Chinna Koil - Sacred Hearts cathedral, Tuticorin
Whilst we have come across the article on Tuticorin’s famous
Snows church, we also need to know about another prominent church in Tuticorin,
“Sacred Hearts cathedral”. Sacred Hearts cathedral does not fall on the lines of
churches which we have seen so far. This church does not carry the traditional
trademark of St. Francis Xavier or the Portuguese architecture or the early
16th century history which other churches possess. But the church has an
obvious Paravar connection and we need to know why it became the headquarters
of Tuticorin Diocese. Most of the churches in Muthukulithurai fall under this
diocese.Why is it called “Chinna Koil”?
Till independence there were only 2 parishes that existed in
Tuticorin – Our Lady of Snows and Sacred Hearts. Sacred Hearts cathedral is
much bigger than Our Lady of Snows Basilica, but ironically this church is
called as the “Chinna Koil”. Snows church is called as the “Periya Koil”. The
naming came because Snows was built much ahead of Sacred Hearts and it received
a bigger recognition from the people.
On 12th June 1923 when Tuticorin diocese was created, Sacred
Hearts church was elevated to the status of “Cathedral”. This church became the
headquarters for Tuticorin diocese and in 1923 Rev. Roche became the first
Bishop for this diocese. Subsequently Sacred Hearts cathedral was established
as the Bishop House of the diocese.
History
Goa Mission vs. French Mission
Going back to the early 16th century when Portuguese
converted many Paravars to Christians, we can see that there were only 4
dioceses in India. The Portuguese king with Pope’s permission had established
these 4 dioceses in India. These 4 were Goa (Headquarters), Cochin (Kerala),
Cranganore (Kerala) and Mylapore (Tamilnadu). The villages inhabited by
Paravars (Muthukulithurai) came under the diocese of Cochin.
In 1658 Dutch had conquered Tuticorin and other villages by
defeating the Portuguese. Years passed and all our churches were governed by
Jesuit (Society of Jesus) priests. On July 21 1773 Pope Clement XIV
“de-recognised” or “suppressed” the Society of Jesus. The Jesuits took over
again after the “Society of Jesus” was restored by Pope Pius VII on 7thAugust
1814. On the 8th of July 1836, Pope Gregory XVI made Madurai an Apostolic
Province. Madurai became the centre of Christianity in Tamilnadu and was handed
over to Jesuit priests from France. Pearl fishery coast which came in this new
province was entrusted to the Jesuit Missionaries of Thulus Province in France.
So this was also called as the “French Mission”.
The Jesuit priests tried to get back the all the parishes
that were under the influence of Goan priests which caused riots and confusion.
We need to understand that though Jesuits were held responsible for
Muthukulithurai several churches were still run by the Goan priests. In short,
Portuguese influence never left us and it was considered to be a fight between
two nations, France and Portugal. Two factions namely “Goa Mission” (Padroado
priests) and “French Mission” (Jesuit priests) prevailed during that time. In
view of solving this problem, Pope Leo XIII in 1886, made a concordat with the
Portugal government, and put the dioceses of Goa and Mylapore under Padroado.
At the same time Tiruchirapalli was declared a separate diocese and the Pearl
Fishery Coast came under this.
Church’s construction
Long before Pope Leo XIII put the dioceses of Goa and
Mylapore under Padroado priests in 1886 there is a story of how Jesuits were
evacuated from Snows church in Tuticorin. In 1839 when Tuticorin was controlled
by Madurai mission (Jesuits from France) the head of Paravars in Tuticorin
supported the establishment of Goa Mission. For this the head of Paravars
ousted the Jesuit priest Fr. Martin from Our Lady of Snows (Periya Koil) and
handed it to the Goa mission (Padroado priests). Since Snows church was not in
the hands of Jesuits, they wanted to construct a separate church in Tuticorin.
After waiting for nearly 9 years the Jesuit priests in Madurai decided to
construct a church in Tuticorin. Mr. Manuel Vyagula Motha (Vembar) had a sprawling land
(63 acres) which he gave for the church to be built. The construction of Chinna
Koil started in 1848 under the supervision of Jesuit priests from Madurai.
The construction began in 1848 by Fr. Piccinelli and a small
church was blessed open on January 5th of 1849. Rev. Fr. Kanos who was the
bishop of Madurai Apostolic Province blessed the new church. Construction of a
bigger church was going on simultaneously around this small church. After 15
years in 1864 the bigger church was completed and this was overseen by Jesuit
brother Lamoth who was an expert in construction.
Why “Sacred Hearts”?
In 1849 when this church’s construction was completed it was
dedicated to the sacred hearts
of both Jesus and mother Mary. Hence this church
is called as “Sacred Hearts” rather than “Sacred Heart” church which we usually
come across.
Tuticorin Diocese
Separated from the diocese of Tiruchirapalli, Tuticorin was
created as a diocese and entrusted to the diocesan clergy in 1923. St. Francis
Xavier and St. Theresa of Child Jesus were held as the patron saints of the
diocese. On April 4, 1930 the five parishes of Kooduthalai, Manapad (Holy Ghost
Church), Punnaikayal, Tuticorin (Our Lady of Snows Church) and Vaippar were
amalgamated into the diocese.
Today Tuticorin, Vallioor, Kallikulam, Uvari, Manapad,
Alanthalai, Vadakankulam, Idinthakarai, Kootapuli, Vembar, Virapandiapatinam
etc. fall in the Tuticorin diocese. In short most of Muthukulithurai churches
fall in Tuticorin diocese headquartered in the Chinna Koil.
Grottos in the parish
There are 4 Grottos (“Keby”) in this church’s premise, they
are:
Our Lady of Lourdes
St. Joseph
St. Theresa
St. Francis Xavier
Special features of the church
Inner wooden architecture and paintings in stained glasses
reflect the French architecture.
There is a statue of Jesus Christ in the cross wherein one
of his hands embraces St. Francis of Assisi.
Finest wooden crafts, not just in the altar but everywhere
around the church.
The Eucharistic tabernacle is designed as a Pearl,
symbolizing Pearly city Tuticorin.
The inside of central dome has paintings depicting Jesus
Christ, Mother Mary, Angels etc.
by Anton Niresh
Thanks: Global Paravar
