| Servant of God Fr. Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly | |
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Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly |
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| Born | August 8, 1876 Perumanoor, Kerala, India |
| Died | October 5, 1929 (aged 53) Aluva, Kerala, India |
| Honored in | Roman Catholic Church |
| Feast | 05 October |
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Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly (Malayalam: വർഗീസ് പയ്യപ്പിള്ളി പാലയ്ക്കാപ്പിള്ളി) was a Syrian Catholic (Syro-Malabar Catholic) priest from the Indian state of Kerala and the founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Destitute.
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Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly was born as Kunjuvaru on 8 August 1876 in Perumanoor near Thevara to Palakkappilly Lonan and Kunjumariam. He hails from a noble, rather rich and ancient Christian family of Palakkappilly (also known as Payapilly) which is a Syrian Malabar Nasrani family spread mainly in central districts of Kerala, namely Ernakulam, Kottayam and Idukki.[1]The Syrian Malabar Nasranis are the descendants of the Jewish diaspora in Kerala [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] who were evangelized by St. Thomas the Apostle in the Malabar Coast in the earliest days of Christianity.[2][3][4][5][6][7]It has been suggested that the term Nasrani derives from the name Nazarenes used by ancient Jewish Christians in the Near-East who believed in the divinity of Jesus but clung to many of the Mosaic ceremonies.[11]
Payapilly Palakkappilly is a prominent Syrian Catholic family originally hailing from North Paravur in the erstwhile Travancore Kingdom and presently based in Perumanoor. There exists several documents mostly in the form of palm leaves providing valuable information about the history of the family and confirm that the family members had the tradition of using the term Nasrani along with their names. It is believed that the term Payapilly is associated with North Paravur ancestry and the term Palakkappilly had its origin in Perumanoor. The family had several plots, namely Payapilly, Illathuparambu, Koonamveedu and Neendoopadam.[12]
Since the particular family name of Palakkappilly belonged to the caste of Brahmins it is to be assumed that his ancestors included Brahmins along with the possible Jewish descent. The name Illathuparambil (meaning, pertaining to brahminical possessions) found entered in his baptismal register and the shape of his ancestral home and the vessels found there give more weight to this supposition.[13][12] His full name as in his will is Illathuparambilirikkum Payyappillilaya Palakkappillil Nasrani Varghese Kathanar.
His parents had five children, namely Thoma, Kunjulonan, Korah, Kunjautha and Fr. Varghese. His other relatives were very learned and were occupying important positions in the society and some of them even had received honorary titles from the King of Kochi.[13][12] But his parents were of a very simple and straightforward nature. He had the fortune to grow up in a family richly blessed with vocations. His paternal uncle (Fr. Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly) as well as another paternal cousin (Fr. Mathai Payapilly Palakkappilly) were already priests.[14]
Varghese started his primary education in the parish school at Perumanoor and had his high school education at St. Albert's School, Ernakulam. He learnt Latin from Puthenpally Seminary and received his religious training at the Papal Seminary, Kandy, Sri Lanka. He was ordained a priest on 21 December 1907. He was noted for punctuality, discipline, piety and fraternal charity. Fr. Varghese served as parish priest in Kadamakkudy (1909–11), Alengad (1911–13) and Arakuzha (1920–22). During his tenure in Arakuzha he began the St. Mary's Higher Seconday School there. He was instrumental in bringing a total transformation in the parish and had helped to solve many of the long lasting family problems. He gave the lands to the tenants of the church and had some profitable land purchased for the church, thus making it self sufficient.[15] He also purchased 12 acres (49,000 m2) of land in M. C. Road for constructing St. Joseph's Syrian Catholic Church in Meenkunnam.
He was manager of St. Mary's High School, Aluva (1913–20,1922–29), one of the prominent schools in the Travancore. It was a rare honour bestowed upon him to have him made the manager of such a prestigious educational institution. In 1913 when he became the manager of the school, the institution was passing through a period of deep crisis for the recognition was withdrawn in 1909. The silver jubilee report of the school explains how Fr. Varghese had tackled the problem.[15] Cardinal Mar Joseph Parecattil, former Head of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, was a student of Fr. Varghese and studied staying in the school boarding and as such had ample opportunity to know closer the figure of Fr. Varghese.[15] During the time of Fr. Varghese, the school was a seedbed of priestly vocations as testified in the autobiography by Mar Joseph Parecattil:
"Fr. Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly was the manager when I joined the school. A slim figure with sunken eyes and with a serious expression on the face, he was an outstanding person. I may never have seen anybody with a willpower stronger than what he had. Nothing could shake him or take away his inner tranquility. I can sincerely say that the formation that I had received under him did exercise a great influence in my life. All those who wanted to become priests had to inform Fr. Varghese about their decision. This was the directive in the hostel and after much prayer and reflection I arrived at the conclusion and then I went to Fr. Varghese and told him of my desire" [16]
Fr. Varghese served as a member of the Diocesan Council, as Director of Apostolic Union as well as Priests' Provident Fund. He had a profound sense of justice and peace. He was a good mediator and people approached him seeking solution for their problems. His role in solving political rivalry regarding Aluva Municipal Chairmanship is worth mentioning. The tug of war for the Chairmanship became so strong and inconclusive that both warring parties approachd Fr. Varghese and asked him to become the Chairman. Both groups had promised that they would be faithful to him. But he did not comply with their request.[16] He was held in great honour by the church authorities and equally by the officials in the education department and government officers. The government had given him free pass to travel in the railways.[15] The concern and the care for the poor and the suffering, for which Fr. Varghese was well known throughout his life, were noted particularly, the way he helped the victims of the flood in the year 1924. He turned St. Mary's High School into a shelter for the suffering people and brought food for them in a hired boat.[17]
Until the 19th century there were no organized form of charitable services in Kerala to care for the poor and the destitute. Fr. Varghese came forward with the idea of founding a congregation to continue Christ’s redemptive mission among the poor. He founded the congregation of the Sisters of the Destitute (S.D.) in Chunangamvely on 19 March 1927. He picked up those found lying abandoned, brought them to the shelter of the Home for the Aged and nursed them personally. It was originally named Little Sisters of the Poor. But in 1933, the name was changed to Sisters of the Destitute, since there was another congregation having the same title.[15] S.D. was exalted to pontifical status in 1989. At present, it includes over 1500 nuns and is working in Asia, Europe, Africa and North America.
Fr. Varghese caught a cold on 19 September 1929 and took to bed. Later he was taken to Ernakulam general hospital for better treatment, but his condition only got worse. He died an untimely death on 5 October 1929, falling a victim to typhoid. He was buried in St. John Nepumsian Syrian Catholic Church, Konthuruthy. The funeral rite was administered by His Grace Mar Augustine Kandathil as the main celebrant in the presence of numerous priests and a huge gathering of people. The eulogy was delivered by the Prior General Fr. John Berchumans T.O.C.D.[15]
The Cause of the Beatification of Rev. Fr. Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly was initiated by His Eminence Mar Varkey Cardinal Vithayathil, Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in a ceremony held at the motherhouse of the Sisters of the Destitute on 6 September 2009.[18][19]
The mortal remains of Servant of God Varghese Payapilly Palakkappilly were exhumed and transferred to new tomb on 23 February 2011.