The 175th founding year celebrations of one of the oldest churches in the city will begin at Mateer Memorial Church on Sunday.
It is the 175th anniversary of the founding of the congregation of Thiruvananthapuram Protestant Church. Built in 1838, it was the first Protestant church in Thiruvananthapuram. The chapel was built on government land at Cantonment, at the area where the University Library stands today.
The first official service was conducted by Rev John Cox on May 13, 1838 in Tamil. This was the parent congregation. The church was built and opened under the initiative of Rev Charles Mead, Colonel Fraser and Rev John Cox for Englishmen to worship. Later, Malayalam and Tamil services were also introduced. Trilingual services are given in the church ever since.
“The old chapel built at Cantonment was exclusively for Europeans. It was the first Protestant congregation in Thiruvananthapuram. It was, in fact, the first place of worship for Europeans in Thiruvananthapuram. In 1842, it was named as the Protestant Evangelical Church. By 1840s, permission was given for Indians also to enter and worship. After two decades, the worship of Europeans was shifted to the newly constructed English church nearby,” said Bishop John Gladstone, former bishop of the South Kerala Diocese, CSI.
According to Jaichand Johnson, a church member who is compiling the history of the church, it was the first church in Thiruvananthapuram to allow people belonging to lower castes to enter and worship.
The current church building located on the LMS Compound was built and opened for worship on December 1, 1906. It was named after Rev Samuel Mateer, who made the suggestion for a new church building. The centenary celebrations of this church building were held in 2006. The church now belongs to the South Kerala Diocese of Church of South India (CSI).
A silver chalice and paten for holy communion from the parent church, presented by Colonel Fraser, are still exhibited in the church even today as a memorial.
Thanksgiving service and combined worship will be held by Bishop John Gladstone, as part of the celebrations on Sunday at 8.30 am.