Home News India's Kerala state government agrees to include saint's name in textbooks

India’s Kerala state government agrees to include saint’s name in textbooks

Saint Chavara was co-founder and first Prior General of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate and the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel

The state government of Kerala in India approved the inclusion of the contributions of Saint Chavara Kuriakose Elias in a chapter on social reformers in a Social Studies textbook in the state’s schools.

Kuriakose Elias Chavara who was born on Feb. 10, 1805, was a priest of the Syro-Malabar Rite, a philosopher and social reformer, and the first Indian Catholic male saint.

He was also the co-founder and first Prior General of the Syro-Malabar Church’s first congregation for men, now known as the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate, and of a similar one for women, the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel.

He died on January 3, 1871.



Kerala’s Education minister, Shivan Kutty, earlier denied allegations that the name of the saint has not been included in the textbooks.

Several Christian groups earlier protested against the alleged omission of the saint’s name among state social reformers mentioned in a book for Class VII students.

Protesters said names of many others who were born five decades after Saint Chavara have been included in the book. They accused state officials of intentionally not including the saint’s name.

- Newsletter -

The United Christian Laymen’s Front and several other organisations demanded that the book be reissued after incorporating the saint’s name in the chapter.

A pioneer in many fields, Chavara started a Sanskrit school in 1846 with the help of a Hindu teacher. Learning Sanskrit then was only allowed for people belonging to upper castes.

He also established another school attached to a chapel for Christian converts from the Pulaya caste, and, for the first time, allowed the so-called untouchables to schools and even provided them Sanskrit education.

In 1856, Bishop Bernadine Baccinelly issued a circular urging Christians to promote education that later helped the state achieve hundred percent literacy.

The circular stated that “each parish should establish educational institutions, or else they will be debarred from the communion.” Chavara was the motivator of the movement.

Chavara also started the St. Joseph’s Press in 1846, the third printing press in Kerala and the first made indigenously in the state.

A Malayalam newspaper, Nasrani Deepika, was also printed at the press. Today, Deepika is the oldest existing Malayalam daily.

“There is no denying the role of Chavara in introducing several reform measures including Sanskrit schools, girls’ schools, education for all including those from the low castes, free lunches,” said John, a former bureaucrat who asked that his surname not be used.

“Viewed objectively, Chavara’s omission in the school book was a big mistake, possibly even deliberate,” he said.

He said that the “relative insignificance” of Syro-Malabar Christians in the Malabar region during the years before the reorganization of the State in 1956 and the unfamiliarity of the Hindus and Muslims of Malabar region to the contribution of the Christian community “could be one factor for ignoring the legitimate claims of Chavara.”

© Copyright LiCAS.news. All rights reserved. Republication of this article without express permission from LiCAS.news is strictly prohibited. For republication rights, please contact us at: [email protected]

Support Our Mission

We work tirelessly each day to tell the stories of those living on the fringe of society in Asia and how the Church in all its forms - be it lay, religious or priests - carries out its mission to support those in need, the neglected and the voiceless.
We need your help to continue our work each day. Make a difference and donate today.

Latest