மயிலை மாதா - சந்தோம்|Our Lady of Mylapore|தூய மயிலை அன்னை-சென்னை|mailai annai|Arul Thedal|Fr Manuvel

#jesus #mary #bible
#madha
#dailymass #holymass
#santhome
#mylapore
#OurLadyofMylapore

மயிலை மாதா - சந்தோம்|Our Lady of Mylapore|தூய மயிலை அன்னை-சென்னை|mailai annai|Arul Thedal|Fr Manuvel

San Thome Church, also known as St. Thomas Cathedral Basilica and National Shrine of Saint Thomas, is a Roman Catholic minor basilica in Santhome, in the city of Chennai (Madras), India. It was built in the 16th century by Portuguese explorers, over the tomb of Saint Thomas, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus.

This is the shrine in the East Indies, where Saint Francis Xavier often retired to pray during his eleven years with the people of India. The Blessed Virgin Mary was Francis’ constant source of strength and inspiration. The image before which Saint Francis used to pray is called Mylai Matha in Tamil, or Our Lady of Mylapore in English. It is an ancient statue about three feet tall, Our Lady of Meliapore can still be venerated at the church.

The church of Saint Thomas of Mylapore – spelled somewhat differently from the above – contains Mary’s shrine. According to tradition, the Apostle Saint Thomas came to India in 52 AD. Due to his success making converts to the True Faith, he was persecuted and finally martyred in the year 72 AD. Saint Thomas is buried at the shrine of Our Lady of Meliapore, and there are relics of Saint Francis Xavier.

There was a church known to be in Mylapore going back to the 1st century, and built by St Thomas. According to tradition, there was a huge log that had washed down the river to a place where it blocked the water and caused massive flooding. The local king was at a loss to remove the blockage, but having heard that St Thomas was a miracle worker, asked him for his assistance. Saint Thomas prayed and then touched the log, which made it so light that the king’s men were suddenly able to easily pull it from the river. The king, in thanksgiving, gave the massive log to St Thomas, who used the wood he obtained from it to construct his church.