St. Thomas in India & Mar Thoma Today

 

                                                       The Incredulity of St Thomas - Caravaggio 

This week we had one of those "here this evening, gone in the morning" Summer visits from one of Ruth's sisters and her husband. We chatted about family and learned that a son is dating a lovely young woman who was born in India and whose parents still live there. Her father is a Christian pastor, part of the 2% minority in a predominantly Hindu nation. Of course this seemingly tiny percentage means that more than 30 million Indians are Christian, 50%+ more than in Canada. 

I asked if the family is part the Mar Thoma church, an ancient Christian tradition. Mar Thoma translates as St. Thomas and it is held that the disciple Thomas -- yes, the Doubting or Incredulous Thomas -- was evangelizing in Kerala, India within a couple of decades of Jesus' death and resurrection. It is one of the oldest Christian traditions, a a colleague in ministry who was from India told me repeatedly, ad nauseum. Ruth's sister wasn't sure, as they relationship is new.

I also mentioned that under the iron-fisted regime of Narendra Modi religious minorities have suffered, often excluded from benefits available to Hindus. We've heard about violent suppression of Sikhs in India and even here in Canada. Muslims are a large minority treated as second-class citizens. Christians who often had a peaceful co-existence have experienced exclusion and threats. 

It's interesting, as well, that in recent years Christianity has been embraced by a growing number of Dalits, once called Untouchables. Part of the appeal is the absence of a caste system in Christianity, still strongly present in a Hindu-centric society, even though this discrimination is not supposed to exist anymore.

We'll be interested to hear more along the way, should this relationship flourish.