John Kuzhinapurath, OIC, (1904–1994), a great philanthropist was among the first priests who united with the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

along with Archbishop Mar Ivanios on 20 September 1930 in the process of the formation of the

Syro-Malankara Catholic Church The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, also known as the Malankara Syrian Catholic Church, is an Eastern Catholic '' sui iuris'' particular church in full communion with the worldwide Catholic Church possessing self-governance under the Code of Ca ...

Early life

Kuzhinapurath was born on 6 July 1904 at

Omallur Omalloor is a small town, about 3.5 km south of Pathanamthitta District headquarters, in Kerala. Omalloor is famous for '' Vayal Vanibham'' which is an annual farming fair held in the month of Meenam (October). People from both within and ou ...

near

Pathanamthitta Pathanamthitta (), is a municipality situated in the Central Travancore region in the state of Kerala, India, spread over an area of 23.50 km2. It is the administrative capital of Pathanamthitta district. The town has a population of 37 ...

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. He was the youngest child of

Pakalomattom The Pakalomattam family is an ancient Marthoma Nasrani ( Syrian Christian) family in Kerala, India. According to the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, the family "solely supplied bishops and archdeacons to the Church n Indiatil ...

Kuzhinapurath Eapen and Kocheetha. He had his primary education in Government Middle School at

. He was ordained deacon by the Orthodox

Catholicos Catholicos, plural Catholicoi, is a title used for the head of certain churches in some Eastern Christian traditions. The title implies autocephaly and in some cases it is the title of the head of an autonomous church. The word comes from ancient ...

Mar Baselios in 1919. Then he studied for priesthood at M.D. Seminary,

Kottayam Kottayam () is a municipal town in the Indian state of Kerala. Flanked by the Western Ghats on the east and the Vembanad Lake and paddy fields of Kuttanad on the west. It is the district headquarters of Kottayam district, located in south-we ...

. Kuzhinapurath continued his secular studies at St. Thomas High School, Pala, Kerala. He completed his intermediate education at C.M.S College, Kottayam.

Monastic practice

Kuzhinapurath joined the Bethany Ashram, the monastic order founded by Archbishop Mar Ivanios. He made his first monastic profession and Mar Ivanios ordained him priest in 1929. Kuzhinapurath followed Mar Ivanios and reunited with the Catholic Church on 20 September 1930. He had a monastic formation of one year in the Carmelite Monastery at Trivandrum. He served the Bethany Ashram as novice master and

Superior General A superior general or general superior is the leader or head of a religious institute in the Catholic Church and some other Christian denominations. The superior general usually holds supreme executive authority in the religious community, while t ...

. He worked in several mission centers at

Thiruvalla Thiruvalla, alternately spelled Tiruvalla, is a town in Kerala and the Headquarters of the Taluk of the same name located in Pathanamthitta district in the State of Kerala, India. The town is spread over an area of . It lies on the banks of ...

and

Trivandrum Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

. His mission work was mainly among the underprivileged of the society. He worked as the chaplain of TB Sanatorium at

Pulayanarkotta Pulayanarkotta is a locality in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. The Southern Air Command is based at Pulayarnarkotta. Meaning of the name Pulayanarkotta literally means the fort of the Pulaya's King. History The ''Pulayanarkotta'' region ...

. He cycled several kilometers every day to do missionary and charitable work. He started the prayer centre at the T. B. Sanitorium at Pulayanarkotta, Trivandrum. He founded the famous St. Jude's Shrine at Vettinadu, Trivandrum by the side of Kerala State High Way, SH 220. He wrote the book ''Sahana Yanjgam'' (Sacrificial Suffering). Kuzhinapurath died on 28 January 1994. The Bethany Ashram published a special issue of ''Bethany Sabdam'', a compilation of memories about Kuzhinapurath in 1995.

Commemoration

The death anniversary and commemoration of Kuzhinapurath was celebrated on 30 January 2010. Thomas Kuzhinapurath and seven other priests from Kuzhinapurath family concelebrated Holy Qurbono at Bethany Ashram, Nalanchira, Trivandrum, where Kuzhinapurath is buried, followed by a commemoration meeting presided by Moran Mor

Baselios Cleemis Baselios Cleemis (born 15 June 1959) is the current major archbishop-catholicos of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church. He was named to the College of Cardinals of the Catholic Church by Pope Benedict XVI on 24 November 2012. At the moment of hi ...

. Mor Cleemis released the book ''Preshita Deepam'', the biography of Kuzhinapurath, written by Peter C. Abraham. Baselios Cleemis said Fr. John was truly a refuge to the poor and the destitute. The second edition of the biography of Kuzhinapurath, "Preshita Deepam" was released at the 5th quinquennial assembly of the Great

family at Kuravilangadu on December 19, 2015. Cardinal

, the President of Catholic Bishops'Conference of India released book by giving the first copy to Alexander Jacob, IPS, the former Director General of Police,

, India. Every year pilgrims from Vettinadu, Vembayam and Chiramukku, the mission stations he served for several years come and celebrate Holy Qurbono at Bethany Ashram, Nalanchira, where he was buried and pray at his tomb under the leadership of their parish priest on Jan. 28, his death anniversary. His family members will gather together and commemorate him on second Saturday of January every year at his home parish at Cheekkanal, Omallur, Pathanamthitta Kathikan Basilica John staged the story of John Kuzhinapurath in the form of a

Kadhaprasangam Kadhaprasangam (''lyrical narrative'' or ''story telling performance'') is a performing art of Kerala, India. Performance It combines speaking, acting, and singing to present a story. Costumes, make-up, or settings are not used. The main ar ...

on January 13, 2018.

Sources

Fr. Thomas Inchaykkalodi, ''Archbishop Mar Ivanios'', Vol. 1, Bethany Publications, Kottayam, 2006. Peter C. Abraham, ''Peshita Deepam: Fr. John Kuzhinapurath OIC'', Malankara Catholic Publications, Trivandrum, 2010.

References

External links

Syro-Malankara Catholic Church
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuzhinapurath, John 1904 births 1994 deaths Converts to Eastern Catholicism from Oriental Orthodoxy 20th-century Indian Roman Catholic priests Syro-Malankara Catholics Indian Eastern Catholics People from Omallur