The Forgotten Bishops

The Malabar Independent Syrian Church is today the smallest of the jurisdictions into which the St Thomas Christian community is now divided. It has, however, played a crucial role in the development of the Syrian Churches, whose stories can not be told without reference to it. The present work shows how the bishops of this tiny, one-Diocese Church, now largely forgotten, once stood at the centre of the events that shaped the present ecclesiastical situation.

Drawing on previously undiscovered manuscripts preserved at Thozhiyur in the former British Malabar, and others at Oxford, Birmingham and the British Library, the story of the impact of a delegation headed by the Maphrian of the Syrian Orthodox Church which reached Kerala in 1751 is told in detail. From this was to result a small monastic community that would become a major ‘bridgehead’ for the introduction of West Syrian usage into India. Contrary to prevailing opinion, this identity was reinforced by the arrival of Anglican missionaries in 1816, and by two powerful members of the Palakunnathu dynasty – Abraham Malpan and Mathews Mar Athanasios.

The findings challenge the way the main communities in Kerala (Catholic, Syrian Orthodox, Malankara Orthodox and Mar Thoma) are accustomed to tell their stories. The reality – with the bishops of the Malabar Independent Syrian Church at its heart – is more complex, and more fascinating, than has been told so far.