Fr. Jose Kalluvelil will be ordained the first for Saint Thomas Christians as of Saturday, Sept. 18. Photo by Michael Swan.

Saint Thomas' Christians get a new bishop

By 
  • September 18, 2015

Canada’s 35,000 Catholic Saint Thomas Christians will have a bishop of their own as of lunchtime Saturday, Sept. 18.

Fr. Jose Kalluvelil will be ordained the first Exarch for the immigrant Indian church as a first step toward creating a full Eparchy or diocese for the Eastern Syrian rite church centred in India’s southern Kerala state. The ordination will take place in the Coptic Church of Virgin Mary and St. Athanasius in Mississauga, because the Syro Malabar community lacks a church large enough to accommodate visitors from India and all across Canada for Kalluvelil’s episcopal ordination.

Cardinal George Alenchery, head of the Syro Malabar Catholic Church, will be the principal celebrant.

Kalluvelil's skill in bringing people together makes him the perfect first bishop for Canada’s Syro Malabar Catholics, Alenchery told The Catholic Register.

See Alenchery’s thoughts on the new bishop here.

Please support The Catholic Register

Unlike many media companies, The Catholic Register has never charged readers for access to the news and information on our website. We want to keep our award-winning journalism as widely available as possible. But we need your help.

For more than 125 years, The Register has been a trusted source of faith-based journalism. By making even a small donation you help ensure our future as an important voice in the Catholic Church. If you support the mission of Catholic journalism, please donate today. Thank you.

DONATE