By Jose Kavi
New Delhi, Nov 13, 2021: The controversy over the mode of offering Mass in the Syro-Malabar Church has deepened with a section of priests in Kerala accusing a Vatican congregation of misleading the Pope.
“The Syro Malabar Synod being a sui iuris (self governing) Church has the final say on matters of its liturgy. But we strongly doubt that even the Oriental Congregation conspired with the bishops favoring the Chaldean liturgy to mislead the Pope and sent a letter to the Church about the mode of celebration of Holy Mass, which, ironically was not even discussed in the Synod or elsewhere,” says a November 12 petition to the Synod from priests from at least five dioceses in Kerala.
A day later, a group of Catholics in New Delhi told Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli that the non-implementation of the Synod decision on the Mass celebration would lead to serious repercussions in the diocese of Faridabad.
The divisive issue of celebrating Mass has dragged on for more than 20 years and Pope Francis in July sent a letter to the Oriental Church to find a solution.
The Synod in August decided on a uniform mode of the celebrant facing the faithful during the introductory part, during the Liturgy of the Word (three readings of the Bible), and during the concluding part. The celebrant would face the altar during the Liturgy of the Eucharist. In other words, the celebrant would face the altar for most of part of the Mass.
The Synod set November 28 as the date to implement its decision. The date marks the beginning of the new liturgical calendar in the Church. The complete transformation of the Mass, in the new format, will come to force from Easter Sunday, April 17, 2022, the Synod decided.
The priests from the archdioceses of Ernakulam-Angamaly and Trichur and the dioceses of Irinjalakuda, Palghat and Thamarassery urged the Synod to reconsider its decision. They want the “Synod Fathers” to “publicly admit that they have misled the people of God by portraying the Pope’s letter as a commandment and a decree.”
They point out that the synod decision has only brought anxiety, unrest and conflict in parishes that have been functioning smoothly until now. “We do believe that after November 28, our parishes are going to be hotbeds of unrest and disagreement,” they warned and urged the Synod Fathers to end their “quarrels and animosities and decide to maintain status quo.”
On November 12, hundreds of priests from the five dioceses held a prayer meet at Mount St Thomas in Kakkanad, the headquarters of the Syro-Malabar Church. They priests tied black badges over their masks as a sign of protest.
On November 14, trustees and pastoral council members of all parishes under the archdiocese of Ernakulam-Angamaly planned to march to Mount St Thomas to press for offering Mass facing the people, a practice in vogue for half a century.
“For the last 50 years we have been celebrating Holy Mass facing the people. We will not accept any decision that sabotages this practice. The Synod should immediately reconsider its decision so that we can continue with the Holy Mass facing the people,” says the priests’ petition.
The petition points out that Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, the prefect of the Vatican Oriental Congregation, had asked the bishops to seek people’s mind on the mode of Mass celebration and submit the finding to his office by November 15. “We have no tangible evidence of such an enquiry been conducted by any eparch,” the priests allege.
They suspect the bishop would furnish their answers without consulting the people. “The Oriental Congregation, if it has an iota of honesty should by all means consult the people of God. Until such an honest enquiry is done, the congregation should instruct the Synod to freeze all its decision on the orientation of the celebrant of the Holy Mass,” the priests assert.
Joy Thomas, who led the team, said they met the nuncio as some confusion exists in the diocese regarding the implementation of the synod decision. A recent pastoral letter from Archbishop Kuriakose Bharanikulangara of Faridabad was vague, making people anxious, he said.
The main reason for erecting a diocese in Delhi was to provide Catholics the liturgy in its fullness and original form, their memorandum asserts.
The Syro-Malabar Church, which traces its origin to Saint Thomas the Apostle, is the second largest among 23 Eastern Churches in the Catholic fold. It has 34 dioceses with more than 4.56 million members in 2,944 parishes, according to the Church website.