On Friday, 19 September 2025, at two o’clock in the afternoon, the Syro-Malankara Catholic Eparchy of Pathanamthitta held a solemn reception in honour of His Beatitude Ignatius Joseph III Younan, Patriarch of the Syriac Catholic Church of Antioch. The occasion marked both the Patriarch’s Apostolic Visit to the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church in India and the gathering of the Synod of Bishops in preparation for the ninety-fifth anniversary celebrations of the Church’s union with the See of Rome. The reception took place at the Bishop’s House in Pathanamthitta, Kerala.
At the entrance of the Bishop’s House, His Beatitude was warmly welcomed by His Excellency Most Rev. Dr. Samuel Mor Irenios, Bishop of Pathanamthitta, together with his predecessor, His Excellency Most Rev. Yoohanon Mor Chrysostom, Bishop Emeritus of Pathanamthitta, surrounded by the clergy of the Eparchy. Their greeting reflected the deep joy of the local Church at receiving the Patriarch in their midst.
The celebration was further honoured by the presence of His Beatitude Moran Mor Baselios Cardinal Cleemis Catholicos, Major Archbishop-Catholicos of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, and all the bishops of the Malankara Synod, who had gathered in Pathanamthitta ahead of the anniversary feast. Clergy and laity from across the Malankara Church in Kerala also joined in the welcome, filling the Bishop’s House with an atmosphere of festivity and reverence.
The Patriarch was accompanied by Most Rev. Barnaba Joseph Habash, Most Rev. Ephrem Joseph Abba, Abbot Edmond Rizk, Monsignor Habib Mourad, Monsignor Abdo Abou Kassem, Rev. Fr. Jean Younes, Rev. Fr. Paul Kass Dawood, Rev. Fr. Saïd Massouh, Rev. Fr. Karim Kalash, Rev. Fr. Ephrem al-Jazrawi, Rev. Fr. Tarek Khayyat, Mother Huda al-Halou, and Sister Ikhlas Sheeto.
In his address, the Patriarch expressed heartfelt gratitude to the Catholicos for his fraternal invitation to share in the Synod of the Malankara Church, calling it a gesture of ecclesial love that reflects the deep attachment of the Malankara Church to the Syriac heritage and its venerable apostolic traditions. He offered special thanks to Bishop Irenios for preparing the reception in honour of his visit, seeing in it a sign of love not only towards him personally but towards the Apostolic See of Antioch itself.
The Patriarch rejoiced at the presence of both bishops and faithful, clergy and laity, gathered as one body in witness to the Lord Jesus Christ:
“This encounter reminds us that every member of the Church, whether bishop, priest, religious, or lay faithful, has a role in offering a living testimony of Christ, even amidst the challenges of our time.”
At the conclusion of the celebration, Bishop Irenios presented commemorative gifts to the Patriarch and to each member of his delegation, as tokens of love and remembrance. His Beatitude then imparted his Apostolic Blessing upon the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church as a whole, and in a special way upon the Eparchy of Pathanamthitta, entrusting it to the protection of the Lord.
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