Palackal Thoma Malpan
Encyclopedia
Palackal Thoma Malpan - പാലയ്ക്കല് തോമാ മല്പാന് (c. 1780 - 1841) of Pallippuram
was a secular priest of the Archdiocese of Ernakulam in the Syro-Malabar Church, the senior among the three founders of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate
(the first religious order of the Syrian Christians), and the founder and Rector of the Pallippuram and Mannanam seminaries.
Palackal Thoma Malpan (b. circa * 1780 at Pallippuram, near Shertallay, in Alleppey, Kingdom of Travancore; d. there, † 16 January 1841) was an illustrious secular priest from the Catholic Church of St. Thomas [Syro-Malabar Church] then under the Vicariate-Apostolic of Verapoly and later under the Archdiocese of Ernakulam; the senior among the three founders of the first Religious Order of the St. Thomas Christians, the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate; and the founder and Rector of the first Seminary run by the St. Thomas Christians, first at Pallippuram and later at Mannanam near Kottayam. (The title Malpan, from the Syriac word malpānā, denotes his status as a preceptor of priests.)
After his ordination circa 1805 consequent to studies under Thachil Abraham Malpan (the younger brother of Thachil Thariath Matthoo Tharakan, he was appointed the Secretary for the St. Thomas Christians and Counsellor to the Bishop Mgr. Raymond Roviglia of St. Joseph, O. C. D., Vicar-Apostolic during 1803–1815; he continued to be a counsellor to the Vicars-Apostolic for the rest of his life, even after he resigned the position of Secretary in 1815.
After leaving the position of secretary, he returned to Pallippuram in 1818. Since there were several acolytes desirous of studying for priesthood under him, the Malpan was compelled to start a seminary at Pallippuram, with Mangalath Chandy of Pallippuram, later secretary and counsellor at Verapoly, as the first student. Among the first to join his seminary was Chavara Kuriakose (1805–1871) of Kainakary, then aged 13; the Malpan brought him up as if he were a son and considered him the spiritual heir. Seeking to bring order to the seminary, he wrote a regula for the seminarians, following it himself more stringently than all else. Even otherwise, he had kept an austere routine and diet from his early years.
Since his early years the Malpan seems to have cherished the notion of a Religious Order; his experiences in running the seminary might have strengthened the resolve. In this endeavour he found an eager and able collaborator in Porukara Thoma Kathanar (1799–1846) of Kalloorkad, Champakulam (to which the Malpan’s maternal family, Puthenpurackal, also belonged), who had known and admired the Malpan since his days as a seminarian. As for Fr. Chavara, as he says in his Chronicles 'Nalagamam', he had always been of one mind with his Malpan in all matters. With the blessing of the Bishop Mgr. Maurelio Stabellini, O. Carm., Vicar-Apostolic during 1828–1831, the Monastery was founded at Mannanam on 11 May 1831.
Two years later, the Malpan started a seminary at Mannanam to teach priests both secular and religious; a new movement in the spiritual formation of St. Thomas Christian clergy, this became the cradle for several priests and bishops such as Mar Louis Pazheparambil and Mar Augustine Kandathil from the St. Thomas Christians.
He passed away in 1841 and was buried at the main altar in the Forane Church of St. Mary, Pallippuram (connected by tradition with the apostolate of St. Thomas in South India); judging from the account of Fr. Chavara, "the funeral was worthy of a bishop".
David C. Kandathil, Chempu, Vaikom . 16–1–2008.
Pallippuram, Alappuzha
Pallippuram is a village, 5 km from Shertallay in Alleppey, Kerala. A serene village, it is wedged between Cherthala municipality and Thycattussery panchayath. It is surrounded by Vembanad Lake on eastern and western sides and Chenganda river on its southern side. The bridge over the river...
was a secular priest of the Archdiocese of Ernakulam in the Syro-Malabar Church, the senior among the three founders of the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate
Carmelites of Mary Immaculate
The Carmelites of Mary Immaculate is an religious order for men in the Syro-Malabar Church. It is the first Catholic religious congregation founded in India. The first monastery of the order was established on 11 May 1831 at Mannanam, Kerala, India...
(the first religious order of the Syrian Christians), and the founder and Rector of the Pallippuram and Mannanam seminaries.
Palackal Thoma Malpan (b. circa * 1780 at Pallippuram, near Shertallay, in Alleppey, Kingdom of Travancore; d. there, † 16 January 1841) was an illustrious secular priest from the Catholic Church of St. Thomas [Syro-Malabar Church] then under the Vicariate-Apostolic of Verapoly and later under the Archdiocese of Ernakulam; the senior among the three founders of the first Religious Order of the St. Thomas Christians, the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate; and the founder and Rector of the first Seminary run by the St. Thomas Christians, first at Pallippuram and later at Mannanam near Kottayam. (The title Malpan, from the Syriac word malpānā, denotes his status as a preceptor of priests.)
After his ordination circa 1805 consequent to studies under Thachil Abraham Malpan (the younger brother of Thachil Thariath Matthoo Tharakan, he was appointed the Secretary for the St. Thomas Christians and Counsellor to the Bishop Mgr. Raymond Roviglia of St. Joseph, O. C. D., Vicar-Apostolic during 1803–1815; he continued to be a counsellor to the Vicars-Apostolic for the rest of his life, even after he resigned the position of Secretary in 1815.
Reforms
As secretary and counsellor, he was instrumental to several reforms in the Catholic Church of Kerala: the practice of St. Thomas Christian priests and seminarians wearing cassocks was introduced (previously, they had dressed in a way resembling the Jacobite clerics); the custom of episcopal visits to parishes was begun; the confessional was made obligatory in all churches; walled cemeteries were built for all churches (earlier, the dead had been buried in the open compound); and confraternities were started in the St.Thomas Christian churches borrowing the custom from the Latin churches in Kerala; the confreres assistedthe orderly conduct of solemn feasts, funerals, and other ceremonies.After leaving the position of secretary, he returned to Pallippuram in 1818. Since there were several acolytes desirous of studying for priesthood under him, the Malpan was compelled to start a seminary at Pallippuram, with Mangalath Chandy of Pallippuram, later secretary and counsellor at Verapoly, as the first student. Among the first to join his seminary was Chavara Kuriakose (1805–1871) of Kainakary, then aged 13; the Malpan brought him up as if he were a son and considered him the spiritual heir. Seeking to bring order to the seminary, he wrote a regula for the seminarians, following it himself more stringently than all else. Even otherwise, he had kept an austere routine and diet from his early years.
Contributions
Considering teaching and scholarship as his vocation, the Malpan devoted his life to that aim. He took particular care that his seminary had an exemplary collection of books, especially modern books in Tamil and the few in Malayalam, printed chiefly by members of the Society of Jesus. He had a special interest in languages. Learning Tamil on his own, he translated the spiritual books in Tamil into Malayalam; as a consequence he began to be called in jest the ‘Tamil Malpan’. He asked his students to scribe all the books they considered valuable, including liturgical books in Syriac. These may have inspired his disciple Fr. Chavara to start a Malayalam printing press at Mannanam, only the third of its kind in Kerala, in 1844. The Malpan also took every care to have his abler students learn other languages such as Latin, sometimes from European priests.Since his early years the Malpan seems to have cherished the notion of a Religious Order; his experiences in running the seminary might have strengthened the resolve. In this endeavour he found an eager and able collaborator in Porukara Thoma Kathanar (1799–1846) of Kalloorkad, Champakulam (to which the Malpan’s maternal family, Puthenpurackal, also belonged), who had known and admired the Malpan since his days as a seminarian. As for Fr. Chavara, as he says in his Chronicles 'Nalagamam', he had always been of one mind with his Malpan in all matters. With the blessing of the Bishop Mgr. Maurelio Stabellini, O. Carm., Vicar-Apostolic during 1828–1831, the Monastery was founded at Mannanam on 11 May 1831.
Two years later, the Malpan started a seminary at Mannanam to teach priests both secular and religious; a new movement in the spiritual formation of St. Thomas Christian clergy, this became the cradle for several priests and bishops such as Mar Louis Pazheparambil and Mar Augustine Kandathil from the St. Thomas Christians.
He passed away in 1841 and was buried at the main altar in the Forane Church of St. Mary, Pallippuram (connected by tradition with the apostolate of St. Thomas in South India); judging from the account of Fr. Chavara, "the funeral was worthy of a bishop".
David C. Kandathil, Chempu, Vaikom . 16–1–2008.
Further reading
- Joseph J. Palackal
- On FaceBook