Malankara Church gets two new dioceses

Bishop Jacob Barnabas was appointed the first bishop of Gurgaon

Bishop Jacob Mar Barnabas and Bishop Thomas Mar Anthonios

New Delhi:  Pope Francis has established two new dioceses for the Kerala based Syro-Malankara Church giving it jurisdiction all across India, official announcements said Thursday.

The Oriental rite church will have one new diocese in Gurgaon near New Delhi and another based near western city of Pune, said Monsignor Joseph Chinnayyan, spokesperson of the national bishops' conference.

Bishop Jacob Barnabas was appointed the first bishop of the diocese of St. John Chrysostom of Gurgaon, Monsignor Chinnayyan said in a press release.

The new bishop will be housed at Mar Ivanios Bhavan, Neb Sarai, New Delhi and the St. Mary’s Malankara Catholic Church near it will be his cathedral, said Monsignor Chinnayyan said.

The second diocese, officially called an Exarchate, is based at Khadki in Pune.

Bishop Thomas Mar Anthonios OIC was appointed its first bishop. St. Mary’s Malankara Catholic Church in Khadki will be the new Cathedral and the residence and Curia of the new bishop will be in the Cathedral complex Khadki, the official release said.

"The annoucment fufills the great dream of Archbishop Mar Ivanios," who initiated misison work of the Church outside Kerala, said Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, in a press release. The Church came to Catholic fold in 1930.

With this canonical announcement, the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church has achieved all India jurisdiction for ecclesial administration, the release said.

The new Gurgaon Diocese is spread over 22 States in the North-East region of India. The Kirkee-Pune Diocese is spread over six States except Kerala in the south.

The Syro-Malankara Catholic Church now has two Exarchates, seven dioceses, one archdiocese, besides the Major Archdiocese of Trivandrum.