St. Thomas and India

India and St. Thomas

Many people believe that the Apostle Thomas made it as far as India. There a number of Indians were converted to Christianity. Thomas is believed to have been martyred in India. Thus one part of the Indian church traces its origins back to Thomas and these Christians are called Thomasite Christians.

If you want to read a book that includes the reasons that historians believe Thomas was in India, then read The Search for the Twelve Apostles by William Steuart Mc Birnie.

McBirnie summarizes the Indian tradition as follows:

“St. Thomas, one of the apostles of our Lord, came from the Near East and landed in Cranganore about 52 A.D.; he converted high caste Hindu families in Cranganore, Palayur, Quilon etc; consecrated priests from some of these families; built some seven churches, erected crosses; then passed over to the eastern coast and suffered martyrdom there; his tomb is in Mylapore on the coast.”

There is an early Christian book about Thomas that was apochryphal. The books was called the Acts of Thomas written in the second or third century A.D.. It had a number of things in it that we would call imaginary. However, scholars believe that the Acts of Thomas was based on a series of earlier historical events that were later embellished by the hearers.

Strangely, the Book mentioned a king of India, Gondophares and his brother Gad. For many centuries the king was thought to be imaginary. However, archeologists have actually now found coins from the first century that mention this king. Again this gives strength to some of the historical references made in the Acts of Thomas.

According to the Acts of Thomas, the bones of Thomas were later taken to Edessa and then to another location from there later were taken to Italy.

We also know that Jews were in India by 72 A.D. who fled there from persecutions in Rome.

In 594 A.D. Gregory of Tours wrote about a monastery of St. Thomas in India based on the report of a monk named Theodor who had visited the monastery.

Christians and others during the middle ages visited the monastery of Mar Thoma in India.

Later in the 1500’s the Portuguese would come to Goa in India and the Catholic church became predominant in the area; but the independent Thomasite Christians were already present long before the Portuguese arrived. There were early Indian records of a strong connection between the Christian-Nestorian church in Syria and India; however these Indian records were destroyed by the Portuguese because they considered the Syrian church to be heretical to the Roman Catholic church.

In 1945, archeologists discovered a Roman trading station in Mylapore going back to the first century A. D. Evidently, the route to southern India was well known in Roman times and was used in connection with the pepper trade.

Therefore, when Jesus commanded his disciples in Matthew 28:19, 20 to “Go into the world to preach the gospel, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you,” the disciples did so. That Gospel was carried, I believe, by Thomas to India and resulted in an independent Christian church .

Below are some links for you to read more about St. Thomas and Christianity in India.

http://www.indianchristianity.org/thomas.html

http://www.acns.com/~mm9n/Malankara/2.htm

The Acts of Thomas—
http://www.ccel.org/fathers2/ANF-08/anf08-100.htm#P8123_2565539

Kerala Catholics
http://www.angelfire.com/ky/ScarlettOHara/kerala.html

Malabar Coast (Kerala Chrisitianity)
http://thinkers.net/writer/kodungallur.html

St. Thomas Christians
http://members.aol.com/didymus5/ch16.html

The Mission of St. Thomas
http://www.stthoma.com/india_overview.html

St. Thomas, the Syrian Church and Missions to North and South India
http://www.stmaryssharjah.com/St.Thomas%20the%20Apostle.htm

A Short History by Ninan
http://www.acns.com/~mm9n/marthoma/marthoma.htm

Some books on Kerala
http://www.indianchristianity.com/html/ICHC.htm



HarleyDad