PARISH HISTORY

The Delhi Diocese of the Orthodox Church was constituted by the Holy Synod in 1975. His Grace Dr Paulos Mar Gregorios took charge as its first Metropolitan in 1976. It was about the same time that a handful of young Orthodox Christians in Ghaziabad (UP) got together under the banner of 'Christian Association.' Their primary activity was prayer meetings. Our learned Metropolitan took note of this feeble enterprise. In 1977 His Grace came personally to Ghaziabad along with a dynamic young Priest, Rev Fr PK Thomas and arranged for regular Orthodox worship. The CNI Church near the Railway Station and the old Holy Child School building were used for celebrating Holy Qurbana on Sundays and for special occasions as the Good Friday service.

Foreseeing the potential for growth and the need for regular pastoral care, His Grace appointed Rev Fr PK Thomas as the first Vicar of this new Parish in 1978. Subsequently, the St Thomas Orthodox Church Society was registered. The next step was the procurement of land and erection of a Church building. Despite heavy odds, a small plot of land got allotted by the GDA at Lajpat Nagar, Sahibabad, about 10 KMs West of Ghaziabad nearer to the Delhi Border.

As the members themselves had meagre resources, they had to work very hard soliciting funds, in fact collecting small amounts, going from house to house even though those members were of course financially weak but spiritually strong and highly motivated to carry out the task of building a church of their own, with which they could make an identity. The intercession of all our Saints, especially of St Thomas, our Patron and the abundant blessing of God Almighty made it possible for the Church Building to be erected. With a Hindu Temple and a Mosque nearby, our Church stands as a glowing symbol of religious harmony. The Church has certainly influenced the life of the people in the surrounding areas. With the celestial blessings flowing from the Church and the ardent prayers, the barren and wasteland of Lajpat Nagar in the seventies have blossomed into a dynamic township with several Housing Colonies, Schools, Hospitals, and Market etc. From a very small, humble beginning, our Church has now become one of the prominent parishes within the Delhi Diocese, with about 142 subscribing Families, 6 Prayer Groups, active units of Martha Mariam Vanitha Samajam, Youth Movement, MGOCSM, Indian Orthodox Diaspora Movement and regular Sunday School up to Class XII.

FROM THE CORRIDORS OF OUR HISTORY…

1977	First Visit from HG Dr. Paulos Mar Gregorios (Diocesan Metropolitan)
1978	Appointment of First Vicar. Formal Beginning of Parish.
1980	Registration of the Society – St. Thomas Orthodox Church Society
	Procurement of Land for Church Building
1984	Foundation Stone laid for Church Building
1986	Started an English Medium School within church premises
1988	Procurement of Land for a school next to the Church Building
1992	Consecration of the completed Church Building – HH Baselios Marthoma Mathews II (Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan)
1996	Affiliation of School at Lajpat Nagar to CBSE
1999	Procurement of Land for a Nursing Home next to the Church and School
1999	Procurement of Land for a Senior Secondary School at Indirapuram
2000	Constructed a seven-room temporary building with a boundary wall for School at Indirapuram
2001	Foundation Stone laid for the new school building at Indirapuram
2001	Construction of new school building at Indirapuram commences
2003	Affiliation of School at Indirapuram to CBSE
2004	Completed construction of new school building at Indirapuram
2004	Renovation of Church Building commences
2005	Inauguration of the new school building at Indirapuram – Sh. Somnath Chatterjee (Hon’ble Speaker of Lok Sabha)
2005	Consecration of Renovated Church Building – HB Thomas Mar Thimothios (Catholicos Designate and later, HH Baselios Marthoma Didymos I)
2006	Elevation of School at Indirapuram to Senior Secondary
2006	Obtained Minority status for both Institutions
2006	Adoption of Kaushalya Vllage
2007	Organised the OKR Priest Conference
2007	Procurement of 13.5 acres of land in Tapal Tehsil in Aligarh District next to Yamuna Expressway for further expansion
2009	Organised Akhila Malankara MMVS Global Meet with a female attendance of approx. 3000
2010	Procurement of independent residential building (F-27, Lajpat Nagar) for the parsonage
2012	Blessing of Catholicate Centenary Building (Nursing Home)
2013	Procurement of land for Senior Secondary School & Primary School at Indraprastha Yojna, Loni Road, Ghaziabad
2014	Appointment of First Assistant Vicar for the parish
2015	Organised a musical night – Swara Raaga Sandhya – at Talkatora Stadium, New Delhi to raise fund for charity projects
2015	Blessing of parsonage (F-27, Lajpat Nagar)
2015	HOPE School – an informal school for underprivileged children – inaugurated at Indirapuram by HG Dr Youhanon Mar Demetrios (Diocesan Metropolitan)
2015	St. Thomas Clinic, Sahibabad – within Catholicate Centenary Building (Nursing Home) – inaugurated by HG Dr Abraham Mar Seraphim (Metropolitan of Bangalore Diocese)
2016	Foundation Stone laid for Primary School at Loni – HG Dr Youhanon Mar Demetrios
2016	Renovated School at Lajpat Nagar with an additional floor in the main building
2016	Foundation Stone laid for Auditorium Block of School at Indirapuram – HG Dr Youhanon Mar Demetrios
2016	Procurement of land (F-39, Lajpat Nagar) for Pre-Primary School
2016	Construction of Primary School at Loni commences
2016	Pearl Jubilee Celebrations of School at Sahibabad; awarded scholarships to 30 girls from low-income households under ‘Beti Bachao Beti Padhao’
2017	Construction of Senior Secondary School at Loni commences
2018	Construction of Auditorium Block of School at Indirapuram commences
2018	Blessing of Primary School at Loni – HG Dr Youhanon Mar Demetrios
2019	Blessing of Auditorium for School at Indirapuram and Senior Secondary School at Loni – HH Baselios Marthoma Paulose II (Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan) & HG Dr Youhanon Mar Demetrios