Venerable Thomas of Kurialacherry (14 January 1873 – 2 June 1925) was a Catholic bishop from Kerala. Kurialacherry was a member of the
Syro-Malabar Catholic Church
lat, Ecclesia Syrorum-Malabarensium mal, മലബാറിലെ സുറിയാനി സഭ
, native_name_lang=, image = St. Thomas' Cross (Chennai, St. Thomas Mount).jpg
, caption = The Mar Thoma Nasrani Sl ...
, and was the first bishop of what would become the
Archdiocese of Changanassery
The Archeparchy of Changanacherry is a Syro-Malabar Catholic archeparchy with an area of 24,595 km2 comprising the districts of Kottayam, Alappuzha, Pathanamthitta, Kollam, and Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, and also Kanyakumari distric ...
.
Life
Kurialacherry was born on 14 January 1873 as the sixth child of Chackochen and Accamma in
Champakulam
Champakulam is a village in Kerala, India. It is in Alappuzha district. Champakulam is part of Kuttanad, the rice bowl of Kerala, and is resplendent in green paddy fields, coconut groves and water fowl. Champakulam is an important tourist spo ...
, Kerala. He was baptized on the eighth day and was christened Thomas. After his primary education, Thomas joined St.Ephrem school in Mannanam.It was during this time that he felt a strong desire to become a priest.
["Venerable Mar Thomas Kurialacherry", Sisters of the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament (SABS)]
/ref>
His seminary education was at the seminary of the Propaganda Fide
Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...
in Rome. During the nine years he spent in Rome he excelled and became prefect of the seminarians. He was ordained on 27 March 1899 by Cardinal Cassantha at the Basilica of St. John in Lateran
The Archbasilica Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist in the Lateran ( it, Arcibasilica del Santissimo Salvatore e dei Santi Giovanni Battista ed Evangelista in Laterano), also known as the Papa ...
. After his ordination, he remained some time in Italy visiting various shrines. It was then that he was a guest for some days of Giuseppe Cardinal Sarto, Patriarch of Venice.
While in Rome he was inspired by the piety of perpetual adoration sisters who spent day and night in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
The Blessed Sacrament, also Most Blessed Sacrament, is a devotional name to refer to the body and blood of Christ in the form of consecrated sacramental bread and wine at a celebration of the Eucharist. The term is used in the Latin Church of the ...
; so he decided to spread eucharistic devotion in his homeland.[ As an ardent devotee of the Blessed Sacrament, he zealously promoted the 40 and 13 hour devotions. In 1908, he founded the Sisters of the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament (SABS). Thomas Kurialacherry was appointed as the apostolic vicar of the Changanassery vicariate. He was consecrated on 3 December 1911 in ]Kandy
Kandy ( si, මහනුවර ''Mahanuwara'', ; ta, கண்டி Kandy, ) is a major city in Sri Lanka located in the Central Province. It was the last capital of the ancient kings' era of Sri Lanka. The city lies in the midst of hills ...
, Ceylon. Bishop Kurialacherry was a social reformer and was enthusiastic about raising the marginalized sectors of society. He showed great care towards dalit
Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the Caste system in India, castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold Varna (Hinduism), varna syste ...
Catholics. Mar Kurialacherry was an apostle of ecumenism; as a man with a wider perspective he worked for the unity of various Christian communities. He was confident that progress of the society could be achieved through education; this led him to establish many educational institutions including, in 1922, the prestigious St. Berchmans College
St. Berchmans College, Changanassery (Autonomous), also known as SB College, is one of the first Autonomous Colleges in Kerala. One of the most famous colleges in India, the college has a strength of 3000 students with 800 hostlers. Currently, ...
in Changanassery.[
In the silver jubilee year of his ordination bishop Thomas Kurialacherry went to Rome for his ad limina visit. He also had a desire to participate in the beatification of St. ]Therese of Lisieux
Therese or Thérèse is a variant of the feminine given name Teresa. It may refer to:
Persons
Therese
*Duchess Therese of Mecklenburg-Strelitz (1773–1839), member of the House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and a Duchess of Mecklenburg
* Therese of B ...
. He had experienced episodes of rheumatism and was afflicted with uremia. While in Rome his illness worsened. He celebrated his last mass in the Propaganda College chapel on the 26th anniversary of his ordination. He died on 2 June 1925 in Rome. His mortal remains were brought back to his homeland in 1935 and interred in St. Mary's Metropolitan Cathedral, Changanassery and in 2014 they were transferred to the newly built Marthmariam kabaridappalli.
Bishop Kurialacherry was a strong advocate for the education of women: "When we educate a woman we are educating a generation." Bishop Kurialacherry College for Women in Amalagiri
Location
Amalagiri is a suburb of Kottayam town in Kerala, India. The place is a semi-urban residential area located 9 km north west of Kottayam town.
Etymology
Amalagiri means pure hill (''Amala'' = pure, ''giri'' = hill).
Landmarks
The ...
and Bishop Kurialacherry Public School in Champakulam
Champakulam is a village in Kerala, India. It is in Alappuzha district. Champakulam is part of Kuttanad, the rice bowl of Kerala, and is resplendent in green paddy fields, coconut groves and water fowl. Champakulam is an important tourist spo ...
are named after him.
Cause of canonization
In 1935, ten years after his death, his cause of canonization was initiated giving him the title "Servant of God
"Servant of God" is a title used in the Catholic Church to indicate that an individual is on the first step toward possible canonization as a saint.
Terminology
The expression "servant of God" appears nine times in the Bible, the first five in th ...
". On 2 April 2011 Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...
, in an audience with Cardinal Angelo Amato
Angelo Amato, S.D.B. (born 8 June 1938) is an Italian cardinal of the Catholic Church who served as the Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints between 2008 and 2018. He served as Secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of t ...
, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints
In the Catholic Church, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, previously named the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, pa ...
, approved (along with the advancement of many other sainthood causes) a statement saying that Bishop Kurialachery had lived a life of heroic virtue. This gave him the additional title of "Venerable
The Venerable (''venerabilis'' in Latin) is a style, a title, or an epithet which is used in some Western Christian churches, or it is a translation of similar terms for clerics in Eastern Orthodoxy and monastics in Buddhism.
Christianity
Cathol ...
"."Venerable Mar Thomas Kurialacherry", Syro-Malabar Church
/ref>
References
External links
Archdiocese of Changanacherry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurialassery, Thomas
1873 births
1925 deaths
20th-century Eastern Catholic bishops
Archbishops of Changanassery
20th-century venerated Christians
People from Alappuzha district
Christian clergy from Kerala
Venerated Catholics by Pope Benedict XVI
Syro-Malabar bishops