A Hindu Converted To Christianity Will Become The First Indian Layman To Be Declared As Saint
Update: 2021-11-11 16:30 IST
Devasahayam Pillai was declared Blessed on December 2, 2012, in Kottar, 300 years after his birth.
The Pope will declare the first non-ordained Indian a saint in the upcoming next year. Thiruvananthapuram: Devasahayam Pillai, a Hindu who converted to Christianity in the 18th century, will be the first non-ordained member of the Church to be granted sainthood in India.
On May 15, 2022, Pope Francis will canonise Blessed Devasahayam Pillai and six other Blesseds during a Canonization Mass at St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, according to Church officials in Thiruvananthapuram.
The Vatican's Congregation for the Causes of Saints made the announcement on Tuesday.Pillai, who adopted the name 'Lazarus' after converting to Christianity in 1745, would become the first lay person from India to be named a saint after the procedure is completed, according to the church, reported NDTV.
In the local tongue, 'Lazarus' or 'Devasahayam' means 'God is my rescue.' according to a Vatican document, during his sermons, he emphasised the equality of all individuals, regardless of caste disparities. This inflamed the upper classes' rage, and he was jailed in 1749. He obtained the crown of martyrdom when he was shot on January 14, 1752, after undergoing growing hardships.
His life and death are commemorated in the Kottar Diocese of Tamil Nadu's Kanyakumari district. Devasahayam was blessed 300 years after his birth on December 2, 2012, at Kottar. Meanwhile, on April 23, 1712, he was born into a Hindu Nair family in Nattalam, Kanyakumari district, which was part of the old Travancore empire.