KOCHI: Marking a new chapter in the history of the Jacobite Syrian Church, the Patriarch of Antioch, Moran Mor Ignatius Aphrem II, will in a two-day ceremony from November 12 consecrate the Holy Mooron (Myron) at St Athanasious Cathedral in Puthencruz.
The ritual returns to the Church after 22 years, said Kuriakose Mor Theophilos, metropolitan of Thiruvananthapuram region. “The Mooron was last consecrated on November 25, 2004, by Patriarch Ignatius Zakka I and co-officiated by the then Catholicos Mor Baselios Thomas I at Kothamangalam Marthoman Cheriapally,” he told TNIE.
Mor Aphrem II will be on a state visit from November 11 to 16. It’s a double celebration for the church, said Mor Theophilos. “It will be an occasion to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the first Holy Mooron consecration in Keralam and the 150th anniversary of the Mulanthuruthy Synod.”
A specially arranged Beth Gazo room to house the liturgical book of Syriac chants and melodies was dedicated at the Patriarchal Centre in Puthencruz as part of the preparations.
According to the bishop, the first Holy Mooron consecration in the state was on December 10, 1876, at Mulanthuruthy church.
The Catholicos and supreme head of the Jacobite Church, Aboon Mor Baselios Joseph, will co-officiate next week’s ceremony, which will also be attended by other bishops of the church. Only the patriarch has the authority to officiate the Holy Mooron consecration in the Jacobite Church, said Mor Theophilos. “In the absence of the patriarch, only the person designated by him can conduct the ritual,” he added.