Syro-Malabar Catholic Church
The Syro -Malabar Church is an Eastern Church united with Rome in India. It is attributable to the Thomas Christians and embodies their tribe Church.
- 4.1 Organization chart
Name
The wording is latter day and should:
Presence
It is a rite church ( ecclesia sui iuris " Church in its own right " ) with approximately 3.8 million members and is mainly in the Indian state of Kerala, but also in the Indian dioceses Bangalore, Delhi and Madras - Mylapore, as well as the United States, Canada, Europe and the Gulf region spreads. The Syro -Malabar Church is historic, but not canonically the Indian branch of the Uniate Chaldean Catholic Church with ostsyrischem rite.
The non- united with Rome branch of the Thomas Christians of the East Syrian Rite is the Metropolis of Malabar and India Assyrian Church of the East. It is also known under the name " Chaldean Syrian Church of the East " locally. Your former division into supporters of the Catholicos - Patriarch Mar Shimun XXIII. and Altkalendarier under the ( counter-) Patriarch Mar Addai II Mar Thomas Darmo and was Catholicos Patriarch Mar Dinkha IV healed.
In addition to the Syro - Malabar Church there is in southern India six more churches in the Syriac liturgical tradition, including the autocephalous Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church (also Indian Orthodox Church), the Malankara Syrian Orthodox Church, the latter a branch of the Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch and the Syro - Malankara Catholic Church, all with westsyrischem rite, as well as the Mar Thoma Church, a Eastern Church in communion of faith and communion with the Anglican Church (see Christian denominations in Kerala ).
History
Early Christianity
The roots of the Syro -Malabar Church go back to the Apostle Thomas, the Jerusalem 40 AD should have left in the year, and - after being in the years 42-49, the peoples of the Middle East ( present-day Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Balochistan ) had evangelized - according to legend, came to India in the year 53. The Indian Christian Church could thus be older than most European. According to tradition, Thomas traveled 53-60 along the southwest coast of India (then Malabar, now the state of Kerala ) and finally came to Madras, where he was hit by a spear fatal. His grave is there still revered today. The way he founded Christian churches consider him to this day as their founder and spiritual father and call themselves "Daughters of St.. Thomas " (so-called Thomas Christians ). The term " Syro -Malabar Church " was very late. It was used in official documents of the Holy See, when it began in the late 19th century to appoint local bishops.
Development for independent church
When located outside the Roman Empire Church these Indian Christians had for centuries no contact with the Roman Church and developed their own authentic rite, which was Syrian- Chaldean by the subsequent communion with the Catholicos of the " Apostolic Church of the East " in Seleucia- Ctesiphon (→ Assyrian Church of the East).
Since the eighth century, the Thomas Christians of India had their own metropolitans, who stood in the ranking of the Syro- Chaldean Church in tenth place. Since the metropolitans were sent from the mother church to India and the local language is not or hardly dominated, they had in fact only as a kind of " Bishop ". The actual church leadership was responsible until the arrival of the Portuguese the " archdeacon of India", a local priest from Malabar.
The Knananiten
Around the middle of the 4th century attracted 72 families Chaldean Jewish Christians with their leader, the rich merchant Thomas Kinayi ( Kana ) from their home in Cana of Galilee south to Malabar. Through them and their bishops who followed the East Syrian ( Chaldean ) rite, the Thomas Christians came in contact with the Chaldean Church.
Cheraman Perumal, the ruler of Malabar, the immigrants took kindly, and granted them the right to settle in Kodungallur. Later they received royal privileges that were recorded on copper plates. Since they settled on the south bank of the river Periyar, they were also called Südchristen ( "South ITR " ), while the native Christians who lived on the north shore when North Christians ( " North ISTS " ) are referred to. This distinction in North and Südchristen still exists today. Living in their own exclusive Eparchy of Kottayam Südchristen who call themselves since about 1990 Knananiten, form a strictly endogamous group within the Syro -Malabar Church.
There are today in India about 300,000 knananitische Christians; 200,000 belong to the Syro -Malabar Church, 100,000 for the Syrian Orthodox Church. In both churches the Knananiten form a strictly endogamous ethnic group with their own bishops and clergy private. This endogamy goes so far that a Syro- Malabar Knananite can marry an Orthodox Knananitin, but never a non- knananitische members of their own Syro- Malabar Church. In order to keep their ethnic grouping pure, proselytize and evangelize the Knanatiten not - although the actually contradicts the Christian mission. It is not possible to become members of their community through conversion or accession.
On August 29, 1911, the Apostolic Vicariate of Kottayam in which the Knananiten live, again built by Pius X with the apostolic letter In Universi Christiani as an exclusive for the Vicariate Knananiten after 1896 was merged into the Vicariate of Changanassery under a knananitischen bishop, and December 21, 1923 Pius XI. the eparchy ( diocese ) levied. On 9 May 2005, the Eparchy of Kottayam was raised to the archdiocese.
Heteronomy by Portuguese conquerors
When in the middle of the 16th century, the Jesuit missionary Francisco de Xavier ( 1506-1552 ) on the trail of searching for new trade routes Portuguese came to India, he found to his great surprise there a Christian church before. Although the Portuguese were very pleased to be found Christians in India, and were welcomed by the Thomas Christians as brothers, now the centuries-long period of foreign rule and the violent Latinization, the Indian church split which resulted in several groups began.
The Portuguese built from 1534 in India own Roman Catholic Church organization also deployed mission work among the indigenous non-Christians. The new dioceses were under the Padroado the Portuguese crown, and not directly to the Pope in Rome. 1558 was Goa archdiocese with Cochin in Malabar suffragan. After the canonical rule that no two bishops may officiate next to each other on the same territory, the rights of the Eastern Church hierarchy were limited. Soon followed efforts by occidental pattern to "reform" the local Church of the Thomas Christians and bring organizationally under European sovereignty. The Portuguese also questionable means not shied away from its use.
After the death of the last Chaldean Catholic Archbishop of Angamaly, Mar Abraham † 1597, Rome 1599 Francis Roz SJ appointed successor to Abraham in Angamaly, which downgraded on 20 December 1599 Diocese and Goa and was then also the Padroado. F. Roz moved seat and title of his bishopric after 1609 Cranganore, which was subsequently treated as an ordinary Roman Catholic bishopric.
Legitimized by the Padroado system and military force that did not stop before Bishop kidnappings and naval blockades, the Portuguese colonizers, the Thomas Christians began under Roman, ie Portuguese to bring sovereignty. When the last bishop appointed by the patriarch of the Chaldean Syrian Eastern Church, Mar Abraham, died in 1597, reinforced the Portuguese handle to Malabar. The Latin Archbishop of Goa, Dom Menezes ( term of office 1595-1610 ), who was also political leaders, as representatives of the Portuguese viceroy, had prior authorization Pope Clement VIII, ' took over ' the Thomas church, put a Vicar Apostolic, and placed them by force the Latin hierarchy (→ Synod of Diamper, June 20, 1599).
In the following centuries were second only to Rome Goa or appointed foreign, mostly Jesuit, used bishops, who cared little about the local traditions. The Padroado missionaries did not allow that again a Syro- Chaldean bishop stepped into Indian soil.
Splitting and reunification with Rome
The insinuation of the Thomas Christians under the supremacy of the Vatican, which was reflected in an extensive Romanization and the contempt of their Eastern Church traditions, finally led to a break with Rome. With the oath from the Leaning Cross ( Coonan Cross) vowed 1653 a group of Thomas Christians to the Archdeacon Thomas Palakomatta in Mattancherry in Cochin, never again tolerate a Portuguese bishop over them. Twelve priests consecrated in a " Notbischofsweihe " the Archdeacon Thomas as Palakomatta Mar Thomas I archbishop. The majority of the Thomas Christians joined the new metropolitans and left the Latin archbishop. The Oath of the Leaning Cross is the beginning of the split in the Indian Christians into different groups and churches that still exists today. A large part of the Thomas Christians came in 1662, after Pope Alexander VII had sent Italian Carmelites to reconciliation, back to the Roman Church and became the present Syro -Malabar Catholic Church. The Diocese Cranganore (formerly Angamaly ) was assumed under most Latin Apostolic Vicars to the jurisdiction of the Congregation De Propaganda Fide; 1917 transferred the responsibility for the newly founded Congregation for Eastern Churches. 1896 received the Malabars by Pope Leo XIII. local bishops. 1923 Annual Syro -Malabar hierarchy was built with archbishop Augustine Kandathil as Metropolitan.
The remaining in schism with Rome Christians joined in 1665 the Syrian Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and took over the westsyrische liturgy. Two bishops of the Syrian Orthodox Christians of St. Thomas, Mar Ivanios and Mar Theophilos, changed in 1930 with their followers to the Roman Catholic Church. Two other bishops followed. This group forms the Syro- Malankara Church today.
Organization and Structure
The Syro -Malabar Church is a " church in its own right " ( ecclesia sui iuris ). At their head stood until 1992 equal the two Archbishops of Ernakulam and Changanacherry. Since 1993, the Major Archbishop of Ernakulam- Angamaly of the Church is facing. She has five archdioceses and dioceses ten, also twelve dioceses outside Kerala, one of which was established in March 2001 in North America (St. Thomas of Chicago ), the only diocese outside India in the state of Kerala. There are eight Syro -Malabar Mission Churches in the United States and one in Canada.
The Major Archbishop has the eparchies ( dioceses ) outside his own area only a very limited power of governance. They are assigned to neighboring Latin Metropolitanates; only the Eparchy Chicago reports directly to the Holy See. Your bishops are full members of the Syro -Malabar Bishops' Synod, although their decisions - except those to liturgical issues - are not binding on them.
In the dioceses and archdioceses your Area and the eparchies Kalyan and St. Thomas in Chicago, the bishop has, for whatever rite they belong only the power of governance over the Syro -Malabar Christians, as the bishops of the other dioceses have the full line authority over all Catholics.
With the award of the title of a Großerzbistums to the syromalabarische faith community in 1992, the Holy See had reserved the right to the jurisdiction with respect to the liturgy and the appointment of bishops. After the jurisdiction in the area of liturgy had been transferred to the Syro -Malabar Church in 1998, the prefect of the papal Congregation for Eastern Churches, Cardinal Ignatius Moussa I Daoud, the Syro -Malabar Major Archbishop announced on the edge of the meeting of the Indian bishops in Thrissur ( Kerala ) in January 2004 that the Synod of the Syro-Malabar bishops will in future also be able to autonomously decide on the appointment of their own bishops and the establishment and dissolution of eparchies ( dioceses ) in their own territory.
Thus, the Synod will decide from now on with a majority vote on liturgical questions and the selection of bishops, after adequate evaluation under different candidates for the episcopate. The names of the bishops will then submit to the Pope for approval.
As regards the territorial jurisdiction of India, the Congregation has reserved the right to the establishment of new dioceses outside the state of Kerala. This is intended to protect the relationship between the three different existing in India rites (Latin rite, Syro- Malabar Rite and Syro- malankarischer rite ).
Organizational scheme
(in brackets the year of establishment )
Ernakulam- Angamaly Großerzbistum (1993 )
- Metropolie Changanasserry (1896 ) with the eparchies: Kanjirapally (1977 )
- Pala (1950 )
- Thuckalay (1996 )
- Kothamangalam (1956 )
- Idukki (2003)
- Belthangady (1999)
- Mananthavady (1973 )
- Thamarassery (1986 )
- Irinjalakuda (1978 )
- Palakkad (1973 )
- Adilabad (1999)
- Bijnor (1972 )
- Chanda (1962 )
- Faridabad (2012 )
- Gorakhpur (1984 )
- Jagdalpur (1972 )
- Kalyan (1988 )
- Rajikot (1977 )
- Sagar (1968 )
- Satna (1968 )
- Ujjain (1968 )
- Chicago, United States ( 2001)
- Melbourne, Australia ( 2014)
Statistics
The Syro -Malabar Church has worldwide about 3.8 million members in approximately 2,800 municipalities, 26 dioceses and archdioceses four. Its membership includes about 6600 priests, of which 3,600 religious priests. There are 39 Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life Syro -Malabar origin for men and nine for women, with over 34,000 members ( 30 843 women, 3,925 men); also about 2,200 seminarians in 45 seminars.
The syromalabarische rite
The syromalabarische rite belongs next to the Syromalankar and the Roman rite of the three rites of the Catholic church in India. He belongs to the Chaldean rite family and is deeply rooted in Indian culture, which, for example, at marriage, shows the anointing of the sick and the connected with the birth and death rites, as well as the architecture of the churches. The Syro -Malabar Church has retained a particularly rich with ritual gestures and customs, which also include folkloric dances ( " Magram Kali" ), which represent the evangelization.
In 1934 Pope Pius XI initiated. a process which should lead back to its Oriental origins, the now largely Latinized rites. A restored from the original sources Syrian Liturgy of Pius XII. Confirmed in 1957 and introduced in 1962. Although the main features of this liturgical reform were confirmed by the papal Congregation for Eastern Churches in 1985 again, there is still great resistance against it. Most of the Syro-Malabar dioceses undergo a rite that is almost indistinguishable to outsiders by the Roman. In 1996, Pope John Paul II at the opening ceremony of a Synod of Bishops in part, convened for the purpose of the decades- long dispute between the " Roman " and " Oriental " to overcome fractions of the Syro -Malabar Church last. Since 1998, the Syro-Malabar bishops have full authority in all matters of liturgy and rites.
Until 1968, only the Eastern dialect of the Syriac language ( Swadaya ) was used in the liturgy, which is why the church is called " Syrian " Church. The up in the middle of the 19th century, traditional orally and in manuscripts lyrics have since been used in printed form. In 1968, the Holy Mass was celebrated for the first time in Malayalam, the local language of Kerala state. Syrischsprachige songs in stanzas and with specified melodies are still sung by choirs, consisting traditionally all-male.
Importance
The Syro -Malabar Church is not only - according to the Ukrainian Church - the second largest of the 21 united with Rome Eastern Catholic churches, it is also one of the most active and most vital Catholic churches around the world.
A special feature of this church are the many priestly and religious vocations: 6,000 diocesan priests, 30,000 sisters and thousands of religious priests and lay brothers are from the Syro -Malabar Church and are active in dioceses and congregations of the Latin rite, so that around 70% of all priests ( world and religious) and sisters in India ( 17 million Christians originally belong to this church at around 1 billion inhabitants).
The church maintains several hundred schools and colleges, more than a thousand kindergartens and a few hundred training and continuing education centers.