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Born on 29th May 1927 of
Thresiamma and Justice Joseph
Vithayathil ant North Parur,
Archbishop Varkey Vithayathil had his
school education at North Parur and
Thiruvanathapuram, and his college
education at University College
Thiruvanathapuram, and St. Joseph
College, Trichy. Joining
Redemptorist Order, Varkey
Vithayathil professed as its member on 2nd August 1947, and after
completing his studies in Philosophy
and Theology he was ordained Priest on 12 the June
1954. In 1955 he went to Rome for
his studies in common law at the
university of St. Thomas Aquinas (Angelicum)
from where he took doctorate in 1959
on “The Origin and Progress of the Syro-Malabar Hierarchy”. After coming
back from Rome, Dr. Varkey
Vithayathil served as professor of
Canon Law for about 25 years at the Redemptorist Major Seminary,
Bangalore. In 1972 he took his
Master’s Degree in Philosophy from
Karnataka University. He also taught
different subjects in several other
Seminaries in Bangalore. He served
as the Provincial Superior of the
Redemptorist Order from 1978 to ’84,
and as president of the CRI from
1984 to ’85. He was appointed
Apostolic Administrator of the
Benedictine Monastery in Bangalore
(1990-96) by His Holiness Pope John
Paul II. On 18th December 1996 Rev.
Dr. Varkey Vithayathil was nominated
Titular Bishop of “Antinoe” and the
Apostolic Administrator of the Syro-Malabar
Major Archiepiscopal Church and of
the Archdiocese of
Ernakulam-Angamaly. He was
consecrated bishop in Rome by His
Holiness Pope John Paul II on 6th
January 1997. He assumed charge of
the Syro-Malabar Major
Archiepiscopal Church and of the
Archdiocese of Ernakulam-Angamaly on
18th January 1997. On 23rd December
1999 His Holiness Pope John Paul II
appointed Mar Varkey Vithayathil as
the Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malabar
Church and as the Archbishop of
Ernakulam-Angamaly. His enthronement
as the Major Archbishop took place
at St. Mary’s Basilica, Ernakulam on
26th January 2000. His Holiness Pope
John Paul II nominated Mar Varkey
Vithayathil a member of the College
of Cardinals on 21st January 2001. In the consistory on 21st February
he was raised to the dignity of a
Cardinal. The sacerdotal golden
jubilee of the Major Archbishop Mar Varkey Vithayathil was celebrated
under the auspices of the Syro-Malabar
Church on 8th November 2003. The
jubilee was inaugurated on 12th June
2003 and was concluded on 12th June
2004 He is a member of the
Congregation for the Oriental
Churches, of the Pontifical Council
for Legislative Texts and of the
Pontifical Council for the promotion
of unity of Christians. He
participated in the funeral rites
for Pope John Paul II and in the
conclave which elected Pope Benedict
XVI. |
