Abraham Malpan - Reformation

Reformation

During the time of Marthoma VI, Rev.Dr. Claudius Buchanan, an Anglican missionary visited Malankara. He met Marthoma in 1806. With his help, the Bible was translated from the original Aramaic language and was distributed to the parishes. Soon after his meeting, representatives of the parishes met at Arthat church and declared (Arthat Padiola) that the people should not follow the teachings by Rome, Antioch or other foreign Churches. This meeting can be considered to be the beginning of Sucheekarana Prasthanam ('Purification Movement - Reformation) in Malankara Church.

In 1816, Mar Thoma X, (Pulikottil Mar Dionysius) appointed Abraham Malpan as a professor of Syriac at the Kottayam Seminary.

His uncle, Thomma Malpan was of opinion that many of the beliefs that infiltrated into Malankara Church were against the teaching of the Bible. While he was the guardian of Abraham Malpan in his younger days, they talked about restoring the Church to its pristine position before the Synod of Diamper. Teaching at the Kottayam Seminary, gave him enough time to read and study the Bible in his mother tongue (Malayalam). That made Abraham Malpan think of reforming the Church.

Mar Thoma XI, (Punnathra Mar Dionysius) convened a meeting of representatives of the Malankara Church at Mavelikkara, on December 3, 1818. In that meeting a committee was appointed to recommend reforms in the Church. Abraham Malpan, Kaithayil Geevarghese Malpan, Eruthikkal Markose Kathanar, Adangapurathu Joseph Kathanar were members of this committee. This was the first step in carrying out the Sucheekaranam (Purification - Reformation) in Malankara Church. For Abraham Malpan it was a great step forward. His friends and members of his home parish (Maramon) gave him full support for reformation. But after the demise of Mar Thoma XI, things changed. Cheppad Mar Dionysius became Marthoma XII.

Due to doubts about the validity of the consecration of Mar Thoma VIII, Abraham Malpan had some doubts about his own ordination. So when a Jacobite bishop from Syria came, he and two others had themselves reordained by him. Dionysius lodged a complaint against them to the government of Travancore and they were fined 336 fanam (Rs.84) for flouting the authority of the Indian bishop.

In 1835, Bishop of Calcutta Rt.Rev. Daniel Wilson visited Kerala. He made certain recommendations to Mar Thoma XII, (Cheppattu Mar Dionysius) for the continuation of relationship between the Syrian Church and the Missionaries. Mar Thoma did not like this interference of the Anglican Missionaries in the Church affairs. So Mar Thoma convened a meeting of Church representatives at Mavelikkara on January 16, 1836, in which the Synod declared that, “We, the Jacobite Syrians are under the rule of the Patriarch of Antioch .. .. ..”