St Thomas’ Church

St. Thomas Church was constructed in the year 1972 after some years of meticulous planning and consultation. In the year 1952, a few Catholic families got together for the celebration of the Eucharist in Sarojini Nagar at the residence of Late Mr. Philip Nair. Then it moved to Sector IV and Sector IX, R K Puram and finally at Shanti Niketan. In 1971, when the Holy Child Auxilium School came into existence in Sector XII, the Catholics of South Delhi thanked God for providing them with a secure place for their Sunday worship.

During that time an urgent need was felt by the then Archbishop of Delhi, to open a parish in South Delhi. A search for a plot suitable for the construction of a church was conducted and authorities allotted a place along the drain on the side of a deep nala in Sector II, R K Puram. The construction of the Church was completed in 1972; it was blessed on 9th July that same year and dedicated to St. Thomas, the Apostle of India. The Church came into existence with the generous contribution of the people of Cologne, West Germany. Its architectural character draws its inspiration from the rich heritage of the Mughal architecture that embellishes R K Puram and its surroundings. It is an imposing yet sublime structure which attracts several people including those of other faiths.

The first parish priest of St. Thomas Church was Late Rev. Fr. George Kureethra. During his pastoral ministry in the parish there were more than a hundred Catholic families in the parish. He worked hard and took the initiative to organize the parish. The parish has come a long way since then and the number of parishioners has risen to over a six hundred families. God has blessed the parish abundantly under the pastoral care of the parish priests: Late Fr. George Kureethra, Fr. Charles D’souza, Fr. Victor D’souza, Fr. Januario Rebello, Late Fr. Albert Pinto, Late Fr. Alex Toppo, Fr. Francis Swaminathan, Fr. George Manimala, Fr. Maria Susai and at present, Fr. Vijay Baretto. The Church has witnessed four landmark events in its history namely Silver Jubilee Celebration in July 1997, Blessing of the renovated Church in April 2012, Ruby Jubilee Celebration in July 2012 and Golden Jubilee in July 2022.

The parishioners at St. Thomas Church are a distinctive mix of people from various regions, social and economic backgrounds. With active support from the parishioners, in terms of giving time for all church activities, St. Thomas Church continues to be energetic and full of life.

The parish has completed fifty years. It has seen a growth in the number of parishioners and it has been engaged in proclaiming the Good News through Catechesis of children, mission among the youth, outreach to the senior citizens of the parish, the less fortunate in our society and thereby bringing Christ with His joy and peace to those in distress. We pray to the Heavenly Father to bless us that we may be led by the light and power of the Holy Spirit in our daily life. Let us entrust our entire parish community to the love, care and protection of Mother Mary. Let us implore our patron, St. Thomas, Apostle of India, to give us courage and enthusiasm to go forth and proclaim the Good News in our own families, at our work place or elsewhere and invoke the blessings of the Holy Family so that our entire parish community may live and function as a loving, caring and united family.