St. Thomas Evangelical Fellowship of India

History

On 10 July 1965 Bishop John Varghese died and the Prathinidhi Sabha (Representative Body) of the church authorised the church council to take steps to consecrate two persons as bishops, but this was prevented by a few council members, and no bishops were elected. Prathinidhi Sabha was dissolved according to the Episcopal election rules of the church. A new Prathinidhi Sabha was constituted, but could not elect a new bishop to the church. The Prathinidhi Sabha and the council passed motions excommunicating the only bishop in the church, K.N. Oommen.

Thus after a few years, some members of the new church left. The St. Thomas Evangelical fellowship was formed in 1971 by the remaining members. The members of the Church who accepted K.N. Oommen as the presiding bishop of the church formed a society under the Travancore Cochin Literary and Charitable Societies Registration Act XII of 1955, and registered it in 1971. A settlement to the disputes in the church was reached in 1974, but did not last.

In 1977, Rev. P. S. Varghese was consecrated as the bishop of the fellowship. The reformists who came out from the Mar Thoma Church decided this new church should be an Episcopal church. The fellowship was led by Rev. P.C. Zachariah, Bishop Oommen, and Bishop P.S. Varghese. Bishop Oommen was called home in 1984, and Rev. M.K. Koshy, the Secretary of the Fellowship, was consecrated as bishop in 1985.

A plot of land containing 2 acres (8,100 m²) and 65 cents was purchased for the fellowship in 1985, and Rev. P.C. Zachariah donated the present office building of the fellowship, which has an area of 6,000 sq ft (560 m²), in memory of his late wife Elizaba. Zachariah and his children gave the present auditorium, with a capacity of over 1,000, to the Fellowship; it was named the Poozhikalayil Thomas & Mariamma Chacko Memorial Auditorium, as a memorial to Rev. Zachariah's late parents.

A Sevinee Mandiram (Women’s Home) was constructed with the help of church members. A seminary in memory of the late Bishop Oommen was started in 1989. The foundation stone of the Seminary was laid by Carl McIntire, President of the International Council of Christian Churches in 1987.

After P.C. Zachariah died in 1992, his children, Dr. Chacko P. Zachariah, Dr. Mammen P. Zachariah, Dr. Zachariah P. Zachariah, and Mrs. Mary George, donated their ancestral property at Trivandrum to the Fellowship.

There were then some reconciliation talks with the ruling group in the church. At the end of the reconciliation talks in 1995, the Vice-President of the Fellowship, Bishop M.K. Koshy, along with a few Presbyters and their followers, joined the other group. To strengthen the fellowship, Rev. A.I. Alexander was consecrated as the bishop of the fellowship in 1995. Bishop P.S. Varghese was called home in 1996. The disputes between the two factions in the church were settled in 2000, and the two sides decided to function as two independent churches, St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India (Fellowship), and St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India. On 25 December 2007 the St. Thomas Evangelical Fellowship of India merged with St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India. The St. Thomas Evangelical Fellowship of India will remain as a charitable organisation for the propagation of the Gospel.

Office holders

Facts and legends about Christianity in ancient Tamilakam

Some legends of St. Thomas were created during Portuguese times. The Portuguese imagined that Namboothiris and Kingdom of Cochin actually supported by the Portuguese in 1503, founding a new dynasty existed in the Jesus Christ's time too. Portuguese imagined that the Syrian immigrants from Babylon at the 9th century AD practising Nestorianism were actually Namboothiri Brahmins converted by St. Thomas himself. Ancient Tamilakam including the presentday Tamil Nadu and Kerala was actually ruled by the Tamil Chera Dynasty not the Kingdom of Cochin. Namboothiris first appeared in the 7th century AD after the invasions of Chalukya dynasty when they migrated from Tulunadu. The Namboothiris migrated to Karnataka during the rule of Kadamba king Mayuravarma from Ahichatra in 345 AD not earlier.Sangam Literature written during the early first millennia never mentioned Christianity.Christianity was not a Known religion in ancient Tamilakam while Jainism and Dravidian Hinduism. Numerous Sangam Literature never mentions Syrian Christians in ancient Kerala.Tharisapalli plates at 825 AD was the first instance when Syrian immigrants signing in Hebrew, Pahlavi and Kufic. Very few Christians existed in Kerala prior to Fr Jordanus a French Dominican monk converted Hindus to Christianity at Quilon increasing the population to thousands.

While the Acts of Saint Thomas written by Jewish poet Bardaisan say that Saint Thomas was martyred at Indus Valley or in the adjoining areas of Persia, the legends created during the Portuguese era state that he was martyred at Mylapore. Roman Catholicism was introduced by Europeans and it became the major religion of Kerala during the Portuguese era (1498 AD - 1575 AD). Most of the Kerala Christians were practising Catholics during that era. All the Portuguese settlements in Kerala and Tamil Nadu such as Mylapore Mattancherry Angamaly and Quilon housed large number of Christians. Vasco da Gama with his 150 Portuguese soldiers could protect the Kingdom of Cochin against Samuthiris. The descendants of Portuguese soldiers completely disappeared from Kerala. Some with physical features of Caucasian race such as fair colour, sharper features, Blue Grey eyes and big build randomly appear at Kerala contrasting with the indigenous dark Dravidian people since then.

The present Kerala State (named Kerala in 1956; "Kerala" means "the land of coconut palms") includes most of the former Travancore, Cochin, and Malabar princely provinces. Then Kodungallore was the main sea port in Kerala. Upon his arrival, St. Thomas was received as a dignitary by the King of Cochin installed by Portuguese in 1503, a sea port in Kerala, India. Cochin was a powerful and prominent princely state at that time. St. Thomas explained his religion, Christianity, to the king. The king was impressed by his words and more by the prospects of expanding business by establishing new trade links. The King of Cochin, as well as the natives in Kerala, were very hospitable and accommodating towards Apostle Thomas and the visitors. Brahmins - the highest among the Hindu castes - were the only people who had any type of education. The communications of the king were carried out by the Brahmins. The legend has it that the King was so enamored with the new religion that he ordered sixtyfour well-to-do Brahmin families to join the new religion. The king gave prominence to the Christians in his palace and in his kingdom. The two dozen Christian families who had come with St. Thomas along with the local Brahmins constituted the first Church. St.Thomas converted many to Christianity, and eventually went to Madras State (now Tamil Nadu) to preach, and was later murdered by the natives at Mylapore near the city of Madras. He is buried at St. Thomas Mount, near Madras.

Thus the first Church in India was established on the Kerala Coast and became known as the 'Malankara Church.' Kerala is bordered on its north and east by the mountains and on its west and south by the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. The strip of land - Kerala - lying between these mountains, the sea, and the ocean [consisting of Travancore, Cochin, & Malabar (Calicut or Kozhikode)] was known as 'Malankara' in the old days (Mala = Mountain, Kara = Coast). After the British came, they started referring to the region as the 'Malabar Coast' instead of 'Malankara'. Thus the ancient Malankara Church in Kerala was also called the 'Malabar Church'. From the sun-worshipping Brahmins, the ancient church adopted some customs; namely facing to the East (rising sun) when praying, tying Mangalyasutra or Minnu (a necklace with a special cross) and the giving of a Sari - Pudavakoda or Manthrakodi - ("wedding dress") to the bride by the bridegroom at the time of marriage, etc.

As it was started with the Middle Eastern visitors and immigrants, a relationship to the Antioch Church was developed from the early centuries. From the 2nd century onwards, the bishops of the churches in Kerala were ordained by the Patriarch of Antioch. This system continued for a long time. Except for the ordination of bishops, the Church was independent. For the first three centuries this church had no other contact with Churches outside. Middle easterners, including Christians, Jews, and Muslims kept migrating to the Kerala coast even into the early 20th century.

In 345 AD, one Thomas, a prominent and wealthy Merchant of Cana (Syria - Palestine), came to Cranganore (ancient Muziris) in Travancore (now part of Kerala) with a group of 400 Persian Christian immigrants as their leader. In those days, many Christians left Persia because of the persecution of Christians during the reign of Emperor Sapor II of Persia (AD 310-379). Thomas the Merchant and his group were welcomed by the kings and their subjects in Kerala, and were granted several special privileges. The people in Kerala started referring to Thomas, the Merchant of Cana, as "Syrians' Knaye Thommen". One subsect of the present day Syrians in Syria are still called 'Knanaye Christians' and can trace their origins to this group of immigrants from Persia. The Persian Christians who immigrated with Thomas of Cana joined the Malankara Christians in their Churches for worship. From thence in the 4th century, the 'Malankara Church' became known as the "Syrian Church" or the "Malankara Syrian Church" and its members became known as the "Syrian Christians".

Catholicism in India

In the 6th century the Syrian Church came under the influence of the Nestorians. Then in the 16th century, the Portuguese, under Vasco da Gama, came to Kerala. Soon after the arrival of the Portuguese in India in the 16th century, this small church was brought under the hegemony of the Roman Catholic Church. In the Koonan Kurishu Satyam many members of the Church declared themselves independent of the Catholic Church; after fifty-four years (in AD 1653) it reasserted its independence, though many members joined the Catholic Church.

The re-established Church consecrated Mar Thoma I as the metropolitan by the laying on of hands of twelve presbyters of the Church. The brief Catholic association had left its mark on the emancipated Church; this led to more dependence on the Syrian Patriarch of Antioch, whose Orthodox doctrines prevailed. The Church came into close contact with the Jacobite Syrian Church of Antioch. As a result of this, some of the doctrines and practices of the Antiochean Church such as the doctrine of Real Presence (metousiosis), Invocation of Saints, Prayer for the dead, Traditions of the fathers and most of their rituals, gained firm ground in the ancient Church of Malabar.

Acts of Thomas

The acts of Thomas written by Jewish poet Bardesan at 220 AD indicate that St. Thomas was martyred in the Indus Valley of Western India, now in Pakistan. The Acts of Thomas, sometimes called by its full nameThe Acts of Judas Thomas: 2nd/3rd century (c. 180-230) The Apostles cast lots as to where they should go, and to Thomas, twin brother of Jesus, fell India. Thomas was taken to King Gondophares the ruler of Indo-Parthian Kingdom as an architect and carpenter by Habban. St. Thomas spent the money allotted to him by King Gondophares for the construction of the palace to poor. When the king's seriously ill brother Gad convinced the king that he actually saw the palace built by St. Thomas in heaven for King Gondophares, the king allowed St. Thomas to leave the country. The journey to India is described in detail. After a long residence in the court at Taxila he ordained leaders for the church, and left in a chariot for the kingdom of Mazdei. According to the Acts of St.Thomas the Kingdom of Mazdai, in the Western India, Indus Valley, was ruled by King Misdeus. Parts of Indus Valley were then ruled by Persians called the Indo-Parthian Kingdom. Some Greek Satraps, the descendants of Alexander the Great, were vassals to the Indo-Parthian Kingdom. King Misdeus was infuriated when St. Thomas converted the Queen Tertia, Son Juzanes sister in law Princess Mygdonia (a province of Mesopotamia) and her friend Markia. King Misdeus led St. Thomas outside the city of Calamina and ordered four soldiers to take him to the nearby hill where the soldiers speared St. Thomas and killed him. Syphorus was elected the first Presbyter by the brethren after the death of St. Thomas while Juzanes the prince became the deacon. The names of the King Misdeus, Tertia,Juzanes, Syphorus, Markia and Mygdonia suggest Greek descent or Hellenised Persian descent. There, after performing many miracles, he died a martyr. During the rule of Vasudeva I, the Kushan emperor, the bones of St. Thomas were transferred from Indus Valley to Edessa.

Work of the Church Missionary Society, the Malayalam Bible, and the Reformation

Perhaps, the greatest event in the history of the Malabar Church was the publication of the Malayalam Bible by the Church Missionary Society (C.M.S.), an arm of the Anglican Church of England. (Malayalam is the mother tongue in Kerala and is one of the major Indian languages). Their mission work led to a revival and reform in the Church. Abraham Malpan (Malpan means Syriac Professor) and a few others started a movement to reform the Syrian Church. He emphasised the place of "the open Bible" and the importance of the worth and freedom of the individual. In a memorandum submitted by Abraham Malpan and his associates to Colonel Munro, the British Resident in Travancore-Cochin, requesting his help and support, they stated the reforms to the Church they considered necessary. The Church authorities resisted, and the reformists seceded.

The movement to separate was led by Abraham Malpan Achen (achen means "priest") and Palakunnathu Mathews Mar Athanasius ("bishop"), who had been excommunicated by Pulikottil Metran (metran means "bishop"). This led to the formation of the Mar Thoma Syrian Church of Malabar, which had lost all court cases against the parent church, and started with five and a half Edavakas (parishes). Abraham Malpan made certain changes in the liturgy of the Holy Communion and other offices of the Church as some of the prayers of the liturgy were deemed to be against the Scriptures.

Basis of the reformation

The changes made by Abraham Malpan in the liturgy for the Holy Communion and accepted by the General Synod of the Mar Thoma Church show the fundamental tenets of the Reformed Church enumerated below:

The following changes were made to the practices of the Church:

Mar Thoma Church

The new Church grew up as an independent, indigenous, episcopal and evangelical Church. Its sole basis for all matters of faith was the open Bible. Its sphere of influence expanded to distant places in India and abroad.

Anti-reformists

An anti-reformist group developed from the early twentieth century. A band of young educated men, who were opposed to the Open Bible and the evangelical tradition, slowly started to undo the work of the reformers and return to the earlier orthodox doctrines. An anti-reformist was consecrated as bishop in 1937. Abraham Mar Thoma Metropolitan (Mar Thoma XVII) died in 1947 and Juhanon Mar Timotheos episcopa was enthroned as Juhanon Mar Thoma Metropolitan (Mar Thoma XVIII). The Anti-reformists proceeded with a programme of bringing the Church back to sacerdotalism. There was discontent among the followers of metropolitan and the followers of the reform powers.

Oppression and persecution

The metropolitan was not prepared to tolerate the reform movement, and blocked the reformists from positions of influence in the Church and its organisations.

K.N. Daniel

K.N. Daniel, a reformist and one of the lay leaders of the evangelical group in the Mar Thoma Church, a liturgiologist, theologian, author, lawyer, and church historian, published several books and pamphlets about the dangers to the Church. The Pathiopadesa Samathy (see the section below) was unable to prevail over the anti-reformists, and he unsuccessfully filed a court case for a declaration that the doctrines sought to be propagated by the metropolitan and his associates were alien to the Mar Thoma Church.

Pathiopadesa Samathy’s Activities

Pathiopadesa Samathy was the group formed by the Reformists in the Marthoma Church to adhere to its founding principles. Up to 1958, P.S. George, an attorney, was the president of this Samathy. In 1958, Rev. P. John Varghese took charge as the president of the Pathiopadesa Samathy and Rev. P.I. Mathai, Rev. K.O. John, Rev. C.M. Varghese, Rev. P.C. Zachariah, and others also began to participate in the activities of the Pathiopadesa Samathy. They conducted Bible classes and taught the fundamentals of Christian faith. They were not allowed to conduct these classes at the Mar Thoma parishes, but the members of the Mar Thoma Church sided with the reformists. They conducted classes in specially erected pandals ("tents") in several places.

The metropolitan and anti-reformists decided to excommunicate four presbyters from the Church - Rev. P. John Varghese, Rev. P.I. Mathai, Rev. K.O. John, and Rev. C.M. Varghese. The excommunication order was signed on 7 November 1960; the reformists were driven out of the churches, and continued to hold their worship services in private homes, temporary sheds and tents, or in the open.

The reformists left the Mar Thoma Church and revived the reformation Church in Kerala, abandoning the infrastructure they had built within the Church, and starting afresh, forming the St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India.

Inauguration

The Reformists' leaders told the world that they were leaving everything, with no shelter and no roof over their heads and no churches to worship in, but only guided by the faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His teachings and for reviving the essence of His church through evangelism and missionary work.

The St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India was formally inaugurated on 26 January 1961. Over thirty thousand people drawn from all the different Christian denominations, from Roman Catholic to the Pentecostal gathered together at Bishop Abraham Nagar at Thiruvalla, in Kerala. Priests of the Roman Catholic, Jacobite, Church of South India, and the Mar Thoma Churches were present. Twenty presbyters who had been ordained in the Mar Thoma Church joined the new Church and declared acceptance of the faith in the Church and pledged allegiance to the new Church and its constitution.

Consecration of the bishops and the laying on of hands

After the inauguration service, two ministers of the new Church, viz: Rev. K.N. Oommen, Rev. P. John Varghese, were consecrated as bishops in the ‘Church of God’.

An order of service for the consecration of the bishops had been prepared. The bishops were consecrated by the laying on of hands by the entire body of the presbyters representing the whole Church. They were guided and supported in this step by the word of God (The Acts 9:11-12; 15-18; 13:1-3; Romans 10:15; I Timothy 4:14; etc.) and by clear precedence in the early Syrian Church of Malabar.

Adherents believe that men are called upon by God to the ministry and set apart in the Church. They also believe that in ordination, the Lord in answer to the prayers of the Church, assures and bestows on those whom He has called upon to lead His Church for any particular form of ministry, His sufficient grace and strength to carry out the ministry. The Church further believe that in all ordination and consecration, the true Ordainor and Consecrator is God, who in response to the prayers of His Church, and through the words and acts of its representatives, commissions and empowers for the office and work to which they are called, the persons it has selected. In the ancient Church of Alexandria before AD 328, presbyters used to consecrate bishops.

The twelve presbyters of Alexandria elected one of their number as Bishop whenever there was a vacancy and perhaps jointly consecrated him. This custom lasted till the time of Athanasius Bishop of Alexandria (A.D.328).

Founding principles

The St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India is an Evangelical and Episcopal Church. It has decided to stand as true Christian fellowship dedicated to preserve the real Mar Thoma Church and its original faith and doctrines. It holds the Bible as its sole basis and authority for all matters of faith and doctrines. It accepts the Nicene Creed and the two sacraments as they are in full conformity with the Bible. Christian charity will be the governing principle of its administration. Its bishops will not belong to monarchical hierarchy, but will be ministers of Christ, the successors of the humble Apostles who walked the shores of Galilee. But they will have powers and authority as provided in the constitution of the Church to which they owe allegiance.

Salient Features

The St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India is one of the branches of the Malankara Church (Kerala's Malabar Church) founded in AD 52 by Apostle St. Thomas. The Church is Evangelical in faith and Episcopal in administration. The Church accepts the Holy Bible which consists of 66 Books of the Old and the New Testaments as the basis for all matters of faith and doctrine.

The Church accepts the Nicene Creed which is in conformity with the Scriptures.

It believes in the Triune (Trinity): God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

It practices the two sacraments instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ viz: The Holy Communion and the Holy Baptism.

It has three Orders in the Church: bishop(episcopa), presbyter (kasseesha) and deacon (semmash).

The Holy Communion is a thanksgiving service to remember the death of our Lord on the Calvary and the elements used in the Holy Communion are the sign and symbol of the Christ’s Body and Blood. The Church denies the Transubstantiation Theory, Consubstantiation Theory, Localization Theory, the Spiritual Presence Theory, etc.

The Representative Body of the Church is the supreme body which can decide on all the spiritual and temporal matters of the Church. The presiding bishop is the administrative head of the Church who is elected from among the bishops of the Church for a term of five years.

New Church

The prominent leaders of the new church included Bishop K. N. Oommen, Bishop P. John Varughese, Rev. P.I. Mathai (Plavunkal Achen), Rev. P. C. Zachariah, K. N. Daniel, Esq., Rev. P.S. Varughese, Rev. C.M. Varghese, A.G. Mathew, Esq., Mr. K. Abraham, K. S. Joseph, Esq., Rev. K.O. John, Rev. A.C. Mathew, Rev. P.T. Thomas, Rev. T.C. George,Rev. K.C.Paily Mr. K.A. Abraham, etc.

Rev. P.I. Mathai was the presiding presbyter at the consecration service of the new bishops at Thiruvalla, Kerala, India, on 26 January 1961. Rev. P.C. Zachariah and Rev. P.T. Thomas were the first General Secretaries of the Church. Rev. T.C. George became the Treasurer of the Church. Advocate A.G. Mathew and others made remarkable contributions in framing the constitution of the Church. Mr. P.K. Mathew (Valakom) was in the forefront in the North Travancore region. There are other eminent evangelists who came out from the Mar Thoma Church viz: Mr. K.T. Philip, Mr. V.C. Zachariah and Mr. P.C. Chacko, and Sevinees like Miss K.T. Annamma and Miss. P.T. Mariamma. Mr. K.A. Abraham was the General Secretary of the Pathiopadesa Samathy and the Chief Editor of the Suvisesha Prakasini which was the organ of the Pathiopadesa Samathy. After the inauguration of the St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India, Suvisesha Prakasini became the official organ (publication) of the New Church.

Attitude of the Mar Thoma Church towards St. Thomas Evangelical Church

Upset that the Reformists left the Marthoma Church, the Mar Thoma Metropolitan issued his Bishop's Circular No.156 dated 14 February 1961 which was printed in large quantities and sent not only to the parishes and every Marthomite but also to sister Churches and members thereof, instilling such passion against the St. Thomas Evangelical Church of India and its members. In his Circular he prohibited the issuance of letters for "publishing banns for marriage" to the Evangelical Church, the acceptance of such letters from the new Church, the "publication of banns of marriage" of couples if any one of them happens to be a member of the new Church, the marriage of women members of the Mar Thoma Church to members of the Evangelical Church, and the partaking in the services conducted by ministers of the new Church.

In the same Circular he ridiculed the consecration of the bishops in the new Church. In addition, he prohibited the members of the Mar Thoma Church from partaking or co-operating or even attending any worship or sacraments conducted by the new Church and he defined such conduct as an offence involving forfeiture of his or her membership in the Mar Thoma Church and, further, he directed the Vicars in the Church to take disciplinary action against such members and to remove them from membership. This was followed by similar letters in similar tone, for circulation in foreign countries.

Growth of St. Thomas Evangelical Church

The members of the new Church had left all that they had in the Mar thoma Church and started vigorously to build up the whole new Church. Two hundred congregations with total membership of over 25,000 were formed. A small building was constructed immediately for the Bible Seminary. The Church could sent evangelists and women workers to almost every state in India within a short time. For mission work - a Board for Evangelistic Work, for women’s work - a Board for Women’s Work, for youth work - a Board for Youth Work, and for Sunday school Work - a Board for Sunday School Work, were formed. The Church made rapid progress under the able leadership of its bishops and clergy.

The membership of the new Church in the International Council of Christian Churches gave the new Church status in the international circle. Dr. Carl McIntire, the then President of the International Council of Christian Churches and its leaders came several times to the new Church's Annual General Conventions as speakers. The new Church constructed its Central Hall and office complex during early sixties with the help of Dr. Carl McIntire.