The Synod has made a decision to open St. Mary’s Cathedral basilica after it was closed for months on the condition that only the 50-50 synodal formula Mass is permitted. There will be punishment if the directive is violated. On the larger question of the crisis involving the archdiocese, the synod is silent or indecisive, which in effect allows the status quo to continue.
The synod is apparently following a wrong methodology in their approach to the crisis. They are resolving the dialectics in a way that is not at all Christian. Unity is always a union of pluralities. Unity can be threatened both by forces outside as well as from within. The question is how you introduce a “difference” into a system. The difference must be accepted by the plurality within. If not the plurality will become dialectical and enter into conflict. Liturgical “uniformity” was introduced into the church by the Synod without a proper discussion within the Synod or in the church. This was a contentious problem that has remained unsettled for years. It was introduced with a letter cunningly elicited form the Pope, hiding certain important facts pertaining to the issue it dealt with. Armed with the Pope’s letter, a decision was pushed in the name of obedience to the Vatican, both inside the Synod and in the church, with little or no discussion. In fact, there is no need for a letter from the Pope to introduce a decision on liturgical matters; the Syro-Malabar Church has been autonomous since the Synod was established. The archdiocese of Ernakulam-Angamaly saw in the decision of the Synod an attempt to divert attention from the land sale scandal of the Major Archbishop and to muster support for him among the public and also to punish the whistle-blowers. The archdiocese of Ernakulam-Angamaly has the tradition of about 50 years of celebrating the Holy Mass facing the people. The archdiocese sent memoranda and protests against the unilateral imposition of a particular format, but they were never heard or called for any discussion. They refused to implement the 50-50 formula, but they argue the Synod has approved it. This stalemate continued and the permanent Synod on their own initiative met the top leaders of the Vatican and reportedly suggested certain punitive measures. The Vatican is believed to have asked them to call a Synod and resolve the issue. Accordingly, a special Synod was called, which reiterated what had already been decided, with the result that the issue remained unresolved. They opened the Cathedral Basilica that remained closed for months on the condition that only the Synodal Holy Mass should celebrated in it. It is a pity that the problem remains unsolved. One is reminded of a statement by Lenin that Marxism is not Class war but the dictatorship of the proletariat. The dialectics were resolved by domination and suppression. This is typical of Marxism or Hegelian fanaticism. It is nothing but old Manichaeism, to which the Church has repeatedly fallen. There is this temptation to reduce any and every crisis to a conflict between good and evil. That unfortunately is not the Christian way; it is the Hegelian way of master and the slave, which clearly smacks of fascism. The pluralist idea that a thing has many senses, the idea that there are many things and one thing can be seen as “this and then that” is the greatest achievement of the art of thinking. ‘This and then that’ is the key phrase here, because it corresponds precisely to the inclusionist logic.
The Syro-Malabar Christians are the ancient Saint Thomas Christians who claim to have received their faith from St Thomas the apostle. But through their long history of living within India they have two traditional influences. One Hindu, which is caste based hegemony, and the St Thomas Christians were seen as high castes. They claim to be the descendants of converted Brahmins. Hinduism is very cultic, and it is also Aryan in origin. This Aryan caste and cult mentality is alive in one section of the St Thomas Christians. There are also Buddhist influences in this Christian community. The words they use like Pally (Church) Appan (father) Amma (mother) are have their source in the Pali language and are remnants of Buddhist influence. The Syrian Christian women wore the dress of Buddhist nuns. Buddhists were very critical of the caste system and were egalitarians who belong primarily not of Aryan but o Mongolian descent. They were least ritual, but known for dharma or morality. The Hindu-Buddhist dialectics was not resolved in a healthy way; the Hindus dominated and expelled the Buddhists from the land. There are so many Christians in the Syro-Malabar Church who are very critical of the Aryan and caste ridden hegemony and cultic reduction of religion. There is now an official leaning towards Hindutva. History repeats itself.