500–yr–old Mumbai church to be opened for worship

MUMBAI: The local Christian community in Marol is patting itself on the back. It is only because of their perseverance that the 500–year–old ruins of the St John’s Church inside Santa Cruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ), Andheri (East), will finally be opened for regular worship.

Recently, after almost a year of demands by Christians in the area, the SEEPZ management finalized a proposal that will allow regular worship in the church that is currently out of bounds because it is situated in a high security area.

The proposal has been sent to the union commerce ministry in New Delhi that manages SEEPZ. Final permission to open the ruins for visitors is expected to come soon.

“Since the church property is part of a customs notified area, it cannot be de–notified. But we will provide a separate access to the ruins,” said an official. However, according to the proposal, SEEPZ will not hand over ownership of the ruins to the Christians.

Father Jerome Lobo of the local Marol parish said they have accepted the proposal.

“Repairing the ruins will not be possible so it will be maintained as a monument. But we will have regular church services,” he said.

The archbishop of Bombay has set up a two–member committee consisting of Fr Lobo and another priest to manage the church.

Vice–chairman of the state minorities commission, Dr Abraham Mathai, President, All India Christian Council thanked local MP Sunil Dutt for expediting the proposal. “The final proposal was made within a year of the demand,” he said.

But not everyone feels that the final proposal was a fair deal. Nicholas Almeida, a former corporator from the area who first asked that the church be handed over to the community, said the proposal was incomplete.

“We will not be allowed to rebuild the ruins. Also there are no plans to provide access to the graveyard where our ancestors are buried,” he said.

By Manoj Nair