President Pranab Mukherjee with Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad releasing the Commemorative Postage Stamp on Old Seminary, Kottayam at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Tuesday. (Press Trust of India)
President Pranab Mukherjee today released a commemorative postage stamp on the bi-centennial of Kerala's Orthodox Theological Seminary or Old Seminary, Kottayam in New Delhi.
Speaking on the occasion, the President said for nearly four centuries, the three major religions of Kerala - Hinduism, Christianity and Islam - have existed in peace and harmony, respecting each other's belief and cooperating to promote social welfare.
In fact, he said, Kerala was the first state in the country where both Christianity and Islam took roots with people voluntarily choosing different religious beliefs.
"The old seminary was set up by the Malankara orthodox church situated in Kerala, a state known for the peaceful co-existence of different religions and communal harmony. The seminary and the Orthodox Church played their part in achieving this goal which led to the state realising the complete separation of spiritualism and communalism.
"The lighting of oil lamps in and around Churches, the raising of the flag-staff and flags during festivals and the custom of entering the churches barefoot are all Hindu traditions that have become a part of the church practice. These bear testimony to the sharing of traditions by both the religions," he said.
Mr Mukherjee noted that the role of the church in spreading education cannot be ignored.
"Christian community established a large chain of elementary schools throughout Kerala, under the supervision of the seminary and its leaders. The seminary was the first indigenous initiative towards universal literacy and education, which has today made Kerala the most literate state in the country," he said.
"The charity and healthcare activities of the Syrian Church also originated in the old seminary under its leadership. It contributed to the improvement of the overall literacy in the state, created greater access to healthcare and empowerment of women leading to higher standards of living and quality of life in the state," he said and observed that the church's role in these was unparalleled.
The orthodox theological seminary known as old seminary or Cottayam Syrian College is run by the Malankara Orthodox Syrian church, the St Thomas Christians.
It is a heritage monument recognized by the government for its importance as a two hundred year old quadrangular edifice where English education was started for the first time in Kerala.