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| St. Mary's Forane Church Edoor | |
|---|---|
 St. Mary's Forane Church Edoor | |
  St. Mary's Forane Church Edoor | |
| 11°59′53″N75°43′34″E / 11.998038°N 75.726163°E /11.998038; 75.726163 | |
| Location | Edoor,Iritty,Kerala |
| Country | India |
| Denomination | Syro-Malabar Catholic Church |
| Tradition | East Syriac Rite |
| Website | stmarysshrineedoor |
| History | |
| Founded | 1946 |
| Dedication | Saint Mary |
| Architecture | |
| Architectural type | Modern |
| Administration | |
| District | Kannur |
| Archdiocese | Thalassery |
| Parish | St. Mary's Forane Church, Edoor |
| Clergy | |
| Archbishop | Joseph Pamplany |
| Vicar | Thomas Vadakkemuriyil |
| Assistant priest | Thomas Pookamala |
St. Mary's Archi Episcopal Marian Pilgrim Forane Church Edoor is one of the oldest churches and a notableMarian pilgrim centre inKannur district ofKerala. It is nearIritty, the eastern town ofKannur district. This church is the first church in the name of St. Mary under the archdiocese ofThalassery. It is also the largest parish in thearchdiocese. It is situated about 6.5 kilometres from the town ofIritty, which is also known as 'The Coorg valley in the God's own country'.
Edoor town is a small marketplace for the farmer communities of the surrounding regions. This place is well-connected to any part ofKannur and other parts ofKerala by road.[1]
Thisparish was established in 1946. In its initial times, it was under theLatin Catholic Diocese ofKozhikode. Later, it came under theSyro-Malabar Catholic Archdiocese ofThalassery.[2] In those times, the members of the parish were the Christian people who had migrated fromTravancore. In 1970, the new church was built.
The church is in a circular shape and it has adome in the centre. As it is circular, it has a large area and a wide angle of viewing thealtar. It is also one of the largest churches in Malabar. Thealtar of this church was renovated in 2012, which creates a heavenly feeling in our mind. Thealtarpieces include the sculptures of varioussaints. The church has entrances from three directions; viz. West, South and North. Above the main entrance which is from the south, we can see a Latin text: "VENITE ADOREMUS", meaningCome, Let us worship. Above the entrance from the south, we can see the text: "AVE MARIA", and above the northern entrance we can see the text: "MY LORD, MY GOD", which is a declaration bySt. Thomas, who is theapostle ofIndia and the father of theSyro-Malabar Church.
The presence ofSt. Mary is the reason for its popularity.[citation needed] The statue of Mother Mary orEdooramma which may not be seen anywhere else is the most beautiful thing in this church.[citation needed]
This statue was made in foreign country and brought here by the EuropeanMissionaries who were working in this region. Actually it was decided to place it in a nearby church and not in St. Mary's Church. It is said that while it was transported to another church viaEdoor, the vehicle had a breakdown when it reached Edoor. As the defect could not be solved soon, they placed the statue in the Edoor Church. This is the story how Edooramma reached here.[citation needed]
This church has played a role in the educational landscape of the region. St. Mary's LP School, established in 1946, holds the distinction of being the oldest school in the area. Following this, St. Mary's UP School was founded in 1949, providing primary education. Subsequently, St. Mary's High School was established in 1957, and in 1998, St. Mary's Higher Secondary School expanded opportunities for higher education in the region. Today, St. Mary's Higher Secondary School integrates primary, secondary, and higher secondary education under one roof. Additionally, the church, through its leadership at CMC Convent, facilitated the establishment of St. Treesa’s Nursery School in 1972 and Vikas Bhavan Special School for differently abled children in 1984. Vikas Bhavan Special School is among the few specialized schools in Kerala.[citation needed]
1. St. Thomas Church Karikottakkari
2. St. Sebastian's Church Velimanam
3. St. Mary's Church Mangode
4. St. Mary's Church Uruppumkutty
5. St. Sebastian's Church Chedikulam
6. Bl. Chavara Kuriakose Elias Church Keezhpally
7. St. Sebastian's Church Vattiyara
8. St. Joseph Church Edappuzha
1.Fr.Kudakkachira Kuriakose(1945–47)
2.Fr.Kuzhikkalathil C.J.Varkey(1947–49)[3]
3.Fr.Kattakkayam Joseph(1949–54)
4.Fr.Elamthuruthiyil Sebastian(1954–59)
5.Fr.Moongammackal Abraham(1959–65)
6.Fr.Kollamparambil Joseph(1965–72)
7.Fr.Koottiyani Peter(1972–77)
8.Fr.Kadukummackal John(1977–80)
9.Fr.Kattackal Zacharias(1980–84)
10.Fr.Kunnapallil Varkey(1984–90)
11.Fr.Kollakombil George(1990–93)
12.Fr.Kavalakkattu Kuriakose(1993–99)
13.Fr.Purayidam Antony(1999-2005)
14.Fr.Emmanuel Poovathinkal(2005-2010)
15. Fr. Andrews Thekkel (2010-2016)
16. Fr. Antony Muthukunnel from 2016-
