In the year AD 1955 on July 16th, under the leader ship of Late. Valiamathan Kathanar (Rev. Fr. Valiamathachan of Kallarackal Kadavil) - the then Vicar of St. Mary's Church, Orsalem, Udayanapuram, Vaikom - the book Kallarackal Kadavil Kudumbha Charithram is published. This book is a mile stone in the history of Kallarackal Kadavil Family as well as all branch and sub-branch families of the Kallarackal Family as a whole. Three years before the publication of this book, in AD 1952 on July 3rd, members from different places and different branches of Kallarackal Family , assembled in the property of their root family at Pallippuram, and celebrated the 1900th anniversary of Christianisation of their root family Kallarackal. A group photo is taken in that occasion. [To see the group photo click here (Photo)]. Members from any branch who can identify their or any forefathers in the photograph may please do it and inform the name of that forefather, the branch name and the connection of the member with the forefather to e-mail ID [email protected] so that we can add that details to this history page and it may help us to connect the broken link of the family tree]
Members in all walks of life from the following branches & sub-branches participated in that jubilee function.
This meeting was organized by Kallarackal Kadavil family under the leader ship of Late. Rev. Fr. Valiyamathan (Kathanar). The role of Late Rev. Fr. Kochumathachan (Kathanar), one of his elder brother's son (popularly known as mookkanachan - he is famous for his long nose), is not less important in giving inspirations to Valiyamathan Kathanar. Mookkanachan, while he was studying in Propaganda college in Rome in AD 1917-24, he has sent so many letters to Valiyamathan Kathanar who was the then vicar in the Palluruthy church.
The message in the letters were to bring back all the St. Thomas Christians, who became Jacobites to Catholic church. Many Catholics have gone out of Catholicism due to the deterioration in the catholic church and papacy. Martin Luther a German theologian who led the Reformation; believed that salvation is granted on the basis of faith rather than deeds (1483-1546). To prevent the people from going in tune with the reformists, as a counterreformation, Rome has established Propaganda Mission and entrust this with the Jesuits. The term Counterreformation denotes the period of Catholic revival from the pontificate of Pope Pius IV in 1560 to the close of the Thirty Years' War, 1648. The Council of Trent had been originally summoned in the year 1537, and sixteen sessions were held during the next fourteen years. The Propaganda Mission under the leader ship of Jesuit Fathers with the connivance of Pope were engaged in many countries to bring back all those who left Catholicism for many reasons and that mission is still continuing.
After the arrival of Portuguese in Malabar they began a Roman Catholic (Latin Rite) diocese in Goa (1534) and another at Cochin (1558) in the hope of bringing the St. Thomas Christians under real Catholic jurisdiction. At that time, the so-called Kerala Church was under the jurisdiction of heretic seats, (Nestorians, which was unanimously condemned by Universal Church council) mainly from Persia. In a Goan Synod held in 1585, it was decided to introduce the Latin liturgy and practices among the Thomas Christians. In the Synod of Diamper of 1599, the Portuguese Archbishop, Don Alexis Menezes succeeded in appointing a Latin bishop to govern the St. Thomas Christians. The Portuguese padroado (patronage) was extended over them. The strife between the Portuguese missionaries and the indigenous Christians and their Mesopotamian prelates was of an ecclesiological and jurisdictional character. Attempts to resist the Latinisation process were branded as heretical. Under their Archdeacon, the Thomas Christians resisted, and, consequently, the once united Church in full communion with the East Syrian Patriarch ended up in various denominations. A protest took place in 1653 with the Coonan Cross Oath. Under the leadership of Archdeacon Thomas, the Thomas Christians publicly took an oath that they would not obey the Jesuit bishops. Thus started the Divisions among Saint Thomas Christians. Until AD 1653 all Kallarackal Family members belong to the same church called Mar Thoma Christians. Those migrated to Kandanad, Mulamthuruthy and some other places, after the Coonan Cross Oath became Jacobites and now they belong to different Syrian, Orthodox, Oriental and other churches in belief.
Rome has sent Carmelites in two groups from the Propagation of the Faith to Malabar headed by Fr. Sebastiani and Fr. Hyacinth. Fr. Sebastiani arrived first in 1655. He began to deal directly with the Archdeacon Mar Thomas I. Fr. Sebastiani gained the support of many, especially with the support of Alexander Parampil, Alexandar Kadavil and the Vicar of Muttam. These were the three councilors of Mar Thomas I, who were reconciled with Gracia (SJ) before the arrival of Sebastaini, according to Jesuit reports. Between 1661 and 1662, out of the 116 churches, the Carmelites reclaimed eighty-four churches, leaving Archdeacon Mar Thomas I with thirty-two churches. The eighty-four churches and their congregations were the body from which the Syro Malabar Church has descended. The other thirty-two churches and their congregations represented the nucleus from which the Syriac Orthodox (Jacobites & Orthodox), Thozhiyur, Mar Thoma (Reformed Syrians), Syro Malankara Catholics have originated.
The 250 years tradition of Alexander Parampil, Alexandar Kadavil and the Vicar of Muttam has very much influenced Rev. Fr. Valiyamathan (Kathanar). He took it as a mission to propagate christanity to the pagans and has baptised many.The teachings in the Propaganda College also influenced Kochumathachan Kathanar a lot. Both of them wanted to bring back all Kallarackal Family members, those split away to Jacobite church, back to Catholic church. With that intention Kochumathan Kathanar wrote so many letters from Rome to his uncle Valiyamathan Kathanar. As a result he has contacted many members in the Kallarackal Family in Jacobite church. So many letters were sent to and fro. These communications helped his to have good relations with these family members and also had personal contacts with many members of the offshoot branches. This has given an inspiration in his mind to have a coordination between all members of the different branches of the root family. He has shared this view with all elder members in the Kallarackal Kadavil Family. He is being the 6th generation and senior most member at that time in the family his views were accepted happily by all members . Valiyamathan Kathanar has sent elder members of the Kallarackal Kadavil Family, as his special delegates to the karanavars (elder members) of the different branches of Kallarackal family, and personally invited the family members to participate the 1900 years' Jubilee ceremony. About 150 members from different branches and places attended the function. It was a great success when considering the period. Many age old members attended that function. From them the organizers (Kallarackal Kadavil Family members), could collect further details of these families. This meeting led to the idea of publishing a history book of the family.
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Kallarackal Kadavil Family, Pallippuram, Cherthala
| History of Syro-Malabar Christians (part 1) |