The St. Thomas Christian Community of South India: Evolution and Expansion of an Early Christian Community from Inception to Contemporary Times

Saint Thomas Christians or Nasranis of southern India represent a surviving group of ethnoreligious communities who trace their origins to the first century CE mission of Thomas the Apostle. The growth and evolution of the community from a nascent group to a solid socio-economic force at present is of much interest to scholars of history and religion. The community has survived for over two millennia in a predominantly Indic macro-cultural space through acculturation and cultural syncretism without compromising their Christian lineage. Although their encounters with Western Christianity beginning in the sixteenth century have resulted in multiple schisms and fragmentations within the community, the Thomas Christians successfully expanded their specific denominations outside their original homeland to Western countries in the twentieth century. Despite the rich cultural and religious merit of their history, very few Western scholars are aware of the history of the community and have engaged in an academic study of the community. This chapter introduces the community of Thomas Christians of southern India to wider religious scholarly communities by unveiling their history, heritage, and contemporary status. It addresses some of the reasons that have historically impeded the academic study of the community and some of the less-trodden research paths.