I believe Jesus himself sent St.Thomas to Kerala, India, after the event of Crucifixion

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gnosis.org/library/actthom.htm
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The Acts of Thomas
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And while he thus spake and thought, it chanced that there was there a certain merchant come from India whose name was Abbanes, sent from the King Gundaphorus [Gundaphorus is a historical personage who reigned over a part of India in the first century after Christ. His coins bear his name in Greek, as Hyndopheres], and having commandment from him to buy a carpenter and bring him unto him.
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Now the Lord seeing him walking in the market-place at noon said unto him: Wouldest thou buy a carpenter? And he said to him: Yea. And the Lord said to him: I have a slave that is a carpenter and I desire to sell him. And so saying he showed him Thomas afar off, and agreed with him for three litrae of silver unstamped, and wrote a deed of sale, saying: I, Jesus, the son of Joseph the carpenter, acknowledge that I have sold my slave, Judas by name, unto thee Abbanes, a merchant of Gundaphorus, king of the Indians.
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And when the deed was finished, the Saviour took Judas Thomas and led him away to Abbanes the merchant, and when Abbanes saw him he said unto him: Is this thy master? And the apostle said: Yea, he is my Lord. And he said: I have bought thee of him. And thy apostle held his peace.
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3 And on the day following the apostle arose early, and having prayed and besought the Lord he said: I will go whither thou wilt, Lord Jesus: thy will be done. And he departed unto Abbanes the merchant, taking with him nothing at all save only his price. For the Lord had given it unto him, saying: Let thy price also be with thee, together with my grace, wheresoever thou goest.
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gnosis.org/library/actthom.htm
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Hi

So, it was Jesus himself who sold the hesitant Judas Thomas Didymus to India, without any Four Gospels, after the event of Crucifixion.

I love Jesus and Mary

Thanks
 
But I thought you believed that Jesus went to India Himself after surviving the Crucifixion - so why would He even need to send Thomas, unless He DIDN’T actually survive the Crucifixion and go to India Himself?

As for Jesus sending Thomas - well, of course, you DO understand that we believe He still appeared to people after the Resurrection, don’t you? The Apostles, Paul and so on? And that His appearing to Thomas in no way contradicts the Gospels or beliefs of Christianity?

So what exactly is your point? :confused:
 
paarsurrey said:
Hi

So, it was Jesus himself who sold the hesitant Judas Thomas Didymus to India, without any Four Gospels, after the event of Crucifixion.

I love Jesus and Mary

Thanks
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You do know that we don’t believe the gnostic writing to be inspired by God. Don’t you? So any argument using them is futile.🤷
 
LilyM said:
But I thought you believed that Jesus went to India Himself after surviving the Crucifixion - so why would He even need to send Thomas, unless He DIDN’T actually survive the Crucifixion and go to India Himself?

As for Jesus sending Thomas - well, of course, you DO understand that we believe He still appeared to people after the Resurrection, don’t you? The Apostles, Paul and so on? And that His appearing to Thomas in no way contradicts the Gospels or beliefs of Christianity?

So what exactly is your point? :confused:
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Hi

Our ProtestantCatholic friends believe that Jesus was a god and man at the same time; while that was not the case in my opinion.

Jesus showed a sign in which perhaps it was only the divinity of Jesus which suffered the fatal casuality; the man Jesus survived a cursed death on Cross and lived. Thomas did put his fingers in his wounds and got cofirmed that he was not seeing a ghost; it was verily his teacher/master standing before him, the Jesus he used to see before the event of crucifixion.

Peace; no intention is made here to injure anybody’s feelings, we are just arguing to find the truth in our faiths with comparitive study.

I love Jesus and Mary

Thanks
 
paarsurrey said:
Hi

Our ProtestantCatholic friends believe that Jesus was a god and man at the same time; while that was not the case in my opinion.

Jesus showed a sign in which perhaps it was only the divinity of Jesus which suffered the fatal casuality; the man Jesus survived a cursed death on Cross and lived. Thomas did put his fingers in his wounds and got cofirmed that he was not seeing a ghost; it was verily his teacher/master standing before him, the Jesus he used to see before the event of crucifixion.

Peace; no intention is made here to injure anybody’s feelings, we are just arguing to find the truth in our faiths with comparitive study.

I love Jesus and Mary

Thanks
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That very same St Thomas who saw the wounds KNEW he was beholding no mere mortal man, although neither was he beholding a spirit or ghost.

Thomas knew that he was beholding the God-man. You are correct, it WAS the same Jesus as before the crucifixion, because Jesus was the God-man before the crucifixion!

THAT is why Thomas acclaimed Jesus as ‘My Lord and my God!’ - which correct description of Himself Jesus had no objections to, because HE knew he was both God and man as well.
 
Hi

I know that Catholics believe that St.Thomas did go to Kerala, India.

I have little questions, please. What rout did a take? He went via land or sea? What cities or ports he touched?

I love Jesus and Mary

Thanks
 
paarsurrey said:
Hi

I know that Catholics believe that St.Thomas did go to Kerala, India.

I have little questions, please. What rout did a take? He went via land or sea? What cities or ports he touched?

I love Jesus and Mary

Thanks
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I sent this information to you previously but you must not have read it.

Read this please:

It describes the routes that existed between the Holy Land and India.
 
codebilly said:
I sent this information to you previously but you must not have read it.

Read this please:

It describes the routes that existed between the Holy Land and India.
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Hi

Sorry, I didn’t click it previously. Thank you very much for providing it again. I am going to read it just now.

Regards
 
Hi

I have read the essay “The Kerala Church” by Antony Nirappel,Changanacherry Kerala, India, as suggested by our friend herecodebilly. I want to share following points with my friends in this forum.
  1. The Gospel was proclaimed in India by Saint Thomas the Apostle. He landed at Kodungalloor (Crangannore) in Kerala in A.D. 52 and
    kindled the light of faith on this land with the baptism of our
    forefathers.
  2. History traces four ancient trade routes between India and the
    West: 1)) Kerala (Malabar) to the River Indus, the Persian Gulf,
    the Euphrates, thence by land to Antioch, etc.; 2) the land route
    through the northern mountain passes to Balk, Oxus and the Caspian Sea; 3) the coast line land route to Persia, Arabia, then up the Red Sea to Alexandria, thence to Rome; 4) from Kerala by sea to the Island of Sokotra, thence along the African coast or up the Red Sea.
  3. Charlesworth points out that “no less than 120 ships
    sailed annually from Egypt to India.” Merchants from Rome, Syria
    and Egypt could without difficulty come to India. In one of those
    ships, the Apostle St. Thomas came to Kerala.
  4. There is an ancient work known as , originally written in Edessa in the second or early third century. Its Syriac, Greek, Latin, Armenian and Coptic editions acquired wide publicity in the Middle East in the early centuries. Since its theme is based on tradition, it has historic importance. It narrates that Thomas went to the court of King Gondophares in North India and preached there for some years, after which, becoming aware of the demise of the Blessed Virgin Mary, he went back to Jerusalem; that on the second journey, the Apostle came to Malabar
  5. As a result of the excavations conducted in North India about the
    year 1830, certain coins have been discovered which prove beyond
    doubt that there was a king named Gondophares of a Parthiandynasty. These coins are preserved in the Lahore Museum. This king has been mentioned in no record except the <Acta.> Several suchcoins have been discovered in Kabul, Sindh and the Punjab. The inscriptions on these coins are in Greek and in an Indian language. Numismatists confirm that these coins were minted between A.D. 10 and 50. A votive inscription of the same period was discovered in Peshawar in 1857, called the Takhti-Bahi inscription.
  6. While the Apostle was going to the Jewish colony nearby, he had to cross the village of Palayur, where he saw the Hindu temple and the temple tanks. Certain Nambooris (Brahmins) were bathing in the tank. St. Thomas worked a miracle there. The Nambooris took water in their palms and threw it upwards reciting “mantes” (prayers). Seeing the same water falling down, the apostle asked them why their deity refused to accept their offering. He then took some water from the pond, and calling on the Name of Jesus Christ, threw it upwards. Those water drops assumed the shape of rose flowers and remained suspended in midair. Because of this manifestation many of the Nambooris believed in Christ and received baptism. However, a small number of them became enraged at the incident, cursed the place, and went to another village called Vempanad.
  7. No one else claims to have introduced Christianity in Kerala. The Church of Mesopotamia and Babylon respect the tradition of Kerala. In 1542, the people of Sokotra told Saint Francis Xavier that Thomas, after spreading the Gospel in their land, went to Malabar and died a martyr at Mylapore.[9]
  8. Dr. Radhakrishnan, former President of India, has declared that the light of Christian faith was brought to South India by the Apostle, and Jewaharlal Nehru has recorded that there have been Christians in India from the first century A.D.
  9. In 1606, Pope Paul V, in elevating San Thome of Mylapore to a cathedral, declared that “there lay buried the body of St.Thomas.” Pope Leo XIII in his apostolic letter of September 1886 to the Bishops of India reiterates “the constant tradition of the church” that St. Thomas evangelized in India.
  10. According to a very ancient tradition, Thomas had ordained two bishops, four rambans, seven priests and twenty- one deacons. That priesthood continued in unbroken succession from generation to generation in the families of Pakalomattam and Sankarapuri.[18]
  11. Historians are of the opinion that Thomas established the early liturgy here in Aramaic (Syriac). In those days, Greek was the chief language of the West; and Syriac, that of the East. Aramaic continued to be the language of the liturgy until it was substituted by Malayalam in 1962.
continued to the next post
 
Continued from the previous post.
  1. An important event of the second century was the coming of Pantacnus. Some Hindu leaders, enraged at the spread of Christianity, began to oppose the Christian faith and principles. A Brahmin conjurer named Manickavachakar went around the country decrying Christianity. He was able to arouse the feelings of the Hindus against Christianity, to obstruct further spread of the religion and even to draw some converts back to Hinduism. Alarmed at this, the Kerala Christians sent a deputation to Demitrius, Bishop of Alexandria, requesting him to send a learned doctor to refute the arguments of Manickavachakar and to confirm the Christians in faith. Consequently, Pantaenus, the learned professor of the famous seminary of Alexandria, came to Kerala in 190. He defeated Manickavachakar in debate, brought back most of the apostatized to Christianity and gave a new awakening and spirit to the Kerala Church. As a mark of gratitude to him, the Saint Thomas Christians presented him with a copy of Matthew’s Gospel written to Syriac, believed to have been brought by Thomas. This is recorded by Jerome and Eusebius.
  2. The Malabar Church, administered by bishops sent by the Metropolitans of Persia was preserved from heresy.[23] Hence Bishop Charles Lavings, St. Vicar Apostolic of Kottayam, recorded: “The true faith which these Christians have preserved up to this date is a precious inheritance which their forefathers received from St. Thomas the Apostle, and left to their posterity.”[24] The Nestorianism of the Seleucians is a topic for special study and investigation.[25]
  3. Mar Joseph of Kerala who was ordained bishop in 1490 by the Patriarch of Babylon affirmed that he and the Patriarch who ordained him received authority from Rome. This same Mar Joseph visited Pope Alexander VI and made his profession of faith.[38] Luis Kadmustock, who visited Kerala in 1493, says that the St. Thomas Christians believed that the Pope was the Head of the Church.[39]
  4. The Apostles established liturgy in the languages prevailing in the climes they evangelized, chiefly Aramaic in the east and Greek in the west. Since Aramaic (East Syriac), the language of Jerusalem and the Middle East at the time of Our Lord, was known in Kerala due to her overseas commercial enterprises, it is only proper to accept the tradition that St. Thomas established the liturgy here in that language.
ewtn.com/library/HOMELIBR/KERALA.TXT

I love Jesus and Mary

Thanks
 
Hi

Holger Kersten a German research scholar, not a Muslims, sees genuine clues about Jesus, Mary and St.Thomas visiting India after the event of crucifixion:

Further clues are cited from The Apocryphal Acts of Thomas, and the Gospel of Thomas which are of Syrian origin and have been dated to the 4th Century AD, or possibly earlier. They are Gnostic Scriptures and despite the evidence indicating their authenticity, they are not given credence by mainstream theologians.

In these texts Thomas tells of Christ’s appearance in Andrapolis, Paphlagonia (today known as in the extreme north of Anatolia) as a guest of the King of Andrappa. There he met with Thomas who had arrived separately. It is at Andrapolis that Christ entreated Thomas to go to India to begin spreading his teachings.

It seems that Christ and Mary then moved along the West coast of Turkey, proof of this could be an old stopping place for travellers called the “Home of Mary”, found along the ancient silk route. From here Christ could easily have entered Europe via France. He may have even travelled as far as the British Isles, for in England there is an ancient oak tree called the “Hallowed Tree” which (says local legend) was planted by Christ himself.

sol.com.au/kor/7_01.htm

Hindus, Buddhists and Western scholars now talk of Jesus coming to India.

I love Jesus and Mary as mentioned in Quran.

Thanks
 
The Acts of Thomas are well known fabrications by the gnostic movement. The gnostic movement were a group of individuals who professed to have secret knowledge and know of hidden things. Like parasites they attached themselves to every religion, cult, and spiritual movement in the Roman Empire, gnostizing them all so to speak. In order to attach to different people, though, they had to come up with fake writings and letters attribued to famous religious leaders and people (such as Peter and Mary), which they used to “prove” their knowledge and revelations. A way of telling if a work was created by a gnostic is to look at the beginning of the work, which would usually start with an introducion of the writer’s intentions, something like “Here are the secrets of so and so” or “Allow me to impart unto you secret and hidden knowledge”. However, not all gnostic writings include an introducion, and some actually just end with a brief description of the gnostic’s beliefs (as in the case of the Gospel of Judas)
 
Hi

I want to share a miracle that St. Thomas performed in Kerala and I would like to ask my Catholic friends to mention of any such miracle performed my Paul:
ewtn.com/library/HOMELIBR/KERALA.TXT

While the Apostle was going to the Jewish colony nearby, he had to cross the village of Palayur, where he saw the Hindu temple and the temple tanks. Certain Nambooris (Brahmins) were bathing in the tank. St. Thomas worked a miracle there.

The Nambooris took water in their palms and threw it upwards reciting “mantes” (prayers). Seeing the same water falling down, the apostle asked them why their deity refused to accept their offering. He then took some water from the pond, and calling on the Name of Jesus Christ, threw it upwards. Those water drops assumed the shape of rose flowers and remained suspended in midair.

Because of this manifestation many of the Nambooris believed in Christ and received baptism. However, a small number of them became enraged at the incident, cursed the place, and went to another village called Vempanad.

ewtn.com/library/HOMELIBR/KERALA.TXT

Thanks
 
paarsurrey said:
Hi

Holger Kersten a German research scholar, not a Muslims, sees genuine clues about Jesus, Mary and St.Thomas visiting India after the event of crucifixion:

Further clues are cited from The Apocryphal Acts of Thomas, and the Gospel of Thomas which are of Syrian origin and have been dated to the 4th Century AD, or possibly earlier. They are Gnostic Scriptures and despite the evidence indicating their authenticity, they are not given credence by mainstream theologians.

In these texts Thomas tells of Christ’s appearance in Andrapolis, Paphlagonia (today known as in the extreme north of Anatolia) as a guest of the King of Andrappa. There he met with Thomas who had arrived separately. It is at Andrapolis that Christ entreated Thomas to go to India to begin spreading his teachings.

It seems that Christ and Mary then moved along the West coast of Turkey, proof of this could be an old stopping place for travellers called the “Home of Mary”, found along the ancient silk route. From here Christ could easily have entered Europe via France. He may have even travelled as far as the British Isles, for in England there is an ancient oak tree called the “Hallowed Tree” which (says local legend) was planted by Christ himself.

sol.com.au/kor/7_01.htm

Hindus, Buddhists and Western scholars now talk of Jesus coming to India.

I love Jesus and Mary as mentioned in Quran.

Thanks
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Where is Andrapolis, anyway?
 
swariffin said:
Where is Andrapolis, anyway?
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Hi

This information is from Christian sources.

East of the Euphrates: Early Christianity in Asia by T.V. Philip
Chapter 6: Christianity in India
India and the Western World in the First Century

religion-online.org/showchapter.asp?title=1553&C=1364

However, the earliest available record and a detailed one of St. Thomas’ travels and his missionary work in India is contained in the book: Acts of Judas Thomas, written in Syriac probably by a Christian in Edessa around AD 200. It is a very lively account in narrative form in thirteen acts. The book ends with the statement, “The acts of Judas Thomas are completed, which he wrought in the land of the Indians, fulfilling the command of him, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

The book begins by telling how the eleven apostles, after the resurrection of Jesus, met in Jerusalem and divided the world by lot among themselves for missionary work. India fell to Judas Thomas, “who is also called Didymus.” He was reluctant to go saying, “how can I, who am a Hebrew, go and preach the truth among the Indians.” The Lord Christ appeared to him at night. Thomas pleaded with the Lord, “send me anywhere but not to India.” The Lord assured him saying, “Fear not, my Grace is sufficient.”

The story tells how Thomas was sold for three pounds to a merchant Abban from India who was looking for a carpenter for his king Gundaphorous to build him a palace. They began their voyage to India and arrived first at Andrapolis, (Historians differ as to the exact location of Andrapolis, whether it was within India proper or a nearby place. In the story it is said that from Andrapolis, Abban and Thomas left for India. According to Warmington, Andrapolis was the capital of the Andhra Kingdom in Deccan and was in India.) a royal city where there was a wedding of the king’s daughter. Abban and Thomas were also invited to the wedding.

After a prayer by Thomas and the appearance of Jesus to the bride and bridegroom, they decided to forego marriage and live in celibacy. From there Abban and Thomas left for India. Having arrived in India. Thomas undertook to build a palace for the king Gundaphorous and received some money in advance. Thomas, instead of building the palace, distributed the money to the poor. In answer to the king’s enquiries Thomas said that he has indeed built it, but the king will not be able to see it till he has departed this life.

The king was very angry and sent both Thomas and Abban to prison. At this time the king’s brother, Gad, fell ill and died. In heaven the angels asked him in which of the mansions he saw in heaven would he like to live. He selected a certain building only to be told that he could not have it because it was built for his brother, Gundaphorous, by Thomas. Gad asked permission to go back and buy the palace from his brother. His return astonished Gundaphorous. Thomas was released from prison and the king and his brother were baptized. Thomas continued his preaching, making many converts.

religion-online.org/showchapter.asp?title=1553&C=1364

I love Jesus

Thanks
 
My question is where exactly Andrapolis, Paar? My other question is in what form the book said that Jesus appear to Thomas?
 
paarsurrey said:
Hi

I want to share a miracle that St. Thomas performed in Kerala and I would like to ask my Catholic friends to mention of any such miracle performed my Paul:
ewtn.com/library/HOMELIBR/KERALA.TXT

While the Apostle was going to the Jewish colony nearby, he had to cross the village of Palayur, where he saw the Hindu temple and the temple tanks. Certain Nambooris (Brahmins) were bathing in the tank. St. Thomas worked a miracle there.

The Nambooris took water in their palms and threw it upwards reciting “mantes” (prayers). Seeing the same water falling down, the apostle asked them why their deity refused to accept their offering. He then took some water from the pond, and calling on the Name of Jesus Christ, threw it upwards. Those water drops assumed the shape of rose flowers and remained suspended in midair.

Because of this manifestation many of the Nambooris believed in Christ and received baptism. However, a small number of them became enraged at the incident, cursed the place, and went to another village called Vempanad.

ewtn.com/library/HOMELIBR/KERALA.TXT

Thanks
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Paar,

When the Apostle Thomas called on Jesus, He called on His Name because he believed Jesus is God. In Judaism, you call on the Name of God in order to perform a miracle, such as what the Prophet Elijah did on Mount Carmel. Moreover, the reason the Apostle was able to perform the miracle is because Jesus is God. Thomas showed the Hindus that their gods were false and that Jesus is God.

If Jesus is not God, then the water wouldn’t have changed. Some cite magic as the source of Thomas’ work, but those who do are unable to find any evidence for this claim. Furthermore, magic is forbidden by Jews and by Christians, and I doubt, if Thomas really wanted to show the power of Christ, he would have performed magic to do so: rather, he called on the Name of the Lord, Jesus Christ, and the water became flowers.

The water turning flowers is acually similar to Jesus’ other miracles: turning water into wine at Cana and feeding five thousand people with just a few loaves of bread.
 
Paar,

Saint Thomas Aquinas comments on five letters by Saint Paul here.

The above biblical commentaries will help you better understand Paul. 🙂
 
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