2/27/12 At the
end of a busy street just before the seaside stands a church where
St. Thomas, one of Jesus’ 12 apostles is buried. It is one of three
churches in the entire world that houses an apostle. Inside you
find our lady of Mylapore ( the Indian version of Mother Mary)
wrapped in a saree and wearing a golden crown. She is enshrined in
an intricately carved case and surrounded in a mosaic of flowers.
In the very front of this basilica styled cathedral is a 30ft
wooden carving of the lord Jesus Christ hanging on the cross
floating on a lotus flower flanked by peacocks and lit with LEDs.
Indian woman poured in placing their newborn babies on the alter
and reaching to touch yet another of their gods- Jesus Christ.
That’s one of the great things about India- even in the face of
Catholicism polydiety worship is a-okay and in techno color. We had
a really great day in chennai visiting temples, shops, dentist
offices, tailors, and amazingly sweet lil chai shops. Flavorful
spicy and fresh Indian food filled all the spaces in between. I
love the way they squeegee anything they can’t sweep in india-
water on the floor, food on the table- a squeegee is the go-to
tool. They are made of colorful melted plastic and are super
efficient. We capped off the adventure with a well-haggled rickshaw
ride home through the forever stretching markets and storefronts
that make up chennai.