Rev. Fr. Giacomo Fenicio (1558 - 1632), also known as Arthunkal Veluthachan, Jacomo Fenicio or Jacob Fenicio was an
Italian Jesuit
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, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders ...
priest, scholar,
theologian, and missionary in
India.
He served in
South India as a priest and missionary from 1584 to 1632.
He was one of the first Europeans who researched and authored scholastic literature about
Hinduism. He was popular known among Christians of
Kerala and known as Arthunkal Veluthachan or ''fair skinned father'' of
Arthunkal.
Personal life
Fenicio was born in
Capua,
Italy in 1558. He arrived in India in 1582 and spent the next 48 years in South India.
He became the second
vicar of
St. Andrew's Basilica, Arthunkal
The largest shrine of St Sebastian in the world,
the church known as Arthunkal St. Andrew's Basilica and St. Sebastian's International Shrine in Arthunkal, Cherthala, Alappuzha district, Kerala, India, was constructed by waning just Portugues ...
in
Kerala after the death of the first vicar, Fr Gasper Pius, who built the church. Fenicio was well known for his tolerance towards other religions. He was popular among the local people and was affectionately called Arthunkal Veluthachan.
Fenicio died in
Cochin in 1632.
It is said that he had significant interest and knowledge in Hindu culture and martial art of
Kalaripayattu
Kalaripayattu (; also known simply as Kalari) is an Indian martial art that originated in modern-day Kerala, a state on the southwestern coast of India. Kalaripayattu is known for its long-standing history within Indian martial arts, and is ...
.
See also
*
St. Andrew's Basilica, Arthunkal
The largest shrine of St Sebastian in the world,
the church known as Arthunkal St. Andrew's Basilica and St. Sebastian's International Shrine in Arthunkal, Cherthala, Alappuzha district, Kerala, India, was constructed by waning just Portugues ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fenicio, Giacomo
1558 births
1632 deaths
16th-century Italian Jesuits
16th-century Indian Jesuits
Italian theologians
Indian theologians
Roman Catholic missionaries in India
Jesuit missionaries in India
People from Capua
Italian emigrants to India
Indian people of Italian descent
Christianity in Kerala
Christian clergy from Kochi