INDIA Kerala, first non-endogamous marriage among the knanayas

The Archeparchy of Kottayam had to abide by a civil court ruling that those who marry someone outside the community cannot be excluded. The strict and controversial rule was intended to safeguard the group’s ethnic identity. Its roots go back to 72 families of Judeo-Christian emigrants from Mesopotamia who arrived in India 17 centuries ago.

New Delhi ( / Agencies) – For the first time, a parish in the archeparchy of Kottayam, in Kerala, officially authorized the marriage of one of its faithful to a woman from outside the Knanaya community. The union marks the end of endogamy, an extremely rigid rule that had been in place for 17 centuries and also applied to courtships with Catholics from other communities.

The marriage took place in the church of Santa Ana Knanaya, in the town of Kottody. In March, the Kerala High Court had rejected a petition by the archdiocese against a civil court order that in 2021 had declared the practice of expelling from the Church “unlawful” those who did not marry members of the Knanaya community. By virtue of this very strict rule – intended to safeguard a specific ethnic-religious identity – thousands of people got married in other dioceses or abroad, but were excluded from their own community. The Congregation for the Oriental Churches itself had long ago called for an end to this form of endogamy, but the Archdiocese of Kottayam only relented after the ruling by the civil courts – questioned by some faithful.

Justin John, a rickshaw driver, managed to get a “kalyana kuri” (letter of permission) from the parish priest for his wedding to Vijimol Shaji. The marriage will take place in mid-May at the Church of St. Francis Xavier in Kottody, which is part of the Tellicherry Archdiocese. “I’m glad I don’t lose my membership in the Church,” John said when talking to the Indian Catholic site matters india, and he counted all the difficulties he had to go through. “The letter came just two days before the official engagement,” she recounted, “and until the last moment, someone tried to convince my girlfriend’s family to cancel the wedding, but they didn’t give in to the pressure.”

The Knanaya community owes its origins to a group of Judeo-Christian emigrants from Mesopotamia. According to tradition, 72 families landed on the Kerala coast in 345 AD. Its members claim inbreeding, because it would have preserved “the purity of their blood.” As reported Matters IndiaIn the latest appeal filed with the Kerala High Court, the archdiocese expressed concern at the risk of “destroying the ethnic identity of the community, causing great discontent.”