Sinto Jose is a priest from the diocese of Irinjalakuda in India. He tells his story:
"It is very nice to sit down to write my story on the day of St. Thomas, the founder of my Syro-Malabar Church in India. It is as a way to express my sincere gratitude to God for being here at the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, studying in the Faculty of Communication.
It has been almost a year since I arrived and I can say that I am still adapting more and more every day to the new culture, the language, even to the Roman liturgy, which is not my own, being a Catholic priest of the Syro-Malabar rite.
My name is Sinto Jose and I was born in Aloor, Kerala, India. My father is a farmer and my mother is a housewife. I have an elder sister and a younger brother. My sister, Sr. Jeeva, is a nun and belongs to the Congregation of the Holy Family. She is now in India working in an elementary school in our Diocese. My brother, Shibin, works at Christ College Irinjalakuda as an employee. I can say without a doubt that my family is the rock and the foundation of my priestly vocation.
My family and I are of the Syro-Malabar rite and belong to the Eparchy of Irinjalakuda. The Diocese of Irinjalakuda is historically and geographically rich. One of the important places in the diocese is Kodungallur, which is known as the cradle of Christianity, thanks to St. Thomas, one of the 12 apostles of Jesus, who, after receiving the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, undertook the mission to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole world.
According to tradition, St. Thomas arrived by sea and landed at Kodungalloor (Cranganore), the capital of the then Cera Empire, in 52 A.D. He baptized families in Kodungalloor and Palayur (Trichur). St. Thomas preached the Gospel wherever he went, and founded churches.
According to our Malabar tradition, the saint founded seven churches, which are located in Cranganore, Quilon, Chayal, Kokkamangalam, Niranam, Paravur and Palayur. From there he went to Coromandel and suffered martyrdom in Tamil Nadu. His body was brought to the city of Mylapore and was buried in a sacred shrine.
According to the Songs of Ramban, St. Thomas converted 17,550 people; he ordained priests and consecrated bishops. He also gave his followers a form of liturgy suited to their climate, culture and customs. From the 4th century, the Church in India began to communicate with the East Syrian Church and soon began to introduce liturgical books and share rites. Thus, the Church in India became a member of the Babylonian (also known as Assyrian and Syro-Chaldean) patriarchate for practical, not doctrinal reasons.
The Eparchy of Irinjalakuda was erected by Pope St. Paul VI. Accordingly, the Papal Bull Trichuriensis Eparchiae was promulgated on June 22, 1978. Bishop James Pazhayattil was appointed the first bishop, while the current bishop is Bishop Pauly Kannookadan. The eparchy currently has 56,958 families, or 269,867 baptized out of 1,326,000 inhabitants.
My native parish is the church of St. Thomas Anathadam. In a family and in a tradition of faith so alive and so historical, breathing the same air of St. Thomas, I felt strongly the call of the Lord to be one of his servants in the priesthood.
So, after ten years of priestly formation, I was ordained on December 29, 2014 as a Catholic priest of the Eparchy of Irinjalakuda. After my ordination, I served for one year as assistant to the parish priest at Mapranam Holy Cross Shrine. Pauly Kannookadan, the present Bishop of Irinjalakuda. I was then appointed prefect of St. Paul's Minor Seminary, Irinjalakuda, and assistant director of the Christu Darsan Communication Center.
After a year, the Bishop gave permission for the licentiate studies in Communication at the Pontifical University of Santa Croce. I considered it a great opportunity to have a good formation in Italy and then return to my country, in the footsteps of St. Thomas.
I am certain, then, that the media are an important channel for spreading the good news of God to the world, that is, the Gospel. They are essential for spreading Catholic teaching in the world. I am also sure that the success of my studies will be useful to the Department of Journalism and Communication of my diocese as well as the whole Syro Malabar Church.
I love being a Catholic priest: it is one of the best ways to follow Jesus Christ. It is a life completely focused on service, sacrifice and the will of God. It is a way of life to express God's love in the whole world. I know I have many disabilities, but God says: My grace is sufficient for you.
In addition, one of the most wonderful things in the priesthood is to celebrate the sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Confession.
Through my priestly life, I experience true brotherhood with other priests. For a priest every day is a new day with different events. The priesthood is to leave everything to follow Jesus, like the pearl of great price. Fidelity to one's vocation is an essential element of holiness.
I would like to thank my dear benefactors and ask them to pray for me, so that I may be a holy priest faithful to Christ and that the seeds and fruits that St. Thomas began to sow in my land may multiply".co
