The Jesuits, one of the largest Roman Catholic religious orders founded by St. Ignatius of Loyola in 1534, started their mission in Kerala with the coming of Francis Xavier in 1544. They engaged themselves in preaching, establishing churches, pastoral care, running schools and colleges, seminaries, printing and publishing, undertaking diplomatic missions, etc. Creative and daring from the outset, the Jesuits left very few areas untouched in the realisation of their mission. In the process, they made significant contributions to religion, culture, linguistics, literature, ethnography, printing, education, and social mobility.
The history of the Jesuit mission in Kerala is divided into two phases: Before the Suppression of the Society in 1773, and after its restoration in 1814. After 1814, the Jesuits returned to Kerala as part of two missions: to British Malabar in 1879 as part of the Mangalore Mission, and to Cochin in 1892 as part of the Goa Mission. There are a number of studies on the first phase but none on the latter period.
This book is the first ever attempt to trace the history of Jesuits in Kerala after their second coming in 1879. It is a scholarly work based on original documents available in various archives of India and abroad. Research scholars are sure to find this book a valuable reference manual. The narration is interesting and provides a better understanding of the history of Jesuits in Kerala to the general readers too.
- Courtesy: Biju Joseph, SJ
- Title: History of Jesuits in Kerala (1879-2000)
- Author: Sunny Jose, SJ
- Publisher: ATC Publishers, Bengaluru
- Pages: 217
- Price: Rs 250
