A piece of Pallikallu (Stone of great church)

Tradition holds that in AD 52, Thomas the Apostle travelled to Kerala's coast.[5][6] For people who were baptized by Thomas to worship, a church was built in Kollam between CE 52 and 78. However, Violent sea erosion destroyed this church. The believers built a second church for worship with the King of Kollam's approval, but it was also destroyed by sea erosion. The ruins of the second church are still visible in the sea during low tides. The name "Pallikallu" given to it by the local fishermen literally translates as "the stone of the great church". A group of local divers retrieved a rock from the submerged church ruins in February 2021, and it was then installed in the church as a symbol of the community's unwavering faith.