Syro-Malabar Catholic Eparchy of St. Thomas of Chicago

Syro-Malabar Catholics began to migrate en masse to the United States in the 1950s. Their number increased in the following decades. Since the Syro-Malabar Church had no ecclesiastical jurisdiction in the United States, the Syro-Malabar migrants became members of the local Latin Church parishes.

The Syro-Malabar Catholics in the United States wished to have liturgical services in their own rite. They organized in the major cities as Catholic lay associations and organized Holy Qurbana and retreats with bi-ritual Syro-Malabar priests (serving at Latin parishes) who were locally available. The local Latin dioceses supported them by establishing Syro-Malabar missions under their dioceses.

Because the number of Syro-Malabar faithful settling outside Kerala and India increased, Pope John Paul II appointed Antony Padiyara on 8 September 1978 as Apostolic Visitor to study the pastoral needs of the Syro-Malabar faithful living outside the proper territory of the Syro-Malabar Church.

Bishop of Rajkot Gregory Karotemprel, the chair of the Commission for the pastoral care for the migrants and apostolic visitator to USA and Canada, made an extensive study of the pastoral concerns of the Syro-Malabar immigrants in the United States and Canada by visiting the major cities in 1996. He recommended to the Holy See to establish Syro-Malabar diocese for the faithful living in the United States and Canada.

Varkey Vithayathil made a follow-up study in 1998 by visiting major cities in the United States and Canada. He also recommended to Rome the relevance of a Syro-Malabar eparchy in the United States.

Based on the above reports and considering the need of preserving the liturgical tradition of the Syro-Malabar faithful, Pope John Paul II established the St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Catholic Diocese of Chicago on 13 March 2001 with pastoral jurisdiction over all the Syro-Malabar faithful in the United States and appointed Fr. Jacob Angadiath as its first bishop. Bishop Jacob was also appointed as the Apostolic Visitator to Canada.[1] Jacob Angadiath was the director of Mar Thoma Sleeha Mission in Chicago when he was selected as the bishop. Previously he was the vicar of St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church in Garland, TX that he had established in 1992.

Jacob Angadiath, the first bishop of the eparchy

Bishop of Pala Joseph Pallikaparampil, who was in charge of the Overseas Mission of the Syro-Malabar Church, had sent him to Dallas in 1984 to serve the Syro-Malabar faithful in that region. He was the first Syro-Malabar priest officially appointed to begin a Syro-Malabar ministry in the US.[2]

The inauguration of the diocese and the episcopal ordination of Jacob Angadiath was held in Chicago on 1 July 2001 at Hyatt Regency Hotel during the Second Syro-Malabar Convention. Varkey Vithayathil was the main celebrant of the consecration. Bishop of Pala Joseph Pallickaparampil and Bishop of Kottayam Kuriakose Kunnacherry were co-consecrators. Archbishop of Chicago Francis Cardinal George was the homilist during the ceremony.[3]

Bishop Jacob Angadiath appointed Fr. George Madathilparambil as proto-syncellus and Fr. Abraham Mutholath as syncellus (Vicar Generals) of the diocese on 3 October 2001. The other first curia members were Fr. Zacharias Thottuvelil (Chancellor & Secretary), and Fr. Antony Thundathil (Finance Officer and Cathedral Vicar).[4]

The Eparchy of St. Thomas of Chicago depends on Syro-Malabar priests from Kerala, India; priests would come from the archeparchies and eparchies of the Syro Malabar Church including the Syro-Malabar Catholic Archeparchy of Kottayam for Knanaya. The Syro-Malabar liturgy was primarily in Syriac prior to the Second Vatican Council. Post-Second Vatican Council, the liturgy was translated to Indian languages Malayalam, Hindi, and Tamil as the Syro-Malabar Church was mainly based in India. Bishop Jacob Angadiath commissioned on behalf of the Synod of the Syro-Malabar Church, Joseph J. Palackal and George Thaila to set the English language Qurbana text to music in 2007.[5]

The American-born Roy Joseph was ordained in 2016 in the Latin Church as a Jesuit priest, although he is a bi-ritual priest in both the Latin and Syro-Malabar rites.[6] On May 5, 2018, Kevin Mundackal of Thornwood, New York, was ordained as the first ever American-born Syro-Malabar priest at St. Thomas Syro Malabar Forane Catholic Church, Somerset, NJ. Shortly after on June 2, 2018, Rajeev Valiyaveettil Philip of Tampa, Florida, was also ordained to the priesthood.[7] As of 2023, There are 7 American born priests and 8 Seminarians [8]

After the accession of Mar Joy to seat of the Eparch of the Eparchy, In October 2022, He elevated Thomas Mulavanal, the Director of the Knanaya Region as the protosyncellus and Cathedral Rector Thomas Mulavanal as the syncellus. In September 2023, He appointed an additional syncellus due to the size of the eparchy, Fr. John Meleppruam, one of the first priests of the dioceses to be the Vicar General In Residence. [9]

1. Jacob Angadiath (2001-2022)
2. Joy Alappatt (2022–present) [10]

1. Joy Alappatt (2014-2022) [11]

Joy Alappatt, the second bishop of the eparchy