In a possible confrontation with the Catholic Church, the Knanaya Church has refused to put an end to the practice of endogamy, where members of the same ethnic background marry one another.
Those who don’t follow the custom are excommunicated.
Dismissing the demand of the Oriental Congregation in Rome to get rid of the practice, the Kottayam archdiocese has declined to allow those who were excommunicated back into the Church. The archdiocese is planning to approach the Pope and also legally challenge the direction. In a recent order sent to the bishop of the diocese of Chicago, Jacob Angadiath, the congrega-tion had asked him to take back those who were excommunicated.
Calling the demand of the congregation as unacceptable, Stephen George, president of the Knanaya Catholic Congress said, “We will challenge the direction both legally and at the hierarchy of the Church.”
The congregation had issued the direction on the basis of a report by Canadian Bishop Michael Mulhal of Pembroke diocese, who was entrusted by Rome to study the issue and present a report in 2015.
The bishop filed the report after visiting the State of Chicago and had recommended that the practice be ended.
