#Syro-chaldean

[mylordmygod]

Syro-Malabar Church: Exploring the Traditions and Faith of an Ancient Co... 

 Welcome to our new series about the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, one of the oldest and most vibrant Catholic communities in the world. In this series, we will explore the rich history, unique traditions, and diverse culture of the Syro-Malabar Church, and share insights into its architectural importance, both interior and exterior, and the symbolic meaning behind its design. Our intention is to educate and inform our viewers about the importance of the Syro-Malabar Church, its various rituals, signs, and symbols, and the deep spiritual significance behind each of them. We will also delve into the fascinating history of the Syro-Malabar Church, its contributions to the broader Catholic Church, and the challenges faced by this vibrant community in the modern world.

[missouri-and-woe]

Why do people specify Roman Catholic?

Many people - even amongst Roman Catholics ourselves - may not be aware of this, but the Catholic church is actually made up of 24 sui iuris (autonomous) churches, all in communion with the Bishop of Rome. The dominant church is, clearly, the Latin or Roman Church, which makes up the vast majority of Catholics: the Eastern churches number only 18 million of the 1.3 billion Catholics in total.

The next largest is the Syro-Malabar church, centred in the Indian state of Kerala, and descending from a native church present in the region since around the 8th century. The next largest is the Ukrainian church.

The defining feature of these churches is that they use a different Rite than that of the Roman church: West and East Syriac, Armenian, Alexandrian, Byzantine.

The other main feature is a national one:

Under the Byzantine Rite, the most diverse, you have 14 churches: Albanian, Belarusian, Bulgarian, Croatian and Serbian, Greek, Hungarian, Italo-Albanian, Macedonian, Melkite, Romanian, Russian, Ruthenian, Slovak, and Ukrainian.

Under the Alexandrian rite, there are 3: Coptic, Ethiopian, and Eritrean.

Under the West Syriac rite, there are 3: Maronite, Syriac, Syro-Malankara.

Under the East Syriac rite, there are 2: Chaldean and Syro-Malabar.

Under the Latin rite, there is one: Roman (there are some other rites within the Roman church, such as the Ambrosian rite practiced in Milan).

Under the Armenian rite, there is one: Armenian.

All of these churches, though autonomous to a degree, are fully and entirely Catholic, fully united with the Roman Catholic Church.

Some are much older than others: the Maronite church, for example, has been extant since some time in the mid first millennium; while the Eritrean church was only formed in 2015.

[acatholicvibe]

Eastern Catholics:

I’ve been thinking of making a blog here dedicated to the traditions, spirituality, theology, etc of the various Eastern Catholic Churches.

If any of you Eastern Catholics are interested in collaborating with me, just msg me, or reblog.

[divinum-pacis]

History of Syro Malabar Church

From St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in Bronx, NY.

The Syro Malabar Church is one of the 21 Oriental Rites in the Universal Church.

The Apostles went around the world and preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ to different ethnic groups and cultures. Those people understood the Gospel Values with different cultural interpretations. They expressed their Faith through celebrations in different styles, languages, & cultures. Thus different Liturgies were formed and developed in the East which are listed in 5 Fundamental Families, namely: Alexandrian, Antiochean, Armenian, Chaldean, and Byzantine. And there are many different filial Churches in each Family.

And Latin Liturgy was developed in the West.

The Church made it’s distinction of East and West depending upon the 2 Capitals of the Great Roman Empire. All the Churches which came under the Capital City of Rome were called the Western Churches and all the Churches which came under the Capital City of Constantinople (Byzantium) were called the Eastern Churches.

Among the Eastern Churches, there are six Patriarchal Churches:

Coptic 

Syrian  

Maronite  

Armenian 

Chaldean 

Melkite

There are two Major Archiepiscopal Churches: 

Ukranian 

Syro Malabar

The Syro Malabar Church was founded by St.Thomas, one of the 12 Apostles, who came to India in AD 52. He preached in different Kingdoms all around the Subcontinent and established seven and a half Ecclesial Communities in Malabar, today called Kerala. After 20 years of His Mission Work, He was martyred in Mylapore, near Madras by a fanatic Hindu priest on July 3rd in AD 72. The whole world celebrates the Martyrdom of St.Thomas on July 3rd and it is a day of obligation for the Syro Malabarians.

The early Christians of India were converted from the High Caste Hindus. They were ;called St.Thomas Christians and they developed into an Indigenous Individual Church until the 4th century.

Then the Persians came and dominated over the Indian Church and imposed their Chaldean Liturgy over us for about 1000 years. They were importing bishops from Persia from the Chaldean Church. They never ordained an Indian Bishop.

When the Portuguese arrived and colonized India in the beginning of the 16th century, they also imposed their Latin Liturgy and latinized us and restricted our freedom of development for 4oo years. They were also importing Bishops from abroad and they never ordained any Indian Bishop. They burned our Liturgical Texts and Vestments.

We were liberated by Pope Pius IX in 1896 by establishing a Syro Malabar Hierarchy. But this dynamic Church’s operations were limited to a very small territory between two rivers; namely: Pambayar and Bharatha Puzha. We were not allowed to do Mission Work in Our Own Rite. Those who wanted, had to adopt the Latin Rite. Only in 1952, the late Cardinal Tisserant, Prefect of the Oriental Congregation, who studied our history and knew the beauty of our Church, recommended to the Holy Father to remove those barriers . 

Then Pope Pius XII extended our proper territory to Malabar, Mysore, Nilgiris and Trivandrum and established the Diocese of Tellicherry for the migrants from the South. And it was a mile stone in the progress of our Church.

On October 18th,1990, the Code of Canon Law for the Oriental Churches was promulgated in Rome.

After repeated memorandums by the Syro Malabar Bishops’ Conference, His Holiness Pope John Paul II raised our Church on May 20th, 1993 to the Status of a Major Archiepiscopal Church which is next only to a Patriarchal Church in rank and appointed Mar Antony Cardinal Padiyara, our first Major Archbishop, and Archbishop Mar Abraham Kattumana, it’s Pontifical Administrator.

The famous saying of Cardinal Tisserant is worth quoting: The Syro Malabar Church, established in India by St.Thomas the Apostle, is “Christian in Faith, Oriental in Worship, and Indian in Culture.”

This Particular and Individual Church plays a vital role in the missionary and evangelical activities of the Catholic Church around the world. Every year it admits over 2500 candidates for priesthood and religious life, 1500 of whom dedicate themselves to serve in other communities worldwide. Approximately 500 Syro Malabar priests and few hundred nuns serve in various Mission Centers throughout the USA and Canada.

Today, the Syro Malabar Catholic Church is a Sui Juris Particular Church, headed by His Eminence Mar Varkey Cardinal Vithayathil, the 2nd Major Archbishop. It has four Archdioceses, twenty suffragan dioceses and approximately 3000 parishes and semi- parishes. At present, there are fifty five bishops belonging to the Syro Malabar Rite: thirty two serving in Syro Malabar Dioceses and twenty three serving in other dioceses and apostolic offices. There are about 8000 priests in the ministerial priesthood. This makes a remarkable ratio of about one priest for every 500 faithful – an unprecedented number among other Churches. Moreover, 2500 seminarians are studying in various seminaries to join the priesthood. The Syro Malabar Church has approximately one female member in the various Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Order for every 100 members.

The name of our Church was ( Mar Thoma Nazranikal ) which means “Nazrenes of St.Thomas”. In the 19th century, the Oriental Congregation had renamed our Church as Syro Malabar Church. Our Bishops’ Synod has already passed a resolution to change the name of our Church from Syro Malabar Church to “The Church of St.Thomas Christians”.

The main teachings of the Vatican II on Eastern Churches:

a) “All the members of the Eastern Rites should know and be convinced that they can and should always preserve the legitimate liturgical Rite and their established way of life, and that these may not be altered except to obtain for themselves an organic improvement. All these things ;must be observed by the members of the Eastern Rites themselves”. ( Vatican II, Orientalium Ecclesiarum: #6 ).

b) “Each and every Catholic (of Eastern Rites) must retain, each his own Rite wherever he is, and follow it to the best of his ability”. ( #4 )

c) “Those individual Churches of East or West are….of equal rank so that none of them is superior to others because of its Rite”. ( #3 )

d) “All members of the Eastern Churches are to aim always at a more perfect knowledge and practice of their Rites and if they have fallen away due to the circumstances of times and persons, they are to strive to return to their ancestral traditions.” ( #6 )

[Read More]

Prepared by Fr.Jos Kandathikudy

[forbidden-sorcery]

The earliest pagan – or apparently pagan – account of an exorcism is found in Lucian’s Philopseudes. Here the Platonist Ion attempts to persuade the sceptical Tychiades of the reality of ghosts or demons by reminding him of a ‘Syrian from Palestine’ supposedly known to all. This man, Ion says, takes anyone who falls down at the sight of the moon, twists their eyes and foams at the mouth, sets them back on their feet and sends them off again sound in mind, delivering them from their affliction for a fee. Whenever he stands over the demoniacs as they lie afflicted and asks the demons whence they come into the body, the demon itself gives answer, speaking in Greek or in the language of its country of origin, and explains how and when it entered the person. The Syro-Palestinian then adjures it to leave, and if it does not obey, he drives it out with threats. Ion tells Tychiades that he saw one of the demons leaving; it was black and smoky in colour, as ghosts were often held to be. Tychiades remains unimpressed and makes a quip to the effect that Ion is better equipped to see such murky and evanescent apparitions than he himself is, since he is used to seeing the equally murky and evanescent forms of his spiritual father, Plato.              I say apparently pagan, because it is possible that Ion, for all his Platonism, is projected as a semi-Christianized individual by Lucian, who perhaps has in mind intellectuals of his own day of the sort represented by Athenagoras, who were melding Platonism and Christianity. It is also, we should recall, Ion that tells the story of the Chaldean snake-blaster, a tale which also seems to exhibit some striking Christian imagery in the motif of the cured Midas picking up the stretcher on which he has been brought and carrying it home with him. Certainly Lucian’s Byzantine commentator felt that he had Christ in his sights at this point: ‘A curse on you, godless Lucian! Was my Lord and God a sophist then, and did he take fees for curing the sick? Since the earth had the capacity to open up, when you were gibbering out this rubbish, why did it not open up and swallow you down, accursed one? It can only be because it abominated you!’

Daniel Ogden - Night’s Black Agents: Witches, Wizards and the Dead in the Ancient World

[savedfromsalvation]

SO YOU’RE A CHRISTIAN?  WHAT FLAVOR?

AN INCOMPLETE LIST OF MODERN CHRISTIAN SECTS AND CULTS:

CATHOLIC CHURCH

Latin Church

Catholic Charismatic Renewal

Blue Army of Our Lady of Fátima

Legion of Mary (active and auxiliary)

International Catholic Conference of Scouting

Cursillo

Worldwide Marriage Encounter

Marian Movement of Priests

Militia Immaculatae

International Alliance of Catholic Knights

Knights of Columbus

Schoenstatt Apostolic Movement

Nocturnal Adoration Societies

Neocatechumenal Way

Couples for Christ

Society of Saint Vincent de Paul

Secular Franciscan Order

Young Christian Workers (JOC)

School of the Cross

Focolare Movement

Christian Life Community

Opus Dei

Pax Romana

Community of Sant'Egidio

Communion and Liberation

Salesian Cooperators Association

Christian Life Movement

Regnum Christi

Our Lady's Rosary Makers

Personal Ordinariate for former Anglicans

Eastern Catholic Churches

Alexandrian Rite

Ethiopian Catholic Church

Coptic Catholic Church

Eritrean Catholic Church

Antiochene Rite

Maronite Catholic Church

Syro-Malankara Catholic Church

Syriac Catholic Church

Armenian Rite

Armenian Catholic Church

Byzantine Rite

Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church

Melkite Greek Catholic Church

Romanian Greek Catholic Church

Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church

Hungarian Greek Catholic Church

Slovak Greek Catholic Church

Italo-Albanian Catholic Church

Belarusian Greek Catholic Church

Byzantine Catholic Church of Croatia and Serbia

Georgian Byzantine Catholic Church

Albanian Greek Catholic Church

Bulgarian Greek Catholic Church

Greek Byzantine Catholic Church

Macedonian Greek Catholic Church

Russian Greek Catholic Church

Chaldean Rite

Syro-Malabar Catholic Church

Chaldean Catholic Church

Canonically irregular groups

Society of Saint Pius X

 PROTESTANTISM

Baptist churches

Southern Baptist Convention

National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc

Nigerian Baptist Convention

National Missionary Baptist Convention of America

National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.

Baptist Union of Uganda

Baptist Community of Western Congo

Baptist General Convention of Texas

Baptist Convention of Tanzania

Brazilian Baptist Convention

Progressive National Baptist Convention

Council of Baptist Churches in Northeast India

Baptist Bible Fellowship International

American Baptist Churches USA

Lott Carey Foreign Mission Convention

Baptist Community of the Congo River

National Primitive Baptist Convention of the U.S.A.

Myanmar Baptist Convention

Cooperative Baptist Fellowship

Baptist General Association of Virginia

Baptist Convention of Kenya

Nagaland Baptist Church Council

Korea Baptist Convention

Samavesam of Telugu Baptist Churches

Orissa Evangelical Baptist Crusade

National Baptist Convention (Brazil)

Church of Christ in Congo–Baptist Community of Congo

Baptist Convention of Malawi

Garo Baptist Convention

Convention of Philippine Baptist Churches

Ghana Baptist Convention – 0.3[21]

Union of Baptist Churches in Rwanda

Conservative Baptist Association of America

National Association of Free Will Baptists

Convention of Visayas and Mindanao of Southern Baptist Churches

Manipur Baptist Convention

Baptist Community in Central Africa

Lutheranism

Evangelical Church in Germany

United Protestants i.e. Lutheran & Reformed

Lutherans

Reformed

Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania

Church of Sweden

United Evangelical Lutheran Churches in India

Batak Christian Protestant Church

Church of Denmark

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland

Church of Norway

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

Malagasy Lutheran Church

The Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria

Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Papua New Guinea

Evangelical Church of the Lutheran Confession in Brazil

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Namibia

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Southern Africa

The Protestant Christian Church

The Indonesian Christian Church

Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Namibia

Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod

Evangelical Free Church of America

Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Cameroon

Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Austria

Evangelical Lutheran Church in Zimbabwe

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia

Christian Protestant Church in Indonesia

Church of Iceland

Simalungun Protestant Christian Church

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Brazil

Protestant Church of Augsburg Confession of Alsace and Lorraine

Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in Slovakia

Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Hungary

Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church

Methodism

United Methodist Church

African Methodist Episcopal Church

Church of the Nazarene

Methodist Church Nigeria

The Salvation Army

Methodist Church of Southern Africa

Korean Methodist Church

African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

United Methodist Church of Ivory Coast

Free Methodist Church

Christian Methodist Episcopal Church

Methodist Church Ghana

Methodist Church in India

Methodist Church in Kenya

Wesleyan Church

Methodist Church of Great Britain

Methodist Church in Brazil

Calvinism

Reformed Presbyterian

Presbyterian Church of East Africa

Presbyterian Church of Nigeria

Presbyterian Church of Africa

Presbyterian Church in Korea (HapDong)

Presbyterian Church of Korea (TongHap)

National Presbyterian Church in Mexico

Church of Christ in Congo

Presbyterian Community of Congo

Presbyterian Church of Cameroon]

Presbyterian Church (USA)

Presbyterian Church of India

Church of Central Africa Presbyterian

Presbyterian Church of Brazil

Presbyterian Church in Sudan

Presbyterian Church in Cameroon

Presbyterian Church in Korea (HapDongBoSu II.)

Presbyterian Church in Korea (BaekSeok)

Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Ghana

United Church of Christ in the Philippines

Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa

United Church of Canada

Church of Scotland

Presbyterian Church in America

Presbyterian Church of Pakistan

Presbyterian Church in Korea (Koshin)

Korean Presbyterian Church

Presbyterian Church in Rwanda

Uniting Church in Australia

Presbyterian Church in Taiwan

Presbyterian Church in Ireland

Continental Reformed churches

Church of Jesus Christ in Madagascar

Protestant Church in Indonesia

United Church in Zambia

Evangelical Church of Cameroon

Swiss Reformed Church

Protestant Church in the Netherlands

Christian Evangelical Church in Timor

Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa (NGK)

Christian Evangelical Church in Minahasa

United Church in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands

Protestant Church in Western Indonesia

Evangelical Christian Church in Tanah Papua

Protestant Church of Maluku

Reformed Church in Hungary

Reformed Church in Romania

Uniting Reformed Church in Southern Africa

Toraja Church

Reformed Church of France

Lesotho Evangelical Church

Evangelical Christian Church in Halmahera

Christian Church of Sumba

Karo Batak Protestant Church

Christian Reformed Church of Nigeria

Reformed Church in Zambia

Evangelical Reformed Church in Angola

Reformed Church in America

Christian Reformed Church in North America

Kalimantan Evangelical Church

Javanese Christian Church

Indonesia Christian Church

Church of Christ in the Sudan Among the Tiv

Church of Lippe

Evangelical Church of Congo

Christian Evangelical Church of Sangihe Talaud

Central Sulawesi Christian Church

Evangelical Reformed Church in Bavaria and Northwestern Germany

Congregationalism

United Church of Christ

Evangelical Congregational Church in Angola

United Congregational Church of Southern Africa

Anabaptism

Mennonites

Schwarzenau Brethren/German Baptists

Amish

Hutterites

Hussites

Moravians

Czechoslovak Hussite Church

Unity of the Brethren

Quakers (Religious Society of Friends)

Modern Protestantism

Pentecostalism

Assemblies of God

Apostolic Church

International Circle of Faith

Fangcheng Fellowship

China Gospel Fellowship

Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee)

International Church of the Foursquare Gospel

Church of God in Christ

Jesus Is Lord Church Worldwide

International Pentecostal Holiness Church

United Pentecostal Church International

The Pentecostal Mission

Christian Congregation of Brazil

True Jesus Church

The Church of Pentecost

Universal Church of the Kingdom of God

Pentecostal Assemblies of the World

Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa

Church of God of Prophecy

Association of Pentecostal Churches of Rwanda

God is Love Pentecostal Church

Nondenominational Evangelicalism

Calvary Chapel

Born Again Movement

Association of Vineyard Churches

Christian and Missionary Alliance

Church of God (Anderson, Indiana)

African Initiated Protestant Churches

Zion Christian Church

Eternal Sacred Order of Cherubim and Seraphim

Kimbanguist Church

Redeemed Christian Church of God

Church of the Lord (Aladura)

Council of African Instituted Churches

Church of Christ Light of the Holy Spirit

African Church of the Holy Spirit

African Israel Church Nineveh

Seventh-day Adventist Church

New Apostolic Church

Lord's Recovery (Watchman Nee)

Lord's Recovery (Witness Lee

Local churches or Church Assembly Hall

Eastern Lightning

The Shouters

Restoration Movement

Churches of Christ

Christian churches and churches of Christ

Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

Community of Disciples of Christ in Congo

Plymouth Brethren

Anglicanism

Anglican Communion

Church of England

Church of Nigeria

Church of Uganda

Anglican Church of Kenya

Episcopal Church of South Sudan and Sudan

Church of South India

Anglican Church of Australia

Anglican Church of Southern Africa

Anglican Church of Tanzania

Episcopal Church in the United States

Anglican Church of Canada

Church of North India

Anglican Church of Rwanda

Church of the Province of Central Africa

Anglican Church of Burundi

Church in the Province of the West Indies

Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia

Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean

Church of Christ in Congo–Anglican Community of Congo

Church of Pakistan

Church of Ireland

Church of the Province of West Africa

Anglican Church of Melanesia

Episcopal Church in the Philippines

Continuing Anglican movement and independent churches

Traditional Anglican Communion

Anglican Church in North America

Reformed Evangelical Anglican Church of South Africa

Eastern Orthodox Church ( Non-Chalcedonian)

Autocephalous Churches

Russian Orthodox Church

Romanian Orthodox Church

Church of Greece

Serbian Orthodox Church

Bulgarian Orthodox Church

Georgian Orthodox Church

Greek Orthodox Church of Constantinople

Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch

Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria

Orthodox Church in America

Polish Orthodox Church

Albanian Orthodox Church

Church of Cyprus

Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem

Czech and Slovak Orthodox Church

Autonomous churches

Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)

Moldovan Orthodox Church

Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia

Metropolitan Church of Bessarabia

Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric

Estonian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate)

Finnish Orthodox Church

Chinese Orthodox Church

Japanese Orthodox Church

Latvian Orthodox Church

Non-universally recognized churches

Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Kyiv Patriarchate)

Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church

Belarusian Autocephalous Orthodox Church

Macedonian Orthodox Church

Orthodox Church of Greece (Holy Synod in Resistance)

Old Calendarist Romanian Orthodox Church

Old Calendar Bulgarian Orthodox Church

Orthodox Church in Italy

Montenegrin Orthodox Church

Other separated Orthodox groups

Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church

Old Believers

Greek Old Calendarists

True Orthodox Church

Evangelical Orthodox Church

Oriental Orthodoxy

Autocephalous Churches

Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church

Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria

Armenian Apostolic Church

Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin

Holy See of Cilicia

Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople

Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem

Syriac Orthodox Church

Jacobite Syrian Christian Church

Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church

Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church

Autonomous Churches

French Coptic Orthodox Church

Churches not in communion

Mar Thoma Syrian Church

Malabar Independent Syrian Church

British Orthodox Church

Restorationism and Nontrinitarianism

Latter Day Saint movement (Mormonism)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]

Community of Christ

Jehovah's Witnesses

Oneness Pentecostalism

United Pentecostal Church International

Pentecostal Assemblies of the World

Minor Denominations

Iglesia ni Cristo

La Luz del Mundo

Unitarian Universalism

Unitarian Universalist Association

(Unitarian Universalism developed out of Christian traditions but no longer identifies as a Christian denomination.)

Church of Christ, Scientist

Friends of Man

Christadelphians

Family International

Independent Catholicism

Philippine Independent Church

Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association

Brazilian Catholic Apostolic Church

Traditionalist Mexican-American Catholic Church

Old Catholic Church

Polish National Catholic Church

Apostolic Catholic Church

Palmarian Catholic Church

Minor Branches

Church of the East (Nestorianism)

Assyrian Church of the East

Ancient Church of the East

Messianic Judaism

 And tell me again why yours is “THE ONE TRUE FAITH!”  Laz

[pope-francis-quotes]

9th November >> (@VaticanNews By Devin Watkins) #PopeFrancis #Pope Francis prays for an end to the suffering of Christians in the #MiddleEast, and celebrates the fruits of ecumenical dialogue with the Assyrian Church of the East.

Pope prays for peace in Middle East with head of Assyrian ChurchDuring an audience with Mar Gewargis III, Pope Francis prays for an end to the suffering of Christians in the Middle East, and celebrates the fruits of ecumenical dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East.

Pope Francis spoke about the “great suffering” that many Christians are enduring in the Middle East, and prayed for peace in the region, especially in Iraq and Syria.

The Pope was meeting Friday with Mar Gewargis III, the Catholicos Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East.

He said many Middle Eastern Christians are following in the footsteps of Christ, as they are forced to leave their homelands to escape violence.

Pope Francis noted that the Christians fleeing persecution belong to different communities. “They are forging fraternal relationships among one another,” he said, “and thus becoming, for us, witnesses of unity.”

He joyfully recalled Gewargis’ presence at the Day of Reflection and Prayer for Peace in the Middle East, held on 7 July in the Italian city of Bari.

Listen to our report

Thanksgiving for theological dialogue

Pope Francis then turned to relations between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East. He said the two Churches share a “particular reason for thanksgiving to God”, which is the Joint Committee for Theological Dialogue.

The two Churches signed a Common Statement on “Sacramental Life” on 24 November 2017, which set out a shared vision of sacramental theology.

Pope Francis said the Committee “shows that practical and disciplinary differences are not always an obstacle to unity, and that certain differences in theological expression can be considered complementary rather than conflicting.”

The Committee is beginning its work on the third phase of dialogue concerning ecclesiology. The Pope prayed the next stage of study “will help us to take one more step on our journey towards the much-desired goal of being able to celebrate the Sacrifice of the Lord at the same altar.”

READ ALSO

09/11/2018

Pope and Mar Gewargis condemn persecution of Christians

Pillar of Syro-Oriental tradition

The Holy Father recalled the 700th anniversary of the death of Abdisho bar Berika, Metropolitan of Nisibis, whom both the Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Catholic Church celebrate as a pillar of the Syro-Oriental tradition.

“May the study of this great theologian help to make better known the richness of the Syriac tradition and to receive it as a gift for the entire Church,” the Pope concluded.

Prayer for peace

Following the audience, Pope Francis and Mar Gewargis III, along with his entourage, prayed together in the Redemptoris Mater Chapel for peace in the Middle East and for an end to the suffering of Christians, especially in Iraq and Syria.

Topics

EASTERN CHURCHES

POPE FRANCIS

AUDIENCES

09 November 2018, 11:56

[alightinthelantern]

The basilica of Our Lady of Dolours is a church in Thrissur City, Kerala, India. Belonging to Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, an Eastern Catholic sect local to the Indian state of Kerala that practices using the East Syriac rites and liturgy, the basilica boasts 25,000 square feet (2,300 m2), and the tallest tower reaches a height of 260 feet (79 m), making it the third-tallest church in Asia.

Often referred to locally as “Puthanpalli” (“New Church”), construction began in 1929, in response to the local Christian community splitting due to differing practices in rites and theology; those that switched to practicing the Chaldean Syrian rites gained the original church building, renamed the Mart Mariam Big Church, and those remaining in the Syro-Malabar rite needed a new house of worship. The church’s construction progressed in stages, and though the building was consecrated on 24 November, 1940, work continued for some time afterward.

A particularly fine example of Indo-Gothic architecture, the building is cruciform in layout, with double-storeyed aisles along the nave and transepts, and eleven altars, five on either side of the main one. Possessing three towers and a stout lantern over its central crossing, the twin belfries incorporated in its front, West facade reach a height of 146 ft. (45 m), while its tallest spire is situated at the eastern terminus of the nave, behind the crossing. This tower, named the Bible Tower, completed in 2007, is 260 ft. (79 m) tall, making it both the tallest church-tower in India and the tallest point in Thrissur. Inside are multiple viewing platforms, and at the tallest point one can view the entire city below.

Decoration is restrained throughout the interior of the church, predominantly white with extensive use of trimming in accent colors, but the altars and central crossing are elaborately decorated, and feature fine specimens of murals and sculpturework.

Photo sources Wikipedia: X, X

[catholicwatertown]

Pope urges harmony among India’s Latin and Eastern rite bishops

(Vatican Radio)  Pope Francis on Tuesday urged for a "fruitful and harmonious cooperation” among the bishops of the three ritual Churches of India, as they reach out to provide pastoral care to their respective faithful, spread out in various parts of the country.  “In India itself, overlapping jurisdictions should no longer be problematic, for the Church has experienced them for some time, such as in Kerala,” the Pope wrote in a letter the Indian Bishops. 

The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) is the apex body of the Catholic Church of India, ‎that is composed of three ‘sui iuris’  Churches:  the Latin rite and the two ‎eastern rites – the Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara ‎Churches, which claim their origin from St. Thomas the Apostle.  Of the 172 dioceses in India, 132 belong to the Latin rite. 

“In a world where large numbers of Christians are forced to migrate, overlapping jurisdictions have become customary and are increasingly effective tools for ensuring the pastoral care of the faithful while also ensuring full respect for their ecclesial traditions,” the Pope wrote.  He thus authorized the Vatican Congregation for the Oriental Churches to erect two eparchies (dioceses)  for the the Syro-Malabar Church and to extend the boundaries of two others. 

Please find below the full text of Pope Francis letter to the bishops of India:

Letter of His Holiness Pope Francis to the Bishops of India

Dear Brother Bishops,

         1.  The remarkable varietas Ecclesiarum, the result of a long historical, cultural, spiritual and disciplinary development, constitutes a treasure of the Church, regina in vestitu deaurato circumdata variegate (cf. Ps 44 and Leo XIII, Orientalium Dignitas), who awaits her groom with the fidelity and patience of the wise virgin, equipped with an abundant supply of oil, so that the light of her lamp may enlighten all peoples in the long night of awaiting the Lord’s coming.

         This variety of ecclesial life, which shines with great splendour throughout lands and nations, is also found in India.  The Catholic Church in India has its origins in the preaching of the Apostle Thomas.  It developed through contact with the Churches of Chaldean and Antiochian traditions and, from the sixteenth century onward, through the efforts of Latin missionaries.  The history of Christianity in this great country thus led to three distinct sui iuris Churches, corresponding to ecclesial expressions of the same faith celebrated in different rites according to the three liturgical, spiritual, theological and disciplinary traditions.  Although this situation has sometimes led to tensions in the course of history, today we can admire a Christian presence that is both rich and beautiful, complex and unique.

         2.  It is essential for the Catholic Church to reveal her face in all its beauty to the world, in the richness of her various traditions.  For this reason the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, which celebrates its centenary year, having been established through the farsightedness of Pope Benedict XV in 1917, has encouraged, where necessary, the restoration of Eastern Catholic traditions, and ensured their protection, as well as respect for the dignity and rights of these ancient Churches.

         3.  The Second Vatican Council embraced this vision of the Church and reminded the faithful of the need to protect and preserve the treasure of the particular traditions of each Church.  “Moreover, within the Church particular Churches hold a rightful place; these Churches retain their own traditions, without in any way opposing the primacy of the Chair of Peter, which presides over the whole assembly of charity (cf. Ignatius of Antioch, Ad Rom., Praef.), and protects legitimate differences, while at the same time assuring that such differences do not hinder unity but rather contribute toward it” (Lumen Gentium, 13).

         4.  As Lumen Gentium teaches, it is for the Bishop of Rome to promote unity in the diversity of the Body of Christ.  In this task, the Roman Pontiffs faithfully interpret and apply the voice of the Second Vatican Council, which expressed the ardent desire that the Oriental Churches, venerated for their antiquity, should “flourish and with new apostolic vigour execute the task entrusted to them” (Orientalium Ecclesiarum, 1).  Their responsibility is not only to become ever more effective instruments of that “special duty of promoting the unity of all Christians, especially Eastern Christians” (Orientalium Ecclesiarum, 24), but also to promote their “equal dignity […] for they enjoy the same rights and are under the same obligations, also in respect of preaching the Gospel to the whole world” (Orientalium Ecclesiarum, 3).

         Thirty years ago, my beloved predecessor Saint John Paul II wrote a Letter to the Bishops of India.  Drawing on the Second Vatican Council, he sought to apply the conciliar teaching to the Indian context.  In India, even after many centuries, Christians are only a small proportion of the population and, consequently, there is a particular need to demonstrate unity and to avoid any semblance of division.  Saint John Paul II also stated that the need for unity and the preservation of diversity are not opposed to one another: “This need to be faithful to the traditions and patrimony of one’s own rite must not be interpreted as an interference with the Church’s task of ‘gathering into one the children of God who are scattered abroad’ (Jn 11:52) or with the mission of the Church to promote the communion of all people with the Redeemer” (Epistula ad Indiae Episcopos, 28 May 1987).

         5.  Five decades ago, when the Syro-Malabar Church expanded to some central and northern parts of India with “missionary eparchies”, it was generally thought by the Latin Bishops that there should be just one jurisdiction, that is, one bishop in a particular territory.  These eparchies, created from Latin dioceses, today have exclusive jurisdiction over those territories, both of the Latin and Syro-Malabar faithful.  However, both in the traditional territories of the Eastern Churches, as well as in the vast area of the so-called diaspora (where these faithful have long been established), a fruitful and harmonious cooperation between Catholic bishops of the different sui iuris Churches within the same territory has taken place.  This cooperation not only offers an ecclesiological justification for such a solution, but also demonstrates its pastoral benefits.  In a world where large numbers of Christians are forced to migrate, overlapping jurisdictions have become customary and are increasingly effective tools for ensuring the pastoral care of the faithful while also ensuring full respect for their ecclesial traditions.

         6.  In India itself, overlapping jurisdictions should no longer be problematic, for the Church has experienced them for some time, such as in Kerala.  Saint John Paul II’s Letter authorized the erection of a Syro-Malabar eparchy in the Bombay-Pune region, which became the Eparchy of Kalyan.  In 2012 the Syro-Malabar Eparchy of Faridabad was erected in the region of Delhi and its neighbouring states, while the boundaries of the Eparchy of Mandya were extended in 2015 to include the metropolitan area of Bangalore.  In the same year, an Eparchy and an Apostolic Exarchate were erected for the Syro-Malankar faithful, so that by these ecclesiastical circumscriptions the Syro-Malankar Church could provide pastoral care for its faithful throughout the territory of India.  All these developments show that, albeit not without problems, the presence of a number of bishops in the same area does not compromise the mission of the Church.  On the contrary, these steps have given greater impetus to the local Churches for their pastoral and missionary efforts.

         7.  In 2011 my predecessor Benedict XVI wished to provide for the pastoral needs of the Syro-Malabar faithful throughout India, and I confirmed his intention following the plenary session of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches in 2013.  Archbishop Raphael Thattil is currently the Apostolic Visitor for those Syro-Malabar faithful in India who live outside their own territory, and he has provided detailed reports to the Apostolic See.  This issue has been examined in meetings at the highest levels of the Church.  Following these steps, I believe the time is now right to complete this process.

         I have therefore authorized the Congregation for the Oriental Churches to provide for the pastoral care of the Syro-Malabar faithful throughout India by the erection of two Eparchies and by the extension of the boundaries of the two already in existence.

         I decree also that the new circumscriptions, as with those already in existence, be entrusted to the pastoral care of the Major Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly and to the Synod of Bishops of the Syro-Malabar Church, according to the norms of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.

         8.  I hope that my decision will be welcomed with a generous and peaceful spirit, although it may be a source of apprehension for some, since many Syro-Malabars, deprived of pastoral care in their own rite, are at present fully involved in the life of the Latin Church.  I am convinced, however, that all those involved will understand that there is no need for concern: the Church’s life should not be disrupted by such a provision.  Indeed it must not be negatively interpreted as imposing upon the faithful a requirement to leave the communities which have welcomed them, sometimes for many generations, and to which they have contributed in various ways.  It should rather be seen as an invitation as well as an opportunity for growth in faith and communion with their sui iuris Church, in order to preserve the precious heritage of their rite and to pass it on to future generations.  There is already an instruction by the Congregation for the Oriental Churches to the Eparchy of Faridabad, which indicates that a member of the Syro-Malabar faithful, by virtue of the same law, is also a member of the Syro-Malabar parish where he or she is domiciled (Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, Can, 280 §1); yet at the same time, he or she can remain fully involved in the life and activities of the parish of the Latin Church.  No dispensation is required from the law currently in force for the faithful to practice their faith serenely, and they may do this with the pastoral care of either Latin or Syro-Malabar pastors (cf. Prot. No. 197/2014, 28 January 2016).     

         9. The path of the Catholic Church in India cannot be that of isolation and separation, but rather of respect and cooperation.  The presence of several bishops of the various sui iuris Churches in the same territory will surely offer an eloquent witness to a vibrant and marvellous communion.  This is the vision of the Second Vatican Council, which I quote once again: “Between all the parts of the Church there remains a bond of close communion whereby they share spiritual riches, apostolic workers and temporal resources.  For the members of the people of God are called to share these goods in common, and of each of the Churches the words of the Apostle hold good: ‘According to the gift that each has received, administer it to one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God’ (1 Pet 4:10)” (Lumen Gentium, 13).  It is in this spirit that I urge all the beloved Churches in India to be generous and courageous as they witness to the Gospel in the spirit of fraternity and mutual love.  For the Syro-Malabar Church, this continues the valued work of their priests and religious in the Latin context, and sustains their availability for those Syro-Malabar faithful who, although choosing to attend Latin parishes, may request some assistance from their Church of origin.  The Latin rite Church can continue to generously offer hospitality to members of the Syro-Malabar communities who do not have church buildings of their own.  The cooperation among all the sui iuris Churches should continue, for example in the area of retreats and seminars for clergy, Bible conferences, celebrations of common feast days and ecumenical endeavours.  With the growth of spiritual friendship and mutual assistance, any tension or apprehension should be swiftly overcome.  May this extension of the pastoral area of the Syro-Malabar Church in no way be perceived as a growth in power and domination, but as a call to deeper communion, which should never be perceived as uniformity.  In the words of Saint Augustine, who sang the praises of the Trinity and of the wonderful communion of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, I also ask you: dilatentur spatia caritatis (Sermon 69, PL 5, 440.441).  May there be a growth in love, communion and service.

         Dear brother Bishops, I commend all of you to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and I assure you of my closeness in prayer.  To all of you, the Church and the faithful in India, I impart my Apostolic Blessing, and I ask that you pray for me.

From the Vatican, 9 October 2017

(from Vatican Radio)

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9th November >> (@zenitenglish Deborah Castellano Lubov) #PopeFrancis #Pope Francis’ Address & Common Statement With Catholicos-Patriarch Mar Gewargis III

Pope Francis’ Address & Common Statement With Catholicos-Patriarch Mar Gewargis III

‘We share a particular reason for thanksgiving to God.’

This morning, His Holiness Mar Gewargis III, Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, paid a visit to the Holy Father Francis. After a private meeting, Pope Francis and the Catholicos-Patriarch Mar Gewargis prayed together in the Redemptoris Mater Chapel of the Apostolic Palace. Finally, they signed a Common Statement.

The Catholicos-Patriarch was accompanied by the members of the mixed Commission for theological dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East.

The following is the Holy Father Francis address to the Patriarch Mar Gewargis III during the meeting and the text of the Common Statement:

Address of the Holy Father

Your Holiness,

Dear Brothers,

“Peace and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph 6:23). With these words of the Apostle Paul, I greet you and, through you, the members of the Holy Synod, the bishops, the clergy and all the faithful of the beloved Assyrian Church of the East.

Two years have passed since our first encounter, but in the meantime, I had the joy of again meeting Your Holiness in Bari last 7 July, at the Day of Reflection and Prayer for Peace in the Middle East, which you too had so greatly desired. Indeed, we share the great suffering resulting from the tragic situation endured by so many of our brothers and sisters in the Middle East, who are victims of violence and frequently forced to leave the lands in which they have always lived. They tread the via crucis in the footsteps of Christ and, though belonging to different communities, they are forging fraternal relationships among one another and thus becoming, for us, witnesses of unity. Shortly we shall join in prayer for an end to all this suffering and implore from the Lord the gift of peace for the Middle East, above all for Iraq and Syria.

We share a particular reason for thanksgiving to God: the Joint Committee for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East. Just one year ago, I had the joy of receiving its members on the occasion of the signing of the Common Statement on ‘Sacramental Life’. The Committee, itself the fruit of dialogue, shows that practical and disciplinary differences are not always an obstacle to unity and that certain differences in theological expression can be considered complementary rather than conflicting. I pray that the work of the Committee, which in these days enters a third phase of study on ecclesiology, will help us to take one more step on our journey towards the much-desired goal of being able to celebrate the Sacrifice of the Lord at the same altar.

This journey propels us forward, yet it also demands that we continue to preserve our historical memory, in order to draw inspiration from the witnesses of the past. This year the Assyrian Church of the East, together with the Chaldean Church, celebrates the seven-hundredth anniversary of the death of Abdisho bar Berika, Metropolitan of Nisibis, one of the most famous authors of the Syro-Oriental tradition. His works, particularly in the area of canon law, are still fundamental texts of your Church. I rejoice that Your Holiness and the distinguished Members of your Delegation are taking part in the international colloquium organized on this occasion by the Pontifical Oriental Institute. May the study of this great theologian help to make better known the richness of the Syriac tradition and to receive it as a gift for the entire Church.

Your Holiness, dear brother, with affection I wish to express my gratitude for your visit and for the gift of being able to pray together for one another today, making our own the prayer of the Lord: “that they may all be one… so that the world may believe” (Jn 17:21).

Common Statement of Pope Francis and Catholicos-Patriarch Mar Gewargis III

1. Praising the Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we, Pope Francis and Catholicos Patriarch Mar Gewargis III, raise our minds and hearts in thanksgiving to the Almighty for the increasing closeness in faith and love between the Assyrian Church of the East and the Catholic Church. Our meeting today as brothers echoes the words of the blessed Apostle Paul: “Peace be to the brothers, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph 6:23).

2. In recent decades, our Churches have grown closer together than they have ever been over the centuries. From the time of their first meeting in Rome in 1984, our Predecessors of blessed memory, Pope Saint John Paul II and Catholicos Patriarch Mar Dinkha IV, embarked on a journey of dialogue. We are most grateful for the fruits of this dialogue of love and truth, which confirm that a diversity of customs and disciplines is in no way an obstacle to unity and that certain differences in theological expressions are often complementary rather than conflicting. It is our prayerful hope that our theological dialogue may help us to smooth the path to the long-awaited day when we will be able to celebrate together the Lord’s sacrifice on the same altar. In the meantime, we intend to move forward in mutual recognition and shared witness to the Gospel. Our common Baptism is the solid foundation of the real communion that already exists between us: “in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Cor12:13). Walking together in trust, we seek the charity that “binds everything together in perfect harmony” (Col 3:14).

3. On our pilgrimage towards visible unity, we experience a common suffering, arising from the dramatic situation of our Christian brothers and sisters in the Middle East, especially in Iraq and Syria. The significance of the Christian presence and mission in the Middle East was once more clearly highlighted at the Day of Prayer and Reflection held in Bari on 7 July 2018, when the Heads of Churches and Christian communities of the Middle East gathered to pray and speak with one another. The Good News of Jesus, crucified and risen out of love, came from the Middle East and has won over human hearts down the centuries, due not to worldly power but the unarmed power of the Cross. Yet for decades now, the Middle East has been an epicenter of violence where entire populations endure grievous trials every day. Hundreds of thousands of innocent men, women, and children suffer immensely from violent conflicts that nothing can justify. Wars and persecutions have increased the exodus of Christians from lands where they have lived side by side with other religious communities since the time of the Apostles. Without distinction of rite or confession, they suffer for professing the name of Christ. In them, we see the Body of Christ which, today too, is afflicted, beaten and reviled. We are profoundly united in our prayer of intercession and in our charitable outreach to these suffering members of Christ’s body.

4. Amid such suffering, whose immediate end we implore, we continue to see brothers and sisters who tread the way of the cross, meekly following in Christ’s footsteps, in union with him who reconciled us by his cross “and thus put hostility to death in himself” (cf. Eph 2:14-16). We are grateful to these brothers and sisters of ours, who inspire us to follow the path of Jesus in order to defeat enmity. We are grateful to them for the witness they give to the Kingdom of God by the fraternal relationships existing among their various communities. Just as the blood of Christ, shed out of love, brought reconciliation and unity, and caused the Church to flourish, so the blood of these martyrs of our time, members of various Churches but united by their shared suffering, is the seed of Christian unity.

5. In the face of this situation, we stand together with our persecuted brothers and sisters, to be a voice for the voiceless. Together we will do all we can to alleviate their suffering and help them to find ways to start a new life. We wish to affirm yet again that it is not possible to imagine the Middle East without Christians. This conviction is founded not simply on religious grounds, but also on social and cultural realities, since Christians, with other believers, greatly contribute to the specific identity of the region: a place of tolerance, mutual respect, and acceptance. The Middle East without Christians would no longer be the Middle East.

6. Convinced that Christians will remain in the region only if peace is restored, we lift up our earnest prayers to Christ, the Prince of Peace, asking for the return of that essential “fruit of justice” (cf. Is 32:17). A truce maintained by walls and displays of power will not lead to peace since genuine peace can only be attained and preserved through mutual listening and dialogue. We, therefore, call once again upon the International Community to implement a political solution that recognizes the rights and duties of all parties involved. We are convinced of the need to guarantee the rights of every person. The primacy of law, including respect for religious freedom and equality before the law, based on the principle of “citizenship”, regardless of ethnic origin or religion, is a fundamental principle for the establishment and preservation of a stable and productive coexistence among the peoples and communities of the Middle East. Christians do not want to be considered a “protected minority” or a tolerated group, but full citizens whose rights are guaranteed and defended, together with those of all other citizens.

7. Finally, we reaffirm that the more difficult the situation, the more necessary is interreligious dialogue grounded in an attitude of openness, truth, and love. Such dialogue is also the best antidote to extremism, which is a threat to the followers of every religion.

8. As we meet here in Rome, we pray together to the Apostles Peter and Paul that through their intercession God may bestow his abundant blessings on the Christians of the Middle East. We ask the Most Holy Trinity, model of true unity in diversity, to strengthen our hearts so that we may respond to the Lord’s call that his disciples be one in Christ (cf. Jn 17:21). May the Almighty who has begun this good work in us bring it to completion in Christ Jesus (cf. Phil 1:6).

From the Vatican, 9 November 2018

© Libreria Editrice VaticanNOVEMBER 09, 2018 16:05

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