KOCHI: In the backdrop of the recent observations made by the Kerala High Court on the Malankara Church dispute, the Jacobite Syrian Church said on Saturday that they would not agree on any reconciliation by sacrificing their beliefs and allegiance to the Patriarch of Antioch.
The statement was made after the working and managing committee of the Church, led by Metropolitan Trustee Mar Joseph Gregorios, met at the headquarters in Puthencruz near here. Recent issues faced by the Church were also discussed.
The meeting resolved that the Jacobite Church was not ready to accept any unification or compromise sacrificing its true faith or allegiance to The Throne of St Peter in Antioch, irrespective of the hardships they may have to face.
Recently, Justice Devan Ramachandran of the High Court, while hearing petitions regarding the dispute, sought to know who benefits from the continuing fight between the Orthodox and Jacobite factions. The court has repeatedly called for an end to the feud, asking the leaders of the factions to resolve the dispute in accordance with the 2017 Supreme Court verdict that upheld the 1934 constitution of the Church. The verdict had said there is only one constitution for the Malankara Church and, hence, different factions cannot be recognised.
“The SC bench in 1958, 1995, and 2017 had clearly stated that Patriarch is the head of the Church and Malankara Church is part of the global Syrian Church,” said Mar Gregorios.
‘Court shouldn’t turn blind eye towards us’
“It also says that Catholicos comes under the Patriarch. The refusal of the Orthodox faction to accept that the Malankara Church is not an autocephalous Church and that their apostolic descent arises from the Throne of St Peter in place of the Throne of St Thomas, which is only decorative, is the reason for the dispute remaining unresolved,” said Mar Gregorios.
“The court should not turn a blind eye towards those faithful who have not changed or sacrificed their beliefs when around 58 parishes belonging to the Jacobite Church were taken by Orthodox faction forcibly,” said Mar Gregorios.
The meeting requested that the court judgments should be implemented keeping in mind the freedom and rights given by the Supreme Court to individual parishes, the religious freedom guaranteed to each individual by the Constitution of India, human rights of the faithful and due democratic process. Also, the committee has decided to recommend the episcopal synod to elect a Catholicos-designate to assist the current Catholicos, who is facing age-related issues.