St. Francis Xavier Forane Church, Velur
St. Francis Xavier Forane Church is at the center of Velur, Kerala, India. It is a Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, and a protected monument in the Archdiocese of Thrissur with considerable antiquity and spiritual heritage. Historically this Forane church has been the mother church of many parishes. Four Forane divisions have come into existence out of this church. The church's founder, Fr. Johann Ernst Hanxleden, who is popularly known as Arnos Padiri, wrote the first Malayalam – Portuguese Encyclopedia He was a Jesuit priest from Germany. It is believed that the Velur church was  founded on 3 December 1712 in honor of St. Francis Xavier. References. 1, Bid to set record with recital of ‘Puthen Pana’ India Book of Records A mass recital of Puthen Pana will be held at Velur Church, near here, on 18 March, in an attempt to enter the India Book of Records. Around 300 people will participate in the mass recital of Puthen Pana, a Malayalam poem written by German Jesuit missionary priest Johann Ernst Hanxleden, popularly known as Arnos Pathiri in Kerala. The 12-hour-long recital will be held on the occasion of 285th death anniversary of  Arnos Pathiri, according to Velur Church Vicar Fr. Johnson Ayinikkal. Dr. Syed Ibrahim, Director of Goethe-Zentrum, German cultural centre in Thiruvananthapuram, will inaugurate the programme. Arnos Pathiri, a grammarian, lexicographer and philologist, composed Puthen Pana, which is based on Jesus Christ's life, between 1721 and 1732. Puthen Pana has 14 padams (canto). In the 12th padam, the most important, Mother Mary laments at the Crucifixion of the Christ. The Jesuit Missionary arrived in India on 13 December 1700. He travelled through Italy, Turkey, Syria, Armania and Persia before reaching Surat.A documentary film on Arnos Pathiri — Pathiri Velicham  — directed by Raju Raphael, former Director of the Kerala Press Academy, will be screened on the occasion.