The Shrine of St. Teresa in Mahe is one of the most visited shrines in India. Situated in the Diocese of Calicut it has just recently been elevated to the dignity of a Minor Basilica, thus becoming the first Minor Basilica in North Kerala. The Papal Decree conferring this honour on the popular place of devotion in Pondicherry was announced at a press conference by Bishop Varghese Chakkalakal on December 19, 2023. A Mass of thanksgiving will be celebrated in Mahe at a later date.
St. Teresa’s shrine of Mahe is one of the oldest shrines of India and probably the oldest in Malabar. In his historical document dated 2 July 1757 and entitled “De Missione Mahinensi in Malabaribus Commentarius”, Father Ignatius of St. Hippolitus OCD relates how an Italian, Father Domenico of St. John of the Cross OCD, arrived in Mahe and founded a Mission there in 1723, during the reign of King Bayanor, the Raja of Kadathanad. A small Christian community grew up there and the Shrine of St. Teresa of Avila was built in 1736.
