St. Thomas Ecumenical Church, Nilackal

Nilakkal St. Thomas Ecumenical Church is one of the earliest Christian churches in Kerala, India. This church is one among the Ezharappallikal (seven and a half churches) believed to be established in 54 AD by St. Thomas, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ.^[2]

St. Thomas Ecumenical Church, Nilackal
St. Thomas Ecumenical Church, Nilackal
Religion
Affiliation	Christianity
District	Pathanamthitta
Ecclesiastical or organizational status	Independent Ecumenical church
Leadership	Various Episcopal Churches
Year consecrated	53 AD
Location
Location	Angamoozhy, Kerala, India.
State	Kerala
Interactive map of St. Thomas Ecumenical Church, Nilackal
Coordinates	(9°22′27″N 77°00′07″E)
Architecture
Type	Mix of Kerala and Persian
Completed	A.D 54 [1]

Nilakkal, also known as Chayal is a forest area, but once it was a place of great importance carried on trade with Madhura and Thirunelveli.^[2]According to tradition and early written records, St. Thomas built one of the seven churches in a place called Nilakkal (also known as Chayal). The establishment of the church by St. Thomas in this location is mentioned in ancient copper plates and supported by various historical writings. ^[1]

The Nilackal (Chayal) Church in Angamoozhy was established by Thomas the Apostle in 54 AD and is among the Ezharappallikal. The Syrian Christians of Nilakkal had migrated to nearby regions of Kadampanad, Adoor, Thumpamon and Chengannur between the 2nd and the 8th centuries. According to tradition many Tamil Brahmins, Vellalars and Chettiars were converted by St Thomas the apostle in the Coromandel coast (Mylapore, Kayalpattanam). These converts from Coromandel later flocked towards the Syrian Christian strongholds in Kerala like Nilakkal(Chayal) and Kollam in the 2nd century following persecution. Nilakkal was an important trading city in the erstwhile Chera Kingdom and had flourishing trade with the Pandya Kingdom of Madurai. In the 10th century Pandalam and Poonjar dynasties branched off from the Pandyan Kingdom and established themselves in Kerala, Nilakkal being part of Pandalam. The decline of Nilackal initiated in the early 12th century when Maravarman Kulasekara Pandyan I conquered Quilon, as Nilackal was the passage between Chera-Pandya it was sacked. This influenced Pandyan bandits and plunderers led by Vikramanpuli Thevar (Vakrapuli) and Paraiya pattam (Perumpatta) to loot Nilackal early in the 12th century. The 2nd Pandyan Civil War between Veera Pandya and Sundara Pandya along with invasion of the Delhi Sultanate led General Malik Kafur in the early 1300s further aggravated the misery of Nilakkal.[11] The city was looted and torched and nothing remained of it. The Nilakkal church was burned and the Syrian Christians of Nilakkal migrated to regions like Kanjirappally, Poonjar, Aruvithura, Ranni, Vadasserikara, Vaipur and Erumeli and other parts of present Meenachil. The Great Flood Of 1341 destroyed what was left of Nilakkal, completely wiping out its existence.[12][13] [14] The Nilackal church was later reconstructed in Angamoozhy. This church has the importance that it is the first Ecumenical church in the world and has been dedicated by all the denominations as an example of heritage by St. Thomas.

Since the old church is in a dilapidated stage, a new church has been constructed in a site not far from it. The new church is at Angamoozhy, 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) away from Nilakkal, almost 52 kilometres (32 mi) east to Ranni in Pathanamthitta District of Kerala. At present time, this church functioning as an ecumenical church maintained by various Episcopal Churches in India.^[3]