Dr. Ajin S George Thaikkoottathil

Profile of Late Padma Bhushan Dr. Jacob Cherian ## Early Life and Background   Dr. Jacob Cherian was born on July 14, 1923, at Kottara, Kerala, as the son of Rev. K.M. Jacob, popularly known as Kottara Achen, who holds a Guinness World Record for the longest service as a pastor of the Marthoma Church. ## Education   After graduating from the University of Kerala, Dr. Cherian studied medicine at Miraj Medical School, Maharashtra, and then at R.G. Kar Medical College, Calcutta, earning his MBBS in 1956. In 1961, he was awarded FRCS from the Royal College of Surgeons, Glasgow. ## Medical Mission and Community Health Service   Dr. Cherian chose to serve rural populations in need, starting a small health center in Oddanchatram, Tamil Nadu, with his wife and Dr. A.K. Tharian in a drought-affected village. In 1965, he moved to the remote village of Ambilikkai in Dindigul District, establishing the Christian Fellowship Community Health Centre Society. The centre se...

The Church of the St. Thomas Christians is an ancient Christian Church and an apostolic Church originated out of the evangelical endeavours can be utilized and analysed. The living community of St. Thomas Christians in south India and their traditions. The witness of the Tomb of St. Thomas at Mylapore and its traditions. The tradition of the East Syrian Christianity and the tradition of the Universal Christianity (Graeco-Roman). The testimony of Fathers. The Liturgical Traditions. Ancient writings and legends -Acta Thoma. The Portuguese witness of the 16th Century. Opinions of Historians. The Church of St .Thomas Christians and their traditions about their origin The traditions current among the St.Thomas Christian of India is this with regard to their origin. St. Thomas one among the 12 apostles of Christ after visiting Socotra came to Muzris (Kondungallore/Cranganore) on the Periyar estuary, north of Cochin in about AD 52. He preached to the Jewish colony and made converts. He conver...

According to all major traditions—Indian, East Syrian, Graeco-Roman, and Mylapur—St. Thomas the Apostle met a martyr’s death in India. The long-standing tradition among the St. Thomas Christians of India locates this event at Mylapur in the ancient Pandiyan kingdom. From time immemorial, these Christians have made pilgrimages to his tomb. Numerous early sources from as early as the third century support this tradition. The 3rd-century Syrian work The Acts of Judas Thomas (Acta Thomae) records that the Apostle carried out his mission in India and was martyred on a hill in the kingdom of Mazdai. According to this account, a Syrian merchant named Khabin carried part of his relics to Edessa, where a church was later built in his honor. St. Ephrem of Edessa (4th century) corroborates this tradition through his hymns celebrating St. Thomas’s mission in India, his martyrdom, and the transfer of his relics to Edessa. Additional references to the shrine and church of St. Thomas at Edessa app...