An example from Kolkata

Kolkata has set an example to the bulldozer-happy Christian priests of Kerala. The World Monuments Fund (WMF) in collaboration with the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) is set to revive the facade of the St. John’s Church in Kolkata (built in 1787) at an estimated coat of Rs.3.8 millions.

Others involved in the project are Action Research in Conservation of Heritage (ARCH) and the Department of Information and Cultural Affairs, Government of West Bengal. A report in The Hindu of May 11 states that this is being done “so that it serves as a catalyst for similar rejuvenation projects in the future.

But obviously the message doesn’t get through to Ramapuram, Kerala, where the Vicar and his people are planning to proceed with the demolition of the historic twin churches (see Churches on demolition line.) against the laws of the land and the reported opposition of the Major Archbishop of the Syro Malabar Church, Cardinal Vithayathil.

To overcome the Kerala Government’s directive not to alter the structure of the twin churches, the Vicar is playing the religious card. He is reportedly circulating a letter to the parishioners stating that if the Government declares the buildings as protected monuments, they would not be able to conduct prayers and religious activities there.

“It is a blatant lie”, cries The New Indian Express of May 3. The report goes on to say, “It has been well-clarified in the law that the department [of Archeology] does not interfere in the activities which are held at a structure which has been declared a protected monument. Its concern is only in the upkeep of the structure.”

I had said pretty much the same thing in my post Back to the twin churches.

Ends.

Back to the twin churches.

[Related Posts:
Churches on demolition line.
Response to post on church demolition.
Twin Churches - An Update.]

I have never been to the twin churches at Ramapuram in spite of having lived in Kerala for seven decades. But something about these churches haunts me. May be the sheer beauty of the structures evident from the photographs. May be the history behind these buildings. And of course, there is a frustration with the bulldozing policy of the Syro-Malabar Church to destroy historic church buildings and replace them with structures that lack sensitivity, ethnicity and aesthetics.

If the Church authorities want to build a new place of worship at Ramapuram it is their business. But if they want to destroy heritage structures, it is the nation’s business. The hierarchy would put forward the argument, as they usually do, that a new, larger church is required to accommodate the increasing number of devotees and they cannot afford to maintain the old ones as well.

This should not be a problem, though. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) restores and maintains monuments and heritage buildings. This has been done in several cases. ASI would not interfere in any manner with the management of the churches or the holding of rituals.

But the ASI has to be approached to undertake the task. Will the Church authorities or the people who are concerned do that? The official email of the Director General of the ASI is dgasi@vsnl.net

However, Church bosses are, I understand, trying to get around government objection and go ahead with the demolition.

See below what they plan to destroy:

(Please click on the photos for enlarged view.)

Twin Churches - An Update.

There is some good news regarding Churches on demolition line. The move to demolish the twin churches at Ramapuram has been stayed by the Archeology Department. It is not clear when this was done.

This morning I contacted offices of the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of India at New Delhi and the Palai Bishop in Kerala. Both denied any knowledge of the referendum reportedly scheduled for yesterday.

The Bishop’s office gave me the Ramapuram church telephone number. The priest who attended my call was guarded in speaking. He said words to the effect that people are spreading all kinds of baseless rumors. Then he mentioned about the stay without elaborating. But he did state that efforts are on to vacate the stay.

This is the time to act. I suggest that all those who are against the destruction of heritage buildings petition the Honorable Chief Minister of Kerala chiefminister@kerala.gov.in and organizations like INTACH intach@del3.vsnl.net.in

I have already done this.

Ends.

Churches on demolition line.

Response to post on church demolition.

Response to post on church demolition.

First of all I must thank the readers for the response to my post ‘Churches on the demolition line’.

Reproduced below is comment by Mr. Bhattacharya: “I sincerely hope that you will be able to mobilize the support of adequate numbers of like minded persons to save this beautiful, historic Church:
"You could approach the following three Organisations for intervention.
1. The Archaeological Survey of India, which has the authority under the AMASR Act, to bring ancient monuments under its protection.
2. The Kerala State Department of Archaeology which can declare ancient monuments as protected monuments under the as The Kerala Ancient Monuments and Archaeological sites and Remains Act of 1968.
3. INTACH which files PIL ‘when actions of the local or national administration are a threat to the heritage of the country.’ They have 5 Chapters in Kerala.
You can get more information from their websites.
From: Bipul Bhattacharya. April 28, 2007 12:38:00 PM IST”

I have already communicated the details to INTACH. This is an NGO which has been doing great work in preserving India’s heritage. I had mentioned about this organization in my post ‘Armenian Catholicos in India’:

http://parayilat.blogspot.com/2007/03/armenian-catholicos-in-india.html

INTACH is likely to help in the restoration of the Armenian Church (built in 1772) in Chennai.

It will be effective if more people write to them. In fact, the twin churches of Ramapuram are on their list of protected sites. The email ID of INTACH is:

intach@del3.vsnl.net.in

I know of two other old churches, which are also facing demolition. In all likelihood, there would be more on the bulldozing list.

Ends.

Churches on demolition line.

(INTACH Post Card)

Beautiful, isn’t it?

These are the historic twin churches at Ramapuram, one of the cradles of Christianity in Kerala, India. The smaller of these, in the name of St. Augustine, was built around 1450, and the other in 1864. These monuments may be razed to the ground soon. What no invader, no government, no other community, have dared to try, is being done with abandon by the Church itself.

Aisanet TV reported last evening that a referendum is being conducted among the parishioners of Ramapuram on Sunday, April 29, 2007 about demolishing these famous shrines. The Church officials have taken a strong stand in favor of the destruction. Therefore the outcome of the vote is a foregone conclusion. The priests do not seem to be worried whether such actions and procedures conform to the laws of the country.

The move to demolish the twin churches and build a ‘modern’ one in their place has been on for some time. The Hindu carried a report about this on February 18, 2005. The reason given for this proposal by the Vicar was that more space is required to accommodate the increased number of pilgrims! Apparently he was not alert to the fact that the newer of the two churches was also built for the same reason, but people who were responsible then had ensured that the old one was preserved.

The vicar went on to give a piece of wisdom to the world: “God created the whole world for man. Archaeology is for the benefit of man and not vice-versa''. Shades of Benito Mussolini! Il Duce was reported to have said when his car knocked down and killed a boy, “What is the life of a child in the matters of state?”

The Syro-Malabar Church of Kerala, under which Ramapuram comes, is the second largest (after Roman /Latin) Rite in the Catholic Diaspora. It is headed by a Major Archbishop who is a Cardinal. Can the authorities of the Syro-Malabar wash off the responsibility for the demolition mania? There is something called acts of omission and commission.

What about the Pope?

In the recent Apostolic Exhortation, ‘Sacramentum Caritatis’, the Pontiff states, "A solid knowledge of the history of sacred art can be advantageous for those responsible for commissioning artists and architects to create works of art for the liturgy. Consequently, it is essential that the education of Seminarians and priests include the study of art history, with special reference to sacred buildings..."

[The response of some priests in Kerala to this might be, ‘Oh, it’s about some paintings in Europe’, like Stalin who once asked during WW II, ‘How many Divisions does the Pope have?’ In Kerala itself, invaluable frescos were lost by recent demolition of Thycattussarry Church. See my post ‘Historic church is no more’ by clicking on the title]

Indiscriminate destruction of heritage structures should be a matter of concern not only for Christians, but also for others. If you agree, please email this to as many people as you can. The procedure is very simple. Just click on the ‘envelope’ icon below and give the email IDs.

Let us preserve our heritage.

Ends.