Holy Mass was held at St Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in Ernakulam on Sunday after a gap of nearly four years, following an agreement between parishioners supporting Mass facing the people and the unified form of celebration
Kochi : Holy Mass was held at St Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in Ernakulam on Sunday after a gap of nearly four years, following an agreement between parishioners supporting Mass facing the people and the unified form of celebration.
You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Kochi | Silver Rate in Kochi | Bank Holidays in Kochi | Public Holidays in Kochi Stay updated with the latest Kochi news. On Sundays when feasts, family union half-yearly or annual celebrations or catechism anniversaries are scheduled, the 6am mass will be celebrated instead of the 5pm unified-form mass. Arrangements will be made for bishops to celebrate any of the scheduled masses at the parish. If such a mass is not the 5pm unified-form celebration, it will be celebrated facing the people. The mass held at noon on Sundays in connection with weddings will also be celebrated facing the people. Such masses will be celebrated only by the parish priest or administrator, or by a priest authorised by them. Memorial masses for deceased parishioners may also be celebrated in the unified form at the basilica, subject to the discretion of the parish priest or administrator and the church’s schedule. The parishioners have also agreed to withdraw the court cases filed against one another at the earliest and to cooperate in implementing arrangements for the parish’s smooth functioning. Any act that insults or obstructs the celebration of mass at the basilica will invite action under the Canon Law of the Church. Download the TOI App.
Parishioners whose names are entered in the basilica’s parish register and who wish to have their weddings celebrated in the unified form may do so at timings fixed by the church on Sunday afternoons or weekdays.
Meanwhile, One Church One Qurbana movement, a laity group supporting the uniform mass, said they wouldn’t accept the agreement. The matter was later brought to the attention of Archbishop Joseph Pamplany and members of the archdiocesan curia, the note said. The agreement was reached after attempts to resolve the dispute through court proceedings and mediations failed to yield a settlement. Masses were halted in the church after violent clashes over the unified form of Holy Mass. As per a note issued under the basilica administrator Fr Thomas Mangattu’s seal, a unified-form mass will be celebrated at 5pm on Sundays and days of obligation. Discussions on reopening the church were held with Fr Mangatt and archdiocesan procurator Fr Thomas Vaikathuparambil.