Devasahayam Pillai

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

14 January[1]
Attributes
  • Tied up in chains
  • Praying on knees before execution
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  • India
  • Persecuted Christians
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Devasahayam Pillai or Mar Lazarus Sahada (born Neelakanta Pillai and baptized as Lazarus; 23 April 1712 – 14 January 1752) was an

canonized as a saint of the church by Pope Francis
on 15 May 2022.

Early life

Neelakandan Pillai was born into an affluent

Kanyakumari District. In accordance with the matrilineal tradition of the Nairs
of the day, he was raised by his maternal uncle rather than his father.

Neelakandan's family had much influence in the royal palace of

Maharaja Marthanda Varma, king of Travancore and went into the service of the royal palace as a young man. His capabilities and enthusiasm did not go unnoticed in the palace, as he was soon put in charge of state affairs as an official under Ramayyan Dalawa, the Dewan of Travancore.[5]
: 55–56 

Conversion to Christianity

In 1741, Captain Eustachius De Lannoy, a Dutch naval commander, was sent on command of a naval expedition by the Dutch East India Company with the objective of capturing and establishing a trading port at Colachel, a port under the control of Travancore.[6] In the ensuing Battle of Colachel, fought between the Travancore forces and the Dutch, the Dutch were defeated. De Lannoy's men were either killed or captured. Eustachius De Lannoy and his assistant Donadi surrendered and were imprisoned.[7]

De Lannoy and the Dutchmen were later pardoned by the king, on condition that they serve in the Travancore army. In the course of time, De Lannoy earned the trust of the king and went on to become the commander of the Travancore army, the very forces that had earlier defeated him. He trained the Travancore forces on European lines and introduced new weaponry and gunpowder. As military commander, he won many battles for Travancore, resulting in the annexation of various neighbouring territories to Travancore.

It was during their influential roles under the King of Travancore that Devasahayam Pillai and De Lannoy became well acquainted. De Lannoy's Christian faith interested Devasahayam ; thus, De Lannoy enlightened him on the faith, leading to Devasahayam Pillai's conversion in 1745. At this point, he took the name "Devasahayam" ("help of God"), which is the translation into Malayalam of the name 'Lazarus.'[8]

Baptism

On Devasahayam's acceptance of the Christian faith, he was baptized at the

Theresa in Tamil and Malayalam). Fearing reprisal in her native Travancore against her religious conversion, she chose to become a migrant-resident of Vadakkankulam village. Some other members of Devasahayam Pillai's immediate family also later received baptism.[5]
: 68–69 

Orders based on accusations and charges

Church chroniclers say that the Brahmin chief priest of the kingdom, the feudal lords, members of the royal household and the Nair community brought false charges on Devasahayam to the Dewan,

Aralvaimozhy border (much closer to the capital, Padmanabhapuram), where he was tortured by ten different karyakkars (Royal officers), on the advice of the ministers, before being released into a mountainous forest area, on the other side of which was the kingdom of the Pandya kings, traditional rivals of Travancore.[12]
: 42–65 

Other traditions and beliefs

Devasahayam is believed to have prayed on this rock and left imprints of his knee and elbow
A closer look of the rock where Devasahayam is believed to have prayed and left imprints of his knee and elbow
diocese of Kottar
Tomb in front of the main-altar of St. Francis Xavier's Cathedral, Kottar, Nagercoil

Devasahayam Pillai was marched from

South Travancore. As a method of torture, he was beaten every day with eighty stripes, pepper rubbed in his wounds and nostrils, exposed to the sun, and given only stagnant water to drink.[14]

While halting at Puliyoorkurichi, not far away from the Padmanabhapuram Palace of the Travancore king, it is believed by Christians that God quenched his thirst by letting water gush through a small hole on a rock, on the very place where he knelt to pray. The water hole is still found in the compound of a church at Puliyoorkurichi, about 15 km from Nagercoil.[12]: 54 [9]: 285 

It is also believed that the leaves of a

Aralvaimozhy, cured illnesses of sick people in the village and around. Many more miracles are attributed to Devasahayam Pillai.[9]
: 286 

Death

In 1752, the original order of the King and his Dewan was to deport him from Travancore, into the Pandya country, at

Aralvaimozhy. There, he is believed to have begun deep meditations, and the people from the adjacent villages began visiting the holy man. Christian sources allege that at this time, high caste Hindus plotted to do away with Devasahayam.[5]
: 134 

Some people believe that soldiers went up the forested hills and tried to shoot Devasahayam, but were unable to fire; after which he took the gun in his hands, blessed it and gave it back to the soldiers to shoot him to death, if they wished to. The soldiers took the gun back and fired at him five times. His body was then carelessly thrown out near the foothills at Kattadimalai.[9]: 285 [15]: 83 

It was at Kattadimalai in

St. Xavier's Church, Kottar, Nagercoil, which is now the diocesan Cathedral.[9]
: 285 

Since the days of the interment of the mortal remains of Devasahayam Pillai, many Christian pilgrims have visited his tomb and offered prayers.[17]

Canonization process

In 2004, at the request of the

Diocese of Kottar, the Tamil Nadu Bishops' Council (TNBC) and the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India (CCBI) recommended Pillai for the process of beatification.[18] Some Hindu organizations objected to this initiative, claiming that there is no evidence of religious persecution in Travancore during the given period, and that Pillai was executed for sedition.[19][20] However, documents dating back to the period encompassing Pillai's lifetime show that religious conversion of court officials to Christianity was not tolerated.[21]

On 28 June 2012,

papal delegate. Pillai is the first Indian lay man who is not part of any religious institute to be elevated to the rank of "Blessed" (the step preceding the recognition of a person as a saint, as per the canon law of the Catholic Church).[11]

On 21 February 2020, Pope Francis recognized a miracle attributed to the intercession of Devasahayam, clearing his way to canonization.[23] He is the first Catholic in India who is neither an ordained minister nor a religious to be officially recognized as a saint.[24] The Vatican announced on 9 November 2021 that Pope Francis would formally canonize him on 15 May 2022. On the fifth Sunday of the resurrection, 15 May 2022, the Pope raised Devasahayam Pillai to sainthood along with nine other candidates.[25]

According to the report submitted by the then Bishop of Cochin (under whom the Kanyakumari church was then functioning) in 1756AD the Christian

martyrdom of Devasahayam Pillai was promptly intimated to the Vatican. Prominent witnesses to his saintliness and martyrdom include Paremmakkal Thoma Kathanar.[26]

In 1780, Kariattil Ouseph Malpan submitted a petition to the Vatican for canonization of Devasahayam Pillai.[15]: 94–96 [27]

The church historian C. M. Agur concluded in 1903 that although apostasy was never considered illegal in Travancore, it was not viewed indifferently, particularly in the case of the King's palace servants, and this led to the martyrdom of Devasahayam Pillai.[9]: 285 

In 1984, a group of lay persons from the diocese of Kottar, especially members of the Nagercoil Catholic Club, once again took the initiative to seek the

St. Xavier's Cathedral at Kottar.[18]

After a series of initiatives by the

Bishop Chrysostom said that the CCBI did not intend any controversy whatsoever in moving this forward.[18]

Professor A. Sreedhara Menon (1925–2010), a noted historian and writer on Travancore, said that no cases of persecution in the name of religious conversion were recorded in the history of the kingdom.[19][20]

De Lannoy.[19][20]

However, Catholic records of the time state that the kingdom of Travancore did not tolerate palace officials converting to Christianity.[21]

In June 2012,

Venerable".[29]

Beatification and declaration as a martyr

Devasahayam Pillai was declared a martyr and Blessed on 2 December 2012, at a solemn ceremony held in the

Angelo Cardinal Amato presided at the function as Delegate of Pope Benedict XVI
.

Several cardinals, archbishops and bishops from India and elsewhere, as well as numerous priests, religious men and women and over 100,000 Catholics

Solemn Pontifical Mass
.

Among the dignitaries officiating at the altar were Cardinal

Bishop of Kottar
).

Devasahayam Pillai is the first lay person from India to be beatified by the Catholic Church.

On the same day as Devasahayam Pillai was declared a Blessed in the Diocese of Kottar, India, Pope Benedict XVI addressed the pilgrims gathered in Rome. During his Angelus Message the Pope mentioned the event in Italian and English.[31] He said in Italian:

Today in Kottar, India, Devasahayam Pillai, a faithful layman, who lived in the 18th century and died a martyr, was proclaimed Blessed. Let us join in the joy of the Church in India and pray that this newly Beatified sustain the faith of the Christians of that great and noble country.

Then he addressed the crowds in English:

I welcome all gathered here today to pray with me. I especially greet the people of Kottar who celebrate today the beatification of Devasahayam Pillai. His witness to Christ is an example of that attentiveness to the coming of Christ recalled by this first Sunday of Advent. May this holy season help us to centre our lives once more on Christ, our hope. God bless all of you!

Canonization

On 21 February 2020,

St Peter's Square on that date.[25]

Places of interest

Devasahayam Pillai is buried in the

martyrdom and beatification.[32]

Devasahyam Pillai's clothes and other belongings are kept in a church in the small town of

Tirunelveli District of Tamil Nadu State, India. They are exposed at the church on 15 August every year, the feast of the Assumption of Mary
. His wife was buried in the cemetery there.

Puliyoorkurichi, location of the water fountain believed to have quenched Devasahayam's thirst, is on the

Trivandrum
highway.

Aralvaimozhy, where Devasahayam was killed, is on the Nagercoil–Tirunelveli
highway. At the spot on the hillock (called Kaattadimalai) where Devasahayam was killed, a rock makes bell-like sounds when knocked with a stone.

Controversy

M.G.S. Narayanan, former Chairman of Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR), has made the claim that he never come across any one named either Neelakantan Pillai or Devasahayam Pillai as the army chief of Martanda Varma in Kerala’ s history.[33][34] However, sources such as "Paulinus a Sancto Bartholomaeo (1748-1806), Voyage to the East Indies, 1800" say the opposite.

Further reading

  • The Nectar of the Gods, King Marthanda Varma and Devasahayam, A play in three acts, Gopikrishnan Kottoor, 2015[importance?]
  • Leita, Clement Joseph C. Martyrdom of Devasahayam. An Extract from the Report submitted to Pope Benedict XIV on the occasion of the Ad Limina Visit by Most Rev. Clement Joseph C. Leita, S.J., Bishop of Cochin, 15 November 1756 Clemens Joseph Colaco Leitao. Canonization Committee, Diocese of Kottar, 2009.
  • National Symposium on Devasahayam Pillai. Department of History and Tourism & Historical Commission for the Cause of Martyr Devasahayam. Nagarkoil, 2008.
  • Mathavadiyan, A. Devasahayampilla Charthram. [Malayalam. History of Devasahayam Pilla.] Trivandrum: City Press, 2006.
  • J. Rosario Narchison,"Towards a Historiography of Martyr Devasahayam," in "India's Christian Heritage" Ed. O. L. Snaitang and George Menachery, CHAI, Bangalore, 2011, pp. 135–145.
  • Ferroli, D. Jesuits in Malabar. Vol. II. Bangalore, 1951.
  • Ibrahim Kunhu, A.P. Marthanda Varma: The Rise of Modern Travancore. [Malayalam.] Thiruvananthapuram: Cultural Publications Department, Govt. of Kerala, 2005.
  • Kottukapally, Joseph. "Devasahayam Pilla: Convert, Apostle, Revolutionary, Martir [sic], I." Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection 76/1 (2012) 27-42.
  • Kottukapally, Joseph. "Devasahayam Pilla: Convert, Apostle, Revolutionary, Martyr, II." Vidyajyoti Journal of Theological Reflection 76/2 (2012) 108-120.
  • Narchison, Rosario J. Martyr Devasahayam. A Documented History. Nagarcoil: Canonization Committee, 2009.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Devasahayam Pillai.

References

  1. ^ Blessed Devasahayam Pillai, Star Quest Production Network. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  2. ^ Decrees of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints Archived 24 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine, Syro Malabar Church, 1 July 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  3. ^ "Devasahayam Pillai becomes first Indian layman to be declared saint by Pope Francis - The Hindu". The Hindu. 17 May 2022. Archived from the original on 17 May 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  4. ^ Amalagiri Anthonymuthu, "Vedasatchi Devasahayam Pillai Virivaana Varalaaru" (in Tamil), Nanjil Book Stall, Nagercoil, 1988, 3rd Edn., 2006, p. 15.
  5. ^ a b c Rosario Narchison J, "Martyr Devasahayam: A Documented History", Bishop's House, Nagercoil, 2002.
  6. ^ "News Digest". www.indianchristianity.com. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  7. ^ V. Nagam Aiya, The Travancore State Manual Vol. 1, 1906
  8. ^ "Church in India: Devasahayam's canonization a "historic moment" - Vatican News". 13 November 2021.
  9. ^
    ISBN 81-206-0594-2
  10. ^ a b History of the Diocese Archived 11 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Roman Catholic Diocese of Kottar, 2010. Retrieved 2012-05-25.
  11. ^ a b Church beatifies India's first 'lay' martyr, Business Standard, 2 December 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  12. ^ a b c Pushpa Raj P, "Devasahayam Pillai: The Martyr", Nanjil Book Stall, Nagercoil, 1988, 2nd Edn., 2005
  13. ^ Stephen, A.P., "Retham Chintha Chintha" (in Tamil), Kottar Diocese, Nagercoil, 1975, page 29.
  14. ^
    ISBN 81-206-0514-4
    . Page 291.
  15. ^ a b Thangasami M.S.J., "Vanjinaattu Vedasaatchi Devasahayam Pillai Varalaaru" (in Tamil), Nanjil Pathippaham, Nagercoil, 1989.
  16. ^ "Towards a Historiography of Martyr Devasahayam" (PDF). Indian Christianity. Retrieved 12 November 2023.
  17. ^ 100,000 PILGRIMS VISIT LAY MARTYR PILLAI´S SHRINE IN SOUTHERN INDIA 10 April 1996
  18. ^ a b c d e "CBCI report". NewIndPress.com. 13 January 2004. Archived from the original on 30 August 2004. Retrieved 27 September 2009.
  19. ^ a b c Balram Misra, "CBCI's claim challenged", Hindu Vivek Kendra, 1 February 2004. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  20. ^ a b c Lay Martyr Devsagayam Pillai's 300th Birth Anniversary Observed Archived 12 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine, CBCI, 8 May 2012. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  21. ^
    apostasise
    from the Catholic Church." (pp. 207-208).
  22. ^ "Vatican Decree on martyrdom of Devasahayam Pillai". Archived from the original on 13 July 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2012.
  23. ^ a b "Indian martyr, Devasahayam, cleared for sainthood". Vatican News. 22 February 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
  24. ^ "Pope clears India's first layman for canonization - UCA News". ucanews.com. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  25. ^ a b "Charles de Foucauld to become a saint on 15 May". Vatican News. 9 November 2021. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
  26. ^ Gover Nethor Parammakkal Thoma Kathanar, "Vathamana Pusthakam" (Malayalam), First Travelogue in an Indian language & Malankara Catholic records, edited by Most Rev. Fr. Thomas Muthedan, published by Janatha Book Stall, Thevara, Ernakulam, 1778–87.
  27. ^ "Abp. Augustine W. Kandathil [Warkey], D. D. {കണ്ടത്തില്‍ ആഗുസ്തീനോസ് മെത്രാപ്പോലീത്താച്ചന്‍, ഡി. ഡി. [Kandathil Augusthinose Metropolitachan] / அகஸ்்டின் கண்டத்தில், டி. டி. / अगस्टिन् कण्टत्तिल्, डि. डि. / Abp. Augustinus G. Kandathil [Georgius], D. D. / Абп. Августин Г. Кандатхил [Гео́ргий], Д. Д.}". www.geocities.ws. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  28. ^ Process of beatification Archived 21 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine on devotees' website
  29. ^ "Two Indian laymen placed on sainthood road". ucan india. Retrieved 30 June 2012.
  30. ^ "Devasahayam Pillai beatified". The Indian Express. 3 December 2012. Archived from the original on 6 December 2012.
  31. ^ Pope Benedict on Devasahayam Pillai's Beatification
  32. ^ Bishop Peter Remigius, "Circular Letter on the Martyrdom and Beatification of Devasahayam Pillai", Kottar Newsletter, August 2012, Bishop's House, Nagercoil, India.
  33. ^ The fable of ‘martyr’ Devasahayam Pillai – B.R. Gauthaman
  34. ^ "The fable of 'martyr' Devasahayam Pillai – B.R. Gauthaman". 15 May 2022.

External links

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