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The mission of the Apostles and their
successors planted the Church of Christ at various places. In divine
providence (LG 23), the Indian Church was blessed to have an apostolic
foundation in 52 AD through the evangelisation mission of St. Thomas,
one of the twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. This Apostolic Church was
in Catholic Communion from the early centuries. It came in contact
with the Syro-Chaldean Church of the Middle East and consequently
adopted the East Syrian Liturgy.
In the 16 century, this Apostolic Church came into direct
relationship with the Western Church through the Portuguese
missionaries. The Portuguese extended the
Padroado agreement
in their evangelization programme over India and wanted to bring the
Indian Church of the St. Thomas Christians under this jurisdiction.
The Church in India which was rooted in the socio-cultural environment
and which enjoyed autonomy in internal administration in communion
with the Universal Church resisted the unwanted intervention of the
Portuguese who brought with them the Western ecclesiastical
traditions. The Portuguese missionaries, ignorant of the Oriental
traditions of the Indian Church, had the conviction that anything
different from the Western Church was schism and heresy. Hence they
wanted to latinize the Syrian Christians of India.
In 1599 Bishop Franciz Roz (1599-1624) convoked a Synod at Diamper and
imposed latinization on the Apostolic Church of India. This was a blow
to the identity of the Indian Church. However, the relation continued
till the beginning of the second half of the seventeenth century. The
Church of St.Thomas Christians could not withstand any more the denial
of her autonomy. The initial resistance slowly gave way to
discontentment, which ended up with the revolt in 1653 known as the
Koonan Cross
Oath. Thus, the one Church of the
St.Thomas Christians was split into two. A large majority of the
broken-away-group hesitated to sever ties with Rome and they remained
in communion with Rome, but, under the Latin Hierarchy. This group
came to be called the Pazhayakûttukar, while the other was
known as Puthenkûttukar. The latter group made several
attempts to come in communion with Rome safeguarding their autonomy
and ritual patrimony. Failing to re-establish communion with Rome,
they happened to come in communion with the Jacobite Syrian Church of
Antioch. These developments were not acts against the Apostolic See of
Rome but against the Portuguese missionaries and their policy of
latinization. Even after the communion with the Jacobite See of
Antioch, the Malankara Prelates Mar Thomas I (+1670), Mar Thomas II
(+1686), Mar Thomas III (+1688), Mar Thomas IV (+1728), Mar Thomas V
(+1765), Mar Thomas VI (+1808) and Mar Thomas VII (+1815) one after
the other had attempted reunion with the Holy See, but all ended up in
failure.
The Puthenkûr community came under the influence of the
British missionaries in the 19th century. From 1815 till 1836, the
year of the Synod of Mavelikara, the British missionaries propagated
Protestant ideology among the Puthenkûttukar. This paved the
way to the formation of the Mar Thoma Church under the leadership of
Palakunnath Abraham Malpan and Mar Athanasios, who was consecrated
Bishop by the Patriarch of Antioch. In order to outdo the reformists
Mar Divannasios approached the Patriarch of Antioch. Patriarch Peter
III arrived in Malankara and in the Synod of Mulanthuruthy (1876) the
Malankara Church had to accept the authority of the Patriarch of
Antioch over her. Since then, the Malankara Church had contented that
the Patriarch’s authority was only in spiritual matters.
It was in this contentious context that Patriarch Mar Abdulla who came
to Malankara, excommunicated Vattasseril Mar Divannasios in the year
1911. In this turbulent situation Fr. P.T. Geevarghese (later
Archbishop Mar Ivanios) played a vital role in reinstating the postion
of the excommunicated Metropolitan and in regaining the
self-governance of the Malankara Church. To ward off the undue
interference of Patriarch Abdulla in the administration of the
temporalities of the Church, Fr. P.T. Varghese with the blessing of
Vattasseril Mar Divannasios contacted Abded M’siha, the Patriarch of
Antioch from whom Mar Abdulla usurped the Patriarchal See of Antioch,
and invited him to visit Malankara and to establish a Catholicate
here. Accordingly, Abded M’siha came to Malankara in 1912 and
established the Malankara Catholicate. Thus the Malankara Orthodox
Church in India became an autonomous Church under its head the
Catholicos. Moran Mor Baselios Paulos I (1912-1913), the first
Catholicos, was called to eternal rest after a short period of five
months on 13 May 1913.
After the demise of Moran Mor Baselios Paulos I, the See remained
vacant until 1925. That was a period of litigations in the Malankara
Church; and also a period of spiritual renewal. The litigation for
Vattippanam (a fixed deposit of money in the name of the Church)
and its after-effects in the community was at its zenith. Fr. P.T.
Geevarghese who loved his Church was moved by the Spirit of God. He
realised that only a spiritual awakening of the Church would give a
lasting solution to the problems of the Church. He himself took to
sanyâsa and founded the Order of the Imitation of Christ also
called Bethany Ashram in the year 1919. The first Ashram was erected
at Mundanmala of Ranni Perunad. In 1925 he founded the community of
the Sanyasins, the Sisters of the Imitation of Christ also
called Bethany Madhom. From these two religious communities winds of
spiritual fervour and renaissance blew across Malankara. By a decision
of the Episcopal Synod, on 30 April 1925 Moran Mor Baselios
Geevarghese I was installed as Catholicos. On the following day, the
Catholicos consecrated Fr. P. T. Geevarghese under the name Mar
Ivanios as the Bishop of Bethany.
On 1 November 1926, the Episcopal Synod held at Parumala near
Tiruvalla, Kerala, decided to open negotiations again with Rome for
communion with the Catholic Church in order to establish peace in
Malankara. The Synod authorised Mar Ivanios, the then Bishop of
Bethany, to make necessary correspondence with Rome regarding
communion. He earnestly followed up the mandate of the Synod.
The Second Catholicos expired on 17 December 1928. Moran Mor Baselios
Geevarghese I succeeded the late Catholicos. On the day following his
installation, he consecrated Mar Theophilos of Bethany and Mar
Gregorios of Pampady as Bishops. In the meantime, the civil court’s
decision on the litigation for Vattipanam was declared in
favour of the Malankara Orthodox Church. This was a civil legal
backing up for the Church and the Bishops of the Malankara Orthodox
Church stepped out from the endeavours of communion with Rome.
After prolonged negotiations, the plenary session of the Sacred
Congregation for the Oriental Churches, which met on 4 July 1930, took
the final decision on the issue of the communion of the Malankara
Church. But only Mar Ivanios the Metropolitan of Bethany and his
suffragan Mar Theophilos stood by the early decision of the Synod.
Mar Ivanios and Mar Theophilos along with Rev. Fr. John Kuzhimepurath
OIC, Deacon Alexander OIC and Mr. Chacko Kilileth made their
profession of faith before Bishop Benziger OCD of the Diocese of
Quilon and entered into full communion with the Catholic Church on 20
September 1930.
As the Reunion Movement gained momentum, Pope Pius XI
through the Apostolic Constitution Christo Pastorum Principi
of 11 June 1932, established the Syro-Malankara Hierarchy for the
reunited community and erected the Archieparchy of Trivandrum with the
Eparchy of Tiruvalla as its suffragan. Thus, the Malankara Church
re-entered into the hierarchical communion with the Catholic Church.
The Metropolitan Eparchy of Trivandrum was inaugurated on 11 May 1933
and His Grace Mar Ivanios was enthroned as its first Metropolitan-
Archbishop. The Eparchy of Tiruvalla was inaugurated on 6 November
1933 and Most Rev. Jacob Mar Theophilos was enthroned as its first
Bishop.
The reunion of Archbishop Mar Ivanios with the Catholic Church was a
historical event in the whole Church, which inspired many of the
Malankarites including the Bishops of the Orthodox Church. On 29
November 1937, Most Rev. Joseph Mar Severios of the Orthodox Church
reunited with the Catholic Church. Later, Most Rev. Thomas Mar
Dioscoros, the Metropolitan of the Knanaya Jacobite Church, reunited
with the Catholic Church on 12 November 1939.
In God’s providence, the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church engaged in her
double mission of communion of the Malankara Orthodox Church and
evangelisation. The Church began to increase in number. With the
blessing of Archbishop Mar Ivanios, Monsignor Joseph Kuzhinjalil
founded the missionary congregation of the Daughters of Mary in 1938
at Marthandom in Kanyakumari District. Thus the mission of the
Malankara Catholic Church spread to the southern regions of Kerala
and Tamil Nadu also.
On 21 February 1943 Bishop Mar Dioscoros slept in the Lord. Mar
Ivanios worked relentlessly for the building up of the Malankara
Catholic Church. Through his travels abroad to Rome, other European
countries, America and Australia, he spread the message of ecclesial
communion and the awareness of the mission of the Malankara Catholic
Church in the Universal Church. After a period of 22 years of
strenuous hectic task of organizing and administering the Malankara
Catholic Church he fell ill for more than a year. Nevertheless, he
consecrated Benedict Mar Gregorios as his Auxiliary on 29 January
1953. Archbishop Mar Ivanios slept in the hands of the Lord on 15 July
1953.
The Eparchy of Tiruvalla was also making strides in its growth and
development under the leadership of Jacob Mar Theophilos and Joseph
Mar Severios. Mar Severios was the Administrator of the Eparchy
until1950 due to the ill-health of Mar Theophilos. In 1950 he was
appointed as the Bishop of Tiruvalla. He was also invested with the
title ‘Archbishop’. He was called to eternal rest on 18 January 1955.
On 27 January 1955 Most Rev. Benedict Mar Gregorios was enthroned as
the Metropolitan-Archbishop of Trivandrum and the Head of the
Syro-Malankara Catholic Church. Under his able pastoral guidance and
social commitment, the Church began to flourish in its
multidimensional growth and development.
The Holy See appointed Zacharias Mar Athanasios as successor of Mar
Severios, whose consecration took place on 22 April 1954. His
Excellency Most Rev. Jacob Mar Theophilos was called to eternal rest
on 27 June 1956.
Attracted by the Liturgy of the Malankara Church, Fr. Francis Acharya,
a Cistercian Monk came to the Eparchy of Tiruvalla. In the year 1957
he founded in the Malankara Catholic Church, the
Kristiya Sanyasa
Samaj (KSS), commonly called Kurisumala Ashram in the high ranges
of Vagamon.
The Malankara Catholic Church has been steadily growing and spreading
throughout all the States in South India. On 14 February 1958 the
territorial boundaries of the Eparchy of Tiruvalla was extended to the
north including the Malabar region of Kerala, the civil districts of
Coimbatore and Nilgiris and Karoor Taluk in Tiruchirappally District
of Tamil Nadu and districts of Mysore, Mandya, Coorg, Hasan,
Chickamangalore, Shimoga and South Kanara of Karnataka State. On 28
September 1977 Mar Athanasios entered into eternal rest.
His Excellency Most Rev. Paulos Mar Philoxenos, the Metropolitan of
the Malabar Independent Church, was received into the Syro-Malankara
Catholic Church on 28 August 1977.
The appointment of Isaac Mar Yoohanon as Bishop of Tiruvalla and
erection of the Eparchy of Bathery with the appointment of Cyril Mar
Baselios as its first Bishop through the decree of the Holy See took
place on 28 October 1978. Both the prelates were consecrated on 28
December 1978. The Eparchy of Bathery was officially inaugurated on 2
February 1978. On 15 May 1979 the Eparchial contemplative monastery,
Dhyana Ashram, was founded in the Eparchy of Bathery by Fr.
Silvester Kozhimannil.
The Golden Jubilee of the Reunion Movement of the Syro-Malankara
Catholic Church was celebrated in Kottayam on 26, 27 & 28 December
1980. His Excellency Lawrence Mar Ephrem was consecrated Bishop on 27
December 1980. His Eminence Wladyslaw Cardinal Rubin, the then Prefect
of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches was the Papal Delegate
for the Jubilee. Other eminent participants included His Beatitude
Maximos V Hakim, the Patriarch of Antioch and all the East of
Alexandria and Jerusalem, His Excellency Most Rev. Luciano Storero,
the then Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to India and Mother Teresa of Culcutta.
A significant development of this period is the organisation of the
Malankara Catholic Faithful in India, outside the canonical
territorial boundaries of the Church. From being organized as
Malankara Catholic Associations, the communities of our faithful
living in the Metropolitan cities of India came to be erected as
personal parish communities. With the appointment of Rev. Dr. John
Berchmans OIC as the Co-Ordinator of the Malankara Catholic
Communities in the Extra-territorial regions in India by the Council
of Hierarchs of the Malankara Catholic Church, the ecclesial life of
these parish communities was coordinated.
It was the long cherished dream of the Malankara Catholic Church to
have a Major seminary of its own for the formation of its clergy. St.
Mary’s Malankara Major Seminary was inaugurated at Pattom on 29 June
1983 and the new building at Nalanchira, Trivandrum was blessed on 25
May 1989.
The Malankara Catholic Church was
fortunate to welcome His Holiness Pope John Paul II on 8 February 1986
at St. Mary’s Cathedral, Pattom, Trivandrum. The Holy Father, in his
speech at Shankhumukam, praised the founder of the Reunion
Movement and expressed his high appreciation of the work and witness
of the Syro-Malankara Church.
On 28 April 1987 His Excellency Mar Yoohanon, the Bishop of Tiruvalla
slept in the Lord.
Following the visit His Holiness Pope John Paul II, His Eminence
Cardinal Lourdusamy, the then Prefect of the Congregation for the
Oriental Churches, visited the Malankara Catholic Church on 18 and 19
August 1987.
His Excellency Geevarghese Mar Timotheos
succeeded Mar Yoohanon as the Bishop of Tiruvalla. He was consecrated
Bishop on 6 August 1988.
His Grace, Metropolitan-Archbishop Mar Gregorios was called to eternal
rest on 10 October 1994 after an eventful service of 41 years. Most
Rev. Cyril Mar Baselios, the Bishop of Bathery having been appointed
by His Holiness Pope John Paul II, was enthroned as
Metropolitan-Archbishop of Trivandrum and as the head of the Malankara
Church on 14 December 1995. His Excellency Geevarghese Mar
Divannasios was consecrated Bishop of Bathery in the place of Cyril
Mar Baselios on 5 February 1996.
His Eminence Achille Cardinal Silvestrini, Prefect of the Congregation
for the Oriental Churches, visited the Malankara Catholic Church on
11, 12, 13 February 1996.
On the request of His Grace Most Rev.
Cyril Mar Baselios, by an Apostolic Bull dated 16 December 1996, His
Holiness Pope John Paul II erected the Eparchy of Marthandom
bifurcating the Metropolitan Eparchy of Trivandrum. Most Rev. Lawrence
Mar Ephrem was appointed as its first Bishop. God called him to
himself after a few months of his enthronement as Bishop of Marthandom,
on 8 April 1997.
In the mean time the Eparchy of Tiruvalla was blessed with an
Auxiliary Bishop in the person of Most Rev. Thomas Mar Koorilos who
was consecrated Bishop on 17 July 1997. On 29 June 1998 Most Rev.
Yoohanon Mar Chrysostom was consecrated as the Bishop of Mathandom and
Joshua Mar Ignathios as the Auxiliary Bishop for the Metropolitan
Eparchy of Trivandrum. His Excellency Paulos Mar Philoxenos passed
away on 3 November 1998.
Christu Jayanthi Maha Jubilee and the Sapthathy of the Re-union
Movement of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church were celebrated jointly
at Tiruvalla on 26, 27, 28 December 2000. His Beatitude Ignace Moussa
Daoud, the Prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches was
the Papal Delegate for the Celebration.
A significant development in this period has been the establishment of
parishes for the faithful of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church in the
United States of America. The Holy Father John Paul II nominated the
Proto Syncellus of Bathery Very Rev. Fr. Isaac Thottunkal, as
Apostolic Visitor and the Auxiliary Bishop of Trivandrum on 18 June
2001 for the Syro-Malankarites residing in North America and Europe.
He was consecrated on 15 August 2001 at Tirumoolapuram, (Tiruvalla)
and he assumed the name Isaac Mar Cleemis.
Bifurcating the Eparchy of Tiruvalla, the Eparchy of Muvattupuzha was
erected on 15 January 2003 and The Most Rev. Thomas Mar Koorilos was
appointed as its first Bishop.
On 29 March 2003 Bishop Mar Timotheos gave resignation to the Holy See
due to super-annuation and the Holy See appointed Isaac Mar Cleemis,
the Apostolic Visitor to Europe and America, as the Bishop of
Tiruvalla. His Excellency Mar Cleemis took charge of the Diocese on 2
October 2003. On January 5, 2005 Most Rev. Joseph Mar Thomas was
appointed as the Auxiliary Bishop of Trivandrum and Apostolic Visitor
to North America and Europe.
10 February 2005 is a day that is engraved in golden letters in the
history of the Malankara Church. The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church
was raised to the status of a Major Archiepiscopal Church on that day.
His Grace Pedro Lopez Quintana, the Apostolic Nuncio in India read the
official declaration at St. Mary’s Metropolitan Cathedral, Trivandrum.
The Hierarchical Head of the Church was elevated as Major Archbishop
who exercises patriarchal powers and governs the Church assisted by
the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Church. The Major Archbishop also
assumed the title “Catholicos” according to the Antiochene-Malankara
tradition. This is the crowing event of all the ecclesial communion
endeavours since 1653.
On 19 February 2005, Joseph Mar Thomas
was consecrated as the Auxiliary Bishop of Trivandrum and the
Apostolic Visitor to North America and Europe. On 11 April 2005 the
Faculty of Theology of St. Mary’s Malankara Seminary got affiliated to
the Pontifical Urbanian University, Rome.
The enthronement of the Major Archbishop-Catholicos as the Father and
Head of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church on 14 May 2005 was
officiated by His Eminence Ignace Moussa Cardinal Daoud, the Prefect
of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches. His Grace Pedro Lopez
Quintana, the Apostolic Nuncio of the Holy Father in India, was
present at the enthronement ceremony. The Malankara Major
Archiepiscopal Curia (Catholicate Centre) started functioning at the
St. Mary’s Campus, Pattom, Trivandrum. On 20 May 2005 His Beatitude
Moran Mor Cyril Baselios Catholicos blessed the Curia building. The
Catholicos soon constituted the Holy Episcopal Synod. The first Synod
of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church was convened from 16 to 18
August 2005 at the Major Archiepiscopal Curia (Catholicate Centre),
Trivandrum.
The first Holy Episcopal Synod constituted the Permanent Synod and the
various Synodal Commissions headed by Bishops to take care of various
Apostolates of the Church. The official bulletin, MALANKARA, is
published from the Catholicate Centre, to communicate the Synodal acts
and voice of the Syro-Malankara Major Archiepiscopal Church.
The Platinum Jubilee of the Reunion Movement and the Year of the
Eucharist were celebrated jointly at Mar Ivanios Nagar, Punnamoodu,
Mavelikara on 19, 20, 21 September 2005. His Grace Pedro Lopez
Quintana, the Apostolic Nuncio of the Holy Father in India, Shri
Bhaironsingh Shekhawat, the Vice-President of India, and Sri Oommen
Chandy, the Chief Minister of Kerala, participated in the
celebrations.
By the decrees of the Major Archbishop-Catholicos the Metropolitan
Province of Tiruvalla with the Eparchies of Bathery and Muvattupuzha
as suffragans, was established on 15 May 2006 and Most Rev. Isaac Mar
Cleemis was appointed as the Metropolitan-Archbishop of Tiruvalla. On
10 June 2006 Isaac Mar Cleemis was enthroned as the first
Metropolitan-Archbishop of Tiruvalla.
By the decree of the Major Archbishop-Catholicos, on 01 January 2007,
the new Eparchy of Mavelikara was erected and His Excellency Joshua
Mar Ignathios, The Auxiliary Bishop and protosyncellus of the Major
Archdiocese of Trivandrum, was appointed as its first Bishop.
The Second Ordinary Holy Episcopal Synod was convoked on 6-7 December
2006 and it was decided to revive the ministerial titles of Ramban and
Corepiscopo which were in vogue in the Church and to honour a few
priests for their meritorious service in the Church. His Grace Most
Rev. Isaac Mar Cleemis, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Tiruvalla,
conferred the titles on Saturday, 13 January 2007 on three priests at
St. John’s Cathedral, Tiruvalla and Moran Mor Cyril Baselios
Catholicos conferred these titles on priests on 17 Wednesday, 2007 at
St. Mary’s Cathedral, Pattom.
On Thursday, 18 January 2007 His Beatitude Moran Mor Cyril Baselios,
the first Major Archbishop-Catholicos of the Syro- Malankara Catholic
Church slept in the Lord. The mortal remains of the Catholicos was
entombed by the side of his great predecessors at St. Mary’s
Cathedral, Pattom on 20 January 2007.
His Grace Most Rev. Isaac Mar Cleemis was elected the Second Major
Archbishop-Catholicos of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church through
the first Holy Episcopal Synod of election of the Syro Malankara
Catholic Church convoked on 7 -10 February 2007 at Catholicate Centre,
Pattom, Trivandrum.His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI approved the
election on 9 February and it was announced on 10 February at St.
Mary’s Cathedral, Pattom.
The installation of His Excellency Most Rev. Joshua Mar Ignathios was
held on 16 February, 2007 at Mavelikara and His Excellency Most Rev.
Geevarghese Mar Divannasios, the Administrator of The Malankara
Catholic Major Archiepiscopal Church presided over the installation
ceremony. The new eparchy has a 30825 Syro-Malankara Catholic faithful
of a total population of 29,98,325 inhabitants. Of this 269849 are
Malankara non- Catholics and 5,98,824 Christians of other
denominations.
On Wednesday, 7 February 2007 a long-cherished dream of the
Syro-Malankara Catholic Church was realized. The Holy Father Pope
Benedict XVI appointed Very Rev. Dr. Chacko Aerath OIC as the
Apostolic Visitor with Episcopal status for the Malankara Catholic
faithful residing in the Extra-territorial Regions of the Church
within India.
Moran Mor Baselios Cleemis was enthroned the Second Major Archbishop-Catholicos
of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church on 5 March 2007 at St. Mary’s
Cathedral, Pattom. His installation service was officiated by Most
Rev. Geevarghese Mar Divannasios, the Synodal Administrator of the
Church. A large number of ecclesiastical and political dignitaries
including Cardinal Telesphore Toppo (the President of the CBCI),
Cardinal Mar Varkey Vithayathil (Major Archbishop of Syro-Malabar
Church) and Sri. V. S. Achuthanandan (the Chief Minister of Kerala)
participated in the installation ceremony.
On Saturday, 10 March 2007 Very Rev. Dr. Chacko Aerath OIC was
consecrated Bishop by Moran Mor Baselios Cleemis Catholicos and he
received the name Jacob Mar Barnabas.
On Monday, 26 March 2007 the Most Rev. Thomas Mar Koorilos was
appointed the Second Metropolitan Archbishop of the Archieparchy of
Tiruvalla. His installation Ceremony was held on Wednesday, 2 May
2007at St. John’s Cathedral, Tiruvalla. His Beatitude Baselios
Cleemis was the main celebrant.
His Beatitude Baselios Cleemis Catholicos visited the Holy Father Pope
Benedict XVI on 28 May 2007 at Vatican and received ecclesiastical
Communion. The Congregation for the Oriental Churches in Rome gave a
warm reception to His Beatitude on his first visit to the Holy See.
On Saturday, 14 July 2007 Moran Mor Baselios Cleemis, Major
Archbishop-Catholicos declared Archbishop Mar Ivanios as Servant of
God on the basis of the petition submitted by Rev. Fr. Antony
Valiyavilayil, the postulator for the cause of canonization of
Archbishop Mar Ivanios the Prophet of Reunion Movement..
The 77th Reunion celebrations, the Platinum Jubilee of the
Constitution of the Hierarchy of the Malankara Church in Catholic
Communion and the Golden Jubilee of the Immigration of the
Malankarites to Malabar were celebrated at Kodencherry in the Eparchy
of Bathery from 19 -21 September 2007.
On Sunday, 23 September 2007 the 125th birth anniversary of Servant of
God Archbishop Mar Ivanios was celebrated at Puthiyakavu, the birth
place of the Servant of God in the Eparchy of Mavelikara.
The Silver Jubilee of the Malankara Major Seminary that commenced on
Thursday, 29 June 2007 was officially inaugurated on Tuesday, 2
October 2007 by His Beatitude Moran Mor Baselios Cleemis Catholicos
and its concluding celebrations were held from 5-8 November 2007.
In the course of the growth and
development of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, besides the
canonical institutions, various associations such as the Malankara
Catholic Youth Movement (MCYM), the Malankara Catholic Association
(MCA), the Legion of Mary, Matruvedi,
Pithruvedi,
and other pious associations have become the backbone of the life of
the Church.
Monastic and other religious communities that are founded in the
Malankara Catholic Church contribute towards the spiritual enrichment
of the Church. Similarly, other Religious Congregations of both men
and women founded in other sui iuris Churches are rendering
their valuable service in fulfilling the mission of the Malankara
Church. The cause of Canonisation of Mar Ivanios, the pioneer of the
Reunion Movement is in progress.
Address:
Major Archbishop's House, Pattom, Trivandrum,
Kerala - 695 004, Kerala, India.
Tel: +91 471 - 2541642 , Fax: +91 471 - 2541635
E-mail: archbp03@md3.vsnl.net.in
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