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Saint who protects women
IT IS common to have a small temple or Kavu attached to large Hindu household in many parts of Kerala. But it very uncommon to have a chapel with access to the public, attached to a Christian family. There exists a chapel in Kochi exclusively run by a household for the public. It is there at Manaserry, the very south-west edge of Cochin Corporation. The Chapel of St. Catherine stands facing the roaring Arabian Sea just few meters away from it. Barely a few yards away on its left hand side is the boundary of the Cochin Corporation. The unique chapel, which belongs to Thengapurackal family of Manassery, is more than 400years old. "It is the only shrine of St. Catherine of Alexandria in Kerala. The other shrine of St. Catherine in India is in Goa, which is the largest church in old Goa and its main alter is dedicated to St. Catherine of Alexandria," says G. Tennyson of Thengapurackal family.
Surprisingly the idol in the niche is in a reclining posture, which is also a rare sight in any shrine. The saint looks lost in thought after reading a book kept open in front of her. Devotees from far and near visit the chapel and pray to St. Catherine, who is a favourite for married women who expect their first baby. . It is believed that St. Catherine will protect and bless them to have a safe delivery. Even non-Christians visit the chapel," says Dr. Abraham George of Thengapurackal family. St. Catherine who lived in the 4th Century, is one of the popular Christian martyrs. Catherine is believed to have lived in Alexandria, Egypt. The Prince of Alexandria, son of Roman Emperor Maxentius ,wanted to marry her. But Catherine declined the request and protested the persecution of Christians by the arrogant emperor.She was put in the spiked wheel, which later came to known as `Catherine's wheel', to kill her.
The architecture of the chapel is Portuguese. The Thengapurackal family members say they got the idol from the Captain and crew of a Portuguese vessel which got stranded in the Arabian Sea, close to the land where the chapel now stands. The vessel almost got stranded in the rough sea near ManaserryThen the crew and Captain prayed to St. Catherine, the statue they were carrying and offered toinstall the statue here if they were saved. The crew, which was saved, handed over the statue to the Thengapurackal family, staying close to the shore.
"It was in the 16th century and our ancestors put up a chapel here. The authorities of the local church approached us to take over the chapel. But we, the family members decided to keep it many generations and ourselves since it is something the family was gifted. We decided to retain it as a traditional possession," says George, a senior member of the Thengapurackal family.
T. K. SADASIVAN
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
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Kochi
Madurai
Thiruvananthapuram
Visakhapatnam
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