St.Theresa's church-Mahe

Mahe is one of the French colony which is now a part of Pondichery U.T. Mahe is situated on Northen part of Kerala between Calciut and Kannur Districts. Mahe is enriched with its heredity and culture. St.Theresa's church is the one of it which increases the beauty of this very small place.

Location:

St.Theresa church, Mahe is located in the northern part of Kerala near Thalassery  It is on the main road of Mahe ie. in NH.17. Pilgrims can easily reach here by means of bus or by train. Nearest Railway Station is Mahe and there are frequent buses from Calciut and Kannur

Historical Background:

The church is having two major myths.
In one of the myth it’s saying that a ship carrying the idol of St.Theresa stopped in the sea while reaching near Mahe. Then the crew of the ship had a thought that St.Theresa want to be in Mahe. and they placed her in Mahe which finally became Mahe Church.

The other myth is that a fisherman got a small St.Theresa,s wooden statue from Mahe river and this finally resulted in the formation of Mahe church.

About The Building:

*An Italian priest erected the church in 1736
*In 1956 entire church was renovated..
*Major modification of the church was done in September 2010.

Mahe's Church:

The church is considered as a common worship place of all Mahian (people in Mahe) irrespective of their cast or their religion. Every one of them considered the St.Theresa as Mahe's own god.

St.Theresa's Fest:

 

Its one of the greatest fest in mahe from october 5 - 22 of every year. In this Fest thousands of pilgrims visit Mahe from various places like Karnataka,Tamil Nadu and from all other parts of Kerala. The festival begins by raising St. Theresa's flag on midday of 5th  October. From 5th october itself Mahe will be full of dragon flies. The belief is that it is the soul of dead people of Mahe, who are visiting during this period. The church will be surrounded by hundreds of trade stalls and the church will glowing just like a star in presence of decorative lights Major prayers will be held on the church during evenings.
In 14th & 15th people take St.Theresa's idol and make a round in the entire Mahe town. On 15th when the idol procession starts it is believed that there will be heavy rain, which is one of the miracles of St.Theresa. The fest ends on October 22nd when Mahe will be crowded with people.