HISTORY OF THE PARISH
Knanaya Catholics who migrated to Chicago and
nearby areas from the Diocese of Kottayam gathered in January 1981 and
requested the Bishop of Kottayam Mar Kuriakose Kunnassery to send a
priest from Kottayam diocese to offer pastoral service to the Knanaya
community here. Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry wrote on March 18, 1981 to His
Eminence John Cardinal Cody, Archbishop of Chicago asking his help to
make provisions for establishing a Knanaya Catholic Ministry in Chicago
served by a Knanaya Catholic priest. However, the reply by the
Chancellor of the Archdiocese of Chicago Rev. John R. Keating was that
“it is our judgment that the creation of such a special ministry would
not be appropriate at the present time.”
However, from 1982 the
Knanaya Catholics in Chicago attended Saturday 5:30 P.M. Latin Mass at
St. Alphonsus Church and had social gathering on alternate Saturdays at
the parish hall after the Mass. They arranged
Syro-Malabar Qurbana in the basement chapel of St. Alphonsus Church
whenever a Syro-Malabar priest was available. Bishop Mar
Kuriakose Kunnacherry sent a letter on November 3, 1982 to the then new
Archbishop of Chicago Most Rev. Joseph L. Bernardin to reconsider the
request for starting a new Knanaya Catholic Ministry in Chicago. At
the request of the community leaders, Rev. Richard J. Feller, the pastor
of Church of St. Ita wrote on September 7, 1983 to the Chancellor of the
Archdiocese of Chicago expressing his willingness to provide residence
in his parish for the proposed Knanaya priest coming from Kerala.
Rev. John C. Hergenrother, Chancellor of the
Archdiocese of Chicago held a meeting on September 27, 1983
with two representatives each from four associations: (1) Kerala
Catholic Fellowship, (2) Knanaya Association of North America, (3)
Knanaya Catholic Congress, and (4) Knanaya Association of Chicago. They
reached an agreement to avail the service of Fr. Jacob Chollampel,
proposed by Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry to serve all Kerala Catholics in
Chicago. Hence, the chancellor of the Archdiocese of Chicago wrote on
1983 October 7 to Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry welcoming the service of Fr.
Jacob Chollampel. Fr. Jacob Chollampel reached Chicago and started
special ministry October 28, 1983 to the Kerala Catholics while living
in the rectory of St. Ita church.
Non-Knanaya Syro-Malabar Catholics in Chicago wrote
in October 1984 to Kerala Catholic Bishop’s Conference and Syro-Malabar
Bishop’s Conference asking for a separate ministry for them in Chicago.
The Syro-Malabar Bishop’s Conference held on December 3rd
1984 authorized His Excellency Mar Joseph Pallikaparambil to correspond
with the Archbishop of Chicago “to get a priest for the Syro-Malabar
Rite appointed for the special ministry to the non-Knanaya
Syro-Malabarians in Chicago in addition to Rev. Fr. Jacob Chollampel who
is already appointed for the ministry to the Knanaya Community.” Based
on this request of the Bishop’s Conference, the Archbishop of Chicago
Joseph Cardinal Bernadine approved and inaugurated the Syro-Malabar
Ministry in Chicago on August 25, 1985. The Chicago Archdiocese gave
them permission to use St. Bernadine church in Forest Park for monthly
Holy Mass. Fr. Antony Kurialacherry was appointed as the director of the
ministry.
Since Fr. Jacob Chollampel was returning to
Kottayam, Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry wrote to Joseph Cardinal Bernardin
on April 15, 1985 proposing to send Fr. Cyriac Manthuruthil to continue
the special ministry of Knanaya Catholics in Chicago. However, Rev.
Robert L. Kealy, the chancellor of the Archdiocese of Chicago wrote on
August 31, 1985 to Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry that clarification is to be
made on membership issue of the Knanaya Ministry before Fr. Cyriac
Manthuruthy could come and take over the ministry. Fr. Jacob Chollampel
returned to India and the community kept waiting for the arrival of Fr.
Cyriac Manthuruthil.
At the request of the Knanaya Community members,
Fr. Anthony Kurialacherry, Spiritual Director of Syro-Malabar Catholic
Community of Chicago agreed on December 3, 1985 to continue the
Syro-Malabar Mass at St. Benedict’s Church, Chicago on every Saturday
evening. Fr. C.T. Vayalil from the Archdiocese of Changanacherry who was
serving as a hospital chaplain in Chicago also agreed to help with the
ministry. Later, Rev. Robert L. Kealy wrote to Fr. Zacharias Elapunkal,
the director of the Syro-Malabar Ministry on January 23, 1987 to
coordinate the services of the Syro-Malabar priests who might celebrate
the liturgy for the Knanaya Syro-Malabar Ministry.
On December 7, 1987, Cardinal Joseph Bernardin
wrote to Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry expressing his willingness to accept
the service of Fr. Cyriac Manthuruthil for the Knanaya Syro-Malabar
Ministry in Chicago. Fr. Cyriac Manthuruthil came to Chicago on May 24,
1988 and the Archdiocese of Chicago appointed him on May 31, 1988, as
the director of Knanaya Catholic Mission while residing as St.
Ferdinand’s Church. The inaugural Mass of the new “Knanaya Catholic
Mission” took place on July 23, 1988 at St. Henry’s at 6:30 P.M.
Chancellor Rev. Robert L. Kealy delivered a message during the mass.
Syro-Malabar was offered at St. Henry’s church on every other Saturday
at 6:30 P.M. The venue of the Mass was shifted from St. Henry’s to
Immaculate Heart of Mary (IHM) Church on April 15, 1989.
Archdiocese of Chicago appointed Fr.
Simon Edathiparambil as the director of Knanaya Catholic Mission on
August 16, 1995 with his residence at IHM Parish. Fr.
Philip Thodukayil took charge as the director of Knanaya Catholic
Mission with his residence at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish on June
25, 1999. Fr. Philip Thodukayil started Saturday evening mass at 6:00
P.M. from February 5, 2000 on every first Saturday of the month at
St. Isidore’s Church in Bloomingdale. This is in addition to the Sunday
evening Mass at the IHM church on every Sunday. Fr.
Philip Thodukayil started an additional Sunday morning mass at 10:00
A.M. at KCS Community Center followed by Religious Education Classes at
the center from January 14, 2001.
Fr. Philip Thodukayil started an additional
Saturday evening mass from February 16, 2002 at 6:00 P.M. on every third
Saturday of the month at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Darien. At
the request of Mar Jacob Angadiath, Vicar General Fr. Abraham Mutholath
moved to Chicago on February 16, 2003 and started living at Our Lady of
Victory Parish in Chicago while working as chaplain at Our Lady of
Resurrection Hospital at Addison and Central in Chicago.
After the inauguration of the St. Thomas
Syro-Malabar Catholic Diocese of Chicago on July 1, 2001, Bishop Mar
Jacob Angadiath reconstituted this mission as part of the Syro-Malabar
diocese on October 29, 2003 extending its boundary to include all
Knanaya Catholics living in the states of Illinois, Indiana and
Wisconsin. He also confirmed the appointment of Rev. Fr. Philip
Thodukayil as the director of this mission. When he returned to
Kottayam, Bishop Angadiath appointed Vicar General Fr. Abraham Mutholath
as the director of this mission on July 1, 2004. Due to lack of enough
people’s participation the Holy Mass at St. Isidore’s Church in
Bloomingdale was stopped on August 7, 2004 and the mass at Our Lady of
Mount Carmel Church in Darien was stopped on August 21, 2004.
The mission celebrated a Solemn Feast for the first
time in honor of Pope St. Pius X on August 8, 2004 with Mar Mathew
Moolakkatt as the main celebrant. The mission started Holy Mass from
September 4, 2004 at St. Peter’s Church in North Lake on every Saturday
at 5:00 P.M. The mission also started Religious Education School at
North Lake on September 11 and at IHM School on September 12, 2004. The
mission conducted the first marriage preparation course from December 3
– 5, 2004.
During the homily at IHM Church on May 22, 2005,
Mar Mathew Moolakkatt, then auxiliary bishop of Kottayam requested the
Knanaya Catholics in Chicago to establish our own church. The planning
to have our own church started. Mass for Chicago Suburb was moved from
St. Peter's Church in North Lake to the hall of St. Joseph's Church in
Addison on June 18, 2005. Mission began to be active with many pastoral
programs like Theology Course of adults, various ministries, religious
education festival, publication of Sunday Bulletin, and youth retreats.
The Sunday 5:30 P.M. mass was shifted in September 2005 to Our Lady of
Victory (OLV) church. A search committee was formed on October 2, 2005
to find a suitable building to buy for our church.
While planning to celebrate the Sacerdotal Silver
Jubilee of the mission director Fr. Abraham Mutholath, some mission
members planned to collect $100 each to give him a personal gift.
Instead, the mission director encouraged them to donate $1000 each in
their name to church building fund on that day. Thus, the mission
members contributed $44,337 to the church building fund during Jubilee
Celebration meeting at OLV School Hall on December 4, 2005. That gave a
momentum to raise more funds for the building fund.
Bishop Mar Jacob Angadiath established seven
regions in St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Diocese of Chicago on April 28, 2006.
One of these regions is for all Knanaya Catholics in the diocese. Mar
Jacob Angadiath officially declared the establishment of Knanaya
Catholic Region at OLV Church Chicago and appointed Vicar General Rev.
Fr. Abraham Mutholath as Region Director on April 30, 2006.
The mission celebrated the Solemn feast of the Most
Sacred Heart of Jesus at Community Center, OLV Church, Taft High School
Auditorium, and St. Joseph’s Church Addison from May 25 to 28, 2006.
Archbishop Emeritus Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry and Bishop Mar Jacob
Angadiath were the main celebrants. During the feast celebration on May
25, Mar Jacob Angadiath announced that the patron of the proposed new
church would be the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and the name of the
parish would be “Sacred Heart Syro-Malabar Knanaya Catholic Parish.”
The Archdiocese of Chicago through the Auxiliary
Bishop Most Rev. Joseph Paprocki had promised to sell one of their
churches that was not yet closed to the Knanaya Catholic Mission.
However, the Archdiocese gave strict instruction to Mar Jacob Angadiath,
Fr. Abraham Mutholath, and Joy Vachachira that the name of the church to
be bought should be strictly confidential until the Archbishop issues
decree on closing the church and selling to the Knanaya Community. So,
while the fundraising was going on, the community members were not aware
of the church to be bought and its location.
Mission Director Fr. Abraham Mutholath revealed the
name and location of the church to be bought during a Music Concert by
Rev. Fr. Paul Poovathumkal at Taft High School Auditorium 2006 June 24.
The music concert was a fundraising program organized by women ministry
for the purchase of the new church. At that time the people gladly
accepted the decision. However, some mission members raised security
issue in the City of Maywood where the proposed church was located. The
issue got great momentum and there was severe protest. Some people
collected signatures of around 400 families and submitted a petition to
Mar Jacob Angadiath against the purchase of that church. Though bishop
and mission director were willing to give up, another group came with
the strong request to purchase the same church. So, Mar Angadiath asked
them to collect the signatures of over 400 other families in support of
their request.
Archbishop Mar Mathew Moolakkatt, Archbishop
Emeritus Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry, and Rev. Fr. Thomas Kottoor had
arrived from Kerala for the blessing and inauguration of the church that
was scheduled to take place on July 15, 2016. Instead, a concelebrated
Mass was offered on the same date at Addison School Hall by Archbishop
Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry, Archbishop Mar Mathew Moolakkatt, and Bishop
Mar Jacob Angadiath.
As part of the proposed parish inauguration a
banquet in honor of the dignitaries was arranged on July 16, 2006 at
Crown Jewel Banquet Hall in Des Plaines. During that banquet, those in
favor of purchasing the church under the leadership of Alex
Kannachanparambil submitted a petition of more than 400 families in
favor of buying the church. Based on that, Mar Jacob Angadiath announced
his decision to purchase St. James Church in Maywood for Knanaya
Catholic Mission.
Because of the Syro-Malabar Synod, the bishops had
gone to Kerala by the time the Archdiocese handed over the church with
effect from September 1, 2006. The mission director Fr. Abraham
Mutholath offered the first Syro-Malabar Qurbana at St. James Church in
Maywood on Friday, September 1st. On Sunday, September 3,
2006, Fr. Abraham Mutholath and parish council members inaugurated the
possession of the church after 10:00 A.M. Qurbana by lighting a candle.
The Spanish people considered St. James Church in
Maywood as a pilgrim center of Our Lady of Guadalupe. At their request,
we allowed them to take with them the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe
from the church. So, the Knanaya mission arranged a pilgrimage to the
Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico from September 14 to 16,
2006. Fifty-two parishioners took part in it and they asked the
intercession of Our Blessed Mother for the new church and bought a
statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe and got it blessed in the Basilica.
The deed for the purchase of St. James Church
property from the Archdiocese of Chicago took place on September 22,
2006. On September 24, 2006, Mar Jacob Angadiath blessed the new
interior architectural work of the church and declared the Knanaya
Catholic Mission as Sacred Heart Knanaya Catholic Parish. He appointed
the Mission Director Rev. Fr. Abraham Mutholath as pastor of the parish.
Bishop also blessed the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in the Church.
His Excellency Bishop Thomas Paprocki inaugurated the meeting that
followed, and Henderson Yarbrough, the City Mayor of Maywood welcomed
the community to Maywood and offered support to the parish.
Since half of the parishioners had objected to the
purchase of the church in Maywood, the Qurbana at Our Lady of Victory
Church in Chicago was continued as an extension of the parish on Sunday
evenings. On December 25, 2006 Vicar General Fr. Abraham Mutholath
issued a circular announcing the formation of St. Mary’s Unit for those
Knanaya Catholics who attend OLV church for their pastoral needs with
effect from January 1, 2007. Religious Education classes, pious
associations and ministries for various ages were held there also. Thus,
St. Mary’s Unit functioned as a quasi-parish under the Sacred Heart
Parish. Efforts were made to reduce the division in the community by
organizing common programs for Sacred Heart and St. Mary’s participants
including common Religious Education Festival, youth retreat, seminars,
and feast celebrations.
The Sacred Heart Knanaya Catholic parish signed the
deed for the rectory from the Archdiocese of Chicago on May 31, 2007.
The parishioners preferred to have common place for burial in a
cemetery. The parish applied for that to the Archbishop of Chicago with
the recommendation of Mar Jacob Angadiath. The parish got a separate
section at Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Hillsdale with possibility of
more than 1600 graves. The dedication of the Knanaya Catholic Parish
Cemetery at the Queen of Heaven Cemetery took place on June 1, 2007 by
Bishops Mar Jacob Angadiath, Bishop of Miao Mar George Pallipparambil,
and Most Rev. Dr. Thomas Paprocki, the Auxiliary Bishop of the
Archdiocese of Chicago. A shrine was constructed in the cemetery with
the name of our parish and Mar Joseph Pandarasseril blessed it on July
13, 2008.
The parish funded to build a new church in the
Catholic Diocese of Miao in the state of Arunachal Pradesh in India in
the name of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus in thanksgiving for the
church they could buy in Chicago. A special collection was taken on June
3, 2007 during Holy Qurbana for this purpose and handed over to the
Bishop of Miao Mar George Palliparambil who officiate the Qurbana. The
parish then arranged mission pilgrimage to the North East India,
including the Diocese of Miao, from January 11 to 23, 2008.
On January 19, 2008, Rev. Fr. Abraham Mutholath
blessed Sacred Heart Church in the Diocese of Miao sponsored by Sacred
Heart Knanaya Catholic Parish in Chicago. Thirty members from Chicago
Knanaya Catholic Parish participated in the function.
The parish celebrated the Silver Jubilee of Knanaya
Catholic Mission on August 3, 2008 at Sacred Heart Church. Mar Mathew
Moolakkatt, Mar Jacob Angadiath, and Mar George Pallipparambil, Mr.
Thomas Chazhikadan M.L.A., Mr. Baby Kanatt, President, Knanaya Catholic
Congress of the Archeparchy of Kottayam were the guests. A Jubilee
Souvenir of Knanaya Catholic Mission was published during the meeting.
The parish organized a pilgrimage to Holy Land and
Rome from September 30 – October 14, 2008. Along with this, the
participants attended the Canonization of Sr. Alphonsa in the Vatican on
October 12 by Pope Benedict XVI. The sanctuary of the Sacred Heart
Church was renovated with the help of Artist Narayanan Kuttappan and was
blessed by Archbishop Mar Mathew Moolakkatt and Bishop Mar Jacob
Angadiath on October 26, 2008.
Sacred Heart Parish and St. Mary’s Unit sponsored
the sanctuary of the newly constructed Cathedral of the Diocese of Miao.
Fr. Abraham Mutholath and Joy Chemmachel took part in the consecration
of the Cathedral held on May 2, 2010.
Fund raising programs were held for the purchase of
property for St. Mary’s Unit of the parish. Search was going on for an
appropriate building for purchase, The General Body held at OLV church
on August 16, 2009 decided to buy a synagogue available in Morton Grove
for sale. St. Mary’s Unit bought the Synagogue on January 14, 2010 at
7800 W. Lyons St., Morton Grove, IL 60053 for St. Mary’s Knanaya
Catholic Church. Mar Jacob Angadiath consecrated St. Mary’s Church in
Morton Grove on July 18, 2010. Mar Mathew Moolakkatt, Archbishop of
Kottayam was the main celebrant of the First Mass offered in this Church
immediately after the consecration. Mar Joseph Pandarasseril, the
Auxiliary Bishop of Kottayam was con-concelebrant and gave homily during
the Holy Mass. St. Mary’s Unit was elevated as a parish and Fr. Abraham
Mutholath was appointed as its first pastor as an additional
appointment. The Visitation convent building at 7801 W. Maple St., in
Morton Grove near St. Mary’s Church was blessed on the same day by the
three bishops after the consecration of the St. Mary's Church in Morton
Grove.
When St. Mary’s Knanaya Catholic Parish was
established on July 18, 2010, the boundary of Sacred Heart Parish is
formally restricted to Knanaya Catholics living to the South of 90
Express Way in the state of Illinois and in the state of Indiana.
Mar Jacob Angadiath appointed Fr. Saji Pinarkayil, who has been
associate pastor of the Sacred Heart and St. Mary’s Knanaya Catholic
parishes in Chicago as the pastor of the parish on January 1, 2012. Both
parishes continued common programs for the unity of the community like
religious education festival, youth retreat, seminars, feasts, and
pilgrimages. Mar Mathew Moolakkatt blessed the shrine of the Most Sacred
Heart of Jesus installed at the parking lot of the Sacred Heart Church
at 6:45 P.M. on September 17, 2012.
The parish bought a house in Elmhurst on October 9,
2012 as rectory for the parish. Mar Mathew Moolakkatt blessed the
rectory on November 27, 2012.
Mar Jacob Angadiath transferred Fr. Saji Pinarkayil
to Houston and transferred Fr. Abraham Mutholath from St. Mary’s Parish
to the Sacred Heart church for a second term with effect from October
18, 2014. Mar Jacob Angadiath elevated the parish on March 22, 2015 as a
Forane in the presence of Bishop Mar Joy Alappatt and Bishop Mar
Lawrence Mukkuzhy. Fr. Abraham Mutholath was appointed as forane vicar.
On September 6, 2015, Fr. Abraham Mutholath
inaugurated the 10th year observance of the parish. The Chicago Forane
Bible Fest was held at St. Mary’s Church in the presence of Archbishop
Mar Mathew Moolakkatt and Bishop Mar Jacob Angadiath on September 12,
2015. The tenth anniversary of the parish was celebrated on a large
scale from September 9 to 11, 2016. Archbishop Mar Mathew Moolakkatt
inaugurated the 10th anniversary celebration on September 9th.
Mar Jacob Angadiath offered Holy Mass and started the 12-hour adoration
on the second day. The final day celebration was started with a Holy
Mass on September 11 by the Major Archbishop Mar George Cardinal
Alancherry, Archbishop Mar Mathew Moolakkatt, Bishop Mar Jacob
Angadiath, Bishop Mar Joy Alappatt, Bishop Most Rev. Dr. Michael Mulhall
(Canada), priests from the Knanaya Region, and other invited priests
from Chicago area. The parish sponsored the construction of another
Sacred Heart Church in the diocese of Miao as a souvenir of the tenth
anniversary of the parish. Mar George Palliparambil blessed it on
January 15, 2017. A souvenir was also published in commemoration of the
10th anniversary celebration.
Fr. Tomy Vadakkevattukulam and Fr. Wilson had helped the parish with Holy Mass and hearing confessions. Fr. Jose Illikunnumpurath, Fr. Saji Pinarkayil, Fr. Siju Mudakkodil, Fr. Suni Padinjarekkara, Fr. Jose Chirappurath and Fr. Boban Vattampurath served as associate pastors.