Theology 1.0: Who are the St. Thomas Christians?

 

Kerala, India

One of things I like to highlight is the different Christian communities in Asia. Today I want to bring to attention the St Thomas Christians, who mainly hail from Kerala, India.

Origins
According to their traditions, they claim that St Thomas (an Apostle of Christ) came to Kerala in 52 AD to evangelise. Locally, the St Thomas Christians are also known as Nasranis, derived from the Syriac word for Christians. St Thomas converted 32 Brahmin (priest/scholar) families to Christianity during his time there. The earliest document detailing St Thomas's trip to India was the Acts of Thomas written in circa 240 AD.

The church also grew bigger when Christians from Persia migrated to India during the 3rd Century (200s AD). This brought the St Thomas Christians to be in connection with the Church of the East.

In 1498 the Portuguese open a port in India, and attempted to bring the St Thomas Christians under the Roman Catholic Church. In 1795, some Indian regions became tributiaries to the British East Indian Company, allowing contact with the Anglican Church.

Theology
Historically, the St Thomas Christians adopted Nestorianism (the belief that Christ is both human and divine but not at the same time), use the Syriac Rite and practise seven sacrements (Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Penance, Matrimony, Holy Orders, and Anointing of the Sick). 

However, some of these changed with the coming of the Western Christians. For instance, the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church is in full communion with Rome and maintains an Eastern liturgy. The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church is also aligned with Rome but influenced by the West Syriac tradition. The Mar Thoma Syrian Church is a reformed church with Protestant influences. 

Mar Thoma Syrian Church, Singapore

Practices

Indian culture is integrated into their Christian practices, such as wearing saris in church and adapting local architectural styles for their churches.

They maintain a strong communal identity, with unique traditions like the margam kali, a Christian dance-drama.

Theology 1.0: How did Christianity arrive in India?

 

An exhibit from the Indian Heritage Centre

India is one of the most populous countries in the world. Approximately 26 million of Indians profess the Christian faith (in 2011), which makes up about 2-3% of the population.

So how did Christianity first appear in India?

Earliest speculation
The first written record about Christians in India was in the 4th century document called Church History. Written by Eusebius of Caesarea (a Bishop), he stated that Saint Bartholomew (one of the twelve apostles) travelled to India for mission work after Jesus's death.

If true, then than Christianity might first arrived in India shortly after 30 AD. However, there is few supporting evidence that Saint Bartholomew did so.

In another tradition, St Thomas Christians of India claimed that Saint Thomas (another of the twelve apostles) came to the southwestern Indian state of Kerala in 52 AD and spread the gospel until his martyrdom in Chennai in 72 AD.

Stronger claims
Nevertheless, the first strong evidence of Christianity in India came as early in the 2nd Century. Saint Pantaenus (a Christian philosopher) travelled to India in about 180 AD, and found Christians in Kerala. The Indian Christians were using the Gospel of Matthew in Hebrew letters. This hinted that Syriac-speaking Christians (who used a Hebrew script) had somehow evangelised to the Indians before Pantaenus's arrival.

Conclusion
It is hard to confirm when Christianity arrived in India. Nevertheless, Christians should continue to pray for growth of Christianity worldwide.