Bishop Thattil verses Ahmadabad laity – another war for justice on the go!

Note: The story of laity uprise in Syro Malabar Church has a history of 25 long years. With the coming of Social Media, it has regained its strength and is now strangling the clergy from all angles. It all began as the hierarchy took over complete control of all physical possessions of the entire community, declared a clergy-managed system in the disguise of maintaining a distinct culture and tradition, introduced the Manechaen cross as the sign of the Eparchy, pressed in unnecessary rituals and above all accepted collection and luxury as its central theme. 

As Syro-Malabar Church pushed into new pastors, the faithful also began to unite against it. Loud cries are now heard from USA, UK, Australia, Europe and almost all other places. Outside Kerala, Syro-Malabar Catholics lived as part of the culture, accepting the social practises of the place in which they were. 

Out side Inida, the new division SM Church has created is likely to end up in racial clashes in the future. The new SM dioceses were opposed in Chennai, Kalyan, Delhi, Ahmedabad….. There was not a place without a protest voice. When Faridabd diocese was introduced in Delhi, people rose up. It ended up smoothly thanks to the Vatican interpretation of the existing Canon laws. It was clear that SM authorities were missinterpreting the Canon to their pleasure. The same is the issue in Ahmedabad too. The majority of the community there wants to continue with the Latin parishes there, while Bishop Thattil insists on an unopposed kingdom under him.

This open letter will tell you what it is all about. Unless the Bishops decide to serve justice to the community, it is sure to end up split in pieces …. it may not take too much time. That’s what we read. Kindly follow the open letter to Major Arch Bishop written by a Syro Malabar Church citizen – Joseph Mattappally asso. editor CCV. 


Read *AN OPEN LETTER TO CARDINAL GEORGE ALENCHERRY, SYRO-MALABAR MAJOR ARCHBISHOP* written by Sabu Joseph
Kuzhikattuserry

Your Eminence,

You are well aware of the recent letter of Cardinal Oswald Gracias about the pastoral care of the Syro-Malabar faithful in a multi ritual context of India. I am sure that immediately Mar Thattil might have brought it to your attention. He has also hastily retorted with an emotional and irrational reply! But I would like to bring to your earnest attention that it was a story of arrogance and ignorance of Mar Thattil.

We want that Your Eminence come to know that side of the story and look into the matter seriously. As you know, with the historical letter of the Holy Father to the Indian Church and the precedent Instruction to Faridabad, a new category of Syro-Malabar faithful has come to existence: by birth Syro-Malabar but members of the Latin parishes. (I am one of them in Ahmadabad, settled here for more than 30 years and practicing my faith in the nearby Latin parish where I came for the first time many years ago.) They are the “Syro-Malabar faithful, deprived of pastoral care in their own rite, (are) at present fully involved in the life of the Latin Church.” (no.😎. They (we) are part of the Syro-Malabar Church but at the same time members of the Latin Parish where we have domicile. Popes letter exhorts that “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.” In the Instruction by the Congregation for the Oriental Churches to the Eparchy of Faridabad, it is stated that “a member of the Syro-Malabar faithful, by virtue of the law itself, belongs to 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.😎

*BUT the All India Colonial Master Mar Thattil is crazy for “growth in power and domination”, instead of accepting it as a call to deeper communion” (no.9). In a letter dated 29 September 2018, the All India Thattil wrote to the Bishop of Ahmadabad Bishop Rathnaswami that “the priests of his diocese will not have any right to administer any sacraments and sacramental in public in the Syro-Malabar rite to the Syro-Malabar faithful in the Diocese of Ahmadabad”. Though Mar Thattil quotes no.8 of the letter, what he has written is just contrary to the content of that no.8. There is another letter dated 4 August 2018 (both in annex) whereby All India Thattil prohibits Fr. Kuriachan Paul and Fr. Binu George, both priests of Ahmedabad diocese, from administering any ”sacraments and sacramental in the Syro-Malabar rite!”.*

Your Eminence,

*Let me ask you, whether a sacramental like house blessing, funeral, praying over, etc. has “Rite”? While the Instruction from Rome to Faridabad clearly mentions about three sacraments ONLY (baptism, confirmation and marriage) that require a juridical endorsement from the “legitimate oriental pastor” why Mar Thattil is saying “All Sacraments”???*

Besides, if a Syro-Malabar faithful of the category mentioned above (staying at the Latin parish) needs a house blessing, a funeral, or even a Syro-Malabar Mass why should we get permission from the Oriental bishop or his priests here? We are part of the Latin parish, and if we need priests for such sacraments and sacramental, we can approach any Catholic priest for that.

If Mar Thattil’s order stands valid,

1. All Syro-Malabar priests serving in Latin diocese, should get his permission to do any Syro-Malabar “Sacrament or Sacramental”. But the letter of the Pope speaks only about three sacraments.

2. All Syro-Malabar nuns serving in Latin dioceses, should get his permission to bless a convent or any place.

3. Any Syro-Malabar faithfull who decided to stay back in the Latin parish should get his permission to go to any priests for confession.

Your Eminence, it is ridiculous and comes from a colonial concept of ALL INDIA Jurisdiction.

When a similar situation arose in Delhi, see how peacefully and diplomatically it was solved.

Your Eminence,

Please explain to this young bishop Thattil the meaning of what Pope writes in his letter no.9 dilatentur spatial caritatis (Sermon 69, PL 5, 440.441). May there be a growth in love, communion and service.

This is a golden opportunity to win and gather the hundreds of Syro-Malabar faithful in good terms with the mother Church. Please do not consider them as pagans and dissidents, but good Catholics who were constrained to attend the Latin sacraments and sacramental since there was no “oriental” services that time.

If Mar Thattil would approach us with a paternal approach giving away his arrogant and blind passion for tradition and antipathy towards the Latin Church, there will be peace and harmony among us.

This is the case of hundreds of Syro-Malabar faithful in all the cities of his ALL INDIA Jurisdiction. *As Pope Francis reminds us, evangelization should be with attraction and not by proselytization and force.*

Your Eminence,

The letter of the Holy Father extols the exemplary model of Faridabad, where the new Oriental Eparchy works had in hand with seven Latin dioceses. We are well informed of the peaceful ecclesial coexistence of Delhi. Instead of adopting something like that Mar Thattil has declared war on us and is vowed to excommunicate us. There is no wonder why our Cardinal, such an important personality in Rome, came up with such a rigorous statement. We are sure, he has consulted the Superiors in Rome before writing that.

Why doesn’t he learn from the example of prudent pastors like Mar Puthur in Australia and Mar Kalluvelil in Canada? There where there are no own priests they request the Syro Malabar priests to help them out. And there is a beautiful example of communion. But Mar Thattil prohibits the priests who are ready to help him!!!

*Mar Thattil is misguided by some young Turks, fanatic priests who consider that with the word “tradition” – which one is a question, Chaldean, Kerala or Indian? – ALL INDIA can be conquered. And Mar Thattil is dancing to their music. They have to learn a lot more the migrant sociology and psychology, more than liturgy. Look at this ALL INDIA bass. When he was in Trichur and since he became the ALL INDIA Master. If you want to know his real history please asks Sr. Jesmy and others. We have all those files in the archives.*

Sabu Joseph
Kuzhikattuserry


For ref. records in this regard kindly visit  http://almayasabdam.com/journals/  – editor.

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5 Responses

  1. Georgekutty Jose says:

    Let us remember that we are all Christians (also Catholic). In the history of Christianity divisions were always existed. This is because church is being administered in this world by humans. Let us be patient but do not submit to every whims and fancies of the clergy and listen to them. Let us go with Jesus with heads high enough to be noticed.

     

  2. George Nedumparambil says:

    Syro Malabar's ultimate objective appears to be to have their own papacy and cede from Rome. All these constructions spree would not make any sense unless they harbor such hidden agenda.  Otherwise, why build when they can use the Latins churches?  Unfortunately for them the land scam and other scandals appears to have come as a divinely ordained speedbreaker bolt from the blue.  .But the dream will remain as the self-proclaimed tigers of Kerala find themselves reduced to mere cats once out of India where the very group that was cats for them in Kerala  turns into tigers.  Deeply caste conscious, that they are, for the most part, knows well that there is no escape out of that situation other than to cede with HQ in Kerala – Edappally Church is standby as a pretender to St. Peter's.  

  3. Jose Paul says:

    When these red coats from Kerala start new dioceses, they have no love for Jesus, Christianity, Catholicism or spirituality. The only thing in their mind is money and power, wealth and authority. If they had any faith in Jesus or evangelisation, they should have gone to places where there are no Catholics, priests or churches and started their dioceses and should do great spiritual work. They come to places where there are already existing (Latin) dioceses, established catholic churches embracing people of all catholic rites as one family as the one and only one mystical body of Christ. These new dioceses create divisions in the Catholic Church and thereby tearing apart the mystical body of Christ. They start dividing the Church by teaching our children a  Syrian Catechism from what they were learning.earlier.. In oter words, according to their belief, there are two Jesus, one Latin Jesus and one Syrian Jesus. It is very pathetic that the so called shepards have lost their spiritual orientation in the glitter of worldly glamour, wealth and power.

  4. Fr. Sibi Mathew says:

    Great indeed…Church is of people nd for people…Priests nd bishops are for the Spiritual well-being of faithful..so the faithful are the ultimate decision makers…if the people do not benefit spiritually  then a bishop's leadership has much value ….keep going…no one above God…

    Fr. Sibi

  5. Andrews kalapura says:

    Mr sabu this blood sucking parasite is nick named musliyar methran of trichur. First advice our spineless boot licking goats to stop filling their coffers and licking theor rings.Totaly ignore these beggars who enjoy their luxurious life on the sweat of the laity. If we don't have the guts for that don't blame them for this is their bread and butter and living. Where were these beggars in the early days when the latin missionary did the hard struggle to establish christianity. So be brave and shun them come what may jesus christ lives inside us and not were these beggars say. Jaya bhai is a good example. Amen

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