ECHO October 2015

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October Edition 2015 Volume 2(3)

Table of Contents Message from Diocesan Episcopa................................ 3 Editorial ........................................................................ 6 Baptism: Dying and Rising up with Christ .................... 8 A Spiritual Dialogue: Upon the Wings of God’s Image on Earth ...................................................................... 10 Finding our identity in Christ amidst competing cultures ...................................................................... 11

The COMPE Executive Committee President: The Rt.Revd. Dr. Geevarghese Mar Theodosius Vice President : Revd.Dr. Thomas Philips Secretary: Mr.P.M.Mathew Treasurer : Mr.Jaffey Chacko

Not Understanding the Other .................................... 12

Editorial Board of the Mar Thoma Echo

Conversation Corner .................................................. 15

Editorial Director : Dr. Zac Varghese Chief Editor : Revd. Jose Punamadam Mr. Sherry Mathews Mr. Oommen Abraham Mrs. Geena Ajay

News & Reports ......................................................... 16 Death, Renewal & Revival ...................................... 16 34th Mar Thoma Family conference-Europe .......... 22 1st Mar Thoma Youth Conference .......................... 23 Altar Boys & Covenant Girls: Preparing the Future Leaders of the Church ............................................ 24 Connecting Church-Based Social Action and Church Growth ....................................................... 26

Cover Design: Revd. Jose Punamadam For private circulation only

Photo Gallery ............................................................. 27 Disclaimer: The views published in this journal are those of its authors. Editors or the COMPE do not endorse the contents or views expressed and they are not liable for the contents or views in any form.

Send your articles- compe.echo@gmail.com

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Message from Diocesan Episcopa Whose Image do we reflect?

This question was raised as the theme of the Regional Family Conference that was held for the Families of the Mar Thoma Parishes in the UK and Europe in August 2015. St. John's Mar Thoma Parish, the host of the conference, was studying this Theme for about an year, and now this is passed on for wider reflection through the 250 delegates who attended the conference. I am glad that ECHO, the quarterly publication of the region, is bringing this topic through digital and print media.

Whose Image?

Book of Genesis in the Holy Bible is revealing the truth that God created human beings, both male and female, in His image and in His likeness, creating us out of dust and breathing in the life giving breath. Therefore, we belong to God and we are created by the Creator God to reflect His image.

We believe that He is the Creator of all things, visible and invisible.

No one has seen God. God can never be the object of our study. He is the Almighty and invisible One, and is not exhausted by our understanding. We believe that He is the One True God. Then how do

we comprehend Him? We understand God through His revelations. We identify the One God through the doctrine of Trinity- One God manifested in three persons as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Human language has limitations and therefore, we try to describe an infinite, incomprehensible, God within the limitations of our finite nature and intellect.

Seeking to articulate that which is beyond words involves stretching of language almost to breaking point. Martin Luther believed that man cannot comprehend the meaning of image of God and he wrote: ‘when we speak of that image, we are speaking of something unknown.’ But the unknown becomes known in Jesus the Christ. It is beautifully stated in the prologue to St. John’s Gospel: “No one has ever seen God, but God the One and only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known” (John 1:18). This is indeed seeing the face of God in Christ, and we have the grace to see the face of God in others and other events. The knowledge of God emerges from our intimate relationship with Him and we are created for this relationship and no other. Karl Barths takes it to another level by saying: “Knowledge of God is obedience to God.” The Nature of God. Human beings have understood the presence of God in several ways. The Holy Bible is emphatic in saying that God is with mankind, starting with the Garden of Eden where God comes down to share the fellowship with the whole creation and consummating with the new Heaven and New Earth, and where God has His tent with humans (Book of Revelation). The wrath of God is seen in the Great Flood at the time of Noah, His mercy and compassion is seen in the Exodus of the chosen people under slavery in Egypt; His wisdom is revealed through the Wisdom literature; His judgements are revealed through the Kings and Judges, and this Awesome God is understood through His perseverance and understanding. The list goes on and on as the Holy Scripture continues to reveal the living and dynamic nature of God. People of the Book felt the presence of God in their lives, like Abraham and Moses. The Prophets listened to the voice of God and became God's mouth piece among the people. Noah and Enoch walked with God. Isaiah saw the vision of God. Elijah heard God passing by in a ‘still small voice.’

People understood the promises of God and 3

believed in Him as trust worthy. God wanted humans to be a worshipping community, worshipping only Him and not any idols. God wanted His people to be ‘model people’ with humanity intact and with ethical standards by obeying and understanding the given Law with infinite responsibility.

The Image reflected in Jesus Christ.

Jesus is God incarnate. We believe that He is fully God and fully human (The Nicene Creed). Pilot, the Roman Governor, said in judging Jesus of Nazareth, 'Behold the Man; I see in him no guile.’

The Centurion at the foot of the cross saw Him die on the Cross and shouted, 'truly he is the Son of God.’ Peter, among the disciples, said at Caesarea Philippi that, 'you are the son of the living God.’ Jesus lived in history, walked through the streets of Galilee, cleansed the Jerusalem Temple, and died on the outside the city wall as the manifestation of God's love. He said in history: 'I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.'... …..‘Those who have seen me, have seen the Father....No one comes to the Father, but by me.’

Whose Image do we reflect?

Humans are created to reflect the image of the invisible God. Our sinful nature distorts the image of God. Turning to God in repentance is the way to reinstate the image of God. The Merciful God forgives and cleanses us from all stains. A good example is the life of Jacob who ran away from his brother Esau, lived in exile, decided to go back, wrestled with God, became a new being as Israel and reconciled with his brother. Esau gave him a warm welcome. We read in Genesis 33:10, “Truly your face is like seeing the face of God ". Humans are created to see in each other the hidden image of God. I am reminded of the words of Michelangelo who said, 'I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.' Let us remove the masks we have so that the world will see the reflections of the image of God on this beautiful world.

Incarnation of Jesus was to seek and save the lost and to heal a fractured world. He preached and taught the kingdom of God and exhorted everyone to repent and believe in the Gospel. In Jesus, we have redemption. We are redeemed to reflect the image of God. He invited everyone to live in Him:

'Abide in me and I will abide in you.’ We can live a life worthy of the glory of God only by living in Christ. St Paul, who experienced this, went on speaking endlessly on ' life in Christ.’ He says, 'for me to live be Christ.’ Orthodox Theologian, John Zizioulas, maintains that “the being of God could be known only through personal relationships and personal love. Being means life, and life means communion.” The doctrine of Trinity offers a radical rethinking of the concept of being; here we see a reciprocity in which the personal identity of the Godhead coexisting relationally within the differentiated unity of a hospitable self. Therefore, without the concept of this divine communion and coexistence it would not be possible to think of God. Church is called to reflect the Image of God. Psalmist says that ‘the Heavens declare the glory of God and the firmaments, His handiwork.’ Church is a called out and sent out community . Church is the body of Christ and an instrument in His hands for the transformation of the whole creation.

Church life is for community living on her journey to the establishment of the kingdom of God and to reflect here and now the image of God. This is challenging the church today; the church should show gender equality, love all for people in the world without discrimination of race, caste or class. Community living is possible only by accepting the other, caring the needy and sharing the God-given resources. The parable of the Good Samaritan is revealing. One can be merciful only by identifying the need of the other, taking risks and shouldering the responsibility to give life to the dying and working hard from now on to create a better living space for the other. Early Christianity was a social movement known for its care for the sick, widows, orphans, and poor, and its attention to the needs of the stranger; the welcoming of the stranger is what it means to be human and what it means to be a Christian. This is the face of the living God, which Jesus Christ has demonstrated in His salvific acts.

For a child of God, Sunday worship is not enough!

He or she is called to be the salt of the earth and light of the world in everyday living. Going to church regularly and being the Church in the market place are not the one and the same. They can be complimentary. Do you shrink when someone asks you: are you a black, Latino, 4

Bangladeshi and the like? Whose image do we reflect? What is the meaning of the cry today, 'Black lives matter’? What will the church do when people of different orientations approach you for sacraments? Can we join with Job? And say, 'for I know that my redeemer lives’ (Job 19:25).

Risen Jesus, who is the Head of the Church, said to His followers to "follow Him." I was fascinated when I saw the 'Laughing Face of Christ' kept at the Chapel of the Ecumenical Christian centre, Whitfield, Bangalore, India. Since then I can see the laughing face of Jesus in His public ministry when He walked through the crowd when they tried to kill Him (Luke 4), when He answered the questions raised by the Pharisees and Scribes, when He faced the storm in the sea with the cry of the disciples, when He listened to the questions of the Samaritan women, when everyone left the stones and the woman before Jesus, when He saw the helpless disciples at the valley of transfiguration and other similar instances. St. Paul found this joy in Christ and therefore he said, while in prison in Rome and knowing that his end is near, " Rejoice, again I say rejoice " ( Phil 4) .

vicarious suffering; but in Christ, we can always say 'yes ' and join with St. Paul in affirming that we are more than conquerors. Jesus Christ is the man for all seasons of life.

Mar Theodosius+

Kabbala, a five-thousand year old tradition, teaches that transformation means becoming a being of giving and sharing. This refers to more than act of sharing. It means connecting with the light, becoming one with the creator, and making your essence and the essence of the creator one and the same.

We live in a cruel, wretched, bleeding and broken world. In Genesis 6:11 we read: 'now the earth was corrupt in God's sight, and the earth was filled with violence.’ The world today is not different. But can we say "good bye” to the cruel world? We see slavery in the world in different forms. Slavery should never become the human or social order.

The plight of the refugees to the countries in Europe from Syria, Lebanon, Africa and the like are not revealing the image of God! Denying a person's hope for a decent, peaceful life with dignity is a form of slavery. Liberation is the 'face of God ', said the Asian theologian, Dr. M. M. Thomas. The decision of the countries in European Union to accept the refugees is revealing the face of God. We follow a different drum!

The key to follow Jesus and to reflect the image of God is to 'love as He loved us.’ Hence, the pertinent question that comes to us is the same question Jesus asked Peter after his resurrection, do you love me more than these? (John 21: 15- 19). Our love for Him reflects the grace of God. In every desert, God has an oasis of grace. In an age of vanishing grace, the faith community is called to be the 'grace community,’ always giving Hope in helpless and hopeless situations of life. It involves 5

Editorial Other gods become a barrier in our relationship with God

The theme of a most enjoyable 33rd Mar Thoma family conference of Europe in August 2015 was ‘Whose image do we reflect?’ and it also had a related-theme ‘Christ versus gods of our life’. Let us thank God for the members of the St. Johns Mar Thoma Church, Hounslow, for carrying the burden of hosting the conference and congratulate them for organising a very good conference. We are grateful to God for Rt. Revd Geevarghese Mar Thedosius, Rt. Revd Dr. Thomas Mar Theethos and Mr. Jose Philip for their leadership. We particularly thank and congratulate Rev Jose Punamadom, Mr. Isaac George and his team.

‘The camera never lies’ is a phrase we know to be false. A photographer can place a filter over the lens or adjust the angle of the lens with the result that some features or the scene are highlighted while others fade into insignificance. There is filter over our minds when we read the Bible or venture into a post- baptismal life from early childhood; filter is formed by our faith formation from our parents, church, our culture, and tradition. These filters may have a possibility to direct us to influences and spells of gods instead of Christ or even restricting our freedom in Christ. These gods of our life have the power to bring curse and death, instead of blessings and eternal life.

God has blessed mankind by endowing him/her with certain qualities that are intrinsic to His nature. Many have contemplated, as we have done at the conference, the meaning of the phrase in Genesis, “in the image and likeness of God.” The words, ‘image’ and ‘likeness’ have created much theological debates for centuries among the Orthodox, Catholic and protestant theologians. The use of icons and the idea of God impressing His image on man/woman are central to Orthodox theology. Theethos Thirumeni suggested that image indicates God-given

potential or capabilities inherent in all human beings and that likeness means the realisation of that God-given potential as a fulfilment of a dynamic process between man and God. Michelangelo famously said, “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.” This is indeed being in the likeness of God of having the creativity, freedom and responsibility. Searching for a deeper distinction between these two words is not very helpful for us here. We need to carve out from the attachments of gods of our own creation to get released and liberated into the freedom in Christ and freedom from us. Seeking liberation from ourselves is a very deep and interesting thought; our spiritual growth is very much influenced by this liberation through the grace of God. Gods of our creation such as self-centredness, power mongering, wealth creation, consumerism, self-projection, placing ourselves as the centre of existence and pushing God out, creating a Godshaped hole in life and such are a barriers to be in the image and likeness of God to realise Godgiven purpose for our existence in this world. We have pushed God out of our lives and placed Him in a pseudo-religious setup and frame work and discovered too late we have imprisoned God to make gods in our image and make them dance to our own tunes. This search for an institutionalisedGod has led to spiritual paralysis. Putting down institutional foundation is creating a barrier to obedience to God and His purposes. This is why Bonhoeffer dreamt of a ‘religions-less Christianity’. Obedience means being ready to move at a moment’s notice as Abraham moved and Jesus confessed, ‘but I have no fixed address.’

Peter and Andrew, James and John left their fishing nets and Mathew left his account books, but some others found their possessions, gods, as a barrier to obedience to Jesus’ call to discipleship.

There is hardly a society anywhere in the world where properties and possessions, both material and intellectual, are not a barrier to relationship with neighbours and to God. Our possessions define our identity, where we live, which school our children 6

attend, and strongly influence how we spend our leisure and the membership of our social and religious network. The fairy tale does not tell us if Cinderella kept her old friends after she married the Prince and moved to the palace. We should never forget we were immigrants and strangers once in this land; we should be mindful of the needs of others around us to provide hospitality and fellowship. Hospitality is part of our Diaspora spirituality. We should be able to see the face of God in the face of the other, as Jacob said to Esau at Peniel: “For to see your face is like seeing the face of God” (Genesis 33: 10). This is indeed developing an ‘I-Thou’ relationship with the stranger. Today the unknown other is regarded as the root of all violence, or a competitor to be overcome for the limited resources (food, water, shelter, clean air) of an overpopulated world. But Jesus asked us to welcome strangers, to care for the widow and the orphans and build relationship with those distant from us. Hospitality and not hostility is the prescription for the times. An Irish proverb says: “It is in the shelter of each other that people live.” Are we sensitive to the Syrian refugee crisis at our door step?

These gods of our life are barrier to the kingdom of God. In Luke chapter 14 we read of the kingdom of the God is like a great feast. You are invited by the king himself. But some of those invited refuse to come and the reason is that they have a prior invitation from their gods and they got their twisted priorities wrong. They want to see and enjoy what they have bought. Their possessions, gods, are barriers to the royal banquet. Jesus taught us that we cannot serve other gods, God and Mammon. Where your treasure is there will be your heart also. It is indeed the poor in spirit who see God. When Christians are tempted to adopt society’s scale of values to build cathedrals, follow popular liberal and fashionable demands of the social media, cherish investments and endowments as a sign of its security, we should remember that in the New Jerusalem there is no temple. We are temples of God with God’s kingdom and values within us with an indwelling Spirit because we are created in the image and likeness of God; there is no room for other gods. “For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'we are his offspring’” (Romans 17:28). We are the children of God and we carry his image and likeness and hence through the grace of God we are duty and honour bound to produce the fruit of the

Spirit (Galatians 5:22). It is by the fruit of the Spirit that others would know that we are created in the image and likeness of God to give Glory to Him who created us.

It is important to remember that Christians have not chosen the One and only God; He has chosen us in Christ. Man has the freedom to choose gods of this world, but not the Trinitarian God. The Bible is a written history of God’s search for man and recovers his humanity in its fullness. We are a chosen people of God; it is God who is seeking us to have a communion with us. This does not suggest preference as a special group, people with privileges at the exclusion of ‘the other’; it is all about a relationship between people and God. In absolute humility, we should open ourselves to become agents for the flow of God’s grace through us for becoming a blessing for others.

We congratulate our children who passed GCSE and A Level examination and also those obtained star grades of excellence.

Those going to universities, should try to achieve the very best, it is for this alone that God has placed you there; for you are also His ambassadors and witnesses. We wish our children all the blessings for a very effective and meaningful school year and University life.

The Editorial Board

“Man, made in the image of Trinity, can only realise the divine likeness if he lives a common life such as the blessed Trinity lives: as the three persons of Godhead ‘dwell’ in one another, so a man must ‘dwell’ in his fellow men, living not for himself alone, but in for others.”

– Timothy Ware

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Baptism: Dying and Rising up with Christ (St.John.12:20-26Rev.) Revd. Jameson. K, Switzerland MTC. [The following is Jameson achen’s contribution to the daily meditation, ‘Word for the Day’, under the Christian Education Forum on Saturday, 29th August, 2015. At the end of this meditation, we have included a discussion with achen on the importance of the post-baptismal faith formation.

Achen is doing his PhD studies on liturgy in Belfast. These daily meditations are excellent resources for the spiritual growth of the Diocese.

It is an initiative of Theodosius Thirumeni and let us thank God for many young people of the Diocese who are contributing to this. It is good to start each day with this meditation and prayer.

The resource is there for us to use.]

Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. (24) As one of the dominical sacraments of the Church, the holy baptism stands as a pillar of Christian life, its identity and mission. The baptismal liturgy of the Mar Thoma Church affirms that, through the holy baptism a person identifies with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Further, its emphasis as a sign of new life in Jesus Christ and participation in the life giving mission of Christ. The meaning of baptism includes ‘the invitation of God to share in His divine life, union with Christ, the beginning of a new life in Christ, the reception of the Spirit, and admittance to the community of the faithful’.

The selected passage draws our attention to the importance of self-sacrifice and the willingness of painstaking in Christian life. Through baptism, one agrees to bear the cross of Christ. To carry the cross of Christ is a unique way of life towards eternity. The uniqueness of the cross rest in the life saving plan of God. In this passage, Jesus uses a metaphor ‘kernel of wheat’ to teach the significance of this new life. A kernel of wheat is safe in the basket of the master. But it is not created to remain in the safe zone. Rather, its purpose is to be a plentiful harvest of new lives by its death. In the same way, the holy baptism is an invitation to come out from the safe side of life. This proposition demands a willingness to participate in the pain of

Christ. As a baptised member of the Church, our calling is dual in nature. That is willingness to die and thereby to give life for others. A ‘kernel of wheat’ has no choice to have its own space to grow.

It is the choice of the master. It might fall in a fertile land or a barren field. But its choice is to grow and to be fruitful by giving up its own very self. This passage reminds us that only through death, life is possible and the ultimate call of the Christian life is to be productive for Christ.

The holy baptism is an invitation to die the carnal natures within us. There is a continuing struggle between the carnal and spiritual elements within each one of us. Baptism calls us to die in our own selfishness and worldliness and to resurrect towards holiness and goodness every day.

Through baptism the old habits and sinful ways of life is dead and buried. That is why Paul, say ‘Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body.’(Rom.6: 12) Baptism represents the burial of our sins and the resurrection of our new being. The baptismal water is a symbol of death and life.

When the Israel crossed the red-sea, the water of that sea became a source of death for the Egyptians and the source of life for Israel. In the same way, through baptism one enters into the source of eternal life.

History is full of great people such as Gandhiji, Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr, Nelson Mandela, Mother Theresa, Albert Schweitzer, Francis Xavier, Fr. Damian, who all lived for others like a kernel of wheat still continues to motivate and inspire us. They all came out of their safer zone to give life to many. As a Christian our baptismal calling is to die and to be productive. Let us bury our carnal nature every day and resurrect towards the holiness of God for His mission. May God bless us for the same.

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Thought for the day: ‘Baptism is a funeral service as well as a resurrection service’.

Prayer: Lord, help us to experience the death and resurrection of Jesus everyday by letting us to die our carnal nature and resurrect in your holiness. Strengthen us to sacrifice our lives for the blessing of others - Amen

An appreciation, questions, and response: Appreciation and questions: Good morning Achen! I very much enjoyed your meditation on baptism this morning. This is a beautiful exposition of the theology of baptism, but how do infants undergoing baptism understand this? What do we do about postbaptismal faith formation? Whose responsibility is it? Is there any wonder why Pentecostalist thrive and do their poaching?

I join with you to assert that post-baptismal faith formation is an integral part of Christian nurturing, but unfortunately, it seems to be a neglected aspect in the life of the Church. I think we need to have a serious, concrete, and systematic action plan for the post baptismal faith formation and assertion especially for teenagers and youth.

Whenever the Church seems silent, the counter forces take the credit of it. The so- called Pentecostals have their own systematic agenda of faith propagation. We have to appreciate them for their passion of faith and willingness to learn the scripture. I strongly believe that proper teaching and exhortation on the faith, practices and the liturgy of the Church is the need of the time to overcome the challenges of other ‘privatized communities’. I believe, a clarity of what we believe and the passion and willingness to live with that will drive away the challenges of external forces.

Response from Jameson Achen: Thank you very much for your mail. I very much value your comments and appreciate your words of encouragement. You are very welcome to include it in the ECHO. The questions which you have raised is very pertinent and need to ponder further for a meaningful existence of our Church. As you know, as far as the baptismal liturgy of the Church concerned, baptism is not a personal affair of an individual but a corporate act of the community.

It is the responsibility of the baptized community to nurture a child in the faith and practices of the Church. (The role of ‘god-parents’ in the baptism service emphasis this aspect). Faith is an ongoing process and a baptized child imbibes it from the Christian living of the parents and the witnessing life of the Church. Very often we miserably fail to do it!!!

““I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ" Gandhiji.

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A Spiritual Dialogue: Upon the Wings of God’s Image on Earth Rev. Dr. M. J. Joseph, Kottayam.

The pastor said on Sunday that I was created in the image of God! I was under the impression that I am the replica of my father and mother.

I was taught that I carry their genetic codes.

My face is exactly like my mother where as my nose is like my father’s.

How Can I be in the image of God? Tell me, ‘Adam,’ whether I was made in God’s or human likeness.

I stood in front of a big mirror, I could see my own image.

I did compare myself with my friend in the class room; My complexion is dark, where as his is white; My grey matter is more powerful than my friend’s My IQ is only 120, whereas the IQ of Stephen Hawking is 160.

Should I think that the divine image in Hawking and Einstein is superior to many?

Tell me, ‘Adam,’ whether Hawking and Einstein have different magnitudes of God’s image?

I searched the Bible for verses where the Image of God is mentioned.

In Gen.1:26, I saw the self-will of God, the Creator: “Let us make humankind in our image”.

Is there plurality in the god-head?

In Col.1:15, St. Paul writes that Christ is the image of the invisible God. Yes, he is truly the second Adam!

In 1Cor.11:7, St. Paul, the architect and builder of the Church says: “…man is the image and reflection of God; but woman is the reflection of man”.

Tell me, ‘Adam,’ whether there is equality in creation?

The image of God is shared by all of God’s creation.

True, man is the crown and glory of all creation.

Lord, you have created the web of life for human survival.

But the strength of the web comes from you, O Lord.

The Psalmist recognises the solidarity of creation: “All the earth worship you, They sing praise to you, Sing praises to your name” (Psalm 66:4).

In the new humanity of Christ, there is the reflection of God’s nature everywhere.

The sandal wood smuggler in Karnataka, Veerappan, too shared God’s image, But frequency of its vibrations is low because of our unrighteous deeds!

The image of God is present in all living creatures.

How can all that breathe praise God, if there is no image in them?

The image of Christ in creation gets blurred or defaced when sin creeps into our being; No doubt pollution is sin and is the wilful defacement of Christ’s image in creation.

If “everything was created in and through Him, how can we deny Christ’s presence in creation?

The whole creation is groaning to share the liberty (image) of the children of God. In the sacramentality of Creation, the image of God in nature is the key to human wellness; It is to be renewed daily through kenosis, love, sharing, and above all the renewal of the mind.

In an ‘I-Thou relationship,’ the image of God makes a visible appearance.

In the very talk about satyam (truth), sivam (order) and sundaram(beauty), the image comes alive.

O Image of God, you are a revealed mystery in the whole creation.

Conversations emerging from the above spiritual dialogue: Response-1: Editor: ZV Thanks for the 'Spiritual Dialogue' Thanks for immortalising 'X' through your poetical imagery. I shall change this into friend for avoiding problems.

"The image of God is shared by all of God’s creation.........

The image of God is present in all living creatures."

These lines may cause problem. Pope Francis, recently, got into a problem for suggesting 'all of God’s creatures can make it to heaven or paradise'. You and I may get into serious trouble with theologians for publishing this. It is good that 10

we are both retired. It may be taking ecospirituality to another level!

Response from the Author: 1 Thanks. If you say that everything was created "through the logos Christ", how can you deny the fact that "creation belongs to the very being of God". The sacramentality of creation should not negate the very idea. In Ps.66:4, we read “All the earth worships thee; they sing praise to thee, sing praises to thy name. How can the earth praise the creator, if there is no sparks of divine image in it?

You may raise it for a debate!

You are free to change X to" Adam" under inverted comas.

I am glad that you like my spontaneous writing!

Response-2, Editor: ZV Yes, indeed: one cannot deny facts. But the question is what is fact, what is truth? It is an age old question. Religions have put words into God's mouth and then wrote: 'God spoke to......' This has been the problem from the beginning. God has been saying, 'Not in My Name.' Do we hear this?

This word is not that ‘Word’ that was there in the beginning.......' And which is there now and for ever and ever in the depth of our being.

Finding our identity in Christ amidst competing cultures Mrs. Minu Sherry, Midlands 'You are what you eat' is a phrase popularised by the television presenter and writer, Gillian McKeith.

In many ways the same principle applies to our thought process too, we are who we think we are. In 2 Corinthians 5:17, apostle Paul writes "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: the old has gone, the new has come!"

Finding our worth in the midst of conflicting cultures as a Diaspora community is a big deal for most of us. It's no surprise that our identities or the ideologies that define who we are evolve/change during the course of one's life. This can be so overwhelming for many, yet very crucial and powerful process that brings transformation in us.

An interesting character in the Bible, Moses, is a powerful example of an ordinary Jewish baby born into the world of suffering, yet privileged to be bought up in the luxury of Egyptian palace, facing identity crisis and torn between his people and his adopted people. Moses knew that the treasures of Egypt awaited him, but the burden that 'I AM' placed on his heart for his people was so great that he chose to forsake them all to yield to the calling of Jehovah. It’s profound to step into Moses' shoes for a moment to identify the intense struggle that he underwent trying to 'fit in' with the Egyptian culture and every mind set the big Empire had to offer. Having been raised as a baby in the bosom of his birth mother and cared by Miriam and Aaron, Moses knew that his family belonged to the place where his adopted parents despised. Despite all the overwhelming experience, he pursued to obey his calling. Trying to find his worth among his brethren, he took matters to his own hands, ended up killing an Egyptian, ran to the wilderness, confused, afraid and angry that he messed up everything in his life.

When Moses thought God had given up on him, God steps in. God had to retrain Moses for 40 years in the desert to undo the harm the Egyptian 11

philosophies had taught him. Moses had to accept and confess that he is of slow speech and tongue.

Not Understanding the Other Dr. Zac Varghese, London

He had to know who the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob is. When Moses owned up his past failures and acknowledged the God of his fathers, he found his true worth, true identity hidden in 'I AM'. Moses was 80 years when he got the courage to face up to his 'giant' and realise how mighty his God is. The transformation was profound in his life that ' The LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend'. There isn't a blessing beyond that, to be called as the Lord's friend.

As children of God, who called us to be partakers of His glory through Jesus Christ His son, we have every right to live in the fullness of joy of our salvation. Yet many time we succumb to the pressures around us, weighed down by the expectations our family, friends, community and colleagues, trying to 'fit in' so we may be accepted and happy. Our self-worth is based on the people around us instead of the 'One' who called us. If only we could realise the price God paid on the cross for each one of our lives, we could look into the situations around us and say 'I am worthy to receive His love, not because of who I am, but because of who He is'. Our life is hidden in Christ, to bring glory to His name and we are precious and valuable because the Blood of Christ is so worthy.

Finally, the Bible says “In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Proverbs 3:6 Amen

I recently heard a theological professor saying that ‘it is a fundamental human right not to be understood’. This statement caused me concern, as he was talking in the context of interfaith dialogue.

In a bestselling book, ‘The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People’, Peter Covey states the fifth habit as ‘seek first to understand then to be understood.’

Therefore, understanding ‘the other’ or others is fundamental to our communitarian living, and following the kingdom values and concepts.

Communication is the most important skill in life; we spend years learning how to read, write and speak. But what about listening? What training do we seek to listen carefully and respectfully with an ‘I-Thou’ attitude? Listening enables us to understand the other person and build a relationship. This listening is the first step in our relationship with God and our spiritual journey with Him. Listening is what we are expected to do while walking with God. Psalmist’s advice is significant in this context: ‘be still, and know that I am God.’ If we are like most people, we probably seek first to be heard and understood; we want to get our point across first. And in doing so, we may ignore the other person completely; we may pretend that we are listening, but selectively hear only certain parts of the conversation or attentively focus only on the comfortable words that we are familiar with, but miss the whole meaning entirely. We listen to what we want to hear and blot out the rest. Why does this happen? We listen to ourselves, an internal conversation, as we prepare in our mind what we are going to say, the questions we are going to ask, etc. We check what we hear against our knowledge, prejudice, background, and see how it measures 12

up. And consequently, we decide prematurely what the other person thinks before s/he finishes communicating. There is even a tendency to stop the other person finishing a sentence by saying, ‘I know where you are coming from.’ This is a blunt and arrogant conversation stopper.

Krishnamurti1 was a great communicator, when he spoke people silently listened, he had an immense presence; he suggested the need for ‘creative emptiness’ in listening to others. He wrote, “When the mind is creatively empty–not when it is positively directing– there is reality. All great discoveries are born in this creative emptiness and there can only be creative emptiness when selfcontradiction ceases.” This ‘creative emptiness’ is the silence of the mind, and we need this silence to listen to the ‘still small voice of God.’ We need to understand God first through God’s grace and make others understand God through us, our lifestyles with the kingdom values. We also have opportunities to understand God through others around us, nature and many other means. Not to understand others is pride, arrogance and believing in the self-sufficiency in one self; but ‘man is not an island.’ Humility and self-emptying is part of understanding ‘the other.’ How can one understand the whole reality when one is only concerned about oneself? Being confounded within the negativity of self-centredness, how can one reach out to that which is infinite? It is from the known that the unknown is realised. In our Christian understanding, it is by knowing Jesus the Christ that we have glimpses of the infinite love and glory of the creator God who is beyond all human wisdom and understanding. He is indeed the ‘more,’ more than anything one can imagine.

This raises an interesting question, what is our right relationship with the world, the world outside ourselves? This relationship is entirely based on loving our neighbours as ourselves. Then how do we love our neighbour and strangers without living within the lives of them? The otherness of the other will be removed by our understanding of the other.

The minute, insignificant, part and personality of the individual is not the whole reality, but to understand the whole, the part or parts should interact with the other parts; it is in understanding others, the whole reality is comprehended.

Kirshnamurti1 said, ‘We should not use the word individual at all, or the word mine and yours they have no meaning, fundamentally. I am the result of

my father and my mother and the environmental influence of the country and society.’ This interdependence is important in our everyday living and understanding the other is part of our identity. We should learn to move from selfcentredness to other-centeredness. It is in this process, we will be understood in our understanding of the other. What the Indian mystic, Sri Aurobindo2, said is also relevant in this context: ‘A solitary salvation leaving the world to its fate is almost distasteful.’

To illustrate this further let me quote a story from Jonathan Sacks’ recent book, ‘Not in God’s Name.’3 Two friends were walking in the jungle when they hear the roar of a lion. The first start thinking of places they can hide. The second puts on his running shoes. The first says, ‘what are you thinking of? You cannot run faster than the lion.’

The second replies, ‘I don’t need to run faster than the lion, I just need to run faster than you.’ In this story, the first man thinks of saving both him and his friend. The second one is thinking of saving himself at the expense of his friend. It is a question of survival at the cost of the life of one’s friend. The reality is that ‘nothing can be saved unless everything is saved.’ Therefore, Sri Aurobindo is right in thinking that ‘A solitary salvation leaving the world to its fate was almost distasteful.’ Hence, is it a fundamental human right not to understand the other?

Jonathan Sacks3, a great Jewish scholar of modern times, says the central question of Genesis is: ‘are human beings friends or strangers, brothers or others?’ It is the attitude of otherness which causes most of the sibling rivalries in the Genesis narratives. These narratives also demonstrate the importance of listening and understanding the other people. He concludes his analysis of Genesis 13

this way: “It tells us that if only we were to listen closely to the voice of the other, we would find beneath the skin we are brothers and sisters, members of the human family under the parenthood of God. When, others become brothers and conflict is transformed into conciliation, we have begun the journey to the society-as-a-family, and the redemptive drama can begin.” We see this recognition of the stranger as the brother in the story of the Good Samaritan. Therefore, it is fundamentally important to understand the other and accept him/her as brother or sister for our survival. In the context of an expanding human population and shrinking resources, consideration of the other and understanding ‘the other’ is an existential reality. We need to move from ‘beingfor-it-self to ‘being-for-others.’ It is not survival of the fittest anymore and at any cost; it is the survival of everyone as the children of one God through the way of the Cross. ‘Being-with-others’ is not enough anymore for building a community. Human solidarity, recovering humanity and hospitality is at the centre of the attitude of ‘being-for-others’. It is not just existential philosophy anymore; it should become our everyday theology of ‘liturgy after the liturgy’.

It is good to have a deeper understanding of the theology of ‘the other’ in the book of Genesis when we prepare ourselves for expressing our gratitude to God on the Diaspora Sunday in November. This theme was greatly emphasised in the talks given by both Theodosius Thirumeni and Theethos Thirumeni during the 33rd Mar Thoma Family conference in Europe at Yarnfiled. This theology is so simple: faith is a God-given and God-guided friendship, and friendship is living within the life of the other as in the preichoresis, indwelling, and differentiated unity of the Trinity. In the Gospel of St. John, faith and indwelling are brought so close together as to be virtually identical. When Abraham was faced with the crisis of Sarah’s death and the need to find a burial place, he realised that ‘I am stranger and a temporary resident amongst you’ (Genesis 23:4). Abraham and Moses knew what it is to be a stranger in other people’s territory. Moses even gives his son the name, Gershom, meaning ‘I was a stranger in the strange land.’ Our Diaspora history and its memory is good in recognising the importance of changing our relationship with others and changing into brotherhood and sisterhood. It is therapeutic to realise in our current affluence to think that we

were once on the other side of the dividing line.

This would help us to appreciate those human beings who are outside the Mar Thoma fraternity are also children of God. Genesis teaches us that people outside the Abrahamic covenantal relationship (Hagar, Ishmael and Esau) are also under God’s loving care and blessing. This understanding is helpful in our appreciation and dialogue with other faith communities. It is in reaching out and understanding the other we establish the kingdom values. It is for this God has created us in His image and likeness.

References: 1. J. Krishnamurti, Ojai talks, 1947 2. Sri Aurobindo, Satperm, The Mother’s Institute of Research, Delhi and Mira Aditi, Mysore, 2003.

3. Jonathan Sacks, ‘Not in God’s Name,’ Hodder and Stoughton, 2015.

“God became man that we might be made god” - Athanasius

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Conversation Corner This is a new feature of the Mar Thoma ECHO; it emerged from the recent reader’s survey that our readers would like to see an opportunity to raise comments and questions relating to issues, which are of concern to them. You have the freedom to raise questions or make comments, which we shall try to answer with the help of people who may like to respond and help us. Communication is the heart beat of the community and indeed this is a way of making our views known to others and also an opportunity to listen and feel the pulse. We do hope that you will make use of this corner.

One of the issues bothering everyone in Europe is the refugee crisis emerging form the violence in Iraq and Syria. This kind of displacement of people and creating ‘refugee Diaspora’ is not new. We saw this in India, immediately after the Indian Independence in 1947; we had it in Europe in nineteen thirties and forties; we saw it again during the Communist expansion in the Eastern Europe. These sorts of displacement have a very long history and now it is our responsibility to respond to this human predicament. God raised a question to Cain in Genesis chapter 4: “Where is Abel, your brother? “I do not know,” he replied.

“Am I my brother’s keeper?”

All by itself, true sharing can transform the world. This refers not only to the sharing of the physical objects, but especially to the sharing of the wisdom and the creator’s light.

(Kabbalah)

Question: Does this story of Cain and Abel describe the origin, development and consequence of human violence? In the context of present crisis, what is your answer to this question?

Please send your responses to the ECHO Editorial Board(compe.echo@gmail.com)

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News & Reports Death, Renewal & Revival The 33rd UK & Europe Conference started on Friday the 21st of August at 2pm and closed on Sunday the 23rd of August at 4:30. In those 50 and ½ hours, many lives were transformed and touched by God’s Holy Spirit and His presence being felt among the adults, the youth and the children

33, the year that our Lord was crucified. Theethos Thirumeni challenged us with the opening words in his session – “I want us to have a death experience to give up the ‘gods’ in our lives so that we may reflect the image of the True God in our lives!” What a fantastic start to the theme – Whose Image do we reflect? Christ versus the ‘gods’ of our life!

Our leaders were Adult - The Rt. Rev. Dr. Thomas Mar Theethos, Diocesan Bishop for Mumbai.

Youth - Jose Philip, Regional Director for RZIM (ages 16-25) supported by Isaac Samuel (ages 13-15) from the St. Thomas MTC, Bristol.

Children -Shija Samuel (ages 8-12) & Neena Abraham (ages 4-7) from the St. Thomas MTC, Bristol.

All of this overseen by our Diocesan Bishop, The Rt. Rev. Dr. Geevarghese Mar Theodosius

Rev. Jose Punamadam welcomed one and all to the Conference reminding everyone to reflect, study and be in fellowship and not just look into the mirror to see ourselves but check if we reflect God’s image!

Our beloved Theodosius Thirumeni, presided the blessed conference stating that it was the first time that he has seen a conference theme with a question mark. Thirumeni formally inaugurated the conference challenging everyone to ask who ‘our gods’ were and do we really worship the true & living God?

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Summary of the Adult Sessions Having opened with asking all of us to go through a death experience, Theethos Thirumeni spoke in the power of the Holy Spirit, asking each of us to open our hearts to the transformation to receive the one True God in whose image we are all made. Our choices define who we are.

So, he pointed us to three questions for realisation – Who am I, Where do I belong and what am I living for? Once we start truly seeking the answers, we will be led to repentance. We never leave space for God, we are always trying to control – Permit God to edit life so that we are deconstructed for transformation.

The Kingdom is the motive, Christ is the model and the Cross is the way. He brought to life these three key statements through the story of Zacchaeus. He pointed out that Zacchaeus’ disability was not that he was short, but that he did not have God in his life. His life was filled with ‘gods’ and in Zacchaeus’ case it was power and money. Likewise, we are all disabled because we do not have God in our life because the ‘gods’ of work, power, corruption, money, etc. take over our lives.

There is a vast difference between look like and be like. Our potential is to realise what our image is in God. Daniel and his friends even had their names changed to mean different things but the image they reflected was that of the living God. Our faith and lifestyle need to go hand in hand because sin fascinates but finally assassinates.

Our faith and lifestyle need to go hand in hand because sin fascinates but finally assassinates.

The challenges of living a reflected image of God, because of living in a hyper connected world, with ideas, people, goods & services moving across the world where information is easily available at the touch of our finger tips, are many. We are selfish with a culture of accumulation without consideration for the many and culture of elimination where we exclude the many. We are

exercising power over others. We are driving towards a single, mono-culture.

We are assimilating many cultures into one making it a melting pot of values and morals while threatening the diversity and uniqueness of humankind.

In this process we are distorting moral values.

Wealth is considered the supreme power versus an Almighty God. Loving service to other is being

replaced with profit for oneself. Respect for all is being replaced with respect for the wealthy & powerful, instead of the liberation of captives, we are creating debt slavery for the poor and the sanctity of the unity of families is being replaced by broken families.

Women today are a commodity and reduced to objects. We have gone from being spiritual beings to sensual beings. He gave the example of a daughter who became a prostitute to pay for her mother’s hospital fees. Are we so uncaring that we make our mothers & daughters prostitutes? We forget that the body is the temple of the living God. And today for us it is Prayer time in direct competition with prime time!!

In treating the world as a machine, we have exploited it for instrumental value versus realising its intrinsic value. There we have the groaning of the environment, groaning of people, groaning of 17

children, the groaning of the family and the emptiness of life groaning in each of our hearts!

To fill this emptiness, we need to seek His Kingdom first and His righteousness. Giving the example of the creation story he asked where is God in my life? But what exactly is the Kingdom of God? Romans 14:17 says that “the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking but righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” He contrasted between the fruit of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-26) and the fruits of the flesh (Galatians 5: 19-21).

Righteousness is about having the right relationship with each other, with our spouses, with our children, with the people in the world, with the world (including the environment) in the complete understanding that God is the creator.

He concluded by saying that God will bring us to a new heaven and a new earth. We are partners with Christ and co-workers with Christ.

Question Time facilitated by our own John ‘Dimbleby’ Thomas had an able set of panellists comprising of Theodosius Thirumeni, Theethos Thirumeni, Rev. Dr. T.J. Thomas, Pushpa Punamadam Kochamma, Dr. George Mathew and Dr. Zac Varghese. There were some very deep questions around liturgy and the identity of the Mar Thoma church into the future.

The devotions for all the sessions were led by the Achens and a tradition when St. John’s runs the conference is to have one worship session led by the Kochammas. What a blessing our Achens & Kochammas are!!

The testimony session was an amazing and moving experience which touched the lives of many people.

A number of people stood up and witnessed the power of God in their lives. It was led by Alexander Tharakan achen.

The above reduced synopsis will not do justice to the Holy Spirit filled talks by Theethos Thirumeni, so please visit the following You Tube links.

Talk 1 - https://youtu.be/bDrTZNYwSS0; Talk 2 https://youtu.be/BQuW_x3rRlo; Talk 3 - https://youtu.be/8AgHJ2stvrY; Talk by Jose Philip to Adults https://youtu.be/AJjtT3Z650M

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Youth The youth (there were a 100 of them) were blessed to have 2 fantastic speakers to lead them for this year’s Family Conference.

They were Jose Philip and Isaac Samuel.

The speakers touched on a number of key issues related to the theme during the 3 days and these included messages on a very personal level.

Topics were ‘who are we & how are we sure of this?’, ‘Have we accepted Christ’s invitation’ and ‘The idols of our lives’.

The core message was in recognising our value as God's children and the challenges in living out this identity in the real world. Through audio visual presentations, scriptures and messages the youth were alerted to the subtle traps in today's world that can lure them away from serving God whole heartedly.

The youth discussions revealed hearts that acknowledge biblical values but also their own struggles and dilemmas in living up to this. It was evident that God was touching these young hearts as some of the youth made commitments through quiet reflections whereas others were able to make a public stand by coming forward to receive prayer.

The youths were split up into small groups to discuss these topics further. They were aided with mentors for each group who provided support to the youths in their groups for the 3 days. A panel discussion was then conducted on the topic on how to make faith personal to each of us in a changing secular world. The panellists included the 2 speakers and Dr. Jansen Jacob, a scientist by profession and a strong believer. Science and the influence of other religions were discussed in this

among other things. This session proved highly enlightening to many of the youths who stayed back after the session ended, to ask further questions to our panellists.

On the final day, a session titled ‘Grill a Christian’ was organised and during this session the youths were asked to send in questions to an online portal where others could like or dislike questions and questions were answered by our 2 panellists based on the popularity of each question. This again proved to be a highly informative session as several meaningful questions were asked and answered.

After the conference, the youth had an interesting set of discussions and I am told that one poor soul

who picked up the thread the next day saw close to 3000 messages – which were Q&A between the youth! Praise God!! The Q&A continues….

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Children Sessions for children in the age group 312 years were conducted in parallel to those for the adults. The 3-7 year olds were led by Neena Ann Jacob and that of the 8-12 year olds were led by Shija Isaac. We had 30 and 52 children in the respective age groups. The children had fun singing action songs during the common Praise and worship sessions after which they were split up into the 2 separate age groups to cater to their needs.

During the group sessions the 8-12 year olds had discussions on the topic “Whose image do we reflect” as well as being shown thought provoking videos to make the topic relevant and real to them. The younger children were given activities like puzzles, craft and were shown videos to make the topic relevant to their young minds.

We believe at this conference we were able to challenge their understanding of the image they reflect, as well as having some fun with friends and family.

All the children were involved in decorating and personalising a wooden cross that they took away home with them to remind them about this conference, and what they learnt here.

Fun & Games too!!

The first day had the traditional showcase of

talent from the various parishes and congregations!! The talent show demanded that the Mar Thoma Church either enter the ‘X’ factor or at least have one of its own! It was simply amazing the efforts people took – especially the youth. Some parishes & congregations displayed ‘Mollywood’ skills with skits that struck home with a balanced combination of humour and serious messages. The youth put together dances & choreographies that obviously made their parents proud – and their churches too!! What grace!!

Well, to say the least we are a competitive bunch whether it was for badminton, treasure hunt or musical chairs!!

Take a guess who won the musical chairs?

Hmm...

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The last day came to a close with the Carmel Marthoma Church, Liverpool winning the bragging rights as champions of the Quiz Competition in the run up to the Family Conference. And so did two families from the same church who won the individual prizes in 1st & 2nd place. Well done, Carmel!

We as a church would like to thank all the volunteers who gave all their time and effort to minister to the needs of the 450+ delegates, without whose dedication and commitment these

sessions would not have been possible. And all the churches for the prayerful support and enthusiasm in making this a blessed conference.

Overall, the conference was an uplifting spiritual experience and everyone felt the presence of our Lord – felt their lives had been touched. The St. John’s Mar Thoma church, who were the host, had been praying for a year every Sunday and in smaller groups that the Lord will bring those whose lives He needed to touch to the conference and that we will leave the conference in the strength of the Holy Spirit. We believe the Lord heard our prayers!

St. John’s as a church decided that the offertory collected at the Sunday Service would be given to the Navjeevan project which is primarily engaged in rehabilitating the children of women working

in the red-light areas in Mumbai. Over the years Navjeevan gradually stepped up its involvement and today has assumed total responsibility for the education and upkeep of a number of children in the Navjeevan Village. This was announced the previous day.

The cash machine onsite at Yarnfield ran out of money and the offertory bags were heaving with £3041 (~Rs. 300,000)! A huge thank you to the generosity of the UK Mar Thoma churches!!

The Conference core committee consisted of Jose Punamadam Achen, Suresh Thalikallumkal, Saji Varghese, Samuel Daniel, David Philip and the convenor, Isaac George.

Here is praying for a death experience to the ‘gods’ of our life, to fill the void in our hearts that only the true God, our Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ can fill.

Feedback from one of the youth I truly felt the power of God through the sessions …as our youth speaker definitely made me have a new perception on God and develop my faith. ……Yesterday, I also felt the presence of the Holy Spirit when I got home as all my family was at my home and the Holy Spirit spoke to me and asked me to pray. I felt the power of prayer throughout the whole conference and praise God for giving us such a blessed time!

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Feedback from one of the adults I thought I would write to give some feedback on the Conference. Both my wife and I were really blessed by this Family Conference, being our very first. Thirumeni's talks were so inspiring; he taught us how to make changes in our lives (to reflect God's image). If there are any links to the video-taped teachings at this Conference by Thirumeni, please let us know. I thank you and your committee for your excellent organisational skills in bringing this large conference together so successfully. We thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to next year.

Would it be possible for you to ask the relevant person in your church to send us application forms to join the Hounslow church as members?

Though we are Marthomites, we have yet to join in UK. Anyone wanting to join a Mar Thoma Parish look for Mar Thoma church web sites or write to ECHO <compe.echo@gmail.com>

34th Mar Thoma Family conference-Europe 26th-28th August 2016 Hayes Conference Centre, Derbyshire, DE55 1AU ‘Preserving the Timeless While Adapting to the Times.’

The Sinai, MT Church, North London together with All Saints MT Church Peterborough have accepted the responsibility to host the 34th Mar Thoma family conference.

The initial planning has started. By the grace of God, we have a beautiful theme and very competent speakers to enlighten us. The preparation and nourishment for the conference is entirely based on a staple diet of ‘PASTA’, which is praying, assessing, supporting, thinking and articulating. Under the theme of the conference we will be exploring the timeless truth, our Mar Thoma faith formulations, and the challenges facing Mar Thoma Diaspora Christians in pluralist societies and in various post-modern life situations, and continuing the reformation under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

The Christian faith is timeless, God-given and grace-driven, but its intellectual expressions must change with the passage of time because our thoughts forms change. The presuppositions and suppositions of one age are different from those of another. The practical aspect of Christian life is not the same as that which was proposed and practiced at the ‘Pentecost’, a thousand years ago even before the Second World War or at the beginning of the 21st century. Care must be taken 22

to acculturate the essential Christian faith into the language and thought forms of our present age and younger generations without in anyway losing its core beliefs and fundamental faith these contain.

In this effort, equally great care must be taken not to dilute the Christian faith with the passing fashions of a particular age, so that the cutting edge the Christian faith is not lost. Is something true because it is ancient and traditional? Without doubt, great truths were enunciated in the Bible, other Holy Scriptures, and in ancient times in many places through many holy people and traditions. But of course great truths can also be revealed under the grace of God now and in the future.

May the Holy Spirit help us to ‘Preserve the Timeless While Adapting to the Times.’

Early registration from now on will help us to organise this conference to bring out the maximum possible effect and enjoyment. Please help us with your prayers and advice.

1st Mar Thoma Youth Conference Rennie Philip, Carmel MTC, Liverpool By the grace of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, the 1st Mar Thoma Youth Conference of Europe was conducted successfully. Carmel Mar Thoma Youth Fellowship, Liverpool was the host to this blessed event, and it took place at the Cefn Lea Conference and Holiday Park in Newtown, Wales from the 26th to 28th June 2015. The theme for the conference, ‘Soar on Wings like Eagles’, was based on Isaiah 40:31: ‘but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.’ The subject matters explored were very relevant for the youths of this generation and was easy to relate to.

This 3 day conference had over 125 delegates involving the participation of youths from 9 different Mar Thoma parishes and congregation across Europe. The conference was blessed with the presence of Rev Jameson K. from Dublin, Ireland, as a speaker along with the well renowned authors and missionaries Rod Gilbert and Ruthie Gilbert. Rev Dr Thomas Philips and Family, Rev Vinoj Varghese and Family, Rev Roney Cheriyan and Family, Pushpa J Punamadam Kochamma, along with several other adult members also participated and supported the conference for its smooth running.

The main talks for the conference were held on the

second day. Rev Jameson focused on the liturgical aspects of the theme and provided an in-depth biblical message. The messages given by Rod and 23

Ruthie focused more on the social aspects faced by todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s youth and included stories and experiences from their ministry in Asia. The Q&A sessions with Rod and Ruthie were highly beneficial for the youths as they had the opportunity to express their doubts and ask questions which they have encountered in their lives.

The worship sessions led by Mr Isaac George and teams consisting of youths from St Johns MTC Hounslow and Carmel MTC Liverpool, were especially memorable and were most valued amongst the youths. Their passion and enthusiasm provided an energetic enthusiasm throughout the conference.

Along with the main talks and singing sessions, the other programmes consisted of worship sessions led by various parishes, split- group sessions, group activities, talent night programmes by different churches, games sessions and a testimony session. The testimony session proved to be one of the most important sessions as it allowed the personal dedication and commitment of over 30 young people to the Lord for the first time and rededication of their lives by many in order to be in a deeper relationship with Christ Jesus. The youth members were able to enjoy, bonding, and take away significant life lessons through the various programmes that took place over the 3 days.

Altar Boys & Covenant Girls: Preparing the Future Leaders of the Church Rev. Dennis Abraham, Convener* The Altar Boys & Covenant Girls is a ministry that has started in conjunction with the Silver Jubilee of the Diocese of North America & Europe of the Mar Thoma Church. The program is a vision of our Diocesan Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Dr. Geevarghese Mar Theodosius Episcopa. The goal of this ministry is to encourage our children and youths to (a) learn more about our church, faith, heritage, tradition, (b) to grow spiritually, and (c) to be well equipped to be a leader in the church.

Those who are interested in becoming an Altar Boys or Covenant Girl should be above 12 years of age, and should be a full communicant member of the church, and be committed to learn and serve for at least 3 years. They should be willing to attend the training programs, which take place once a year. This is for a total of 3 years (a total of 3 training programs according to the required syllabus, over the period of 3 years). The vicar serves as a mentor for them during the three years, and helps train them on the local parish level, so that they are ready to attend the next step in training. They are expected to come to church at least 30 minutes early, in order to attend the training conducted regularly by the vicar. The parish vicar delegates the responsibilities and can decide on the dress code.

Once the Altar Boys & Covenant Girls have gone through at least one training class, they are able to participate in the Altar Boys & Covenant Girls dedication service in their church (along with signing pledge form). Once they are dedicated, they are able to help out with the various needs of the parish, in consultation with the parish vicar.

Completion of three years of training is required in order for them to be officially recognized as an Altar Boy or Covenant Girl of the Diocese (a certificate will be issued by the Diocese after successful completion).

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Altar Boys  Assist the Achens during the various sacraments and services.  Greeting to Parishioners.  Help with the arrangements/preparations on the Madbaha and the sanctuary.  Help with the worship service arrangements as directed by the vicar.  Participation in the Thooyaba (preparatory service).  Learn faith & practices of the church.  Lay Ministry.

Covenant Girls  Greeting to Parishioners.  Help with the arrangements in the sanctuary, and for the worship service.  Participation in the Thooyaba (preparatory service).  Learn faith & practices of the church.  Lay Ministry.

May this be a fruitful ministry, which further the building up of the Holy Church and the extension of God’s kingdom. *Rev. Dennis Abraham is the Youth Chaplain of the South East Region, of the Diocese.

Achen was born and brought up in New York, and a member of St. John's MTC. He completed his B.A. in Psychology from Hofstra University in 2006, and completed his Bachelor's in Divinity at the Mar Thoma Theological Seminary, Kottayam, and was ordained in 2011. Achen served in Sehion MTC & St. Peter's MTC, Venmony (Kerala) before coming to Philadelphia.

The Vision of this Ministry The vision and goal of this ministry is to encourage, build up and develop future leaders and mentors in the church. This is also preparing them for them to leading in bible studies in the colleges where they attend (which can be done in arrangement with the local parish vicar/Youth Chaplain) Also, they are expected to go to attend at least three Leadership Conferences (upon reaching age 21), and attend the LEAD classes, and take active leadership in the parish so that they can also be recognized as an official leader and resource person of the church.

This ministry involves much prayer and commitment. The parents, family, friends, and parishes are asked to encourage their youths for this special ministry, and foster their leadership in the parishes. It is the hope that their service to the parish will lead to an orderly and meaningful worship experience, and also strengthen the faith community as a whole.

The Altar Boys & Covenant Girls Subcommittee of the Diocesan Council plans and organizes this ministry. This consists of the Diocesan Bishop, Diocesan Office Bearers, Convener, & Regional Clergy Conveners.

Questions and/or suggestions are welcome.

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Connecting Church-Based Social Action and Church Growth The following is a report published by CTE in their August Newsletter.

The 2014, 2012 and 2010 National Church and Social Action Survey Reports show that churches in the UK have responded significantly to the social challenges in their communities. In 2014, it is estimated that 1.1-1.4 million volunteers participated in church-based social action in the UK, touching millions of people through various initiatives. The number of volunteer hours on social action increased to 114.8m per annum. This is an increase of 16.8% compared with 2012 and 59.4% compared with 2010. Funds given by UK Church members that were spent on social action initiatives increased to £393m in 2014. This is an increase of 14.9% in two years and 36.5% in four years. The average number of social action initiatives undertaken by individual churches has risen to 8.9. This represents an increase of 20.3% compared with 2012 and 81.6% compared with 2014.

However, is all this effort helping to grow the Church or is this just social work?

The leading two encouragements in the 2014 and 2012 Surveys were ‘Community Involvement’ and ‘Attendance at Events/Growth’. This is exciting news for the Church as it shows that social action is helping it connect to local communities and has resulted in Church growth. Social action seems to enable connection to people who are not at a place where they would be interested in Alpha or equivalent courses.

All social action initiatives have an effect on church growth Looking at responses to the question in the 2014 and 2012 surveys, “Thinking of organised activities of your church in the local community in the last 12 months, how do your rate their effectiveness in seeing people added to the church?”. Answers to the question could be; Poor, OK, Good, Excellent. If we look at the responses to

‘Ok’, ‘Good’ and ‘Excellent’, ALL initiatives have some effect on church growth, some a lot more than others.

Some initiatives seem to consistently result in church growth; Parents and toddlers, Caring for elderly (apart from church members), Special needs adults, Cafe open to public, Children's club up to age 11 (apart from church children's ministry), Bereavement counselling (apart from church members), Youth work - 12-18 (apart from church youth ministry). Others seem to be sample dependent.

One might be tempted then as a church leader to just pick the most fruitful on average, but is that the whole story? No: some churches running the same social initiative respond with ‘Poor’; some respond with ‘Good’ and ‘Excellent’. What could be the reasons for this?

Relationships, prayer and invitations are important To help answer this, in the 2014 survey, we asked the additional question, “What made the difference between activities rated as 'good' or 'excellent' in seeing people added to the church versus those rated 'poor' or 'OK'?”. We listed some factors that could be reasons and asked respondents to tick all that applied as well as giving a text box for other reasons. The leading factors mentioned by 50% or more of the sample are:     

We were able to build a long-term relationship with people We were able to spend time with individuals The initiative is regularly prayed for The volunteers are welcoming We invited people to other events

This is very encouraging as these behaviours point to building good relationships – ‘evangelistic gifting’ was well down the list of factors.

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Photo Gallery

Parsonage dedication service of St.Peters Mar Thoma Church, which was held on 14/08/2015 by our Bishop Rt. Revd.Dr. Geevarghese Mar Theodosius

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