| St. Thomas' Cathedral | |
| Other Name: | Cathedral Church at Vaddukoddai |
| Pushpin Map: | Sri Lanka Northern Province |
| Pushpin Label Position: | right |
| Map Caption: | Location within Northern Province |
| Coordinates: | 9.7294°N 79.9491°W |
| Location: | Vaddukoddai |
| Country: | Sri Lanka |
| Denomination: | United |
| Status: | Cathedral |
| Functional Status: | Active |
| Heritage Designation: | Archaeological protected monument |
| Designated Date: | 30 December 2011 |
| Diocese: | Jaffna |
| Bishop: | Daniel Thiagarajah |
St. Thomas' Cathedral is the seat of the Jaffna Diocese of the Church of South India located in Vaddukoddai, Sri Lanka.
Portuguese Jesuits built a Catholic church in Vaddukoddai in the 1660s which was later taken over and renovated by the Dutch before being handed over to the American Ceylon Mission (ACM) by the British.[1] [2] In May 1904 the Congregational Council of Ceylon (CCC) was set-up to administer ACM's churches.[3] [4] CCC joined together with the American Madura Mission and the London Missionary Society in Travancore to form the United Churches of South India and Ceylon (UCSIC) in 1905.[4] UCSIC joined with the South India Synod of the Presbyterian Church to form the South India United Church (SIUC) in 1908/09.[3] [4] The Church of South India was established in September 1947 as a union of the SIUC, South India Provincial Synod of Methodist Church and the southern dioceses of the Church of India, Pakistan, Burma and Ceylon.[3] [4] [5] [6]
The cathedral was declared an archaeological protected monument in December 2011.[7]