VIJAYAPURAM, Diocese of. — In the southwestern part of India, it borders on the dioceses of Quilon, Madura, Coimbatore, Verapoly, Cochin, and Alleppey.
The first evangelization of the Kottayam district, which later contributed to the formation of the diocese of V., was carried out by the Spanish Carmelite Giuseppe Maria (1863–74) of the apostolic vicariate (now archdiocese) of Verapoly, and subsequently by two Carmelite tertiaries, who succeeded in converting a certain number of pagans. However, a true missionary apostolate became possible only from 1887, when the archdiocese of Verapoly was erected and freed from all jurisdiction over the Syro-Malabar faithful. The movement of conversions became more notable from 1905 onward, when a systematic organization was given to missionary activity under the direction of Msgr. Bernardo Arguinzonis, first as a missionary and later as archbishop of Verapoly (1897–1919). On 14 July 1930, the diocese of V. Verapoly, of which it was declared a suffragan. (It takes its name from a suburb of Kottayam, the center of the mission.) At the same time, the archdiocese of Verapoly was entrusted to the native secular clergy, though under the temporary jurisdiction of that archbishop. It is worth noting that within the boundaries of the diocese also lie the Syro-Malabar dioceses of Changanacherry, Ernakulam, and Kottayam, as well as the Syro-Malankara diocese of Tiruvalla. It is entrusted to the Discalced Carmelites of the Province of Navarra (Spain).
Statistics for 1952 provide the following data: 2 million inhabitants, of whom 58,261 are Latin Catholics, 464,000 are Eastern Catholics, 261,560 are Eastern dissenters, 174,375 are Protestants, 85,425 are Muslims, and the rest are pagans. There are 41 Latin-rite priests: 25 indigenous secular priests and 16 Spanish Carmelite religious; seminarians: 5 in the minor seminary of Verapoly and 12 in the major seminary of Alwaye; 60 sisters, almost all indigenous; 50 catechists, 79 male teachers and 100 female teachers, with a total of 7,384 pupils in elementary schools and 900 students in secondary schools. The diocese of V. covers 8,000 sq. km. and is ecclesiastically divided into 4 districts, 29 parishes, 3 primary stations, and 45 secondary stations. There are 33 churches and 30 chapels. There are 3 orphanages and 2 printing houses, employing about thirty workers; numerous confraternities, but few Catholic Action associations. The work of conversion proceeds slowly amid various difficulties.