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India's Malankara rite gets two new dioceses

The decision by Pope Francis aims to heal tensions between Latin and Eastern rites
India's Malankara rite gets two new dioceses
Published: March 27, 2015 08:27 AM GMT
Updated: March 26, 2015 10:51 PM GMT

Pope Francis on Thursday established two new dioceses in India, giving more powers to an Eastern rite Church in a move that many see would pave the way to ending a centuries-old inter-rite rivalry.

The Eastern rite Syro-Malankara Church, based in southern Kerala state, will have a new diocese in Gurgaon near New Delhi for the pastoral care of its people in northern India and another diocese near the western city of Pune for those in southern India but not in Kerala, Church officials announced on Thursday.

"With this, Pope Francis has granted all India jurisdiction” for the Church and now "we can establish parishes and administrative systems wherever we need in India," Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, the major archbishop of the Church told ucanews.com Friday.

The new move "shows that theoretically and theologically there are no objections to establish" all India jurisdictions for Oriental rites for the pastoral care their people and mission work, Cardinal Cleemis said.

He added that the move would help the larger Oriental rite of Syro-Malabar Church, which still does not have these powers, to attain them faster and thereby end the friction that has marked relations between the Catholic rites in India for long.

Until now, the Latin rite bishops, who form a majority, have resisted granting the Eastern rites the ability to establish dioceses in their territories on the grounds that two Catholic dioceses in one geographical area could be divisive. 

The oriental rites trace their faith to St Thomas the apostle and follow the liturgy of the Eastern Churches.

European missioners, who began to arrive in India in the 16th century, introduced the Latin rite. Suspicion and rivalry have marked their relations since that time, affecting Church administration in the country.

Ever since the Second Vatican Council, the Eastern rite churches have been asserting their right to establish parishes and dioceses across India for evangelization work, and have faced resistance.

"The situation is certainly much better. There is much love and understanding now," said Cardinal Oswald Gracias of Bombay, the head of the Latin rite bishops' conference.

He also expressed hope that the granting of more powers to the Malankara Church would help "improve relations" and augment mission activities in India.

However he said: "No one can predict future. If we face problems, we will seek solutions in a collaborative manner."

Cardinal George Alencherry, major archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Church, also welcomed the move.

"All India jurisdiction for the Oriental churches is something that is long overdue," he said.

He added, however, that he could not comment on the jurisdictional matters as he has not seen the documents from Rome about the exact nature of the new dioceses.

His Church, the oldest in India, still does not have "all India jurisdiction" although it was allowed to set up dioceses outside Kerala since 1972.

Cardinal Cleemis' said the case of the five million-strong Malabar Church has been delayed perhaps “because it needs more space and time for discussions with others involved…because they have larger communities across India" living in Latin rite territories.

The Malankara Church, he added, came to Catholic fold from a Jacobite faction in 1930 and has only 500,000 Catholics, mostly in Kerala.

"It is easy for us to have discussions and find solutions because we have only small groups," he said.

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