Kottakavu Church situated in the heart of Paravur town in Kerala is a significant place of religious importance as one of the seven churches or Christian settlements established by St. Thomas, one of the apostles of Christ. It is believed that the Persian Cross, which is preserved in the chapel in front of the church, might have been engraved in rock in 880 AD. A wooden cross which the saint had planted was kept in the church till the 18th century. But during the siege of Tipu Sultan, various churches were demolished, and this cross too was destroyed. The church ransacked at that time was the third one built after the saint's time. The church of 1308 was rebuilt and blessed on 15th August 2002.
The old church, the elephantine wall on the adjacent western side and the pilgrim pond where the Apostle baptized the devotees are all still preserved well. It is known that about 2 acres of land were provisionally allocated by the church for the construction of the Paravur market. It was the Cross that stood in this place from age old days that was converted into the market chapel.
