JOINT COMMISSION FOR DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH 
AND THE MALANKARA ORTHODOX SYRIAN CHURCH

REPORT OF THE 1992 MEETING

Kottayam, India, December 8-12, 1992

December 8-12, 1992, the Dialogue Commission of the Catholic Church and the Malankara Or­thodox Syrian Church met at the Spirituality Cen­tre of the Syro-Malabar Church in Kottayam, Kerala, India. The members of the commission at­tending were as follows:

For the Catholic Church:

Bishop Pierre Duprey, Secretary of the Pon­tifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, co-president of the commission; Mar Joseph Powathil, Archbishop of Changanacherry; Mar Kuriakose Kunnacherry, Bishop of Kottayam; Mar Cyril Baselios Malancharuvil, Bishop of Sultans Battery; Fr Mathew Vellanickal; Fr Xavier Koodapuzha; Fr Geevarghese Chediath; and the co-secretary, Fr Bernard Dubasque.

For the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church:

Bishop Philipos Mar Eusebios, co-president; Bishop Mathews Mar Severios; Fr Theophoros; Fr Jacob Kurian; Fr Baby Varghese; Fr John Mathews, co-secretary; Fr M.O. John; Fr Mathai Nooranal; Mr P.C. Abraham; Mr M.T. Paul.

Because of an unforeseen, urgent necessity, Metropolitan Paulos Mar Gregorios was unable to attend. Absentees among the commission's Catholic members were Bishop Patrick D'Souza, who was convalescing from surgery, and Fr Clarence Gallagher, SJ, Rector of the Pontifical Oriental Institute, who had to stay in Rome for the 75^th anniversary of the Institute's foundation.

During the meeting the members first studied the theme of "the function of the Episcopate in assuring the unity of the Church", based on documents prepared during the year by members of a special mixed subcommittee. The Commission also studied the subcommittee's research on the history of the Church in Kerala, in which they were aided by experts. The topic has been studied from the beginnings until the Synod of Diamper in 1599; this is a particularly delicate period because of the lack of documentation and the need for further research and interpretation of the information found in sources written in various ancient languages requiring specialized skills for their in­terpretation.

The Commission did not devote any further study to the draft agreement for the celebration of mixed marriages which they had worked on in their previous meeting in December 1991. Instead they decided to ask a subcommittee to study it, ex­amining in particular its ecclesiological aspects in order to arrive at an understanding. The subcom­mittee is to present its findings for consideration at the commission's next meeting, which is scheduled to take place November 15-18, 1993, at the Sophia Centre of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church in Kottayam.

The Commission members expressed their cor­dial best wishes to the Catholicos of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, Mar Thoma Mathews II, who is undergoing medical treatment in the USA, and their gratitude to the staff and the Apostolic Oblates of the Spirituality Centre for the attention and fraternal hospitality shown to the Commission.

[Information Service 83 (1993/II) 90-91]