SEPTEMBER 2026

Dear Rev. Fathers, Religious, and People of God,

The month of September arrives as a season of sacred splendour for the Catholic faithful of Tamil Nadu, as we gather in heartfelt devotion to honour the Nativity of our Blessed Mother, Mary. Across our state, this cherished solemnity is lovingly celebrated as the Feast of Our Lady of Vailankanni, Our Lady of Good Health. Within our own diocese, where several churches stand consecrated in her honour, I extend to each of you my warmest and most joyful greetings on this glorious festival of her earthly dawn.

The birth of the Blessed Virgin cast a radiant beam of hope across the horizon of all humankind. She stands forever as the morning star of our redemption and the pure dawn of eternal salvation, inextricably woven into the divine advent of Emmanuel—God with us. From the depths of eternity, God selected Mary to be the immaculate mother of the Redeemer, shielding her by a singular grace from every stain of original sin from the very moment of her conception. Adorned in fullness of grace, she was born a saint of peerless beauty. Saint Alphonsus Liguori said that she was born a great saint. Saint Elizabeth proclaimed: “Blessed are you among women” (Luke 1:42). This sacred feast gently summons us to contemplate her profound integration into God's grand design of redemption, honouring the steadfast devotion with which she whispered her fiat at the Annunciation and lived it faithfully unto the end.

As September unfolds, our hearts also turn toward the glorious Feast of Saint Michael the Archangel, the celestial patron of our cathedral and the exalted protector of our diocese. As the illustrious Prince of the Heavenly Host, his very name echoes the sacred battle cry: “Who is like unto God?” Renowned across Holy Scripture—in the books of Daniel, Jude, and Revelation—Saint Michael is venerated as the mighty warrior who cast Lucifer and his rebellious angels from the heights of heaven. Christian tradition allots him four sacred offices: as the champion who wages war against the adversary, the defender who delivers faithful souls from darkness at the hour of death, the steadfast guardian of God's covenant people, and the celestial guide who escorts departing souls before the divine throne of judgment.

May God bless our country and its people,

Yours devotedly in Christ,

+L. Thomas Aquinas

Bishop of Coimbatore