Kurisumala Ashram is a Trappist monastery of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, located in the Sahya Mountains of Vagamon, Kerala, India.
Kurisumala Ashram is a Trappist monastery of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, located in the Sahya Mountains of Vagamon, Kerala, India.
In 1956, Zacharias Mar Athanasios, then the Bishop of Thiruvalla, [1] [2] invited Francis Mahieu, a Trappist monk from Scourmont Abbey in Belgium, to Kerala to establish the ashram.
He was later joined by Bede Griffiths. On 1 December 1956, Mahieu and Griffiths laid the foundation at Tiruvalla in the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church [ citation needed ]. They acquired 88 acres (360,000 m2) of land [2] and, on 20 March 1958, traveled sixty miles to a mountain known as Kurisumala. The monastery was officially established on 21 March 1958. [1] They soon started a dairy farm with cattle imported from Jersey to support themselves . [2] [3]
Within three years, the population of the monastery grew to fifteen individuals. [3] [4] Prayer services were initially held in Syriac. [3]
Francis Mahieu later changed his name to Francis Acharya [5] and became an Indian citizen. [6]
The monastery was incorporated as an abbey into the Cistercian Order of Strict Observance in July 1998. [1] [3] [7]
After Acharya's death, Yesudas Thelliyil became the monastery's second abbot in March 2002. [1]
Bede Griffiths spent the last years of his life at Shantivanam in Tamil Nadu. [8] Francis Acharya became the sole religious leader of the Ashram at Kurisumala. A couple of years before his death in 2002, Acharya, who had remained in touch with the monastery of his youth, had the Kurisumala Ashram affiliated with the Trappists [ citation needed ].
"Kurisu" is the Malayalam translation of the word "cross," the language of Kerala, while "mala" means mountain and "ashram" means monastery. [4]
In the monastery, the liturgical services follow the Syro-Malankara tradition and use the Indian Rite Mass. [4] [9] [10] The Mass includes chants, ceremonies, and symbols adapted from Hindu tradition. [4] [11]
The ashram also emphasizes the importance of "bread-labour," where monks engage in farming and housework for several hours each day. [12]
The monks have a nightly satsang , a time of reflection that may include readings from Christian or Hindu texts. [9] [10] Kurisumala is seen as a place for both Catholics and those who follow Gandhian philosophy. [13]
The monastery has hosted Hindu guests and religious leaders. [10]
In 2023, the current abbot is Tarrawarra, who succeeded Ishananda Machiyanickal in 2018. [14]
Trappist beer is brewed by Trappist monks. Thirteen Trappist monasteries—six in Belgium, two in the Netherlands, and one each in Austria, Italy, England, France, and Spain— produce beer, but the Authentic Trappist Product label is assigned by the International Trappist Association (ITA) to just ten breweries that meet their strict criteria. As of 2021, Achel is no longer recognized as a Trappist brewery because it does not have any monks.
The Trappists, officially known as the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance and originally named the Order of Reformed Cistercians of Our Lady of La Trappe, are a Catholic religious order of cloistered monastics that branched off from the Cistercians. They follow the Rule of Saint Benedict and have communities of both monks and nuns that are known as Trappists and Trappistines, respectively. They are named after La Trappe Abbey, the monastery from which the movement and religious order originated. The movement began with the reforms that Abbot Armand Jean le Bouthillier de Rancé introduced in 1664, later leading to the creation of Trappist congregations, and eventually the formal constitution as a separate religious order in 1892.
The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, also known as the Malankara Syrian Catholic Church, is an Eastern Catholic sui iuris particular church in full communion with the worldwide Catholic Church possessing self-governance under the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. It is one of the major archiepiscopal churches of the Catholic Church. It is headed by Major Archbishop Baselios Cardinal Cleemis Catholicos of the Major Archdiocese of Trivandrum based in Kerala, India. With more than 1096 parishes, it is one of India's biggest church evangelical establishments.
The Syro-Malabar Church, also known as the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, is an Eastern Catholic church based in Kerala, India. It is a sui iuris (autonomous) particular church in full communion with the Holy See and the worldwide Catholic Church, with self-governance under the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches (CCEO). The major archbishop presides over the entire church. The incumbent Major Archbishop is Raphael Thattil, serving since January 2024. It is the largest Syriac Christian church and the largest Eastern Catholic church. Syro-Malabar is a prefix reflecting the church's use of the East Syriac liturgy and origins in Malabar. The name has been in usage in official Vatican documents since the nineteenth century.
Bede Griffiths OSB Cam, born Alan Richard Griffiths and also known by the end of his life as Swami Dayananda, was a British-born Catholic priest and Benedictine monk who lived in ashrams in South India and became a noted missionary. Griffiths was a part of the Christian Ashram Movement.
The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani is a Catholic monastery in the United States near Bardstown, Kentucky, in Nelson County. The abbey is part of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance, better known as the Trappists. Founded on December 21, 1848, and raised to an abbey in 1851, Gethsemani is considered to be the motherhouse of all Trappist and Trappistine monasteries in the United States. Gethsemani is the oldest Trappist monastery in the country that is still operating.
The Monastery of the Holy Spirit, officially the Monastery of Our Lady of the Holy Spirit, is a Trappist monastery located near Conyers, Georgia, in the United States. It is part of the Catholic Church.
Panikkervettil Thomas Panicker Geevarghese, known formally as Geevarghese Mar Ivanios, was a prominent Indian bishop and the first metropolitan archbishop of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church. He was a key figure in the Malankara Reunion Movement, which sought to reunite the Malankara Church with the Catholic Church, culminating in his joining the Roman Catholic Church in 1930 along with a small group of followers.
The Christian ashram movement is a movement within Christianity in India that embraces Vedanta and the teachings of the East, attempting to combine the Christian faith with the Hindu ashram model and Christian monasticism with the Hindu sannyasa tradition.
Vagamon is an Indian hill station and a revenue village located in Peerumedu Taluk of Idukki district, and also Meenachil taluk and Kanjirappally taluk of Kottayam district in the state of Kerala, India. Located in the Western Ghats 25 kilometres (16 mi) east of Erattupetta on the border of Kottayam-Idukki districts, Vagamon is famous for its natural beauty. The Vagamon glass bridge is the longest cantilever glass bridge in India.
Wayne Robert Teasdale was a Catholic monk, author and teacher from Connecticut, best known as an energetic proponent of mutual understanding between the world's religions, for an interfaith dialogue which he termed "interspirituality". He was also an active campaigner on issues of social justice.
Baselios Cleemis is the current major archbishop-catholicos of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church. He was named to the College of Cardinals of the Catholic Church by Pope Benedict XVI on 24 November 2012.
John Kuzhinapurath, OIC, (1904–1994), a great philanthropist was among the first priests who united with the Catholic Church along with Archbishop Mar Ivanios on 20 September 1930 in the process of the formation of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church.
The Trappist Abbey of Rochefort or Abbey of Notre-Dame de Saint-Rémy, which belongs to the Cistercians of Strict Observance, is located in Rochefort in the province of Namur. The abbey is famous for its spiritual life and its brewery, which is one of few Trappist beer breweries in the world. Life in the abbey is characterised by prayer, reading and manual work, the three basic elements of Trappist life. The motto of the abbey is Curvata Resurgo.
Francis Acharya was a Belgian-born Indian Cistercian monk. In 1998, he founded the Syro-Malankara rite Kristiya Sanyasa Samaj, Kurisumala Ashram in Kerala, India. He was later affiliated to the Trappist Order.
The Syro-Malankara Catholic Archeparchy of Tiruvalla is an archeparchy of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church in Tiruvalla, in Kerala, India. Metropolitan Archbishop Aboon Mor Thomas Koorilos currently presides. The seat of the eparchy is at St. John's Syro-Malankara Catholic Cathedral in Tiruvalla, a circular edifice designed by a British architect.
The Syro-Malankara Catholic Eparchy of Bathery is an eparchy of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church in Sulthan Bathery, in Kerala, India. As of 2024 Aboon Joseph Mar Thomas was the bishop. The seat of the eparchy is at St. Thomas Syro-Malankara Catholic Cathedral in Sulthan Bathery.
Saccidananda Ashram is a Camaldolese Benedictine monastery in Tannirpalli, India founded in 1950.
The Saint Thomas Christian denominations are Christian denominations from Kerala, India, which traditionally trace their ultimate origins to the evangelistic activity of Thomas the Apostle in the 1st century. They are also known as "Nasranis" as well. The Syriac term "Nasrani" is still used by St. Thomas Christians in Kerala. It is part of the Eastern Christianity institution.
Lamanabi Trappist Monastery is a monastery complex of the Catholic Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance (O.C.S.O.), popularly known as the Trappists, located in East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. The monastery was officially established on 1996 as a daughter house of Rawaseneng Monastery in Temanggung Regency, Central Java.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
