India, March 31 -- Holy Father Pope Francis has always been concerned about division in the Church and called the division a disease. He said: "There are ideas, positions that create division, to the point that the division is more important than unity" (Catholic News Agency, May 4, 2020). For Syro-Malabar Catholics living in Kerala, the truth of this remark has now come to haunt and hit hard!

The present division in the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church stems from a disagreement existing between two factions of the Church over a decision taken by the Church's Synod to unify the way holy mass is offered in all churches under its jurisdiction. While an overwhelming majority of the dioceses have accepted the Synodal decision, the Ernakulam-Anga...