The reluctance of the State machinery to take over the St. Thomas Church (Marthoman Cheriyapally) in Kothamangalam town and hand over its administration to the Orthodox faction of the Malankara church has mystified observers even as the Orthodox group has alleged lack of political will to act on the part of the government.
The Supreme Court verdict of July 2017 was categorical that no parallel administration of parishes would be allowed in the Malankara church. The court order was even applicable in the case of burial of the dead.
However, the State government has shown lack of willingness to move forward in the case of the Kothamangalam church even though other major and historically important churches have been take over and handed over to the Orthodox group. These churches include the St. Peter and Paul Church at Piravom; St. Mary’s church at Kolencherry; Chorakkuzhy St. Stephen’s church and the legendary St. George’s church at Kadamattam.
The church at Kothamangalam, where the saintly Eldho Mar Baselios is buried, has turned into a kind of embarrassment for the State even as the Kerala High Court pulled up the Ernakulam District Collector on Tuesday for failure to implement the court order.
It was widely held that a contempt of court petition for failure to carry out the Supreme Court order would not stand scrutiny. But Tuesday’s developments had proved that wrong, said Father Johns Abraham Konattu, official spokesman for the Orthodox group.
He alleged that the Jacobite group had whipped some false fears in the mind of the people about the consequences of a change of administration of the church. The importance of the church and the township would not change a bit when the administration of the church changed hands, Father Konattu said.
Social commentator A. Jayashankar said that though the Kothamangalam church was referred to as the “small church” in common parlance, it was a “big one” in terms of political consequences. There were around 3,000 parishioners and the Orthodox group constitute a miniscule minority. If the church was taken over by force, it would be reflected in the electoral politics in central Kerala, he said.
The Jacobite group has strongly opposed the take over of the church, while the Orthodox group has alleged that it had put together a group of people in the Kothamangalam town under the banner of Matha Maithri Samrakshana Samithi against the possible takeover. The Jacobite group said the samithi was a spontaneous reaction to fears of the church changing hands in terms of its administration.
