By the time the Portuguese arrived in India in the fifteenth century, the earliest group of Christians in India had already been exposed to thirteen centuries of Indian religious traditions, which were bound to be absorbed by them.
Heritage or highway
In Kerala, where money drives development in areas with virtually no vacant land left, several regions often suffer the loss of historic and cultural architecture. One such landmark facing demolition is the over 800-year-old St George’s Orthodox Church in Cheppad, with its rich collection of beautiful murals of epochal significance.
The murals, painted with pigments from minerals and natural dyes, belong to the pre-Renaissance period and display the blend between Kerala mural art and Persian art. But the church, along with its precious artwork, may soon be a thing of the past as authorities are considering dismantling a portion of the church for the NH 66 road-widening project.