited by Russian Orthodox dignitaries- Archbishop Nestor and Archimandrite Nathaniel in 1937-38. As a dear friend of the Orthodox Church, Fr Basil Jeyawardene gave assistance to the Indian and Russian missions in Ceylon.

Vijaya Vidyasagara, noted Sri Lankan socialist and St Paul’s Kynsey Road parish member, who as a young child saw the visits of both the Indian Orthodox and Russian Orthodox dignitaries to this parish, states that it was Fr Basil Jeyawardene who secured the services of a Syrian Orthodox priest to look after the Independent Catholic church congregation (i.e. the community of Alvares Thirumeni’s mission in Ceylon) and Russian Orthodox community in times of need. 

(Ref;Vijaya Vidyasagara, Memoirs of a Christian and a Socialist, The Ecumenical institute for Study and Dialogue, Colombo, © 2016, Pgs 10- 12).

To be continued…

In Christ,

Rincy John

Link to Part-1 of the article is here.

Link to Part- 2 of the article is here.