The situation of the persecuted Christians in India and Sri Lanka (original) (raw)
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St. Thomas tradition in India: a critical inquiry
This paper which was originally presented as part of my Christian studies as a major paper, aims to carefully look at the various reliable evidence for the existence of the St. Thomas tradition in India. It also considers the various historical and social data pertaining to and supporting the plausibility of the veracity of the St.Thomas Tradition in India.
Mar Aprem, Metropolitan of India, represents the Church of the East, the historical center of which, Seleucia-Ctesiphon and later Baghdad, is in Mesopotamia. Suffering heavily today from the war in Iraq, the Church has had a glorious history, having been widely spread all over the East. During its history, the Church of the East was often persecuted, and hosts of martyrs, together with other saints of this Church, became its glorious heavenly counterpart. The history of the Church of the East in India was also complicated and full of difficulties. It is noteworthy that Dr. Mar Aprem represents that part of Indian Christianity which keeps to the faith and traditions ofthe earliest stage of the history of Indian Christianity. Hence we see a special attention being paid by the author to that period when the Christian tradition in India had not yet experienced any significant dogmatic or cultural shifts and divisions. ...
Christianity in India: A Select Bibliography compiled by
Christianity in India: A Select Bibliography, 2
Did you know that the apostle Thomas reached India? The likely date for his arrival in the Indus River Valley was 40 AD. Gondophares, whom Thomas evangelized, was the king of a Hellenistic Indo-Parthian kingdom there in what is now Pakistan and westernmost India, reigning from 19-46 AD. Thomas was probably in South India no later than 52 AD. Some of the later traditions of the fourth century Thomas of Cana, a Syrian or Persian missionary to the Malabar Coast, have likely been conflated with the older traditions about the apostle, but the evidence for Thomas serving as a missionary in India is every bit as strong (and perhaps stronger) than the evidence that Peter went to Rome. Communities of "Thomas Christians" remain among the oldest continuous Christian communities in the world.
Debate on the Apostolate of St. Thomas in Kerala: A Response
2. Pius Malekandathil,”Debate on the Apostolate of St.Thomas in Kerala: A Response”, in Journal of St.Thomas Christians, vol. 29, no.2, July-December , 2018, pp.32-58, 2018
In recent days there appeared a controversy on the apostolate of St. Thomas in India. In fact the controversy was not only on the apostolate of St. Thomas alone, but also on some of the essential aspects linked with the very identity and consciousness of the St. Thomas Christians, who form one of the most vibrant Christian segments in Asia with around 50 lakh members. The central aspects of the controversy revolved around three questions: Did St. Thomas really come to India? How can one say that St. Thomas converted Nambuthiri Brahmins to Christianity as Nambuthiri Brahmins appeared only by 8 th century? The third point around which the controversy arose was on the sense of 'superiority' that some members of the St. Thomas Christians are alleged to uphold claiming 'Brahminical connections'. Initially I would like to say that these are three different issues and are to be analyzed separately, even though they may outwardly give the impression that they are linked with one another. No, they are not interlinked with one another. The seemingly woven interconnectedness among these three issues by different oral and family traditions added further confusion among both the historians and the ordinary people. Hence attempts are made here to look into these questions one by one, but separately and try to find clarity from a historical perspective
Christianity in India: A Select Bibliography
2021
Indian Christianity is an important part of the story of World Christianity that began with the Apostle Thomas. The texts in this bibliography tell some of the stories of Christianity in India. This bibliography provides a substantial introduction to Indian Christianity, but is not exhaustive in scope. Only monographs and edited volumes are included; adding individual chapters or academic articles would require at least hundreds of pages. Most titles listed are in English; a few are in other European languages. Titles in Indian languages such as Malayalam, Tamil, Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati, Urdu, Telegu, Marathi, Punjabi, and Assamese (among others) are not included: those who can read one or more of those languages most likely do not need to refer to a bibliography such as this! [latest revision: 29 November 2023]
History of Christianity in India: An Archaeo-linguistic Perspective
2022
The Apostle Thomas and his travel to the Indian Peninsula soon after the resurrection of Jesus Christ would be the key response if someone asked about the beginning of Christianity in the Indian subcontinent or the responsibility of spreading the faith in India. His journey to South India and subsequent conversion of the Namboothiri Brahmans of Kerala, followed by his martyrdom at Mylapore, near Chennai, is the most interesting and descriptive narration we would hear from any authentic church historian or believer. Though the story has many illogical twists and turns, contradicting plots, and no proper evidence, it has become a conventional history among believers and non-believers alike. Volumes of explanation and detailing have been done by many church historians, referring mainly to apocryphal, non-canonical, or hagiographic works. Though these explanations are in great volumes, their authenticity is still disputed by many renowned scholars and historians alike.
St. Thomas & the Native Judeo-Dravidian Malankara Nasrani Church – A Brief Overview.pdf
Center for Orthodox Studies , 2019
A look into the Judeo-Dravidian origins of the native Malankara Nasrani Christians, otherwise known as St. Thomas Christians of Malabar. Probably Malankara Nazranies(St.Thomas Christians for the western world ) have long been wrongly identified by Christendom.B ut thanks to new researches and evidence based on scientific methodology followed in modern historiography ,we are on the right track in identifying one of the oldest Christians(probably more suitable term is Religion of Yeshu or Followers of Yeshu) of the world. Syriac Christianity always quarreled to take custodianship of Malankara Nazranies, especially Nestorians and Syriac Orthodox. Colonialist churches like Roman Catholics were later day entrant to this race. Unfortunately far away from the Roman or Persian empire, Malankara Nazranies kept their identity and heritage entirely different and intact from these colonial /subjugating churches of the western world. Though much damage has been done by these colonizers, Malankara Nazranies are on their path to identify their self-respect and original history. This is one of the articles describing( though peripherally ) the subject well for initial reading.