ABSTRACT
The St. Thomas Christians of Kerala (usually addressed as Nasranis) are central to any discussion of the origin and growth of Christianity in Kerala and in India because they are an indigenous community that dates its foundation to a period before the church in Western Europe established itself. They trace their origins to the legendary Brahminical conversions made by St. Thomas the Apostle in 52 CE. However, from the perspective of cultural studies in India, Abraham argues that until the encounter with the Portuguese in the sixteenth century CE, the Hindus of Malabar and the St. Thomas Christians shared a world in common. Besides introducing this ancient Christian community with reference to its history, customs, and practices, mostly derived from some of the upper-caste Hindu practices which the community assimilated and adopted over a period of 15 centuries, the object is also to identify how this dual belongingness contributed to its survival and assertion as a powerful political force through history.
