In 1796 A D., the Sakthan Thampuran, King of erstwhile Cochin State (now part of Kerala) brought 52 Christian families to Trichur from the neighbourhood with a view to develop Trichur as a center of trade and commerce. The Marth Mariam Church was constructed in 1814 Abraham Cathanar of Palai dedicated the Church in 1815 by the command of King of Cochin state, Ramavarma, successor of the successor of the famous Sakthan Thampuran, who had settled down this community in Trichur. The original name of this church, which is the oldest church in Trichur town, was “Vyakula Mathavin Pally”. Since the Roman Catholics began to argue that this church was a Catholic Church, the authorities of this church changed the name to Marth Mariam, which is the Syriac translation of the name St. Mary, Vyakula Mathavu also referred to the mother of Jesus Christ. The Chaldean Syrians of Trichur prefer to use the title Mother of Christ , while the Catholics and the Orthodox insist on the expression Mother of God. The question of the faith of those Christian families has been debated in the various litigations. The litigations took a more serious turn after the arrival of Mar Abimalek Timotheus Metropolitan in February 1908, sent by the Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East from Kurdistan in the Middle East. The final settlement of the litigations in the District Court of Trichur and Royal Court of Cochin was by the ‘Award’ of Mr. C.W.E. Cotton, the British Political Agent who was the arbitrator appointed by the Maharaja of Cochin state. His Award was announced on 18th April 1925 at Bolghatty Residency, Ernakulam that was the capital of the Cochin State. The Plaintiffs-Appellants of the Trichur case later joined Catholic Church and constructed the famous “Puthan Pally” near the old Church in the name of Vyakula Mathavu (Lady of Dolours). Now it is known as Basilica. It is the biggest church building in India.
Posted on: Tue, 11 Mar 2014 14:37:26 +0000
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