St. Paul’s Church Meiganapuram, Thoothukudi
One of
the stateliest churches in the whole of India is St. Paul’s church. It is
located in Meiganapuram, a village which came under the influence of Rev. C.
T. E. Rhenius. On March 7, 1830,
Rhenius changed the name of the village "Neduvilai" into
"Meiganapuram" (True Wisdom). The village temple pujaris son was
bitten by snake, and then John Thomas (1807–70) helped him with his medicine, So
that the whole village converted itself to Christianity. In the place of the
Hindu temple, German style mixed church was built.
Rev.
John Thomas, who landed here in 1837, took the village to his heart and
designed the church (which was earlier a village Hindu temple), which is a must
for any visitor to Tirunelveli. The imposing steeple, 192 ft. high, was added in
1868, the coping stone being fixed by Lord
Napier. Rev. John Thomas was
buried in a corner of the church.
Every
year, in the month of January's last Thursday, the Asana Pandigai is celebrated.
The Village people celebrate the Church Festival in the memory of Desible St.
Pauls. At this time, relatives of the villagers and visitors attend this, once
exceeding one lakh people. Mass amounts of food is prepared and served at the
time.
Connectivity
Meiganapuram
(Neduvilai) lies in the southern side of Thoothukudi district, at about 10 km east of Sattankulam and 11 km south of Nazareth. It is also known
as Meiganapuram. Udangudi is the nearest town. The nearest railway is
Nazareth Railway Station. It is served by Tuticorin Airport. By road, it is
accessible from Tirunelveli (41 km north-west), Tuticorin and Nagercoil.