Saint Alphonsa

Saint Alphonsa Biography

Saint Alphonsa Muttathupadathu or Saint Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception, shortly known as St. Alphonsa was a Syro-Malabar Catholic Franciscan Religious Sister who is now honoured as a saint. She is the first woman of Indian origin to be canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church. Also, she is the first canonised saint of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church - an Eastern Catholic Church of the Saint Thomas Christian community.

She was born as Anna Muttathupadathu in Kudamalloor, near Kottayam, on 19 August 1910 as the daughter of Cherian Ouseph and Mary Muttathupadathu. She was baptised on 26 August (Archdiocese of Changanassery). She was locally known as Alphonsamma. She lost her mother at a younger age and had a hard childhood in the hands of foster mother. When Anna was three-years-old, she suffered with eczema for one year. Anna was educated by her great-uncle, Father Joseph Muttathupadathu. She started her school at Arpookara where she got her First Communion on 27 November 1917. In 1918, she was transferred to a school in Muttuchira. Her foster mother wanted her to become a household wife. But instead of marriage, Alphonsa opted priestly life.

In 1923, Anna's feet were burnt when she fell into a pit of burning chaff and she became permanently disabled. It’s believed that it was self-inflicted injury to avoid marriage and Anna became successful too. Anna joined the Franciscan Clarist Congregation, a religious congregation of the Third Order of St. Francis and she reached Clarist convent at Bharananganam on Pentecost Sunday 1927. Anna took the name Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception in honour of St. Alphonsus Ligouri.  She was assigned the job of a Malayalam teacher in the convent. On 19 May 1930 Alphonsa entered the novitiate of the congregation and on 11 August 1931, she took her first vows. Sister Alphonsa took her permanent vows on 12 August 1936. But she was sick that time and couldn’t able to teach students at school.

Her health continued to deteriorate over a period of months and all ailments were not functioning. She died on 28 July 1946 at the age of 35. She is buried at St. Mary's Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, Bharananganam, Travancore in the Diocese of Palai. Claims of her miraculous intervention began almost immediately upon her death. On 2 December 1953, Alphonsa was declared a Servant of God. In 1985, Pope John Paul II formally approved a miracle attributed to her intercession and,on 9th July, she became "Venerable Sr. Alphonsa". On Sunday, 12 October 2008, Pope Benedict XVI announced her canonisation at a ceremony at Saint Peter's Square. The whole world witnessed the ceremony through television worldwide.

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Updated: October 16, 2013