Devasahayam Pillai - Canonization Efforts

Canonization Efforts

According to the report submitted by the then Bishop of Cochin (under whom Kanyakumari church was then functioning) in 1756 CE, the Christian martyrdom of Devasahayam Pillai was promptly intimated to Vatican. Prominent witnesses to his saintliness and martyrdom include Paremmakkal Thoma Kathanar.

In 1780, Kariattil Ouseph Malpan submitted a petition to the Vatican for canonization of Devasahayam Pillai.

The church historian C. M. Agur concluded in 1903 that although apostasy was never considered illegal in Travancore, it was not viewed indifferently, particularly in the case of the King's palace servants, and this led to the martyrdom of Devasahayam Pillai.

In 1984, a group of lay persons from the diocese of Kottar, especially members of Nagercoil Catholic Club, once again took the initiative to seek the beatification of Devasahayam. This is unusual for a layman, but he is regarded as one who was totally devoted to Christ. At the beginning of the 21st century, many Christian devotees were offering prayers at his tomb in St. Xavier's Cathedral of the diocese of Kottar.

After a series of initiatives by the diocese of Kottar and much deliberation, the Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI), Tamil Nadu Bishops' Council (TNBC), later in 2004, duly recommended his beatification, following scrutiny of available historical evidence, in consultation with others. Bishop Chrysostom said that the CBCI did not intend any controversy whatsoever in moving this forward.

Professor A. Sreedhara Menon (1925–2010), a noted historian and writer on Travancore, said that no cases of persecution in the name of religious conversion were recorded in the history of the kingdom. P. Parameswaran, president of the Hindu spiritual organisation Vivekananda Kendra, accused the CBCI of an attempt to hurt Hindu sentiments. Referring to the Travancore state manual, he insisted that Devasahayam was a palace employee who was executed after confirmation of sedition, because he had tampered with palace records and passed them to De Lannoy.

However, Catholic records of the time state that the kingdom of Travancore did not tolerate palace officials converting to Christianity.

In June 2012, Pope Benedict XVI officially recognized a decree from the Congregation for the Causes of Saints stating that he lived a life of "heroic virtues" – a major step towards beatification – and Pillai was then referred to as "Venerable".