• Calender
• Videos
• Photos
• Catholic Links

Saint Alphonsa (19 August 1910 – 28 July 1946) was a Catholic Franciscan Religious Sister, who is the first Indian to be canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church and the first  saint of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church. St. Alphonsa was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on 12 October 2008 at Vatican City

Vatican Council II on Eastern churches:

 

The second Vatican council has published sixteen constitutions, decrees and declarations. One among the decree is about the oriental Catholics and its title is Orientalium Ecclesiarum, promulgated by Pope Paul VI on November 21, 1964 in Rome. This decree defines Catholic Church as a communion of individual churches and the Latin Church is one among them. All these churches are equally entrusted to the pastoral guidance of Roman pontiff, who by God's appointment is the successor to Blessed Peter in primacy over the universal church. Therefore these churches are of equal rank, so that none of them is superior to others because of its rite. The council states, "The Catholic Church values highly the institutions of the eastern churches, their liturgical rites, ecclesiastical traditions and their ordering of Christian life"

 

History of our community :

 

St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Catholic Church at Santa Ana. Orange County, California, had its formal origin in 2001. The small Malayalee community started its formal parish life under the leadership of Rev. Dr. Dr. Jacob Kattackal at St. Martin De Pores Church at Yorba Linda, Orange. Bishop Todd Brown, the Bishop of Orange, encouraged the Eastern
Catholics with great love.

Later the venue of the gathering shifted from Yorba Linda to the chapel of St. Catherin School at Anaheim, from Easter Sunday 2001 to the end of August 2002. Meanwhile, the new diocese of Chicago was established on 13th March 2001 for the Syro-Malabar Catholics and Mar Jacob Angadiath was appointed the first Bishop of the new diocese in Americas.

The community in Orange bought a small church at Fullerton, Orange county; bishop Todd Brown gave a generous loan for the purchase of this church. On 22nd August 2002, the first mass in Malayalam was offered at Fullerton. On 15th September 2002,the St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Catholic Church was solemnly blessed by Mar Jacob Angadiath.

'Fear not; I am always with you' - Jesus' message to St. Faustina.

Copyright 2008 by St.Thomas Syro Malabar Catholic Church, Santa Ana.