Shrine On The Hill

Shrine On The Hill

Excavations conducted on the spot have led historians to the belief that the earliest church on the hill top after the one built by Apostle St. Thomas himself, was that of the Armenians, erected about A.D 530. The shrine was under their possession for a long time. The Portuguese who are known as the Church builders felt the urgent need of a decent Church on this sacred spot and .....

......accordingly an Oratory was raised by Diego Fernandes in 1523, in honor of Mary the Mother of Jesus. Soon, the Oratory was found too small for the rising number of pilgrims and settlers.

SHRINE ON THE HILL, St. Thomas Mount, Madras (Chennai), India

Point Of Topic !

Location : 8 miles from Fort St. George, Six Miles from South west of Santhom-de -Meliyapore, 2 miles from Little Mount, 300 Ft. above sea level Importance : A Church or Chapel originally built by the Apostle St. Thomas with a stone cross carved by himself. He was martyred in the surroundings.

MASS TIME
SUNDAYS	WEEKDAYS
6.00 A.M English 8.00 A.M Tamil 4.30 P.M Tamil	6.45 A.M (Mon, wed & Fri) - English 6.30 P.M (Tues, Thu & Sat - Tamil

VISITING HOURS

Church is open from 6.45 A.M to 7.30 P.M

[External view of the St. Thomas Mount Shrine, India]

What to see here? Bleeding Cross, Ancient picture of madonna, Relics of St. Thomas, Stone carved pulpit, Individual picture of Apostles, and many other paintings. Fastival day: 3rd July - St. Thomas Day 18th December-Festival of our lady of Expectation.

The story of excavations begins here... The arch that separates the sanctuary from the body of the Church, bears the title of the Church in Portuguese : Senhora da Expectacao which means Our Lady of Expectation. A picture of St. Thomas was painted on wood, is fixed high up in the wooden reredos of the Altar. The pulpit is a monument of Armenian art.

Archeological Details: In 1547, March, Gaspher Coelho (Vicar) and Capt. Gabriel Athaide with 12 respectable persons of the town took the measurements aand began to dig foundations. On 22nd March, they came across other foundations of which they were not aware hitherto. The new foundations were laid from West to East, thus showing that a more ancient Church had stood in place. As the digging was progressing, they came upon the holy stone, which at present forms the reredos of the altar of the Church. This was later extended and embellished by the Armenians in 1707 A.D

The arch that separates the sanctuary from the body of the Church, bears the title of the Church in Portuguese : Senhora da Expectacao which means Our Lady of Expectation. A picture of St. Thomas was painted on wood, is fixed high up in the wooden reredos of the Altar. The pulpit is a monument of Armenian art.

Main attractions of the Shrine and Church is the 'Bleeding Cross' and the 'Picture of Mother Mary with infant Jesus' said to be portrayed by Apostle Luke

[Inner view of the Church]

At the foot of the St. Thomas hill, pilgrims enter through an arch. St. Thomas statue is adorn over it. A cruzerio can be seen immediately on entering.

The bleeding cross carved by St. Thomas on large stone, on which he fell and died, presently made the altar of the St. Thomas Mount Church in 1523 AD

Picture of Mother Mary, traditionally attributed to St. Luke and brought to India by St. Thomas. It is not repaired or repainted and the smudges are the result of calamity. It is placed on the main altar of the Church.