The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, also known as the Indian Orthodox Church, is an ancient Christian community rooted in the apostolic witness of St. Thomas, one of the Twelve Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to the living tradition of the Church, St. Thomas arrived on the shores of Kerala in South India in A.D. 52, preaching the Gospel, establishing Christian communities, and planting a faith that has endured for nearly two thousand years.

Over the centuries, the Malankara Church was nourished by its ties to the Syriac Orthodox tradition, especially through the Church of Antioch. From this relationship we received the rich West Syriac liturgical heritage that shapes our worship today. The Holy Qurbana (Divine Liturgy), our hymns and prayers carry this ancient Syriac patrimony, expressed through the language, culture, and life of the Indian people.

Our history in India is also a story of steadfast faith amid trial. During the colonial period, the faithful of Malankara were pressured to abandon their ancient traditions. The Coonan Cross Oath of 1653—when clergy and laity gathered around a cross in Mattancherry and swore to preserve the freedom of the Church—stands as a defining moment. By God’s grace, the Church emerged from these struggles still holding fast to the apostolic faith, the Orthodox understanding of Christ, and the liturgical life entrusted to us.

Today, the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church is a self-governing (autocephalous) Church within the Oriental Orthodox family, together with the Coptic, Syriac, Armenian, Ethiopian, and Eritrean Orthodox Churches. Our spiritual and administrative head is His Holiness Baselios Mar Thoma Mathews III, the Catholicos of the East, seated at Devalokam Aramana in Kottayam, Kerala. Under his leadership, the Holy Synod of bishops shepherds dioceses in India and across the world, including a growing flock here in North America.

At the heart of our life is the sacramental and liturgical worship of the Holy Trinity. Through the seven sacraments, the faithful are united to Christ and to one another and called to lives of repentance, holiness, and love. Monastic life has a special place within this tradition as a witness of prayer, simplicity, and total dedication to God. The establishment of a monastery on American soil continues the same living stream that began on the shores of Kerala: the ancient apostolic faith taking root in a new land, bearing witness to the risen Christ and inviting all into the life of communion with God.