✨ Mar Addai the Apostle ✨

Church of the East

Mar Addai the Apostle, numbered among the Twelve Apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ, is identified in the Syriac Peshitta as Thaddaeus, also known as Lebbae. He is venerated as the apostolic missionary who first proclaimed the Gospel in the Eastern regions. In accordance with the divine mandate of the Lord, he is traditionally credited with healing King Abgar of Edessa from a grave illness—an event of profound theological and historical significance, marking an early foundation for the establishment and expansion of Christianity in Edessa and its surrounding regions. The apostolic legacy of Mar Addai is further reflected in the formation and consolidation of the ecclesiastical See of Seleucia-Ctesiphon. In collaboration with Mar Mari the Apostle, he is also associated with the establishment of the Eucharistic liturgy known as the Holy Qurbana of Addai and Mari, one of the most ancient extant liturgical traditions, composed in the East Syriac language and preserved within the life of the Church to this day. The commemoration of Mar Addai the Apostle has also found enduring expression in the Indian context. At Paravattani in the Thrissur district, this church was dedicated in his name, with the foundation stone laid in 1920 by the Saint Mar Abimalek Timotheus Metropolitan, and consecrated in 1932. The church continues to stand as a visible testimony to the continuity of apostolic faith and tradition. In the Syriac liturgical calendar, the feast of Mar Addai the Apostle is observed on the fifth Sunday of the Season of Qyamta (Resurrection). This commemorative tablet was solemnly unveiled on 3 May 2026 by His Holiness Mar Awa III, Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East.