Church History

Biblically, St. Peter the Apostle established a Church in Antioch (Acts 11:26) and later it was called the Syrian Orthodox Church (SOC). For some historical reason, from the sixth century onwards, this church was also known as the Jacobite Church. The appellation 'Jacobite' is attributed to the name Jacob Baradaeus, a missionary Bishop of Edessa of the sixth century (Saint Laurent 2015: 96), (Baradaeus or Burdana means a man in ragged clothes), who revived the Holy Church from severe persecution following the Council of Chalcedon by the Emperors of Rome. Historically the SOC/Jacobite Church follows the Oriental Orthodox Christian tradition of miaphysite or non-Calcedonian theology. The early Christian community in India also began to be known as Jacobite Christians for its ecclesial and liturgical allegiance under the Patriarch of Antioch and all the East, evidently from the fourth century.

It is commonly believed that the Christian faith came to India through the Apostle St. Thomas, who arrived and evangelised at Muziris near Paravur, an ancient port city of Malabar – present – day Kerala, in 52 CE. Currently, the churches of Orthodox, Catholic, and some reformed traditions treasure this tradition as their own. Historically, though much is unclear about this tradition until the third century, seemingly the first migration of Syrian missionaries in the fourth century (345 CE) under the leadership of Knai Thoma and a group of 72 families along with Bishop Joseph and a few priests draws our attention to a robust ecclesial connection maintained between the Indian and the Syriac tradition, which was under the ecclesial jurisdiction of Patriarch of Antioch. The first ecumenical Synod held in Nicaea in 325 CE provides evidence of the Antiochian Patriarch's jurisdiction eastward. (Nicean Council: Canon 6).

The second Syrian migration is decisive proof of the existence of Jacobite Christians in India before the arrival of Portuguese missionaries. In the ninth century, a second missionary group guided by a wealthy merchant called Maruvan Sabrisho (Maruvan - from the Persian honorific title Mehrban), with two bishops, Mar Sabor and Mar Aphroth, several clerics, and a large group of Christian families from Nisibis/Mesopotamia came to Kollam, another port city of ancient Kerala (Knight 2022:56). According to many historians, the reigning King of Kollam offered innumerable social and mercantile privileges to Sabrisho, which are inscribed on copper plates. These are known as 'Kollam copper plates' (Mathew & Thomas 2006:23).

It is still controversial to conclude that the ecclesial connections before the arrival of the Portuguese were Nestorian alone. Though many historians believe that Mar Sabor and Mar Aphroth were the Bishops of the Persian/Nestorian Church, there is conclusive evidence to assume they were Syrian Orthodox/Jacobite in faith. They were from the monastery of Mar Augin in the region of Izla near Nisibis and were consecrated by Joseph, Patriarch of Antioch and sent to India. (Knight 2022:56).

Undoubtedly, the Nestorian faith had a stronghold in India for a couple of centuries, but that did not mean that the Syrian Orthodox faith was absent during this period. One of the main arguments that several historians put forward to establish the Nestorian connection with the discovery of the Nestorian Cross from St. Thomas Mount in Chennai (It is believed that at St. Thomas Mount, Thomas was killed and buried). On the other hand, the same type of Cross is found in one of the oldest Jacobite churches in Kottayam. There is a Pahlavi (the language of the Persian Empire during the Sassanian dynasty) inscription which translates as "in punishment by the Cross (was) the suffering of this One; He who is the true Christ, and God above, and Guide ever pure." Later, attempts were made to translate it differently as "my Lord Christ, have mercy upon Afras, son of Chakarbakht, the Syrian who preserved this." (Mathew & Thomas 2006:25). However, the theology of the inscription testifies more towards the connection of miaphysite Christology than Nestorius'.

Many other local chronicles and travelogues demonstrate the Antiochen-Indian ecclesial connection even before the arrival of the Portuguese. To illustrate this point, Sarah Knight, a Syrian Christian scholar, offers two arguments concerning the story of Mar Sabor - Aphroth. First, the churches these Fathers established were known as 'tarissa-pally,' which is treesai shubho meaning 'true or correct glory' or Orthodox. By quoting Sebastian Brock, she argues that this term is mainly used by Syrian orthodox concerning themselves. Second, as most historians attest, the Christian dynasty created under the leadership of Mar Sabor-Aphroth, with the name udayamperur vilwalvattattu yakkoba swarupathil ousep rajavu (King Joseph of the vilwalvattathu dynasty of the Jacobites) depicts the connection of name Joseph with the Patriarch Joseph who deputed the Holy Fathers to India. With this evidence, Knight claims that the second Syrian "migration party were Jacobite and that the Church in Kerala was (Jacobite) Syrian Orthodox" (Knight 2022:56).

Since this Church is a part of the Universal Syrian Orthodox church ecclesiastically, the Church canon compiled by Gregorios Bar Hebraeus, the thirteenth-century Syrian Orthodox bishop (Hoodaya Canon), is considered the primary constitution for governance. It follows a Synodical model (Bishop's council) of functioning jointly with elected members from the Clergy and laity. Under the spiritual supervision of the Patriarch of Antioch, the local Synod is presided over by the official Catholicose of India. Currently, 33 Bishops constitute the local Jacobite Synod. They have various responsibilities, including the spiritual governance of the sixteen dioceses in India; five diaspora dioceses spread over the Americas, Europe, Oceania, and many regional centres in the Middle East and other Asian countries. The parishes worldwide are spiritually guided by around 1200 priests and several monks, deacons, and nuns.

All Clergy must undergo theological education and special liturgical training to be officially ordained into the priesthood. The Jacobite Church owns one major theological Seminary (Malankara Syrian Orthodox Theological Seminary, Vettikkal, Mulanthuruthy, Ernakulam, Kerala) and a few Syriac study centres through which the priests received formal theological and liturgical education. The Church is also humbled with monasteries where Syriac and liturgical teachings are done under trained scholars or Malpans - a teacher.

The Jacobite Church cherishes its rich liturgical tradition that the holy Fathers handed down from the Throne of Antioch/Universal Orthodox Church. They brought theological and liturgical Syriac books and sacramental paraphernalia for the practice of liturgical life in India. Most fascinatingly, until this date, the Church's liturgical language is Syriac, a form of Aramaic that is the language Our Lord spoke. However, most of these books are translated into vernacular languages. Malayalam and English versions are available for the use of common people. However, Syriac is still a compulsory language in seminaries and monasteries. The Church promotes the Syriac Bible (Peshitta) in Syriac or a translated version for the daily use of the faithful.

The spiritual needs of the faithful are met through the sacramental services conducted regularly in the local parishes and through the involvement of various spiritual organisations such as Malankara Jacobite Clergy Association, Malankara Jacobite Sunday School Association, Malankara Jacobite Youth Association, Jacobite Syrian Martha Mariayam Samajam (Women's Fellowship), Family Unit Fellowship, and Malankara Jacobite Student's Movement.

Despite various persecutions, even in the modern days, the Church flourished with missionary activities, social missions, and participation in the ecumenical movement. Though for many centuries the Church could not extend its missional hands to all people of the nation due to cultural reasons, in the modern period, the Church initiated evangelical mission through its official mission organisations like Honovar mission, Evangelical Association of the East, St. Paul's Mission of India, St. John's Mission, and St. Paul's Prayer fellowship. For the social mission, the Church operates numerous mission hospitals, schools, Engineering, Arts and Science, Dental colleges etc. Ecumenically, the Church is involved in the life of local, national, and international programmes. It does not limit its ecumenical relations only by participating in the programs of the ecumenical bodies but by initiating dialogues between other churches, and it keeps the gospel value of unity in Christ. Most importantly, Jacobite Church signed an agreement with Catholic and Mar Thoma churches on various faith and practice matters.