Rev. Overcomes Near Death to Lead Milford Church in 50th Anniversary Celebration

When the Rev. Cyriac Maliekal collapsed in front of Christ the Redeemer Church on a Sunday afternoon in March of 2011, doctors said it would take a miracle for him to survive. Certainly, no one could have expected him to be present now to celebrate his parish’s 50th anniversary.

Church members prayed for just that, a miracle, for two weeks and after open heart surgery and months of recuperation, Maliekal returned to his church and here he is organizing a momentous anniversary celebration.

“They didn’t think I’d live,” said Maliekal, who is also celebrating a decade at the church.

Elaine Woody, president of the church council, said “it’s our miracle.”

“We got him back and it truly shows the power of prayer,” she said.

Maliekal and Woody say the caring and unification the church showed during Malieka’s illness best exemplifies its spirit and why the entire parish is eagerly anticipating its 50th anniversary.

Officially, the 50th anniversary of the church, located at 325 Oronoque Road, was on Sept. 22. Christ the Redeemer is holding an anniversary dinner dance on Friday, Sept. 30 and an anniversary mass at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday Oct. 2, which will be celebrated by Archbishop Leonard Blair.

“It’s a big milestone,” Maliekal said. “We’re very proud. We appreciate all of our former parishioners and the sacrifices they made.”

There are 650 families who attend services on Saturdays and Sundays. Mass on Saturdays is at 4:30 p.m. and on Sundays 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

“I count it as a special blessing of my priesthood to be your pastor for this celebration, because the joy it brings truly reflects the joy I have in my heart for having served as your brother and your friend these past 10 years,” Maliekal said.

In a letter to Father Cyriac, Archbishop Blair expressed his congratulations to the Christ the Redeemer parish family, writing, “The anniversary presents a grace-filled opportunity for everyone to reflect on the providence of God and to experience a sense of profound gratitude for all His many blessings, past and present.

“May this moment of rejoicing serve not only to recall the accomplishments of the past, but also to renew the commitment of all today's parishioners, so that move by the same faith and zeal that led to the founding of the parish a half century ago, they may meet the challenge of being Christ’s missionary disciples in the world of today,” Blair wrote.

Numerous founding church members remain and the most famous original member may be Irene Ramos, who has been the organist since Day 1. Woody said Ramos is a true treasure and “very enthusiastic” about the church.

Maliekal said one of the things he’s most proud of is that the church was able to construct an addition to the church hall, which is called the Mable Saloomey Center. A generous donation of $300,000 by Mable Saloomey helped pave the way and the rest of the community pitched in $45,000.

Woody said the community is very connected.

After mass on Sundays there is coffee, which allows people to take a break from their hectic lives and spend time with friends and neighbors. Families will take turns supplying the coffee and food. There is also an annual church picnic.

“People are very friendly and welcoming here,” Woody said. “We treat each other the way you want to be treated.”

“We have a loving, caring community,” Maliekal said.

Church members prepare food baskets during the holidays, visit nursing homes, and in July prepare backpacks with supplies for students. There are also the diaper and canned food drives.

Did You Know?

Originally, Christ the Redeemer was part of St. Mary’s Church. In 1966, then Archbishop Henry J. O'Brien decided to split the church and create a new parish because the Catholic population was booming. The formation of Christ the Redeemer included 450 of St. Mary’s 2,000 families.

O’Brien named Fr. Richard Toner as its founding pastor. For the first couple of years mass, was celebrated at Mathewson Elementary School while they were building the new church on Oronoque Road.

Originally, the 12-acre parcel was a chicken farm and had a country house on it, which is now the present-day rectory. The land was purchased for $100,000 from landowner Burton Van Hise.

Seed money for the purchase had already been advanced by the Archdiocese. The mother parish, St. Mary’s, also provided an outright gift of $100,000, together with a loan of similar amount.

Street-by-street canvassing and mail and phone canvassing took place with the triumphant pledging of $166,000. Architect John Handy designed a church and adjoining hall, with Joseph Vitale Construction Co. awarded the building contract.

The estimated cost of the project, unfurnished, was $211,000. In the Spring of 1968, the Archbishop approved plans for a 500-seat church and a hall to accommodate 400. In August, ground was broken.

The church at Oronoque Road was consecrated by The Most Reverend John Whelan, the new Archbishop of Hartford, in December, 1969, just three short years following the parish’s formal creation.

Fr. Cyriac’s 10th Anniversary

Maliekal, who was born in India, came to the United States in 1978. He was already a priest but wanted to follow his uncle, who was already a priest in the United States. He started in New Jersey and then to Connecticut and he spent time in Madison, Wallingford, New Haven and Hamden.

He said he returns home to India once a year and he recuperated after open heart surgery for six months there.

He said he enjoys that in the United States that you “practice religion as you want.”

“People here are spiritually and socially accepting,” Maliekal said.

Jack Fowler, who is coordinating the 50th anniversary celebration, said “Father Cyriac’s humility, spirituality, and kind demeanor have brought his flock a decade of stability, calm, and happiness, and a renewed sense of purpose that the members of his flock to live up to the name seen by motorists as they pass the brown brick building at 325 Oronoque Road – Christ the Redeemer.”

Photos courtesy of the church