St. Mary's Forane Church Edoor
| St. Mary's Forane Church Edoor | |
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St. Mary's Forane Church Edoor
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 St. Mary's Forane Church Edoor
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| 11°59′53″N 75°43′34″E / 11.998038°N 75.726163°ECoordinates: 11°59′53″N 75°43′34″E / 11.998038°N 75.726163°E | |
| Location | Edoor, Iritty, Kerala |
| Country | India |
| Denomination | Syro Malabar Catholic Church |
| Website | stmarysshrineedoor |
| History | |
| Founded | 1946 |
| Dedication | Saint Mary |
| Architecture | |
| Architectural type | Modern |
| Administration | |
| Parish | St. Mary's Forane Church, Edoor |
| Archdiocese | Thalassery |
| District | Kannur |
| Clergy | |
| Archbishop | Mar. George Njaralakkatt |
| Vicar(s) | Fr. Antony Muthukunnel |
| Assistant priest(s) | Fr. Sojan Elampurayidam |
St. Mary's Forane Church Edoor is one of the oldest churches and a notable Marian pilgrim centre in North Malabar of Kerala. It is near Iritty, the eastern town of Kannur district. This church is the first church in the name of St. Mary under the archdiocese of Thalassery. It is also the largest parish in the archdiocese. It is situated about 6.5 kilometres from the town of Iritty, which is also known as 'The Coorg valley in the God's own country'.
Edoor town is a small marketplace for the farmer communities of the surrounding regions. This place is well-connected to any part of Kannur and other parts of Kerala by road. In fact, this church has a great influence in the spiritual life and social development of that locality.
This parish was established in 1946. In its initial times, it was under the Latin Catholic Diocese of Kozhikode. Later, it came under the Syro-Malabar Catholic Archdiocese of Thalassery. In those times, the members of the parish were the Christian people who had migrated from Travancore. In 1970, the most beautiful new church was built. Still, it is one of the most beautiful churches in Kerala. The architectural beauty of this church attracts the tourists to come here.
The church is in a circular shape and it has a dome in the centre. As it is circular, it has a large area and a wide angle of viewing the altar. It is also one of the largest churches in Malabar. The altar of this church was renovated in 2012, which creates a heavenly feeling in our mind. The altarpieces include the sculptures of various saints. The church has entrances from three directions; viz. West, South and North. Above the main entrance which is from the south, we can see a Latin text: "VENITE ADOREMUS", meaning Come, Let us worship. Above the entrance from the south, we can see the text: "AVE MARIA", and above the northern entrance we can see the text: "MY LORD, MY GOD", which is a declaration by St. Thomas, who is the apostle of India and the father of the Syro-Malabar Church.
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