(The Pillar. LUKE COPPEN).
In an interview published this week, the new head of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church seemed to downplay the liturgical dispute within the Eastern Church based in India. “There is a controversy, but that controversy, according to me, is a little bit exaggerated by the media, especially social media,” Major Archbishop Raphael Thattil told Vatican News. But he conceded that there had been “a little difficulty” in the Archeparchy of Ernakulam-Angamaly, the most populous Syro-Malabar diocese, where the liturgy controversy has prompted street brawls, the burning of cardinals in effigy, and tussles in church sanctuaries. “This is a temporary controversy which can be settled by amicable discussions and friendly approaches and things like that,” the Major Archbishop said with admirable sangfroid. But Thattil also offered an interesting aside. He noted that one of the difficulties related to the liturgy dispute in Ernakulam-Angamaly is that “this diocese at present is under the care of a pontifical delegate, Cyril Vasil’, and they [also] have an apostolic administrator.”