904 
monly called Surianee Mapila). Mar 
'Thomé was the name of this bishop, the 
founder of their religion in Malabar, and 
if honour of him they always call their 
primate Mar Thomé, though his real 
name be Joseph or Abraham. 
«<< In the Malabar histories (Keral Oud- 
puttec), the first mention of a Syrian colony 
of christians‘is made in the reign of Cocoo- 
rangon Pesymal, who probably lived in the 
sixth century; a wealthy Syrian merchant, 
of the naine of Thome Cannaneo, is said to 
have landed at Cranganore, where he was 
well received, and induced to settle by great 
privileges granted to him by Perumal. He 
afierwards married two wives; one of the 
Nair, and one of some low cast, by whom he 
had a very numerous progeny, who, after his 
death, had great disputes abont his inheri- 
tance. ‘Vhey were carried to such a degree, 
that at Jast they were obliged to separate 
themselves: the sons by the Nair woman set- 
tling in the southern parts, and the others in 
the northern parts of Malabar—where their 
descendants fora long time preserved their 
mutual enmity, and woald on no account in- 
termarry: there is also a still common tra- 
dition amongst them, that they descend (at 
Jeast those that are from Syrian origin) from 
four principal Syrian families, who had suc- 
cessively settled on the coast. 
«© We find again mention made of two 
Syrian or Chaldean bishops, of the rfame of 
Mar Sabro and Mar Brodt ‘(or-rather Mar 
Sapor and Mar Peroses) at Coilan, about ove 
hundred years after its foundation, where 
they were extremely well received by the 
Raja, and permitted 10 build a chureh, which 
was still extant when Cabral first visited 
Coilan. The grants and privileges which 
‘they received from the Raja, were engraved 
upon copper-plates, which many centaries 
after were shewn to Archbishop De Menezes 
at Sevalcare (perhaps Mavileare), which are, 
in all probability, the very same that are now 
in possession of the Jews at Cochin. 
*s If one adds to these historical dates‘the 
name of Syrians’ retained by the St. Thomé 
‘Christians, their distinct features and com- 
lexion somewhat fairer than the rest of the 
falabars, the svyle of their building, espe- 
cially their churches, but above all the ge- 
eral use of the Syrian, or rather Chaldean 
languages, which is preserved to this day in 
all their religious functions, even in those 
churches which have since embraced ‘the 
Roman rite, and that to this day they take 
GENERAL SCIENCE. 
their christian and family names from the 
Syrian or Chaldean idiom, no doubt can re- 
main but that the St. Thomé Christians are 
originally a colony of Nestorians, who fled 
from the dominions of the Greek emperors, 
after Theodosius the Second had commenced 
to persecute the followers of the sect *.” 
Their first proselytes were made among 
the Bramins and Nairs, so that even at 
present they consider themselves equal 
in rank to those two casts, and are held 
by the Hindoos in higher estimation 
than the Portugueze Christians. 
*« As to their religious tenets, they followed 
generally the doctrine of Nestorius. : 
« They rejected the “divine nature of 
Christ, and called the Virgin Mary only the 
mother of Christ, not of God. "Phey “also 
maintained that the Holy Ghost proceeded 
only from the’ Father, and not from the Fa- 
ther and Son. 
«« They admitted no images of saints in 
their churches, where the holy cross alone 
was to be seen. 
« They had only three sacraments, bap- 
tism, euchdarist, and the orders, and would 
not admit transubstantiation in the manner 
the Roman Catholics do. They knew no- 
thing of purgatory ; and the saints, they said, 
were not_admitied to the spresence of God, 
but were kept in a third place till the day of 
judgment. 
“© Their priests were permitted to marry, 
at least once in their life. Their rite was the 
Chaldaan or Syrian. 
<< They were married in the presence of 
their priests, who are called cassanas, and the 
whole ceremony consisted of tying-a string 
round the girl’s neck, as is the common 
practice of ail the diflerent casts on the Ma- 
labar coast. 
«« The cassanas were not permitted to use 
the Malabar language in their churches, and 1a 
intructing the youth, but taught them in the 
Chaldzan tongue, 
«« They reckoned their Sunday from Sa- 
turday evening at vespers, till the first matin 
on Sunday ; so that after sun-rise they might 
work again. 
«This was the happy situation of the Nes- 
torians, or St. Thomé Christians, before the 
arrival of the Portuguese in India.” 
Yet the following tradition, which 
was found by the Portugueze in India, 
and which is not noticed by Mr. Wredé, 
* << Nestorius was patriarch of Constantinople, A. D. 428, under the reign of Theodosius 
the Second. 
His heretical opinions were first declared in 429, and condemned by, the first 
council of Ephesus in 434. But the Eimperor was not prevailed on to banish Nestorius till 
435; and four more years had elapsed betore sentence of proscription passed - gainst his fol- 
lowers. 
Gizzon, vol. vill. pug. 267. 
«© Gibbon, however (b..346), asserts on the authority of St. Jerome himself (ad Mar- 
cellam Epist.), that the Indian missionary, St. Thomas, was famous as early as his time. 
Now Jerome died in 420, consequently the sect originally established*in Malabar by Thomas 
could not have been that of Bestorius; yet Gibbon himself appears to have overlooked this 
inconsistency. 
Note ty the Secretary. 
