In silence Chaldeans October afternoons, easy song, inflections Indian woman sitting on the bottom right of the altar, not how to not get your attention in church … just us – me, who are some photos and it came silent recently, the holy place … so I stand face to face, just her and the icon of the Virgin with Child painted in 50 of the holy Apostle and Evangelist Luke and the Apostle Thomas brought unto him from Jerusalem to India in the year 52 AD.
Restored icon that bears the mark of aesthetic taste Indian, the reason for the viewer Europe is a little strange, but after she left the blessing of the Virgin and certainly in the 20 centuries since is on the Indian subcontinent, the icon it has done much wonders – because otherwise does not explain the communion of the woman in front of me and the Blessed Mother of God, piety and peace of mind, love and gratitude Indian song expresses beyond words incomprehensible to me …
The moment of peace, respite, as the film sequence stopped in place, lived with Christians in the church of St. Thomas Ap … Really surprised me is that in India, the time has another dimension here if expands, so long as Indians can afford to drive traverses 180 km in 6-7 hours and do not mind (in Sri Lanka, through the whole of south to north India and to Nepal, all traffic on the roads – no rules of the road without traffic lights a policeman and even without driving licenses, but highly respected road users, for one another, with infinite tolerance and utterly nerves … all traffic moves at 30 km per hour!).
It is true that, at least for women, India remains a firm traditionalist, no matter what religion embraces every port all the centuries same: elegant sari and veil which often cover their heads (I saw and sweeper Street with an elegant appearance as we saw construction worker carrying bowls on the head with debris from demolition, all dressed in sari and many women motorcycle, too!); so you can tell if a woman barely in front of you is Christian or not (only those who have a point on the forehead sure they know Brahman). In a world of color excites you at street level, you can not identify, being European, Indian Christians; and yet they are a community is in place credinţăşi inchegatăşi with strong traditions, kept intact the first century AD to the present.
Indian Malankara Orthodox Church has 24 million faithful (more than the population of Romania), but these represent only 2% of the total population of 1.2 billion people. Orthodox Christians (Chalcedonians) Indian states that have indisputably Christianization apostolic St. Ap Thomas Didymus, Doubting Thomas is the man who lit the very first century, bringing word of the gospel of saved within the land of nations so wild that even today, the proportion of 98% of India’s population is worshiping idols.
Acts of Apostle Thomas in India
After the Ascension, Apostles cast lots to see which way he will go each to proclaim the Word of God; Thomas went task to go to the light lands dark paganism inhabited by Indians (India), parts (today Armenia, Iraq, Syria, Iran, Afghanistan), Medes (Iran), Persia (Iran), hircanieni (Iran, Turkmenistan ) and bactrieni (Uzbekistan); apparently was the only apostle who preached the majority outside the Roman Empire. How Thomas was at first frightened at the thought of going to the Gentiles so wild, and Jesus was revealed, strengthening him and promising him that would accompany himself. When Gundafor king of India, wanted to raise the most beautiful palaces of the world, he sent a Jew, Abban (Hebban) in Palestine, to find a good architect, the construction experienţăîn Roman palaces. Jesus appeared to Abban in the market, offering her to sell him a servant of His, builder, for the sum of three pounds of silver and sale signed a note that read: “I, Jesus, son Joseph the carpenter, sell my servant Thomas, his Abban. ” In India, the king has entrusted Gundafor St. Thomas Ap very large sums of money for two years to build the palace, which, however, he has divided totally poor. When King Gundafor came to see his palace, St. Ap Thomas told him that indeed he built a palace of wondrous beauty, but the king can not see it in life, but only after you leave this life, palace He will live happily for ever! King, considering that Thomas had mocked him, sent to jail along with Abban who had brought him. Soon, brother of the king, Gad, died and went to heaven, the angel of the Lord to let him choose what house wants to live. He has chosen the most beautiful palace, but the angel said to him: that belongs to your brother Gundafor palace and was built with the money of the king, by Thomas. Mr. Gad allowed him to return to earth and ask his brother to sell the wonderful palace. Brother revived and told However King Gundafor that convinced now of the existence and omnipotence Domnuluişi that Thomas constructor apostle Or and was released from prison Toma and Abban and his brother Gad, was baptized.
How in the history of India, until dry the 19th century, there was no a king named Gundafor, the Acts of Thomas, dating from around 200, written in Syriac in Edessa (Mesopotamia, today the city of Sanli Urfa in southern Turkey ) and transmitted in full to this day versions in Armenian, Ethiopian, Slavonic Latinas, it was considered pure fiction, without any historical value.
But in 1834, in Northwest India (Punjab) in Afghanistan was found a large number of coins that were scored on one side, Gundafor king’s name in Greek, and on the back in Pali. Also, the coins were discovered and named his brother, Gad, and înscrisuri- However stones dating from the mid first century AD, exactly the time that St. Thomas Ap began his mission Asian so that the stories begin to become credible and science of people. The fact that today in northwest India there is no longer Christian centers strong does not mean they have existed throughout history signaled in situations where, for various reasons, were recorded conversions en masse to Islam or Buddhism – for example in Africa (Egypt, Ethiopia), Arabia, Persia, Central Asia or China.
Furthermore, the Acts of Thomas leaving St. Thomas the Apostle speaks to other Indian lands, submerged in the depths of the heathen, in Milapur and Kalamida in southern India, where reigning king Mazda. After conversion to the true faith of a large number of subjects of the king, even the Queen tertian and his relative Migdonia king condemns stranger Thomas to death in agony, end martyr being welcomed by the Apostle as a free and ransom the body and a passage to eternal life, with its negrăitele goodies. Martyrdom of St. Ap. Thomas was spent in southeast India in Mylapore, today a district of the metropolis Chennai (Madras), on December 21, 72 AD, on the hill called the Mount when St. Thomas Ap.
Chennai, Ap the footsteps of St. Thomas: My Lord and my God!
In Chennai (formerly Madras) in south-east India, the presence of Apostle Thomas is extremely vivid! Christians who come here seeking the footsteps of Apostle Thomas goes to three centers, all three showing on large banners as a leitmotif same exclamation: “My Lord and my God!” – A direct reference to the time the “Doubting” Thomas, after puts finger on the coast of the Savior, I worship, exclaiming happily, “My Lord and my God” (John 20:28), strengthening all the faith in the Resurrection of the Son of God in the flesh who suffered, overcoming death – the ultimate victory of light over darkness! The three pilgrimage sites in Chennai are:
• Mount Mic (Chinnamalai) cave where St. Thomas Ap lived, hiding from his pursuers. The tiny cave is kept near the window, after the Apostle hand, a foot high, which makes you think of its imposing stature … In the immediate vicinity is another grotto, very little of which the Apostle draw water (healing spring of St. Ap Thomas) and here at the entrance, inside is carved by the apostle in rock, a cross which says that sometimes bleeds and blemishes occurring can not be removed with no as cleaner! Outside, in front of this small cave it is a stone slab with the sole Apostle ago. Little church was built in 1559. The two guards Christians, a man and a woman, were very friendly, very impressed likely come from Romania to worship the Apostle “their”.
• St. Thomas Mount is a hill located on the outskirts, near the airport, choline which can photograph a beautiful panorama of the metropolis Chennai. Here is where St. Thomas was martyred Press. The location is called Mylapore in the first century it was, indeed, outside the city. The whole mountain is now a complex Christian, including churches, denominational school, cemetery, statues Christian Large kind of park in miniature – all under the motto large sign outside the entrance “My Lord and my God!” The old church is built in 1523 by the Portuguese. We entered a church tiny containing the icon nun Lord painted in year 50 by St. Ap and Ev Luke holy relics of St. Ap Thomas and holiness brought from the Holy Land, remaining alone, we prayed Apostle, reading his akathist.
• At the end of the day at St. Thomas Ap was about not to come, giving up visit because I knew it … Catholic. But when I got in her area, our guide (Hindu) insisted so much that we were embarrassed to refuse! It was like a kind of call to the Apostle Thomas for us infidels, because really, the place is extremely important! The cathedral was built in 1606 over the grave (empty) of St. Ap Thomas and is a pride for Indian Christians affirm that in the world there are only three cathedrals built directly over the tombs of the apostles St. Peter’s in Rome, St. James Great at Santiago de Compostela (Spain) and the cathedral of St. Thomas Ap Chennai. But to find the entrance to the tomb of the Apostle (located in the backyard) I went for a few minutes in the cathedral, where he was to officiate a Christian wedding. According to their ritual, the bride dressed in white wedding dress (known model!) Was in front of the altar and waited, quiet, coming procession of the bride, the church was at that time only a few people, probably her family.
We could not help but make some photographs of participants in the ceremony, dressed in traditional colorful saris packed … then I went down the stairs to the tomb of the Apostle, place to do many miracles and today, then I went to the little museum joined, I discovered, exposed in a display window lance tip that the apostle was killed and its holy relics. The press has noted that during the powerful tsunami in 2004, when ribs Chennaiului were swept away by huge waves, killer, this cathedral that already were housed people stricken was not anymore reached, although it is only a few meters high and hit all the buildings surrounding water. The miracle is attributed to St. Ap Thomas, who is told that at one point during his life out of the water a giant tree, fallen there that could not be moved either by an elephant, but the apostle pulled using his belt. The parish priest says in the interview that a piece of this tree was pinned by St. Thomas Ap in a place that is now directly in front of the current entrance of the cathedral beach, saying that this water will never pass!
Thomas Ap relics were taken by a shopkeeper and taken to Edessa, Mesopotamia, around the year 200 (during which there was written and the book Acts of Thomas). In 1144 Edessa was conquered by Muslims and relics taken by Crusaders stayed for a short while on the island of Chios in Greece, for the September 6, 1258 to arrive in Italy at Ortona, where they can be revered and today ; St. Thomas the Apostle is the patron of this Italian city. Press a finger of St. Thomas is at St. Nicholas of Bari.
Church Indian / Church Syrian Orthodox Malankara he called himself early in its existence as Church of St. Thomas, and the apostle is said today the patron saint of India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan – and patron of architects, builders, carpenters, masons, surveyors geometry, theologians, of blind or … people who doubt ( “infidels”). It is celebrated by our church in Thomas Sunday (the first Sunday after Easter), October 6 (St. Thomas Ap) and June 30 (along with all the other apostles, the council of the Apostles). Church Indian to celebrated for centuries St. Thomas the Apostle on 21 December, the date of his martyrdom, but because that date is Advent, the feast was changed to July 3, when the relics were transferred from Mylapore (Chennai) in Edessa (Mesopotamia).
“Thomas the wonderful open source dogmas, Lord, the God wise that coastal Ta touching, folded papers and folded natures together experienced and shouted: You are my God and Sovereign Lord, and the Lord glory, Who for me the body you’ve done. “(Sticheron the Lord I have cried, October 6) .Sfinte apostle Thomas, pray God for us believers so little …
Maria Chirculescu
Maria Chiculescu
miriamturism.ro