Archdeacon (Thomas Christians)
The Archdeacon (Archdeacon) of the Thomas Christians in India was a local priest and the head of their community, who ruled the faithful, together with the coming from abroad bishops.
overview
The office of Archdeacon of the Thomas Christians of India has its equivalent in the Archdeacon of the East Syrian Catholic of Seleukia-Ctesiphon . In contrast to the western and other eastern churches, the holder of the office of an East Syrian archdeacon is always a priest. The Archdeacon of the Thomas Christians, however, had a much higher position than his counterpart in the Middle East because he also functioned as the head of the community.
The Church in India claims apostolic origin. According to local tradition, the apostle Thomas landed in Muziris (Kodungallur) in today's Kerala in 52 , founded seven Christian communities along the Malabar coast and died as a martyr in Mailapur near Madras . From this foundation the church developed in India long before European colonial powers were active there. Liturgically, it followed the East Syrian rite . Since the 9th century at the latest, it has drawn its bishops regularly from the Catholic of Seleukia-Ctesiphon in what is now Iraq , from which the Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Catholic Church later developed. Although the bishops sent to India from Mesopotamia held the title of Metropolitan of India, their service was de facto largely limited to the spiritual functions. The other decisions, especially with regard to property, political and social issues, were made by the archdeacon, who was always a local.
The archdeacon was respected by the local rulers as the head of the local Christians and viewed as prince-like. He held honorary titles such as “ prince and head of the Christians of Saint Thomas ” or “ Archdeacon and Gate of All India, Governor of India ”. The kings of Cochin presented the newly elected archdeacon with royal insignia and he was always escorted by an armed honorary group when traveling.
Since the death of the last archdeacon Mathew de Campo (Parambil) in 1706, the office has expired and has not been occupied.
It is likely that the office of Archdeacon of India - quasi "King" of his people and at the same time a priest - is the original figure of the legendary " Priest King John ", whom Western Christians sought in vain for centuries in the East and especially in India.
history
Since the bishops residing in India came from abroad at an early age and the local language and local customs were foreign to them, they made use of a local priest who held the office and title of archdeacon of India to guide the faithful. These archdeacons were also seen by the local princes, the authorities and other religious representatives as the head of the community, which in South India was an integral part of the caste system with special rights and duties. The Indian Thomas Christians, for their part, demonstrated a certain independence from the Catholic in Seleukia-Ctesiphon and later from the Assyrian Church of the East through this traditional office. They did not feel as their suffragans , but as part of the general church with their head in Rome, which for centuries, due to the lack of contact, was more of a legal-theoretical position and only had a concrete effect on them since the arrival of the Portuguese in India. However, the disenfranchisement of their group at the Synod of Diamper can only be understood from this existing understanding of the Church by the Thomas Christians - although reluctantly, but ultimately obediently endured .
The archdeacons known today all came from Kuravilangad , an early Christian center and Marian pilgrimage site in Kerala . Four brahmin families who had converted to Christianity are said to have settled there around the year 300 , of which the Pakalomattam family is described as the most important. All of these families can be traced back to those Brahmins who were converted by the Apostle Thomas in nearby Palayur and who moved away from the temple there .
It is debatable whether the office of archdeacon dates back to apostolic times or whether it only developed when the bishops of India came from abroad. Likewise - because of the imprecise and often different spelling of names - it is doubtful whether the archdeacons actually came from all four original Christian families in Kuravilangad or only from the Pakalomattam family as it is usually called. What is certain is that the office was inherited only within the family, to a nephew at a time, although according to the Indian Brahmin tradition, only the son of a brother would be considered, but not the son of a sister. However, both inheritance variants are represented in Indian church history. No written family records were made there at that time and the Portuguese colonial rulers later destroyed most of the local church writings. Since the four families in the village always remarried with each other, it is undisputed that the archdeacons always came from the same family association.
Individual Archdeacons
Around 800, Patriarch Timothy of Babylon called the archdeacon the "head of the believers of India". His name has not been passed down.
The first archdeacon known by name is George Pakalomattam, who was appointed in 1502. He was followed by Jacob and Alexander, then George of Christ (approx. 1552–1585) and his brother or nephew John (approx. 1585–1591).
Metropolitan Joseph Sulaqa came to India at the end of 1556 on behalf of the Patriarch of Babylon united with Rome . In 1564 he had to justify himself in Europe on suspicion of heresy. Returned to India in 1565, he was abducted again to Europe in 1567, where he died in 1569, highly respected and rehabilitated by Pope Pius V. Mar Abraham followed him in India. He had already come to India in 1557 on behalf of the Patriarch of Babylon , who was not united with Rome , but was pulled over to Rome by Joseph Sulaqa and was now allowed to succeed him as Bishop on behalf of Rome.
When Joseph Sulaqa arrived in India in 1556 and Mar Abraham in 1557, George of Christ (Jorge de Christo) was archdeacon . He was also highly valued by the European missionaries for his qualities, and Pope Gregory XIII. addressed five Apostolic Letters to him between 1576 and 1581. Mar Abraham wanted him to be his successor in the episcopate, which the Patriarch of Babylon, associated with Rome, allowed as early as 1566 and which the Pope expressly confirmed in the bull “Accepimus quod”, issued on March 4, 1580. However, George of Christ humbly rejected episcopal ordination and died in 1585 as archdeacon, followed by his brother John (1585–1591).
In 1593, Mar Abraham designated George of Christ's nephew Archdeacon. He called himself George of the Cross and Mar Abraham also wanted him to succeed him in the episcopate, but his wish was no longer papally confirmed before his death in 1597. In his will he appointed George of the Cross as administrator of the Thomas Christians. His episcopal successor, the Latin Francis Roz SJ, confirms this. George of the Cross was the leader of the Thomas Christians at the unfortunate Synod of Diamper and he guided the fellowship through this dangerous period of time, despite many difficulties, without division. He had to endure many injustices on the part of the Portuguese, who massively suppressed his rite. In 1609 there was a break between Bishop Roz and the archdeacon, whom he excommunicated for disobedience. Most of the Thomas Christians and Indian princes, but also the Bishop of Cochin and the Latin Franciscans , were on the side of Archdeacon George of the Cross . In 1615 he was reconciled with Bishop Roz. From 1618 until his death in 1621, however, there were again disputes between them. Then George of the Cross took over the administration again and in 1624 also received the episcopal successor Stephen Britto SJ Apart from brief resentments on both sides, the relations between them remained good, but the office of archdeacon was systematically undermined or eroded by the Latins. Archdeacon George of the Cross died on July 25, 1640, Bishop Britto in 1641. Before his death, the bishop appointed Thomas Parambil , the nephew of George of the Cross, as archdeacon.
Bishop Britto's successor was Francis Garcia SJ († 1659). Under Archbishop Francis Garcia there was a revolt of the Thomas Christians, because that u. a. appointed a vicar general of the Latin rite for them in addition to the traditional archdeacon and they feared even greater oppression. In 1653 they swore at the Coonan Cross in Fort Cochin that they would never again tolerate chief shepherds of a foreign rite or Jesuits over themselves. They expressly avoided renouncing Rome, they only asked for bishops of their own liturgy and thought of a renewal of the historical jurisdiction of the Chaldean Catholic Patriarch of Babylon. The majority of the Thomas Christians joined the revolt. Both sides remained adamant, and Archdeacon Thomas Parambil had himself proclaimed " anti-archbishop " without consecration and in an "emergency ceremony" alternately laid hands on by 12 simple priests, with the promise to make up for episcopal ordination. Then Bishop Francis Garcia excommunicated him and installed his nephew Kunju Mathai as his successor. However, the latter also went over to the protest party after a short time.
From this point on, the Indian Thomas Christians split into a Catholic and an autocephalous part.
The Catholic Thomas Christians received in 1663 in the person of Alexander de Campo (Alexander Parambil), a relative of Archdeacon Thomas Parambil , their own bishop of their rite. At first he did not appoint an archdeacon, as he hoped his relative, Archdeacon Thomas Parambil (he called himself Mar Thoma I in the meantime), would return to the Catholic Church, but this did not happen. Finally, in 1678, Bishop Alexander de Campo appointed his relative Mathew de Campo as archdeacon, who remained in his position after his death among the Latin successors of the bishops. When he died in 1706, the office of archdeacon was no longer occupied.
Even in the autocephalous branch of the Thomas Christians, the office of archdeacon was no longer upheld, although until 1816 their metropolitan dignity remained hereditary in the family association of the earlier archdeacons.
Burial place
About one kilometer south of Kuravilangad is the historic burial place of the Archdeacons of India. Five ancient graves have been preserved in the park-like complex. One of them is that of Archdeacon George of the Cross, to whom a memorial was also erected there. The long-neglected tombs have been built over with a mausoleum for protection in recent years , and a chapel has been built as a place of worship.
literature
- Bernard of St. Thomas TOCD: A brief sketch of the History of the St. Thomas Christians. St. Joseph's Press, Trichinopolly 1924.
- Jacob Kollaparambil: The Archdeacon of All-India (= The Syrian Churches Series. 5). Kottayam, Kerala 1972.
- Joseph Thekedathu: The Troubled Days of Francis Garcia SJ, Archbp. of Cranganore (1641-1659) (= Analecta Gregoriana. 187). Univ. Gregoriana Ed. 1972.
Web links
- Illustrated treatise on the Indian archdeacons, from the Syro-Malabar church portal Nasrani.net
- Website on the history of Indian archdeacons from the portal of the Pakalomattam family ( Memento from April 20, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
- Homepage of the parish Kuruvilangad with its own, illustrated section about the burial place of the archdeacons ( memento of April 24, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
Individual evidence
- ↑ On the seven original communities of St. Thomas on the Malabar coast ( Memento of the original from January 1, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Website which denies that all archdeacons belong to the Pakalomattam family ( memento of October 13, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
