I am glad that you are bringing out a supplement to mark the occasion of consecration and enthronement of Mor Gregorius Joseph as the Catholicose and head of the Syrian Orthodox Church in India. I have known the new Catholicose even before he became a bishop. At my first meeting with him, I was impressed by his good looks and leadership qualities. I did not know at that time that His Grace was the great grand son of the brother of the saint of Parumala. Far from resting on the oars of the legacy of Parumala Thirumeni, the young man turned to God at a very tender age. It was this quality that attracted him to the then Patriarch of Antioch and All the East and the then Metropolitan of Cochin who hand picked him for the bishopric of Cochin. It was my privilege to know the Revd. Fr. C. M. Thomas who went on to become Mor Osthathios, bishop of Cochin who spotted the innate godliness of the young man who was to become Mor Gregorius Joseph. Mor Osthatheos himself was a man of God and instantly spotted the young man full of devotion to God. Mor Gregorius Joseph never speaks ill of anyone and this makes him stand apart in a milieu of fights and dissensions. I am sure that he will be a unifying factor even in a Church that is plagued by dissensions. May he bring peace to a divided Church with his prayerful presence.
K. Roy Paul former Member of the Union Public Service Commission, former Secretary to the Government of India and former Chairman of Air India
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