Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
By Antonella Prenna
Manama (Agenzia Fides) - "More than 1,000 believers, including a hundred young people and 100 catechism students, form the heart of the Syro-Malankara Catholic community in Bahrain. It is one of the fastest growing communities in the Middle East," says Father Jacob Kalluvila, Parish priest of the Syro-Malankara Catholic community in Bahrain to Fides about the peculiarities of the long Catholic Malankara tradition in the current Bahraini context.
"The Syro-Malankara Catholic community in Bahrain is very vibrant and belongs to the 'Sacred Heart Parish' (SHC) in Manama. Many of our parishioners have emigrated from Kerala to the Gulf States in search of better job opportunities," explains the Indian priest of the Syro-Malankara Church of the Greater Archdiocese of Trivandrum.
With the arrival of Father Jacob, the first permanent priest of the Syro-Malankara community in Bahrain, appointed by the Vicar Apostolic of Northern Arabia, Bishop Aldo Berardi (O.SS.T), the faith formation of parishioners, youth pastoral care and children's pastoral care are among the priorities of his work.
"The Malankara Catholic faithful want to live their spiritual and liturgical heritage wherever they are. There are currently seven prayer groups in different areas of Bahrain, including a separate one for the Tamil-speaking community. These groups play a fundamental role in the spiritual formation of the people as well as family prayer, which includes both the canonical prayer of the church, the reading of the Holy Scriptures and special songs," said the priest. We celebrate Holy Mass in Malayalam every second and fourth Friday and Saturday of the month; The faithful also attend English-language services at the Sacred Heart Church in Manama and at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Arabia (OLA) in Awali".
“It was particularly moving to take part in the Holy Week celebrations last March with the entire Syro-Malankara community,” reports the priest. “It was a moment in which we all joined the Catholic community of the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia for Palm Sunday Mass and for the Chrism Mass, both celebrated by Bishop Berardi in the Cathedral in Awali".
“The Chrism Mass, where the oil of the catechumens and the oil of the sick were also blessed, had an additional meaning,” added Father Kalluvila. For the first time, Malankara altar boys had the opportunity to serve at the altar at a Chrism Mass and were allowed to use their own vestments. We are also deeply grateful to the bishop for his loving care and consideration for our community."
The Malankara Holy Week liturgies were celebrated by Father Jacob in the presence of more than a thousand participants at the “St. Padre Pio Social Hall” of the “Sacred Heart Church” in Manama.
Particular attention is paid to future generations. "As early as 2015, a 'Malankara Catholic Liturgical Orientation Course' (MCLOC) for children was launched, which includes motivational courses, seminars, training for altar service and first communion classes. Currently there are more than 100 students and 16 teachers. During the holiday season special courses for biblical orientation for catechism students are organized.
The Catholic Youth Movement (MCYM), founded in Bahrain in 2010, brings together around 100 young people who are proud to embody their mother church and focuses on their promotion in church and society. The MCYM, whose regional director is Father Jacob, focuses particularly on empowering young people and supports activities that provide them with accommodation, medical care, educational assistance, workshops, etc.
In Bahrain, the Latin Church has played an important role in the growth of the Malankara Catholic community and has been available from its inception to meet the spiritual needs and pastoral care of the Catholic faithful, mainly belonging to the Sacred Heart Church in Manama. Following an agreement between the Major Archbishop of Trivandrum, Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, and the Vicar Apostolic, Bishop Aldo Berardi, Father Kalluvila is serving as parish priest for the Malankara expatriate community in Bahrain. The hope is that with the arrival of the first permanent priest, the Syro-Malankara Catholic community will be strengthened and continue to grow in faith. Father Jacob, who was ordained a priest on February 2, 2013, has served as a priest in several parishes in Trivandrumn, worked as regional leader of the Catholic youth movement of the Syro-Malankara Church and as regional leader for children's faith formation.
In October 1988, with the visit of the late Archbishop Benedict Mar Gregorios, then head of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, the first mass with the Malankara liturgy was celebrated in Bahrain at the Sacred Heart Church in Manama. Over the years many priests from different dioceses followed. (Agenzia Fides, 18/5/2024)
