CSI Mylaudy
CSI District Church, Mylaudy
8°09′27″N 77°30′12″E / 8.1574°N 77.5034°E / 8.1574; 77.5034
LocationMylaudy, Tamil Nadu
CountryIndia
Websitewww.csimylaudy.com
History
StatusCathedral
Founded1806
Founder(s)Rev. William Tobias Ringletaube, Vethamonikam Desikar
Architecture
Functional statusActive
Architectural typeCathedral
StyleGothic
Administration
ProvinceChurch of South India (former: Church of England (LMS))
DioceseKanyakumari Diocese (former: South Travancore Diocese)
Clergy
Bishop(s)Most Rev. A. R. Chellaiah [1]
Priest(s)Rev. R.Christudhas
Assistant priest(s)Rev. A. Abraham Justin Kumar

Ringeltaube Vethamonikam Memorial Church,[2][3] at Mylaudy in Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, India, It's one of the largest and oldest churches in Asia. It's the cathedral of Kanyakumari Diocese, of the Church of South India (CSI).[4]

On May 01,1996 Mylaudy Church was promoted as District Church.

On April 25, 2006 occasions of 200th (Bicentenary) Ringeltaube & Vethamonikam Day mylaudy Church was Promoted as Cathedral of Kanyakumari Diocese and South Travancore Diocese. Announced by the Bishop John Gladstone Moderator of CSI South India

At present, This Single Seed (Mylaudy CSI Church) has spread like a Banyan tree and have been grown into three Diocese/congregations (Kanyakumari Diocese, South Kerala Diocese, Kollam-Kottarakkara Diocese).

Short history

During the 18th century, on the request of kholf iyer the German missionary William Tobias Ringeltaube came to Travancore. and stayed in Mylaudy.by thee support of first christian in south travancore the maharasan vethamonikam [5] Over a period of ten years, Ringeltaube succeeded in building his mission. The first church was built at Mylaudy in September 1809. Many churches and schools were established in many more. After a large church was built in Mylaudy. [6] Many schools were started. Even non-Christian students also received education. A printing press was started by his mission in 1821. Medical wing of the mission was established in 1838.[5]

Caste system

During the period of Kingdom of Travancore, the present day Kanyakumari district was under the control of the Kingdom. It was caste-based. Those who belonged to lower castes were denied education, choice of occupation and basic dignity. The women of the lower castes were not allowed to cover their breasts and they had to pay the mulakkaram (breast tax) to the king if they wanted to cover their breasts. The tax was amount depended on their breast size.[7][8][9][10][11] A woman baring her chest to noble class was considered a sign of respect, by both males and females from the lower castes.[12][13] Higher-class women covered both breasts and shoulders, whereas lower castes including Nadar and Ezhava women were not allowed to do so, to show their low status.[13][14] Uneasy with their social status, many Nadars embraced Christianity, and started to wear long cloths. When many more Nadar women turned to Christianity, many Hindu Nadar women adopted the Nair breast cloth.[7][8][11][14]

From 1813 to 1859 laws were enacted and repealed by the Kingdom regarding the upper cloth issue.[15][16] During this period waves of violence and agitation continued between the higher and lower castes. Due to the rebellion of lower castes, on 1859 the kingdom permanently permitted lower caste women to wear garments on their torsos.[7][11]

However, the claims of breast-taxes being levied in order to prevent lower-caste women from covering their breasts are hotly contested. Renowned Malayali historian Manu Pillai claims that the idea that it was meant to prevent them from covering their breasts is farfetched. [17] Author Swati Gautam also cites in her article [18] partisan and ideologically backed ideas of connecting apparent "Brahminical" ideas of violence to the tax, which was meant purely for differentiation between the sexes.

References

  1. ↑ "CSI Kanyakumari Diocese".
  2. ↑ "CSI Mylaudy | Home". www.csimylaudy.com.
  3. ↑ "CHURCHES | CSI KANYAKUMARI DIOCESE". www.csikkd.org.
  4. ↑ London Missionary Society, ed. (1869). Fruits of Toil in the London Missionary Society. London: John Snow & Co. p. 58.
  5. 1 2 Kent, Eliza F. (2004). Converting Women: Gender and Protestant Christianity in Colonial South India. Oxford University Press. p. 43. ISBN 9780195165074.
  6. ↑ Agur C.M., `Church History of Travancore`, Madras,1903. Reprint: Asian Educational Services, New Delhi, 1990, ISBN 81-206-0594-2. Page208.
  7. 1 2 3 "Breast Tax and the Revolt of Lower Cast Women in 19th Century Travancore". 17 May 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  8. 1 2 "Travancore parallel: the fight to wear an upper garment". The Indian Express. 18 October 2018. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  9. ↑ "The woman who cut off her breasts to protest a tax". 28 July 2016. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  10. ↑ "The CBSE Just Removed an Entire History of Women's Caste Struggle". The Wire. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
  11. 1 2 3 "A struggle for decent dress". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  12. ↑ Unni Nair, Supriya. "Dress code repression: Kerala's history of breast tax for Avarna women". the news minute. Archived from the original on 29 August 2016. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  13. 1 2 "Re-writing History, Saffronising Education: Remembering Nangeli Lest Government Makes Us Forget". NewsClick. 19 March 2019. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  14. 1 2 "Travancore parallel: the fight to wear an upper garment". The Indian Express. 18 October 2018. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  15. ↑ Cohn, Bernard S. (1996), Colonialism and Its Forms of Knowledge, Princeton University Press, p. 140, ISBN 9780691000435
  16. ↑ Ponnumuthan, Selvister (1996), The Spirituality of Basic Ecclesial Communities in the Socio-religious Context of Trivandrum/Kerala, India, Universita Gregoriana, p. 109
  17. ↑ https://www.telegraphindia.com/culture/style/the-breast-tax-that-wasnt/cid/1803638
  18. ↑ https://www.telegraphindia.com/culture/style/the-breast-tax-that-wasnt/cid/1803638

The Oxford Encyclopaedia of South Asian Christianity


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