St. Peter and Paul's Church, Alanthalai, Tamilnadu

St. Peter and Pauls’ Church is located in a coastal village called Alanthalai (4 kms by Road from Tiruchendur towards Kanyakumari).The nearest town is the pearl city "Tuticorin" (Around 40 kms away).

Alanthalai is one of the ancient villages in the pearl fishery coast. Villages stretching from Kanyakumari to Vembar were frequented by Portuguese during 16th century resulting in the spread of Christianity. St. Francis Xavier (Spanish Jesuit priest) had significant role in visiting these villages in coastal Tamilnadu and spreading Christianity.

History of the Church

When St. Francis Xavier visited Alanthalai, he constructed a thatched church somewhere around 1545. This church was later renovated during 1558 by Jesuit  priest Fr. Henriques. This church was named after St. Peter, thereby calling St. Peter's church. Note that the renaming of this church to "St. Peter & Paul's" happened at a very later point in time.

Full View

In 1644 the parish priest of St. Peter's church planned and started to build a bigger church. But owing to several reasons the construction of the church was halted. Later in 1712 Fr. Chansess completed the construction of a larger St.Peter’s church.

Churches in Alanthalai and surrounding coastal villages were in the hands of Jesuit Priests till 1774. Later Pope Clement XIV de-recognised the role of the Jesuits and the administration of this Parish went to Goan Priests till 1838. The Jesuits took over the parish again when the order of Jesuits was restored by Pope Gregory XVI in 1832. Owing to shortage of Priests the Alanthalai Parish was functioning as a substation of Virapandianpatanam parish (refer to earlier article on Virapandianpatanam church) from 1800 to 1894.

Foundation for the present church was laid by the Bishop of Tuticorin G.F.T.Roche S.J. in presence of the parish priest Fr. Ambrose Missier on the 29th of June 1929. Later this work was taken up by Fr. Soosainathar who along with the help of local villagers and the businessmen of Alanthalai in Colombo built the church which is in place currently. In 1938 this church was consecrated by bishop Roche and named “St. Peter & St. Paul's” church.

The tower measuring 140 feet in height and the Eucharistic Tabernacle inside the church are some of the main attractions of the church. The additional beauty of the church is to be found in the roof of the church over the tabernacle where the figures of the four apostles who wrote the Gospel – Mathew, Mark, Luke and John are depicted.

Depiction of all 4 who gave the Gospel (Mathew, Mark, Luke & John)

The feast of St. Peter and St. Paul is observed on June 29th every year.

Church's centre

History of the Grotto (Keby in Tamil) of Sacred Heart

The early 20th century saw dissension in the village and it led to a few leaving the Catholic church. When the dissension took place in 1920 the parish priest Rev. Fr. Ambrose Missier spread and inculcated the "Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus" with the installation of His holy picture. Many of the villagers who deserted Catholicism retraced their path and rejoined the Catholic church.

Meanwhile Tuticorin was elevated to the status of Diocese in 1923 with Bishop G.F.T.Roche S.J. in charge of the diocese. When the Bishop was heading to Manapad from Tuticorin, the villagers of Alanthalai gave a warm reception to him. Nevertheless a few who still did not rejoin the Catholic church stood away from the faithful. Seeing them the Bishop proclaimed:

“I also pray for my brothers who are standing away from here so that the blessings of Almighty God may continue to increase on them also”.

This sincere prayer of the Bishop melted the hearts of those who stood away from the receiving crowd and they also returned to the Catholic church. In 1926 as a recognition of this peace that had dawned in the village, Fr. Ambrose Missier vowed to build a grotto (Keby) depicting the scene of “Jesus Christ appearing to Mary Magdalene”. The foundation stone was laid in 1926 by Fr.Missier. An artist from Manapad painted the scene of Jesus Christ appearing to Mary Magdalene and a sculptor from Idaikattur Mr. Manuel Pillai carved the Grotto. On 30th June, 1928 the bishop blessed the Grotto.

The feast of this Grotto is observed during the last Friday of August every year.

Grotto of Sacred Heart

St. Thomas Church, Virapandianpatanam,

Virapandianpatanam, Tuticorin District, Tamilnadu

Virapandianpatanam nicknamed "Pattanam" among coastal areas is a small town located near Tiruchendur en route to Tuticorin (2.5 kms from Tiruchendur). Virapandianpatanam along with other coastal areas such as Vembar, Tuticorin, Alanthalai until Kanyakumari were rich in Pearl business during the 16th century. 

Due to largescale Pearl business the Arabs moved in these places and took over the entire pearl business under them which directly impacted all local fishermen in these coastal villages. The Arabs made Kayalpattinam (a nearby village) as their mainstay and harbour for them to flourish in their business. 

During early 1500's when Arabs were dominating these coastal regions the local fishermen in all these villages decided to seek help from the Portuguese. Portuguese were based in Goa and Cochin during this time. A group of fishermen met the Portuguese soldiers in Cochin (Kerala) and highlighted their situation. The Portuguese agreed to assist these coastal fishermen so that they can continue with their livelihood.

In 1534 the Portuguese sent a large contingent under the leadership of "Antonio De Silva" by sea towards the coastal regions in Tamilnadu. They had a battle with the Arabs at Keelakarai wherein Arabs lost and the entire Pearl region began to be controlled by the Portuguese.

History of St. Thomas Church

In 1544 St. Francis Xavier (Jesuit priest) who was instrumental in getting Christianity to Tamilnadu came to these coastal regions and started spreading Christianity. In 1549 St. Francis Xavier appointed Jesuit priest Enriques as the head priest for the Pearl region. He planned to build churches across the region. During 1549 a small church was built in Virapandianpatanam with the help of the locals and dedicated it to St. Thomas (in remembrance of Christ's disciple Thomas). 

After nearly a century in 1640 this church was refurbished and expanded. In 1658 the Dutch won a fight with the Portuguese along the Pearl region and took control of this church along with several churches. Since Dutch were Protestant christians they started ignoring these Catholic churches and used them as a storage place for arms and ammunitions. 

After the Dutch left and several years of ignorance in 1882 Fr. Emmanuel Pereira became the Parish priest of this Church in Virapandianpatanam. The rule of British prevailed during these times and they gave a free hand for Catholics to continue their services. Since this church was partially destroyed by the Dutch. Fr. Emmanuel wanted to re-build this church. Strong pillars were raised to support a bigger church, with the support of the pillars the inner church was segregated into 3 phases. Approximately the size of each pillar was 180 ft long and 55 ft broad. 

On 15th August 1886 the renovated church was blessed and opened at a Grand ceremony. It was in 1909 when the church's large twin bell house was built. In 2011 this church commemorated its 125th year celebrations. This church looks magnificient from the outside as well as the inside.

There is a Reasearch Facility attached to this church wherein the library consists of several historical books. Many scholars studying the coastal regions of India and arrival of Christianity in India make use of this library which is named as "Valampurinatham". This church has a distinction of being visited by Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi.

Enayam Port, Kanyakumari District

New Seaport development is a significant activity towards India’s economic development. Tamilnadu has 3 ports viz. Chennai Port, Ennore Port & Tuticorin Port. Recently a fourth seaport has been proposed at Enayam, Colachel in Kanyakumari District. Central government has given a go ahead to the Enayam International Seaport. This port will act as the southern trans-shipment gateway. The estimated cost for this project is Rs 28000 crore. 500 acres of land will be reclaimed from the sea.

What is “Sagar Mala” project ?

“Sagar Mala” project is a strategic and customer-oriented initiative of the Government of India to modernize India’s Ports so that port-led development can be augmented and coastlines can be developed to contribute towards India’s growth. It looks towards transforming the existing Ports into modern world class Ports and integrate the development of the Ports, the Industrial clusters and hinterland and efficient evacuation systems through road, rail, inland and coastal waterways resulting in Ports becoming the drivers of economic activity in coastal areas.

“Sagar Mala” is an initiative similar to the “Golden Quadrilateral” project that started during the Vajpayee government focusing on connecting the highways.

Where is Enayam ?

Colachel is a beautiful town in Kanyakumari District which has a population of around 50000. History notes that Vasco Da Gama had reached here after landing at Goa. Before the state reorganization in 1956, it was part of the Travancore state. Post 1956 this became a part of Tamilnadu. Colachel is located at a distance of 40 kms from Kanyakumari and 20 kms from Nagercoil. Enayam where the proposed harbor will be built is 11 kms from Colachel.

What is Transshipment Harbour ?

Currently Colombo port is the major transshipment port for goods to be delivered to southern states of India. Colombo port accounts for one fourth of India’s total transshipment. What does this mean?

Mother ships (heavy cargo carriers) carrying unimaginable load of cargo to various places of the world cannot be docked in our existing ports. Colombo port has the capability to berth these mother ships (journeying around Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal) and unload cargos. These cargos destined to reach India will be shipped through smaller ships which reach to the ports in India. Transshipment harbor is similar to Transit Airport wherein you switch to another flight helping you reach to your destination.

Colombo receives most of the revenue as transshipment fees which India is losing out. Forming a natural harbor at Enayam will bring in mother ships here rather than moving to Colombo, thereby bringing revenue to India than Sri Lanka.

Disadvantages of Enayam Port

Above mentioned points sounds very exciting that will bring in a world class harbour in Tamilnadu. Another prospect seems to be bringing in a lot of jobs around this district. But this rosy picture is not the actual fact. Enayam harbour will bring in lots of destructions when compared to the benefits that we have looked so far. Long term thinking needs to be in place while considering these ports. Let’s look at the drawbacks:

Vallarpadam Port, Cochin

A container trans-shipment facility in Vallarpadam, Cochin was commissioned in 2011. This facility is a part of the Cochin Port and the construction started in 2005. This was India’s first International Container Transshipment Terminal and has the capability to handle 1 million Twenty Foot Equivalent units (TEUs). A report says that during the financial year 2014-15 only 17000 TEUs was handled at Vallarpadam which is very paltry considering it’s capacity. A TEU is the standard size of a container and a common measure of capacity in the container business. Obvioulsy this port has been making losses and is not being utilized to it’s capacity. Vessels prefer Colombo than Vallarpadam.

Colombo is way ahead of Vallarpadam in terms of capacity, pricing and productivity. Large ships prefer Colombo over Vallarpadam. Of course there are lot many bureaucratic and admininistrative reasons behind the losses at Vallarpadam. My idea is not to focus on Vallarpadam’s loss but to check the feasibility of Enayam port in this situation. After all Vallarpadam is located just 270 kms away from Enayam.

Vizhinjam Port, Trivandrum

Adding to Vallarpadam, another trans-shipment port is being built at Vizhinjam in Trivandrum. This port is coming up at a distance of 50 kms from Enayam. The project is an initiative by the Kerala government and has been awarded to “Adani Ports and SEZ” in 2015. Construction began in December 2015 and is expected to be completed in 2019. With Vallarpadam in loss and Vizhinjam coming up with a new port just 50 kms away from Enayam, we wonder why another port is required at Enayam.

Re-claiming space from sea

Enayam port is fully funded by the Government of India. Enayam does not have land space for development of a port. This means that land will be reclaimed from sea for more than 500 acres. Many ports take space from land rather than sea thereby not impacting the ocean reserves in a significant way. Reclaiming land from sea will destroy the fragile ecosystem and fishes. Fishing which is the primary livelihood for many around these areas will be impacted severely.

Around 40 villages around Enayam will be impacted in a significant way. If the land is claimed at shore the impact to nature in sea would have been limited. Now that 500+ acres inside sea will be claimed, the impact would be very severe.

Movement of Goods

If a port does come in Enayam the movement of cargos from here to various parts of Tamilnadu and other areas would require heavy infrastructure. Roads, bridges, container vehicles all seems to be a good prospect, but at a heavy cost. The area beyond Kanyakumari till Kerala is one of the beautiful places to visit in Tamilnadu. Places such as Muttom, Rajakkamangalam, Colachel etc. keep the pristine glory of nature intact. Heavy development also leads to the destruction of nature.

Will it benefit India economically?

With nearby ports at Vallarpadam (Cochin) & Vizhinjam (Trivandrum) will Enayam be able to make profits? This remains as a million dollar question. Moreover a port at Enayam will also have a negative impact on our long standing Tuticorin harbour. Cargo movement to Tuticorin Port will come down drastically. Making good use of Tuticorin Port seems to be a better proposal than one coming up at Enayam.

Protests against the port

September 18th 2016 saw hundreds of fishermen and their family members staging a protest against the proposed port. The fishermen expressed fear of severe sea erosion, which could affect their livelihood, if the port, proposed to be established on over 500 acres of sea area. The project would displace over 50,000 fishermen families.

The protest, spearheaded by Peoples’ Movement Against Enayam International Container Transshipment Terminal (PMAEICTT), saw the participation of women and children belonging to the fishermen community. PMAEICTT had been opposing the project for the last one year and had staged various agitations, including a mammoth human chain at Kodimunai seashore in August 2016.

Environmental destruction

Reclaiming 500 acres of land in sea is no mean task. This implies that huge stones / rocks will have to be filled in sea to establish the area. To get a surface of 500 acres at least 3000 acres of sea below the surface should be filled with stones. Just imagine how the rocks will be sourced from, will a mountain be destroyed to get these stones? Is it worth losing hills in Western Ghats to build this harbour?

Not just mountains but also the corals & different varieties of sea bodies will be destroyed because of this port. Am I wrong in stating that “India does not require another major port for trans-shipment at Enayam but it requires minor ports with good connectivity for cargo movement? Let’s think…

Sacred Hearts Cathedral, Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu

Apart from Tuticorin's famous Snows church (covered in my earlier blog), I’d like to highligh another prominent church in Tuticorin, "Sacred Hearts Cathedral".

Sacred Hearts cathedral is not related to St. Francis Xavier or the Portuguese architecture of the early 16th century. This church was built long after the Snows church in Tuticorin and this has a “French connection”. This cathedral acts as the Tuticorin diocese headquarters, having the Tuticorin Bishop’s residence. Most of the coastal villages surrounding Tuticorin (Vembar, Alanthalai, Vaipar, Veerapandiapatinam, Manappad etc.) fall under Tuticorin diocese. Let’s look at the history and finer details of this beautiful church:

Why is it called "Chinna Koil”?

Till independence there were only 2 parishes that existed in Tuticorin – “Our Lady of Snows” and “Sacred Hearts”. Sacred Hearts cathedral is much bigger than Our Lady of Snows Basilica, but ironically this church is called as the "Chinna Koil" (meaning small church in Tamil). Snows church is called as the "Periya Koil" (big church in Tamil). The naming came because Snows was built much ahead of Sacred Hearts and it received a wider recognition from the people. In order to distinguish between these 2 popular churches people started calling the earlier one (Snows church) as big church and the latter one (Sacred Hearts) as small church. In no way this term depicts the size of the churches.

Though Tuticorin town has several churches, Snows church and Sacred Hearts church are the 2 most famous. We should note that the first church is elevated to the status of “Basilica” and the second to the status of “Cathedral” by Roman Catholicism.

On 12th June 1923 when Tuticorin diocese was created, Sacred Hearts church was elevated to the status of "Cathedral". This church became the headquarters for Tuticorin diocese and in 1923 Rev. Roche became the first Bishop for this diocese. Subsequently Sacred Hearts cathedral was established as the Bishop House of the diocese.

History of the church

Goa Mission vs. French Mission

Going back to the early 16th century when Christianity spread in India there were only 4 dioceses in India. These dioceses were under the direct control of Portuguese kingdom. The Portuguese king with Pope's permission had established these 4 dioceses in India. These 4 were Goa (Headquarters), Cochin (Kerala), Cranganore (Kerala) and Mylapore (Tamil Nadu). The coastal villages which I’m referring in Tamil Nadu came under the diocese of Cochin.

In 1658 Dutch had conquered Tuticorin and other villages by defeating the Portuguese. Years passed and all the churches in and around this area were governed by Jesuit (Society of Jesus) priests. On July 21 1773 Pope Clement XIV "de-recognised" or "suppressed" the Society of Jesus. The Jesuits took over again after the "Society of Jesus" was restored by Pope Pius VII on 7^th August 1814. On the 8th of July 1836, Pope Gregory XVI made Madurai an Apostolic Province. Madurai became the centre of Christianity in Tamil Nadu and was handed over to Jesuit priests from France. Pearl fishery coast (all coastal villages from Vembar to Kanyakumari) came under this new province and was entrusted to the Jesuit Missionaries of Toulouse Province in France. So this was also called as the "French Mission".

The French mission tried to get back all the parishes that were under the influence of Goan priests (Portuguese supported) which caused riots and confusion. Portuguese influence never left coastal towns and villages of Tamil Nadu. Two factions namely “Goa Mission” (Padroado priests) and “French Mission” (Jesuit priests) prevailed during that time. The fight between the priests of Portuguese mission and French mission grew to a fight between two nations, Portugal and France. In view of solving this problem, Pope Leo XIII in 1886, made a concordat (agreement) with the Portugal government, and put the dioceses of Goa and Mylapore under Padroado. At the same time Tiruchirapalli (Tamil Nadu) was declared a separate diocese and the Pearl Fishery Coast came under this. 

Church’s construction

In 1839 when Tuticorin was controlled by Madurai mission (Jesuits from France) the local villagers supported the establishment of Goa Mission (Portuguese mission). For this the head of villages ousted the Jesuit priest Fr. Martin from Our Lady of Snows and handed it to the Goa mission. Since Jesuit priests in Madurai mission lost control over the snows church they wanted to construct a separate church in Tuticorin. After waiting for nearly 9 years the Jesuit priests in Madurai decided to construct a church in Tuticorin. The construction of Chinna Koil started in 1848 under the supervision of Jesuit priests from Madurai.

The construction began in 1848 by Fr. Piccinelli and a small church was blessed open on January 5th of 1849. Rev. Fr. Kanos who was the bishop of Madurai Apostolic Province blessed the new church. Construction of a bigger church was going on simultaneously around this small church which was completed after 15 years in 1864.

After 45 years in 1909 the church's side wings were extended. The towers which we see in the front were built in 1948 and were considered to be a great achievement during those times. Limestone was used to build these towers which were churned by the bulls during those times. Today this church stands as one of the finest French architectural church in India.

Tamil Nadu has several churches which need to be visited. Portuguese and French have imprinted their beautiful architecture. By looking at some of the old churches we can distinguish if it follows the French or Portuguese architecture.

Why "Sacred Hearts”?

In 1849 when this church's construction was completed it was dedicated to the sacred hearts of both Jesus and mother Mary. Hence this church is called as "Sacred Hearts" rather than "Sacred Heart" church which we usually come across. 

Tuticorin Diocese

Separated from the diocese of Tiruchirapalli, Tuticorin was created as a diocese and entrusted to the diocesan clergy in 1923. St. Francis Xavier and St. Theresa of Child Jesus were held as the patron saints of the diocese. On April 4, 1930 the five parishes of Kooduthalai, Manapad (Holy Ghost Church), Punnaikayal, Tuticorin (Our Lady of Snows Church) and Vaippar were amalgamated into the diocese.

Today Tuticorin, Vallioor, Kallikulam, Uvari, Manapad, Alanthalai, Vadakankulam, Idinthakarai, Kootapuli, Vembar, Virapandiapatinam etc. fall in the Tuticorin diocese. 

Grottos in the parish

There are 4 Grottos ("Keby") in this church's premise, they are:

•  Our Lady of Lourdes
•  St. Joseph
•  St. Theresa
•  St. Francis Xavier

Special features of the church

•  Inner wooden architecture and paintings in stained glasses reflect the French architecture.
• There is a statue of Jesus Christ in the cross wherein one of his hands embraces St. Francis of Assisi.
• Finest wooden crafts, not just in the altar but everywhere around the church.
• The Eucharistic tabernacle is designed as a Pearl, symbolizing Pearly city Tuticorin.
• The inside of central dome has paintings depicting Jesus Christ, Mother Mary, Angels etc.

When you get time kindly visit these churches around coastal Tamilnadu. Each church has it's own architectural speciality..

Holy Spirit Church, Vembar, Tuticorin District, Tamil Nadu

Vembar

Vembar is a coastal village in Tamil Nadu lying in between Tuticorin and Rameswaram (65 kms from Tuticorin). Before the Arabs and Portuguese came and established their control around the coastal regions of Tamil Nadu, these regions were governed by Pandyan kings in Madurai. The Pandyan emperors allowed the coastal fishermen from Keelakarai to Kanyakumari (around 250+ kms) to manage and operate the pearl fisheries because of their ancient skills in this activity. The emperors exempted the fisher folks from taxation and allowed them to govern themselves in return for the Pearls and other sea products generated for the kingdom.

Holy Spirit Church, Vembar

History of the Holy Spirit Church

After 1542 Jesuit Priest “St. Francis Xavier” travelled through the coastal regions and he helped build several churches. During this time the Vembar church was built with walls made of clay and roofs made of thatched leaves. History states that in 1600, Jesuit records in Rome noted that Vembar’s church was the biggest and beautiful among all the coastal churches built during that time. It should be noted that around 40 churches were built along the coastal areas and Vembar's church was the biggest and beautiful.

This church started deteriorating and during 1720′s a second church was built close to the first church and was named "The Holy Spirit Church". In 1709 a terrible plague stuck the people of Vembar. This plague took many lives and incapacitated many in Vembar which lasted for nearly 2 years. During this time people were asked to seek St. Sebastian’s intervention, a warrior saint from Milan, Italy. St. Sebastian is known for curing plagues amongst several people all over the world. The people of Vembar prayed vigorously to St. Sebastian and many were cured. Around 1711 – 1712 the people embraced St. Sebastian as the patron saint of Vembar.

The second church built during 1720′s also started collapsing in the beginning of the 20th century. It was decided that a new church would be built with strength to sustain for several years. In 1908 construction of a new church began at the same location and the stones and woods from the old church were used for this building. People of Vembar contributed heavily to build this new church. Finally on 1st February 1915 the new church was blessed and consecrated to “The Holy Spirit” by Parish priest Fr. Swaminathar in the presence of Tiruchi Bishop Rev. Augustine Faisandier.

                                      

It should be noted that from 1876 Vembar had been a big mission with 25 substations. From Vaipar to Tuticorin all the churches were annexed with Vembar until 1908 when all churches were moved under Tuticorin diocese. Today the new church in Vembar which was constructed in 1915 lies few metres away from the first church which St. Francis Xavier built during his time. Year 2015 celebrated the centenary of the new church in Vembar.

Church's altar

St. Sebastian

The feast of St. Sebastian (as the patron Saint of Vembar) is observed on January 20th world over. As the patron saint of Vembar village the Holy Spirit Church celebrates this feast with much fanfare and grandeur. St. Sebastian from Milan, Italy (256 AD – 288 AD) lived way before other known saints existed, yet the awareness in India is minimal. There are very few churches in India dedicated to this saint and Vembar is one such village which has a long standing relationship with St. Sebastian. He is considered a warrior saint, saint for archers and protector against plagues.

Sebastian was an officer in the praetorian guards in Roman Army under Emperor Diocletian and he secretly worshipped Jesus Christ. During those times (from 1 AD to 300 AD) anyone following Jesus or embracing his teachings was considered a traitor by the Romans and they were prosecuted. When it was discovered that Sebastian was following Christ, he was ordered to be killed. On the Emperor Diocletian’s order he was tied to a tree and shot with 7 arrows and left to die. A widow named Irene went to retrieve his body to bury it and she found he was still alive and nursed him back to good health.

Soon after this Sebastian met the Emperor, denounced him for his cruelty to Christians. This time he was beaten badly on the Emperor’s orders and died immediately. His body was thrown into the common sewer. A pious lady named Lucina got Sebastian’s body buried it in the catacombs at the entrance of the cemetery of Calixtus, where now stands the Basilica of St. Sebastian in Rome, Italy.

St. Sebastian's procession in Vembar

St. Sebastian

Our Lady of Snows Church, Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, India

History of the church

Snows Church, Tuticorin

Snows Basilica in Tuticorin is a famous church in Tamilnadu, India. One of the oldest and biggest, this church was built after the arrival of St. Francis Xavier in the 16^th century. St. Francis Xavier was instrumental in bringing Christianity to Tamilnadu. His mission started from Kanyakumari and went until a village called Vembar covering all coastal villages for a distance of 200 kilometres. He installed several churches in and around these coastal villages.

The first church in Tuticorin was built during 1540 and dedicated to St. Peter. St. Francis Xavier who came here during this time was instrumental in building this church. Later on 5th August 1582, a new church was built and dedicated to “Our lady of Mercy”. In Rome 5^th August was observed as the feast of Mother of Snows. Since then the annual feast is celebrated on August 5^th and the church was gradually called as the “Church of our Lady of Snows” instead of “Church of our Lady of Mercy”.

The history of Mary’s statue – The statue was originally placed in the convent of Augustinian sisters, Manila, Philippines. When St. Francis Xavier was travelling to China after visiting the coastal areas of Tamilnadu he stayed in this convent for few days. He had a strong desire to take this statue back to Tamilnadu but the sisters refused to give as they were very fond of this. Later St. Francis Xavier died on the way to China in an island called Sancian which was a Portuguese occupied island during those times. Hearing this news the sisters decided to send this statue to Tuticorin as a mark of respect to the saint. The statue of Our Lady of Snows arrived from Manila, Philippines and is the statue which we see now in the Basilica.

Construction of the latest church which we see now started in 1712 by Fr. Vigilius. This church was completed in a very short span of time and it opened on 05th August 1713.

Since the new church was very big compared to the churches in other coastal villages in Tamilnadu it was called “Periya Koil” (big church). Even today people in Tuticorin refer this church as “Periya Koil”.

Our Lady of Snows

Arrival of the “Dutch” in coastal regions

During late 1650’s the Dutch fought with the Portuguese and conquered Tuticorin. Slowly they captured the entire coastal regions of Tamilnadu. Since the Dutch were against Catholicism they started demolishing many churches in this region. To protect the statue of Our Lady of Snows it was removed from the church by the village head and moved out of Tuticorin. This statue moved around coastal villages such as Sivanthakulam, Vembar, Punnaikayal to stay away from the hands of the Dutch.

In 1699 the Dutch did not have any progress in their trade because all locals around the Tuticorin region boycotted to support them. Realising a big loss in their business the Dutch called back all Jesuit priests and asked the local Catholics in Tuticorin to follow Catholicism again. During this time the statue of Our Lady of Snows came back to Tuticorin.

Golden Car

The golden car procession of Our Lady of Snows in Tuticorin is considered as one of the most important festivals. In 1702 the first Car procession ("Ther" of Our Lady of Snows) took place. The Golden Car procession first took place in 05^th August of 1806 and then in the years 1872, 1879, 1895, 1905, 1908, 1926, 1947, 1955, 1964, 1977, 1982, 2000 and 2007.

Logic behind finalising the years when a golden car procession should take place is interesting. Though we are not aware how the initial years were decided the later part had logic:

• We should note that in 1982 this church was raised as a Basilica.
• Year 2000 was the Jubilee year and again golden car procession took place.
• Year 20007 marked the 25^th anniversary since the church was raised as a Basilica.
• Year 2013 marked the completion of 300 years since the new church was built in 1713.

Golden Car

Interesting facts on Snows church and the Golden Car

• “Das Nevis” means Our Lady of Snows in Portuguese.

• She has been given the unique title of “Yelu Kadalthurai” (depicting seven coastal villages) or Yega Adaikala Thai (Mother of Refuge for the seven coastal villages). These villages were Vembar, Vaipar, Tuticorin, Punnaikayal, Virapandianpatinam, Alanthalai and Manapad.

• In 1982 the Church celebrated the 400th anniversary. Pope John Paul II raised it to the status of Basilica on 30th July 1982.

• The basilica houses the miraculous statue of Our Lady of Snows, which is completely carved out of wood and considered a great piece of art.

• The altar against a heavenly background has the portrait of God the Father and Jesus Christ crowning Mother Mary. Mother Mary’s statue (Snows statue) stands at the centre and to her right is the statue of St. Ignatius and to her left stands St. Francis Xavier.

• In the Golden Car instead of a Cross we can see a star at the top. It signifies the name of Our Lady as the Star of the Sea (Stella Maris). This star has five points to signify:

a)      Divine Motherhood

b)     Immaculate Conception

c)      Perpetual Virginity

d)     Channel of Divine grace

e)      Gate of Heaven.

• The heads of the four parrots found on the four corners of the basement in the Golden Car tell us that the people in and around Tuticorin (all coastal villages) were ruled by Pandyan Kings.
• In the Golden Car four mermaids with human heads and bodies of fish are erected standing with folded hands symbolising sea faring people in this region.

• The Car’s height is 53 feet depicting 53 Hail Mary’s in a rosary.

Basilica during festive season