Benedict Varghese Gregorios Thangalathil
Benedict Varghese Gregorios Thangalathil (born February 1, 1916 in Kallooppara , Tiruvalla , India ; † October 10, 1994 ) was an Indian clergyman of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church and Archbishop of Trivandrum .
Life
Varghese was the second son of Idicula Thangalathil and his wife Annamma and came from a Syrian Orthodox family. During his school days, Metropolitan Mar Ivanios worked and the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church was founded, whose parish was not far from the house of the Thangalathil family. Unbeknownst to his family, he was inducted into the Order of Imitation of Christ , an institute of consecrated life in Bethany , as a 17-year-old novice . His family later gave their approval. He took the religious name Benedict , which means "the blessed one". On August 15, 1935, he took his first religious vows before Archbishop Mar Ivanios . After theological studies at the seminary in Tiruvalla and Kandy ( Sri Lanka ), he made perpetual vows on August 24, 1941 and was ordained a priest on August 24, 1944 . He then taught Syriac at the St. Aloysius Seminary. In 1949 he became the first principal (rector) of Mar Ivanios College .
Benedict Varghese Gregorios Thangalathil was appointed titular bishop of Antarados and auxiliary bishop in Trivandrum on October 25, 1952 . He was ordained bishop on January 29, 1953 by the Archbishop of Trivandrum, Mar Ivanios ; Co- consecrators were the Bishop of Tiruvalla , Severios Giuseppe Valakuzhyil , and the Syro-Malabar Bishop of Kottayam , Thomas Tharayil . As is customary in the Syrian churches, he took the bishop's name Mar Gregorios . In January 1955 he succeeded him as Archbishop of Trivandrum. He received the pallium on May 14, 1959.
Mar Gregorios attended all four sessions of the Second Vatican Council between 1962 and 1965 . In India he worked for the reconciliation between the different religious currents.
After 41 years as Archbishop, he died on October 10, 1994 and was buried in Trivandrum Cathedral at the side of his mentor Archbishop Mar Ivanios.
Web links
- Biographical page on Bishop Mar Gregorios ( Memento of October 7, 2010 in the Internet Archive )
- Entry on Benedict Varghese Gregorios Thangalathil on catholic-hierarchy.org ; accessed on February 24, 2019.
| predecessor | Office | successor |
|---|---|---|
| Geevarghese Mar Ivanios Panicker |
Archbishop of Trivandrum 1955–1994 |
Cyril Baselios Malancharuvil |
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Thangalathil, Benedict Varghese Gregorios |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Thangalathil, Varghese (original name); Thangalathil, Benedict (religious name); Mar Gregorios |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Indian clergyman of the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, Archbishop of Trivandrum |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 1, 1916 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Tiruvalla |
| DATE OF DEATH | October 10, 1994 |