By Jessy Joseph
New Delhi: A Catholic church in Kerala was singled out for praise by state Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for abandoning its 211-year-old tradition of celebrating patron saint’s feast.

During his daily briefing on the state’s coronavirus status on April 27, the chief minister hailed the decision of St George Forane Church in Edathua in Alappuzha district to cancel the feast in view of the pandemic.

“It is for the first time in the church’s 211-year history that it has canceled the feast,” Vijayan told press persons. The church’s gesture, he added, was an example of people’s understanding of the severity of the crisis.

Father Mathew Chooravady, vicar of the church, says Christians should set an example and make a collective effort to prevent the spread of virus.

The decision to cancel the feast was made after “much consideration and consultation with the government officials, police and parish committee,” the 66-year-old priest told Matters India on April 28 over phone.

The church’s decision came as the coronavirus pandemic worsened in India in April., with infection touching more than 300,000 daily.

Father Chooravady said it was disappointing that “we cannot celebrate the feast this year, but that is the sacrifice we can make as the nation is going through the difficult time.”

The gathering of thousands of people during the Covid 19 pandemic could infect a lot of people. “We do not want to risk the life of people,” he added.

The vicar said the church traditionally celebrates the feast between April 27 and May 14 drawing as many as 1 million devotees of all religions.

People used to flock to the church from various parts of Kerala and neighboring Tamil Nadu state during the feast.

The priest said it was practically impossible to keep them safe from contracting the virus.

He, however, clarified that the local administration did not ask them to cancel the celebration.

“The administration has put strict norms which we would not be able to follow so we have decided to abandon this year’s feast,” he explained.

The norms stipulated that the devotees provide proof of full vaccination and registration on the government portal. The number of people was restricted to 150 with Covid negative certificates and a ban on senior citizens.

The administration also said that the police would take control of the church and its premises.

“Last year there was a total lockdown so there was no need to control the public participation, but this year there is no strict lockdown, so it is not easy to control the crowd,” the priest explained.

K. M. Mathew, the general convener of the feast for the last two years, said, “the committee had made all the arrangement to conduct the feast, but it is unfortunate that we had to call off the event for the sake of public health.”

On May 7, the main day of the festivities, the statue of the saint, decked in gold, is taken out in a procession by devotees from Tamil Nadu.

The parish has some 2,500 catholic families.

St. George Forane Church was constructed in 1810 by a group of believers who severed ties with Champakulam, one of the ancient churches in Kerala.

The church is situated on the bank of Pamba River and belongs to Changanacherry Syro-Malabar archdiocese. It sits amid picturesque paddy fields and rows of coconut trees with crisscrossing back waters in the background.