An 18th century Indian who resisted casteism has been proclaimed a saint by the Vatican.

Pope Francis has declared Devasahayam, a Christian who converted in the 18th century in the then-Kingdom of Travancore, a saint.

According to the Vatican, Devasahayam, also known as Lazarus, is the first Indian layman to be declared a saint for “enduring growing adversity.”

He was born into a Hindu upper caste family in present-day Kanyakumari and served at Travancore Palace. In 1745, he became a Christian and took the names Devasahayam and Lazarus. He went on to speak out against caste inequity, only to be persecuted and killed.

In 2012, the Vatican recognized his martyrdom after a protracted process.

In 2013, Devasahayam was proclaimed a saint when a woman in her seventh month of pregnancy attested to a “miracle” after praying to him.

The woman reported that her foetus was “medically dead” and that no movement had been noticed. She did, however, claim that she felt movement “after praying to the martyr.”

Devasahayam was made a saint if the Vatican consented.