St. Thomas Church, Thumpoly

St. Thomas Church, Thumpoly (also known as Thumpolypally), is a Catholic pilgrimage church, named after Saint Thomas the Apostle, and dedicated to the Immaculate Conception of the mother of Jesus. It is located in the Ambalappuzha taluk of Alappuzha district,Kerala within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Alleppey. Its parish is one of the largest in the diocese and in the state of Kerala, India. It is a major prominent ancient church of the South India and, due to the age and cultural importance of its traditions, has been put forward to be considered for Minor Basilica status. If bestowed, this would make St. Thomas Church at Thumpoly the 35th such basilica in India.

A prominent Marian pilgrimage shrine, with a tradition of faith that is more than five centuries old, St Thomas Church has made Thumpoly a Christian pilgrimage center in Kerala. It is included in the pilgrimage tourism of Kerala State by the state government. The historical feast of Thumpolyperunnal, the Immaculate Conception of the Thumpoly Mata (Thumpoly Mother), is celebrated from the church over nineteen days in November and December every year. People of different castes and religions make pilgrimages to it.

Mar Thoma Christians settled at Thumpoly in the 6th century; they first established a small church made of turf and thatch. Together with the building of the associated Muthappan Cross in AD 820, this established Christian observance and pilgrimage at Thumpoly, a tradition that has been ongoing for over 1200 years. Construction of the current church, in stone and wood, began in 1600 and was finally completed in 1730. To mark the 300 years of continuous use of the church building since its completion, a Jubilee Year celebration is due to be held in the year 2030, some 430 years after the current church's foundation.