List of Major Archbishops of Ernakulam-Angamaly
Encyclopedia
The Major Archbishop of Syro-Malabar Church is also the Archbishop of Archdiocese of Ernakulam-Angamaly in Ernakulam
, Kerala
, India
. The Major Archbishop
, a position equivalent to Patriarch
and locally called as the Kasolicos/Catholicos and Gate of All India , is the head of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church
.
The archdiocese was established in 1896, when the first archbishop was appointed. In 1923 the hierarchy of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church was established, and the then Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly was elevated to Major Archbishop and given the responsibility to lead the Syro-Malabar Church.
Ernakulam
Ernakulam refers to the downtown area or the western part of the mainland of Kochi city in Kerala, India. The city is the most urban part of Kochi and has lent its name to the Ernakulam district. Ernakulam is called the commercial capital of the state of Kerala and is a main nerve of business in...
, Kerala
Kerala
or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. The Major Archbishop
Major Archbishop
right|200 px|thumb|Archbishop [[Sviatoslav Shevchuk]], Major Archbishop of Kyiv-HalychIn the Eastern Catholic Churches, major archbishop is a title for an hierarch to whose archiepiscopal see is granted the same jurisdiction in his autonomous particular Church that an Eastern patriarch has in...
, a position equivalent to Patriarch
Patriarch
Originally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. The system of such rule of families by senior males is called patriarchy. This is a Greek word, a compound of πατριά , "lineage, descent", esp...
and locally called as the Kasolicos/Catholicos and Gate of All India , is the head of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church
Syro-Malabar Catholic Church
The Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in India is an East Syrian Rite, Major Archiepiscopal Church in full communion with the Catholic Church. It is one of the 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in the Catholic Church. It is the largest of the Saint Thomas Christian denominations with more than 3.6...
.
The archdiocese was established in 1896, when the first archbishop was appointed. In 1923 the hierarchy of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church was established, and the then Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly was elevated to Major Archbishop and given the responsibility to lead the Syro-Malabar Church.
Archbishops of Ernakulam-Angamaly
- Mar Aloysius Pazheparambil Archbishop (1896 – 1919)
- Mar Augustine Kandathil Archbishop (1919 – 1956)
- Mar Joseph Parecattil Archbishop (1956 – 1984)
- Mar Sebastian Mankuzhikary Apostolic Administrator (1984 – 1985)
- Mar Antony PadiyaraAntony PadiyaraAntony Padiyara was an Indian prelate of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church. He was Major Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly from 1985 to 1996, having previously served as Bishop of Ootacamund and Archbishop of Changanassery...
Major Archbishop (1985 - 1996)- Mar Abraham Kattumana Pontifical Delegate (1992-1995)
- Mar Varkey Vithayathil Apostolic Administrator (1996 – 1999)
- Mar Varkey Vithayathil Major Archbishop (1999 - 2011)
- Mar George Alencherry Major Archbishop (since 2011)