By Jose Kavi
New Delhi, July 9, 2023: Although no Indian is among the 21 new cardinals named by Pope Francis on July 9, the country has a link with one of two Asians.
Bishop Sebastian Francis Mechery of Penang is the new cardinal from Malaysia. The other Asian is Jesuit Bishop Stephen Chow Sau-yan of Hong Kong.
He is the president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei since 2016.
Bishop Mechery was born on November 11, 1951, in Johor Bahru, which was then part of the Federation of Malaya. His grandparents had emigrated to Malaya in the 1890s from Ollur in Thrissur district, Kerala.
He joined Saint Francis Xavier’s Minor Seminary in Singapore in 1967 and enrolled in the College General, a major seminary in Penang, three years later, where he studied theology.
At the age of 26, he was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Melaka-Johor on July 28, 1977. He was appointed vicar general for the diocese in 1981, and he held that position until 2001.
In 1983, he obtained a licentiate in Dogmatic Theology from the University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. He also studied at the Maryknoll School of Theology in New York where he obtained a degree in Justice and Peace in 1991. He has also served as a spiritual director and formator in College General from 1991 to 1998.
On July 7, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him the bishop of Penang. The episcopal ordination was held at St Anne’s Church in Bukit Mertajam on August 21, 2012.
He has served as the chairman of the Office of Social Communication under the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences.
Bishop Mechery made his maiden visit to India in 2017.
His interest in his Indian roots was revived during the eleventh plenary assembly of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences held at Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 28-December 4. There he met several Indian prelates and delegates including Archbishop Andrews Thazhath of Trichur. When the Kerala archbishop learned about Bishop Mechery’s roots, he invited him to visit Kerala.
The Archdiocese of Trichur organized a grand reception at the Lourdes Cathedral in Thrissur on June 18, 2017. Besides Archbishop Thazhath, the Malaysian prelate was welcomed by Auxiliary Bishop Raphael Thattil and a number of priests and laypeople.
Although Malaysian food was on the menu, the visiting prelate surprised his hosts saying that he preferred Kerala food eaten with hands. He recounted fond memories of his mother cooking Kerala cuisine. His father managed an Indian restaurant named ‘Kera’ (coconut). In the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, the bishop’s brother now manages a restaurant by the same name.
In the little Malayalam, that Bishop Mechery could remember, he thanked everyone for their welcome and affection.
Bishop Mechery is the fifth head of Penang diocese. He succeeded Bishop Emeritus Antony Selvanayagam.
In 2016, Penang State Governor Yang di-Pertua Negeri Pulau Pinang conferred the Darjah Setia Pangkuan Negeri award that carries the title Datuk to Bishop Francis.
Bishop Mechery said his first visit to India helped him rediscover his ancestral roots.
His grandparents had emigrated to Malaysia (then Malaya) in the 1890s when the British ruled the two countries.
His family in Malaysia comprises five brothers and four sisters, all Malaysian citizens. They have never visited India since they have no links with their Indian relatives.