SEIA NEWSLETTER On the Eastern Churches and Ecumenism _______________________________________________________________________________________ Number 187: April 30, 2011 Washington, DC Death of the Major Archbishop of state. "I was deeply saddened to hear of the the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church The Syro-Malabar Church, an Eastern death of Cardinal Varkey Vithayathil, Ma- Catholic Church, traces its origin to St. jor Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly. I Thomas the Apostle. The Vatican made the offer you, the clergy, religious and lay faith- HURCH LEADERS ARE MOURNING Syro-Malabar Church self-governing in ful of the entire Syro-Malabar Church my THE DEATH OF CARDINAL VARKEY 1992, but retained the right to decide on deepest condolences and the assurance of CVITHAYATHIL , HEAD OF THE SYRO - administrative matters for Syro-Malabar my prayers. I recall with gratitude the car- MALABAR CATHOLIC CHURCH . dioceses outside Kerala. dinal's dedication and service to the Syro- The cardinal, who headed the Syro- The late cardinal was ordained major Malabars and to the universal Church. I Malabar Archdiocese of Ernakulam- archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Church in join you and all who mourn him, including Angamaly, collapsed while celebrating 1997, when the Eastern church was divided the members of the late cardinal's family, in Mass April 1 and was rushed to a nearby over its liturgical patrimony and the bi- commending his soul to the infinite mercy hospital, where he died, reported the Asian shops were divided into two camps. of God our loving Father. To all assembled church news agency UCA News. The 84- In 2006, the cardinal reiterated his call for the solemn funeral liturgy, I cordially year-old prelate had suffered from heart for more rights for Syro-Malabar Catholics. impart my apostolic blessing as a pledge of problems. He said thousands of Syro-Malabar Catho- consolation and strength in the Lord.” – His funeral was scheduled for after lics who live outside their church jurisdic- VIS , April 1. April 10 because most Syro-Malabar bi- tions "have no parish, church or institu- shops were in Rome for their "ad limina" tions" and have followed "the Latin tradi- The Eastern Orthodox Churches visits, in which they report on the status of tions for more than 50 years." their dioceses. Cardinal Vithayathil was ordained a Auxiliary Bishop Bosco Puthur of Er- Redemptorist priest in 1954. He taught for N FRIDAY , APRIL THE 1ST , HIS nakulam-Angamaly will take over as ad- 25 years at the Redemptorist seminary and HOLINESS MORAN MOR IGNATIUS ministrator of the Syro-Malabar Church and several other seminaries in Bangalore. OZAKKA I IWAS , SYRIAN ORTHODOX must convene a synod, which will elect a He was elected provincial of Redemp- PATRIARCH OF ANTIOCH AND ALL THE new major archbishop. torists in India and Sri Lanka in 1978, a EAST , PAID A VISIT TO THE ECUMENICAL Mumbai Cardinal Oswald Gracias, post he held for six years. He was also pres- PATRIARCH , HIS HOLINESS BARTHOLO - president of the Catholic Bishops' Confe- ident of the Conference of Religious India, MEW I, AT HIS RESIDENCE IN FANAR , ISTAN - rence of India, praised Cardinal Vithayathil the national body of India's religious major BUL , TURKEY . The Patriarch of Antioch as a "great missionary and exemplary superiors. was accompanied by their Eminences the priest, who contributed a lot to the growth Pope John Paul II made him a cardinal Prelates of Aleppo, Syria, Tur’Abdin and of the church in India and the Syro-Malabar in 2001. His death leaves the College of Istanbul in Turkey, as well as the Patriar- Church." Cardinals with 200 members, 116 of whom chal Assistant and Secretary in addition to a "He was a man of deep faith who was are under 80. number of lay people from Turkey. loyal to the church. He worked strenuously Of India's more than 1 billion people, His Holiness was welcomed warmly by for the good of the church even in his ill- 2.3 percent are Christian and about 1.6 His Holiness the Ecumenical Patriarch. ness," said Cardinal Gracias. He also was percent are Catholic. The Catholic Church Patriarch Zakka thanked the Lord for allow- "an effective administrator who took bold has 161 dioceses in India; 128 of them are ing this meeting to take place and explained decisions for the good of the church in In- Latin rite, 27 belong to the Syro-Malabar to his brother, His Holiness Bartholomew I, dia." Catholic Church and six dioceses belong to the love and prayers of the Church of Anti- Major Archbishop Baselios Cleemis the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church. – och to the Church of Constantinople. He Thottunkal of Trivandrum, head of the Sy- CNS , April 1. then went on to explain the reasons and ro-Malankara Catholic Church, said Car- results of visiting the Prime Minister and dinal Vithayathil worked to unify India's HE HOLY FATHER HAS SENT A the President of Turkey, in Ankara. three Catholic churches of different rites. TELEGRAM TO BISHOP BOSCO A discussion about the importance of The deceased cardinal provided "a PUTHUR OF THE MAJOR ARCHIEPIS - dialogue between the Eastern Orthodox and mature leadership" to the Indian church T the Oriental Orthodox Churches took place, COPAL CURIA OF ERNAKULAM -ANGAMALY when he was president of the Catholic Bi- OF THE SYRO -MALABARS , INDIA , FOR THE for which His Holiness, Bartholomew I shops' Conference of India, 2008-2010, the DEATH AT THE AGE OF 83 OF CARDINAL assured our Patriarch Mor Zakka Iwas I, of archbishop said. The cardinal also played VARKEY VITHAYATHIL C.SS.R., Major his personal commitment and encourage- an active role in public issues of Kerala Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly. ment to pursue the dialogue The two Patriarchs then discussed after only three days. These disagreements people, and we needn’t train clerics for so world events, and specially the current situ- now appear to block the continuation of few people. They say we may ‘import’ cler- ation in the Middle East and particularly the Constantinople's preparatory process for its ics from abroad. However, they should conditions in Syria. Our Patriarch requested long-desired Council. -- Mark Stokoe for know that the Greek Orthodox Patriarch is his host to keep Syria in his prayers. Orthodox News , April 27. the most senior among Orthodox churches After the meeting, His Holiness Pa- in the world. This is why he was granted triarch Zakka, paid a visit to the Fanar Pa- HE SPOKESPERSON OF THE GREEK the ecumenical title. We also have follow- triarchal Cathedral, and offered prayers at ORTHODOX PATRIARCHATE , ers outside of Đstanbul, including in North the holy relics of the two Church Fathers, TFATHER DOSITHEOS ANA ĞNOS - and South America and some parts of Eu- Saint John Chrysostom (407 A.D.) and TOPULOS , HAS SAID TURKISH PRIME MINIS - rope, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zeal- Saint Gregory the Theologian (390 A.D.) TER RECEP TAYYIP ERDO ĞAN SAVED THE and. Their priests and archbishops are ap- Both Saints were Patriarchs of Constanti- FUTURE OF THE PATRIARCHATE by offering pointed by our Patriarch. And for their ap- nople. His Holiness, Patriarch Zakka I was Turkish citizenship to a number of archbi- pointment, it is a must for candidates to greatly moved by seeing these relics for the shops in 2009. have graduated from a seminary,” he stated. first time, since they were brought from In an interview with the Star daily, Ana ğnostopulos also said the re- Rome to Constantinople (Istanbul) on the Ana ğnostopulos said there were 12 archbi- opening of the Halki Seminary would not 22nd of November, 2004. – Syrian Ortho- shops on the Patriarchate's Spiritual Board run contrary to the Treaty of Lausanne. He dox Archdiocese of the Eastern United at the time. “Most of [those archbishops] also ruled out fears that the “Byzantine spi- States, April 2. are very old. In order to become a member rit” would be revived if the seminary is re- of this board, one has to be a Turkish citi- opened. HE ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH zen. If the Patriarch dies one day, it seemed “Some fear that it will go against the ANNOUNCED ON APRIL 21 ST HIS unlikely that a new Patriarch would be principles of the Republic of Turkey if the TINTENTION TO CONVENE A SUMMIT elected from the board [due to the mem- Patriarchate is a very strong institution. ("S YNAXIS ") OF SOME PRIMATES OF THE bers' age]. This danger has now passed. This is wrong. The Republic of Turkey has ORTHODOX CHURCHES . According to re- The prime minister attended a luncheon on a secular character. Every religious group ports the Patriarch sent a letter to the Pa- Büyükada in August 2009 … and said the has the right to continue its activities pro- triarchs of Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusa- problem with the Spiritual Board will be vided they are not engaged in politics. It is lem, as well as the Primate of the Church of overcome if archbishops applied to become now a fact that the closing down of the Hal- Cyprus inviting them to gather to examine Turkish citizens. He assured us that appli- ki Seminary was not legal. I personally "the unstable political situation" in the cants would be granted citizenship,” the believe that the seminary was used as a Middle East, as well as address a series of spokesperson stated. trump card in the Cyprus issue and was "general questions concerning inter- Ana ğnostopulos defined the prime eventually shut down,” he noted. – Today’s Orthodox relations.” The meeting is to take minister's remarks as the “most positive Zaman , April 11. place on August 31 -September 1, 2011at moment in his lifetime.” “After the prime the Phanar, the seat of the Ecumenical Pa- minister's call, 27 of 35 archbishops abroad HE COLORADO STATE SENATE AND triarchate in Istanbul.