The Legacy of Southist Syrian Christians: Contributions of Knanaya Community to Kerala in a Historical Perspective

By Prathibha Thachet NP-C

The book, The Legacy of Southist Syrian Christians: Contributions of Knanaya Community to Kerala in a Historical Perspective, was written to educate the youth and the readers about the Knanaya Catholic community and what great contributions this minority community has made for the socioeconomic advancement of Kerala, a southern state in the Indian subcontinent. The book gives a short historical description of how the community migrated from the Middle East to Kerala in the fourth century and how the community thrived for seventeen centuries in India. The Southist Syrian Christians survived many attacks on their mere existence itself, yet the community successfully kept their identity and is still flourishing all over the world now.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Apr 27, 2019
• ISBN: 9781796021363

Prathibha Thachet NP-C

Prathibha Thachet is an ardent community lover and has served the Knanaya community of Chicago and North America at different capacities. She is a successful nurse practitioner working at a prestigious hospital in Chicago. She obtained her master’s Degree in nursing from the University of North Park, Chicago, and her bachelor’s degree in nursing from University of Illinois, Chicago. Her interests include community service, volunteering at nonprofit organizations, reading, writing, painting, working with the youth, and traveling around the world. Her research interests include learning more about the Knanaya history and educating the youth about the culture and customs of this South Asian Catholic community.

Book preview

Copyright © 2019 by Prathibha Thachet, NP-C.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2019902963

ISBN:              Hardcover            978-1-7960-2126-4

                        Softcover             978-1-7960-2127-1

                        eBook                  978-1-7960-2136-3

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 06/07/2019

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CONTENTS

Introduction

Contributions of Southist Syrian Christians to Kerala

International Growth

Conclusion

References

All Glory to God Almighty for helping

me complete this project.

To my beloved parents,

Prof. Peter Mathew Vettikkattu

and

Prof. Meyamma Vettikkattu

Photography by Prathibha Thachet with

the permission of the parish priest.

Special thanks to

Archbishop Mar Mathew Moolakkattu

Rev. Fr. Byju Mukalel

Rev. Fr. Thomas Mulavanal

Rev. Fr. Abraham Mutholathu

and

Dr. Jinu Andrews Kochuthazhathu

FOREWORD.jpgimage001.jpg

ST. THOMAS SYRO-MALABAR CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF CHICAGO

KNANAYA CATHOLIC REGION

Fr. Thomas Mulavanal, Vicar General and Regional Director

541 N Willow Rd, Elmhurst, Il 60126, Cell [phone]

[e-mail], www.knanayaregion.us

March 25, 2019

I am very delighted to congratulate and appreciate Mrs. Prathibha Thachet, for her sincere and creative attempt to write a short and compact volume about the historically very unique Knanaya community. Prathibha is one of the known lay leaders in the Knanaya community in North America. In this book she tried to highlight the rich traditions, heritage and its profound Jewish ethnicity. I hope and pray that this book definitely will help our future generations to understand and to live our great values.

The ethnicity of the Knanaya community is a mixture of Jewish-Christian socio-religious traditions en- cultured in the Indian soil and is presently branched out to the whole world. The political and social set up of the people in Kerala was favorable to integrate other culture and traditions. The historical migration of the organized group of Knanaya people from the middle east to the Indian continent in the year AD 345 is supported by the centuries old historical evidences and living traditions of the people in Kerala. The social traits shared by the Knanaya people in Kerala contributed in uplifting the catholic faith, liturgical language, Jewish-Christian traditions and cultural