The First Church On June 11, 1932, Mar Ivanios returned from Rome with the written permission from Pope Pius XI of venerable memory to establish the hierarchy. However, he did not have a church in which the permission could be read and thus establish the Archdiocese of Trivandrum and the Diocese of Thiruvalla. The search was on and he was informed of a movie theatre named “Pompedor”, which was up for sale. The owner of the theatre was Mr. Motha. Subsequently the Archbishop bought the theatre from him and immediately made the necessary renovations and converted it into a church and blessed it. On March 11th, 1933 in this church in the presence of Dr. Benziger, the bishop of Kollam diocese, who was authorized by the Holy See, the translation of the Papal Bull “Christorum Pastorum Principi” was read by Fr. C.K. Mattam and the Archdiocese of Trivandrum and diocese of Thiruvalla were established. The former Pompador Cinema Theatre in the Palayam area of Trivandrum was converted into a church, and consecrated on March 11, 1933. The enthronement of Archbishop Mar Ivanios took place in this pro-cathedral on the same day. The roof of the new church was made of tin sheets, therefore people called it the 'Tin Church' (Thakara Palli). The Church was thatched with tin sheets and had tin sheets on its sides. Consequently, the church began to be known as “Thakarapalli” and Bethany Church . This church lived on as a spiritual source of prayer services for the Christian residents in Trivandrum that reached beyond denominations and rites. From 1933 to 1985, the Thakarapalli was kept in the same manner. In 1991 the 'Tin Church' was replaced with a new building; Archbishop Benedict Mar Gregorios dedicated this new church to St. Mary, Queen of Peace. |