Syro-Malabar Church expands base to Australia

The Church's northwest region will build a church and other facilities there.

Kochi:  The Syro-Malabar Church has bought land in Melbourne, Australia, the first land area owned by the Church in the Oceania region.

The latest property to come to the fold of the church is 15 acres in Melbourne. The Church's northwest region will build a church and other facilities there.

Australia's Syro-Malabar community includes over 10,000 families, majority of them residing in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and Canberra.

The church is prominent in village areas too.

The church has already spent around 40 million rupees on churches and other properties abroad, the most expensive being a cathedral in Chicago at 9 million rupees.

It has built 22 churches in the US alone, making its presence in Dallas, Houston, California, Florida, Detroit and Philadelphia. It has also built a church in Qatar.

It is the first time the church is expanding its stable in Australia, after making it strong in America.

"There are about 40,000 Syro-Malabar Catholics in Australia and New Zealand. The leaders of the Syro-Malabar Catholics themselves, with the concurrence of the church authorities there have bought the land as a step to increase the pastoral coordination of the community," said Fr. Paul Thelakat, spokesperson of the church.

“Some of the other eastern-rite Catholics have already set up their own church there. And the Australian Catholic Church also welcomes such attempts to serve the different catholic communities in the country," said Fr Thelakat.

Among the prized possessions of the church abroad are the St Jeremiah Church in Framingham, bought at 2 million rupees, and the Dallas church at over 2 million rupees.

Source: times of india