opposition to Nestorius at the Council of Ephesus in 431 A.D. But
Eutyches, in opposing the doctrine of Nestorius, went beyond Cyril
and others, and affirmed that, after the union of the two natures,
the human and the divine, Christ had only one nature the divine,
His humanity being absorbed in His divinity. After several years
of controversy, the question was finally decided at the Council of
Chalcedon in 451, when it was declared, in opposition to the doctrine
of Eutyches, that the two natures were united in Christ, but "without
any alteration, absorption, or confusion"; or, in other words, in the
person of Christ there were two natures, the human and the divine,
each perfect in itself, but there was only one person. Eutyches was
excommunicated, and died in exile. Those who would not subscribe to
the doctrines declared at Chalcedon were condemned as heretics; they
then seceded, and afterwards gathered themselves around different
centres, which were Syria, Mesopotamia, Asia Minor, Cyprus and
Palestine, Armenia, Egypt, and Abyssinia. The Armenians embraced
the Eutychian theory of divinity being the sole nature in Christ,
the humanity being absorbed, while the Egyptians and Abyssinians
held in the monophysite doctrine of the divinity and humanity being
one compound nature in Christ. The West Syrians, or natives of Syria
proper, to whom the Syrians of this coast trace their origin, adopted,
after having renounced the doctrines of Nestorius, the Eutychian
tenet. Through the influence of Severus, Patriarch of Antioch, they
gradually became Monophysites. The Monophysite sect was for a time
suppressed by the Emperors, but in the sixth century there took place
the great Jacobite revival of the monophysite doctrine under James
Bardæus, better known as Jacobus Zanzalus, who united the various
divisions, into which the Monophysites had separated themselves,
into one church, which at the present day exists under the name of
the Jacobite church. The head of the Jacobite church claims the rank
and prerogative of the Patriarch of Antioch--a title claimed by no
less than three church dignitaries. Leaving it to subtle theologians
to settle the disputes, we may briefly define the position of the
Jacobites in Malabar in respect of the above controversies. While
they accept the qualifying epithets pronounced by the decree passed
at the Council of Chalcedon in regard to the union of the two natures
in Christ, they object to the use of the word two in referring to
the same. So far they are practically at one with the Armenians, for
they also condemn the Eutychian doctrine; and a Jacobite candidate
for holy orders in the Syrian church has, among other things, to take
an oath denouncing Eutyches and his teachers.
We have digressed a little in order to show briefly the position
of the Malabar church in its relation to Eastern Patriarchs in
the early, mediæval, and modern times. To resume the thread of our
story, from about the middle of the fourth century until the arrival
of the Portuguese, the Christians of Malabar in their spiritual
distress generally applied for Bishops indiscriminately to one of
the Eastern Patriarchs, who were either Nestorian or Jacobite; for,
as observed by Sir W. W. Hunter, "for nearly a thousand years from
the 5th to the 15th century, the Jacobite sect dwelt in the middle
of the Nestorians in the Central Asia," so that, in response to the
requests from Malabar, both Nestorian and Jacobite Bishops appear
to have visited Malabar occasionally, and the natives seem to have
indiscriminately followed the teachings of both. We may here observe
that the simple folk of Malabar, imbued but with the primitive form
of Christianity, were neither conversant with nor ever troubled
themselves about the subtle disputations and doctrinal differences
that divided their co-religionists in Europe and Asia Minor, and
were, therefore, not in a position to distinguish between Nestorian
or any other form of Christianity. Persia also having subsequently
neglected the outlying Indian church, the Christians of Malabar seem
to have sent their applications to the Patriarch of Babylon, but,
as both prelates then followed the Nestorian creed, there was little
or no change in the rituals and dogmas of the church. Dr. Day [206]
refers to the arrival of a Jacobite Bishop in India in 696 A.D. About
the year 823 A.D., two Nestorian Bishops, Mar Sapor and Mar Aprot,
appear to have arrived in Malabar under the command of the Nestorian
Patriarch of Babylon. They are said to have interviewed the native
rulers, travelled through the country, built churches, and looked
after the religious affairs of the Syrians.
We know but little of the history of the Malabar Church for nearly six
centuries prior to the arrival of the Portuguese in India. We have,
however, the story of the pilgrimage of the Bishop of Sherborne to the
shrine of St. Thomas in India about 883 A.D., in the reign of Alfred
the Great; and the reference made to the prevalence of Nestorianism
among the St. Thomas' Christians of Malabar by Marco Polo, the
Venetian traveller.
The Christian community seem to have been in the zenith of their glory
and prosperity between the 9th and 14th centuries, as, according
to their tradition, they were then permitted to have a king of
their own, with Villiarvattam near Udayamperur (Diamper) as his
capital. According to another version, the king of Villiarvattam was
a convert to Christianity. The dynasty seems to have become extinct
about the 14th century, and it is said that, on the arrival of the
Portuguese, the crown and sceptre of the last Christian king were
presented to Vasco da Gama in 1502. We have already referred to the
high position occupied by the Christians under the early kings, as
is seen from the rare privileges granted to them, most probably in
return for military services rendered by them. The king seems to have
enjoyed, among other things, the right of punishing offences committed
by the Christian community, who practically followed his lead. A more
reasonable view of the story of a Christian king appears to be that
a Christian chief of Udayamperur enjoyed a sort of socio-territorial
jurisdiction over his followers, which, in later times, seems to have
been so magnified as to invest him with territorial sovereignty. We
see, in the copper-plate charters of the Jews, that their chief was
also invested with some such powers.
Mention is made of two Latin Missions in the 14th century, with
Quilon as head-quarters, but their labours were ineffectual, and their
triumphs but short-lived. Towards the end of the 15th, and throughout
the whole of the 16th century, the Nestorian Patriarch of Mesopotamia
seems to have exercised some authority over the Malabar Christians, as
is borne out by the occasional references to the arrival of Nestorian
Bishops to preside over the churches.
Until the arrival of the Portuguese, the Malabar church was following
unmolested, in its ritual, practice and communion, a creed of the
Syro-Chaldæan church of the East. When they set out on their voyages,
conquest and conversion were no less dear to the heart of Portuguese
than enterprise and commerce. Though, in the first moments, the
Syrians, in their neglected spiritual condition, were gratified at
the advent of their co-religionists, the Romanist Portuguese, and
the Portuguese in their turn expected the most beneficial results
from an alliance with their Christian brethren on this coast,
"the conformity of the Syrians to the faith and practice of the 5th
century soon disappointed the prejudices of the Papist apologists. It
was the first care of the Portuguese to intercept all correspondence
with the Eastern Patriarchs, and several of their Bishops expired
in the prisons of their Holy Office." The Franciscan and Dominican
Friars, and the Jesuit Fathers, worked vigorously to win the Malabar
Christians over to the Roman Communion. Towards the beginning of
the last quarter of the 16th century, the Jesuits built a church at
Vaippacotta near Cranganur, and founded a college for the education of
Christian youths. In 1584, a seminary was established for the purpose
of instructing the Syrians in theology, and teaching them the Latin,
Portuguese and Syriac languages. The dignitaries who presided over
the churches, however, refused to ordain the students trained in the
seminary. This, and other causes of quarrel between the Jesuits and
the native clergy, culminated in an open rupture, which was proclaimed
by Archdeacon George in a Synod at Angamali. When Alexes de Menezes,
Archbishop of Goa, heard of this, he himself undertook a visitation
of the Syrian churches. The bold and energetic Menezes carried all
before him. Nor is his success to be wondered at. He was invested with
the spiritual authority of the Pope, and armed with the terrors of the
Inquisition. He was encouraged in his efforts by the Portuguese King,
whose Governors on this coast ably backed him up. Though the ruling
chiefs at first discountenanced the exercise of coercive measures
over their subjects, they were soon won over by the stratagems of the
subtle Archbishop. Thus supported, he commenced his visitation of the
churches, and reduced them in A.D. 1599 by the decrees of the Synod of
Diamper (Udayamperur), a village about ten miles to the south-east of
the town of Cochin. The decrees passed by the Synod were reluctantly
subscribed to by Archdeacon George and a large number of Kathanars,
as the native priests are called; and this practically converted
the Malabar Church into a branch of the Roman Church. Literature
sustained a very great loss at the hands of Menezes, "for this blind
and enthusiastic inquisitor destroyed, like a second Omar, all the
books written in the Syrian or Chaldæan language, which could be
collected, not only at the Synod of Diamper, but especially during
his subsequent circuit; for, as soon as he had entered into a Syrian
Church, he ordered all their books and records to be laid before him,
which, a few indifferent ones excepted, he committed to the flames,
so that at present neither books nor manuscripts are any more to be
found amongst the St. Thomé Christians." [207]
Immediately after the Synod of Diamper, a Jesuit Father, Franciscus
Roz, a Spaniard by birth, was appointed Bishop of Angamali by Pope
Clement VIII. The title was soon after changed to that of Archbishop
of Cranganur. By this time, the rule of the Jesuits had become so
intolerable to the Syrians that they resolved to have a Bishop from
the East, and applied to Babylon, Antioch, Alexandria, and other
ecclesiastical head-quarters for a Bishop, as if the ecclesiastical
heads who presided over these places professed the same creed. The
request of the Malabar Christians for a Bishop was readily responded
to from Antioch, and Ahattala, otherwise known as Mar Ignatius,
was forthwith sent. Authorities, however, differ on this point,
for, according to some, this Ahattala was a Nestorian, or a protégé
of the Patriarch of the Copts. Whatever Ahattala's religious creed
might have been, the Syrians appear to have believed that he was
sent by the Jacobite Patriarch of Antioch. The Portuguese, however,
intercepted him, and took him prisoner. The story goes that he
was drowned in the Cochin harbour, or condemned to the flames of
the Inquisition at Goa in 1653. This cruel deed so infuriated the
Syrians that thousands of them met in solemn conclave at the Coonen
Cross at Mattancheri in Cochin, and, with one voice, renounced their
allegiance to the Church of Rome. This incident marks an important
epoch in the history of the Malabar Church, for, with the defection
at the Coonen Cross, the Malabar Christians split themselves up into
two distinct parties, the Romo-Syrians who adhered to the Church of
Rome, and the Jacobite Syrians, who, severing their connection with
it, placed themselves under the spiritual supremacy of the Patriarch
of Antioch. The following passage explains the exact position of the
two parties that came into existence then, as also the origin of the
names since applied to them. "The Pazheia Kuttukar, or old church,
owed its foundation to Archbishop Menezes and the Synod of Diamper in
1599, and its reconciliation, after revolt, to the Carmelite Bishop,
Joseph of St. Mary, in 1656. It retains in its services the Syrian
language, and in part the Syrian ritual. But it acknowledges the
supremacy of the Pope and his Vicars Apostolic. Its members are
now known as Catholics of the Syrian rite, to distinguish them from
the converts made direct from heathenism to the Latin Church by the
Roman missionaries. The other section of the Syrian Christians of
Malabar is called the Puttan Kuttukar, or new church. It adheres
to the Jacobite tenets introduced by its first Jacobite Bishop,
Mar Gregory, in 1665." [208] We have at this time, and ever after,
to deal with a third party, that came into existence after the advent
of the Portuguese. These are the Catholics of the Latin rite, and
consist almost exclusively of the large number of converts gained by
the Portuguese from amongst the different castes of the Hindus. To
avoid confusion, we shall follow the fortunes of each sect separately.
When the Portuguese first came to India, the Indian trade was
chiefly in the hands of the Moors, who had no particular liking
for the Hindus or Christians, and the arrival of the Portuguese was
therefore welcome alike to the Hindus and Christians, who eagerly
sought their assistance. The Portuguese likewise accepted their offers
of friendship very gladly, as an alliance, especially with the former,
gave them splendid opportunities for advancing their religious mission,
while, from a friendly intercourse with the latter, they expected not
only to further their religious interests, but also their commercial
prosperity. In the work of conversion they were successful, more
especially among the lower orders, the Illuvans, Mukkuvans, Pulayans,
etc. The labours of Miguel Vaz, afterwards Vicar-General of Goa, and
of Father Vincent, in this direction were continued with admirable
success by St. Francis Xavier.
We have seen how the strict and rigid discipline of the Jesuit
Archbishops, their pride and exclusiveness, and the capture and murder
of Ahattala brought about the outburst at the Coonen Cross. Seeing
that the Jesuits had failed, Pope Alexander VII had recourse to the
Carmelite Fathers, who were specially instructed to do their best to
remove the schism, and to bring about a reconciliation; but, because
the Portuguese claimed absolute possession of the Indian Missions,
and as the Pope had despatched the Carmelite Fathers without the
approval of the King of Portugal, the first batch of these missionaries
could not reach the destined field of their labours. Another body of
Carmelites, who had taken a different route, however, succeeded in
reaching Malabar in 1656, and they met Archdeacon Thomas who had
succeeded Archdeacon George. While expressing their willingness
to submit to Rome, the Syrians declined to place themselves under
Archbishop Garcia, S.J., who had succeeded Archbishop Roz, S.J. The
Syrians insisted on their being given a non-Jesuit Bishop, and, in
1659, Father Joseph was appointed Vicar Apostolic of the "Sierra of
Malabar" without the knowledge of the King of Portugal. He came out
to India in 1661, and worked vigorously for two years in reconciling
the Syrian Christians to the Church of Rome. But he was not allowed
to continue his work unmolested, because, when the Dutch, who were
competing with the Portuguese for supremacy in the Eastern seas, took
the port of Cochin in 1663, Bishop Joseph was ordered to leave the
coast forthwith. When he left Cochin, he consecrated Chandy Parambil,
otherwise known as Alexander de Campo.
By their learning, and their skill in adapting themselves to
circumstances, the Carmelite Fathers had continued to secure the
good-will of the Dutch, and, returning to Cochin, assisted Alexander
de Campo in his work. Father Mathew, one of their number, was allowed
to build a church at Chatiath near Ernakulam. Another church was
built at Varapuzha (Verapoly) on land given rent-free by the Raja of
Cochin. Since this time, Varapuzha, now in Travancore, has continued
to be the residence of a Vicar Apostolic.
The history of a quarter of a century subsequent to this is
uneventful, except for the little quarrels between the Carmelite
Fathers and the native clergy. In 1700, however, the Archbishop of
Goa declined to consecrate a Carmelite Father nominated by the Pope
to the Vicariate Apostolic. But Father Anjelus, the Vicar Apostolic
elect, got himself consecrated by one Mar Simon, who was supposed
to be in communion with Rome. The Dutch Government having declined
admission to Archbishop Ribeiro, S.J., the nominee of the Portuguese
King to their dominions, Anjelus was invested with jurisdiction over
Cochin and Cranganur. Thereupon, the Jesuit Fathers sought shelter in
Travancore, and in the territories of the Zamorin. With the capture
of Cranganur by the Dutch, which struck the death-blow to Portuguese
supremacy in the East, the last vestige of the church, seminary and
college founded by the Jesuits disappeared. As the Dutch hated the
Jesuits as bigoted Papists and uncompromising schismatics, several
of the Jesuit Fathers, who were appointed Archbishops of Cranganur,
never set foot within their diocese, and such of them as accepted the
responsibility confined themselves to the territories of the Raja of
Travancore. It was only after the establishment of British supremacy
that the Jesuit Fathers were able to re-enter the scene of their early
labours. An almost unbroken line of Carmelite Fathers appointed by the
Pope filled the Vicariate till 1875, though the Archbishop of Goa and
the Bishop of Cochin now and then declined to consecrate the nominee,
and thus made feeble attempts on behalf of their Faithful King to
recover their lost position.
Salvador, S.J., Archbishop of Cranganur, died in 1777. Five years
after this, the King of Portugal appointed Joseph Cariatil and
Thomas Paramakal, two native Christians, who had been educated at
the Propaganda College at Rome, as Archbishop and Vicar-General,
respectively, of the diocese of Cranganur.
The native clergy at the time were mostly ignorant, and the discipline
amongst them was rather lax. The Propaganda attempted reforms in this
direction, which led to a rupture between the Latin and the native
clergy. The Carmelite Fathers, like the Jesuits, had grown overbearing
and haughty, and an attempt at innovation made by the Pope through
them became altogether distasteful to the natives. Serious charges
against the Carmelites were, therefore, formally laid before the
Pope and the Raja of Travancore by the Syrians. They also insisted
that Thomas should be consecrated Bishop. At this time, the Dutch
were all-powerful at the courts of native rulers, and, though the
Carmelite missionaries who had ingratiated themselves into the good
graces of the Dutch tried their best to thwart the Syrians in their
endeavours, Thomas was permitted to be consecrated Bishop, and the
Syrians were allowed the enjoyment of certain rare privileges. It
is remarkable that, at this time and even in much earlier times,
the disputes between the foreign and the native clergy, or between
the various factions following the lead of the native clergy, were
often decided by the Hindu kings, and the Christians accepted and
abided by the decisions of their temporal heads.
In 1838, Pope Gregory XVI issued a Bull abolishing the Sees of
Cranganur and Cochin, and transferring the jurisdiction to the Vicar
Apostolic of Varapuzha. But the King of Portugal questioned the
right of the Pope, and this led to serious disputes. The abolition
of the smaller seminaries by Archbishop Bernardin of Varapuzha, and
his refusal to ordain candidates for Holy Orders trained in these
seminaries by the Malpans or teacher-priests, caused much discontent
among the Syrian Christians, and, in 1856, a large section of the
Syrians applied to the Catholic Chaldæan Patriarch of Babylon for
a Chaldæan Bishop. This was readily responded to by the Patriarch,
who, though under the Pope, thought that he had a prescriptive right
to supremacy over the Malabar Christians. Bishop Roccos was sent
out to Malabar in 1861, and though, owing to the charm of novelty, a
large section of the Christians at once joined him, a strong minority
questioned his authority, and referred the matter to the Pope. Bishop
Roccos was recalled, and the Patriarch was warned by the Pope against
further interference.
Subsequently, the Patriarch, again acting on the notion that he had
independent jurisdiction over the Chaldæan Syrian church of Malabar,
sent out Bishop Mellus to Cochin. The arrival of this Bishop in 1874
created a distinct split among the Christians of Trichur, one faction
acknowledging the supremacy of the Pope, and the other following the
lead of Bishop Mellus. This open rupture had involved the two factions
in a costly litigation. The adherents of Bishop Mellus contend that
their church, ever since its foundation in 1810 or 1812, has followed
the practice, ritual, and communion of the Chaldæan church of Babylon,
without having ever been in communion with Rome. The matter is sub
judice. They are now known by the name of Chaldæan Syrians. The Pope,
in the meanwhile, excommunicated Bishop Mellus, but he continued
to exercise spiritual authority over his adherents independently of
Rome. In 1887 the Patriarch having made peace with the Pope, Bishop
Mellus left India, and submitted to Rome in 1889. On the departure of
Bishop Mellus, the Chaldæan Syrians chose Anthony Kathanar, otherwise
known as Mar Abdeso, as their Archbishop. He is said to have been
a Rome Syrian priest under the Archbishop of Varapuzha. It is also
said that he visited Syria and Palestine, and received ordination
from the anti-Roman Patriarch of Babylon. Before his death in 1900,
he ordained Mar Augustine, who, under the title of Chorepiscopus,
had assisted him in the government of the Chaldæan church, and he
now presides over the Chaldæan Syrian churches in the State.
In 1868, Bishop Marcellinus was appointed Coadjutor to the Vicar
Apostolic of Varapuzha, and entrusted with the spiritual concerns
of the Romo-Syrians. On his death in 1892, the Romo-Syrians were
placed under the care of two European Vicars Apostolic. We have
seen how the Jesuits had made themselves odious to the native
Christians, and how reluctantly the latter had submitted to their
rigid discipline. We have seen, too, how the Carmelites who replaced
them, in spite of their worldly wisdom and conciliatory policy, had
their own occasional quarrels and disputes with the native clergy and
their congregations. From the time of the revolt at the Coonen Cross,
and ever afterwards, the Christians had longed for Bishops of their
own nationality, and made repeated requests for the same. For some
reason or other, compliance with these requisitions was deferred for
years. Experience showed that the direct rule of foreign Bishops had
failed to secure the unanimous sympathy and hearty co-operation of the
people. The Pope was, however, convinced of the spiritual adherence of
the native clergy and congregation to Rome. In these circumstances,
it was thought advisable to give the native clergy a fair trial in
the matter of local supremacy. Bishops Medlycott and Lavigne, S.J.,
who were the Vicars Apostolic of Trichur and Kottayam, were therefore
withdrawn, and, in 1896, three native Syrian priests, Father John
Menacheri, Father Aloysius Pareparambil, and Father Mathew Mackil,
were consecrated by the Papal Delegate as the Vicars Apostolic of
Trichur, Ernakulam, and Chenganacheri.
The monopoly of the Indian missions claimed by the Portuguese, and the
frequent disputes which disturbed the peace of the Malabar church,
were ended in 1886 by the Concordat entered into between Pope Leo
XIII and the King of Portugal. The Archbishop of Goa was by this
recognised as the Patriarch of the East Indies with the Bishop of
Cochin as a suffragan, whose diocese in the Cochin State is confined
to the seaboard taluk of Cochin. The rest of the Latin Catholics of
this State, except a small section in the Chittur taluk under the
Bishop of Coimbatore, are under the Archbishop of Varapuzha.