Syro Malabar Church synod softens stand on unified mass

Synod of Syro-Malabar Church mandates unified mass on Sundays and solemnities, backing down from excommunication threat.

The two-day special session of the synod of Syro-Malabar Church, which ended here on June 19, climbed down from an earlier stand imposing, on pain of automatic excommunication, unified mass from July 3 to insist on at least a mass on Sundays and solemnities in the unified liturgy in all the churches under Ernakulam-Angamaly archdiocese.

A circular issued jointly by Major Archbishop Raphael Thattil and apostolic administrator Bosco Puthur on June 21 ordered all churches, seminaries and religious houses to celebrate the unified mass on July 3, observed as St. Thomas’ Day, and from there on, to celebrate at least one mass in the synod-prescribed format on Sundays and solemnities for “catechetical purpose” to introduce unified mass to the faithful in the archdiocese. 

The circular also ordered bishops and priests visiting churches on pastoral duty to celebrate the unified mass in the churches they visited.

The synod of bishops said that the circular issued on June 9 by the two top church functionaries here stood valid but the threat of automatic excommunication on those who did not follow the unified mass diktat from July 3 will not stand if at least one mass is celebrated on Sundays and solemnities in the unified format in the churches they served.

The post-synod circular cited a letter from Pope Francis on March 22 providing time to create awareness about the unified mass. Until that time the present system of celebrating at least one synod mass on Sundays and solemnities will continue. A date for the archdiocese to fully embrace the unified mass will be announced as the synod decides, the circular added.

The circular issued a warning to those who created hurdles to unified mass celebration wherever it took place and against obstructing those who wanted to celebrate the unified mass.

The bishops said that all seminaries, training homes for priests and religious houses will celebrate the unified mass from July 3 as prescribed in the June 9 circular.