St. Mary's Forane Church Edoor is one of the oldest churches and a notable Marian pilgrim centre in

Kannur district Kannur () is one of the 14 Districts of Kerala, districts along the west coast in the state of Kerala, India. The city of Kannur is the district headquarters and gives the district its name. The old name, Cannanore, is the anglicized form of th ...

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, 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 ...

. It is near

Iritty Iritty is a municipality and taluk in Kannur district of Kerala state, India. The town is the main market place for the farmer communities in the surrounding regions. Iritty is at a distance of from Kannur International Airport and one among ...

, the eastern town of

Kannur Kannur (), formerly known in English as Cannanore, is a city and Municipal corporation (India), municipal corporation in the state of Kerala, India. It is the administrative headquarters of the Kannur district and situated north of the maj ...

district. This church is the first church in the name of St. Mary under the archdiocese of

Thalassery Thalassery () (also called Tellicherry) is a city and municipality on the Malabar Coast in Kannur district in the state of Kerala, India, bordered by the districts of Mahe and Kozhikode. Thalassery municipality has a population of just under ...

. It is also the largest parish in the

archdiocese In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associated ...

. It is situated about 6.5 kilometres from the town of

, which is also known as 'The Coorg valley in the God's own country'.

Basic Information

Edoor Edoor is a small town about 6.5 kilometers from Iritty in Kannur district in Kerala, India. Edoor is named by the people from Travancore. Before their migration these lands were forest. Economy Edoor town is a small marketplace for the farmer ...

town is a small marketplace for the farmer communities of the surrounding regions. This place is well-connected to any part of

and other parts of

by road.

History

This

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

was established in 1946. In its initial times, it was under the

Latin Catholic The Latin Church () is the largest autonomous () particular church within the Catholic Church, whose members constitute the vast majority of the 1.3 billion Catholics. The Latin Church is one of 24 ''sui iuris'' churches in full communion w ...

Diocese of

Kozhikode Kozhikode (), also known as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. Known as the City of Spices, Kozhikode is listed among the City of Literature, UNESCO's Cities of Literature. It is the nineteenth large ...

. Later, it came under the

Syro-Malabar Catholic The Syro-Malabar Church, also known as the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, is an Eastern Catholic church based in Kerala, India. It is a ''sui iuris'' (autonomous) particular church in full communion with the Holy See and the worldwide Catholi ...

Archdiocese of

. In those times, the members of the parish were the Christian people who had migrated from

Travancore The kingdom of Travancore (), also known as the kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor () or later as Travancore State, was a kingdom that lasted from until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvanan ...

. In 1970, the new church was built.

Architectural Features

The church is in a circular shape and it has a

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

in the centre. As it is circular, it has a large area and a wide angle of viewing the

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of worship. They are use ...

. It is also one of the largest churches in Malabar. The

of this church was renovated in 2012, which creates a heavenly feeling in our mind. The

altarpieces An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...

include the sculptures of various

saints In Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Anglican, Oriental Orth ...

. The church has entrances from three directions; viz. West, South and North. Above the main entrance which is from the south, we can see a Latin text: "VENITE ADOREMUS", meaning Come, Let us worship. Above the entrance from the south, we can see the text: "AVE MARIA", and above the northern entrance we can see the text: "MY LORD, MY GOD", which is a declaration by St. Thomas, who is the

apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary. The word is derived from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", itself derived from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to se ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

and the father of the

Syro-Malabar Church The Syro-Malabar Church, also known as the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, is an Eastern Catholic church based in Kerala, India. It is a '' sui iuris'' (autonomous) particular church in full communion with the Holy See and the worldwide Cathol ...

Special Features

*The major attraction here is the presence of

Mother Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under various titles such as virgin or queen, many of them mentioned in the Litany of Loreto. ...

, The Immaculate. Here is a statue of Mother Mary which may not be seen anywhere else. The people here call it as 'Edooramma (എടൂരമ്മ)', meaning 'The Mother of Edoor'. *Another feature of this church is the wooden statue of crucified

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

. Unlike other statues, here we can see Jesus crucified on 'four' nails. *Unlike most of the churches in

, this does not have a veil (curtain) in between the 'Madbaha' (

) and 'Haikala' (the place in the church where people stand). *The feast of

St. Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

is held in the first week of January always. Thus it is also considered as the thanksgiving feast for the New Year. People from various parts of the district including those who belong to other religions come here to celebrate this festival.

Edooramma

The presence of

is the reason for its popularity. The statue of Mother Mary or ''Edooramma'' which may not be seen anywhere else is the most beautiful thing in this church. *Edooramma wearing a blue gown means that 'the gown is the sky which covers Earth. So, the whole Earth is protected by her presence.' *In the left hand, Edooramma holds a ' white dove', and in her right hand there is a

rosary The Rosary (; , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), formally known as the Psalter of Jesus and Mary (Latin: Psalterium Jesu et Mariae), also known as the Dominican Rosary (as distinct from other forms of rosary such as the ...

. This means that she spreads peace on earth. It is through the way of rosaries that she spreads the peace. *She wears a golden crown with twelve stars around it, showing that she is the queen of the

Heaven Heaven, or the Heavens, is a common Religious cosmology, religious cosmological or supernatural place where beings such as deity, deities, angels, souls, saints, or Veneration of the dead, venerated ancestors are said to originate, be throne, ...

and the

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

. *There is always a charming smile in her face. It really feels like she is staring at us if we kneel in front of her to pray. This statue was made in foreign country and brought here by the European

Missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Miss ...

who were working in this region. Actually it was decided to place it in a nearby church and not in St. Mary's Church. It is said that while it was transported to another church via

, the vehicle had a breakdown when it reached Edoor. As the defect could not be solved soon, they placed the statue in the Edoor Church. This is the story how Edooramma reached here.

Educational Institutions

This church has played a role in the educational landscape of the region. St. Mary's LP School, established in 1946, holds the distinction of being the oldest school in the area. Following this, St. Mary's UP School was founded in 1949, providing primary education. Subsequently, St. Mary's High School was established in 1957, and in 1998, St. Mary's Higher Secondary School expanded opportunities for higher education in the region. Today, St. Mary's Higher Secondary School integrates primary, secondary, and higher secondary education under one roof. Additionally, the church, through its leadership at CMC Convent, facilitated the establishment of St. Treesa’s Nursery School in 1972 and Vikas Bhavan Special School for differently abled children in 1984. Vikas Bhavan Special School is among the few specialized schools in Kerala.

Parishes Under Edoor Forane

1. St. Thomas Church Karikottakkari
2. St. Sebastian's Church Velimanam
3. St. Mary's Church Mangode
4. St. Mary's Church Uruppumkutty
5. St. Sebastian's Church Chedikulam
6. Bl. Chavara Kuriakose Elias Church Keezhpally
7. St. Sebastian's Church Vattiyara
8. St. Joseph Church Edappuzha

Major Institutions in the parish

*CMC Convent *Vikas Bhavan Special School *St. Treesa's Nursery School *St. Mary's LP School *St. Mary's Higher secondary School *St. Mary's Sunday School *Alphonse Bhavan *Don Bosco Convent *Sneha Bhavan Orphanage *Mythree Bhavan Old age Home *Friends Credit Union (TSSS) *Carmel Homeo Clinic

Priests Served in the Parish

1.Fr.Kudakkachira Kuriakose(1945–47)
2.Fr.Kuzhikkalathil C.J.Varkey(1947–49)
3.Fr.Kattakkayam Joseph(1949–54)
4.Fr.Elamthuruthiyil Sebastian(1954–59)
5.Fr.Moongammackal Abraham(1959–65)
6.Fr.Kollamparambil Joseph(1965–72)
7.Fr.Koottiyani Peter(1972–77)
8.Fr.Kadukummackal John(1977–80)
9.Fr.Kattackal Zacharias(1980–84)
10.Fr.Kunnapallil Varkey(1984–90)
11.Fr.Kollakombil George(1990–93)
12.Fr.Kavalakkattu Kuriakose(1993–99)
13.Fr.Purayidam Antony(1999-2005)
14.Fr.Emmanuel Poovathinkal(2005-2010)
15. Fr. Andrews Thekkel (2010-2016)
16. Fr. Antony Muthukunnel from 2016-

References

{{Churches of Kerala Churches in Kannur district Syro-Malabar Catholic church buildings Eastern Catholic churches in Kerala Churches completed in 1975