CCA extends congratulations to newly enthroned head of Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, His Holiness Baselios Marthoma Mathews III

Programme Review and Programme Direction

Two key deliberative sessions during the 15th CCA General Assembly are the Programme Review and Programme Direction sessions.

The Programme Review and Programme Direction sessions will both be conducted in three groups relating to the CCA’s programme areas, namely, (i) General Secretariat (GS), (ii) Mission in Unity and Contextual Theology (MU) and Ecumenical Leadership Formation and Spirituality (EF); and (iii) Building Peace and Moving Beyond Conflicts (BP) and Prophetic Diakonia (PD).

Assembly participants will have the option to join one of three groups for both the Programme Review and Programme Direction sessions. For the sake of coherence, the assigned group will remain the same for both sessions.

General Secretariat

The General Secretariat oversees the coordination of programmatic, administrative, and financial activities of the organization. The GS comprises various departments such as church and ecumenical relations, relations with ecumenical partners, finance, administration, and communications, which provide crucial support and services for the implementation of programs and contribute to the overall functioning of the CCA.

Programmes: Relations with member churches and councils, ecumenical partners; advocacy at the United Nations; ecumenical responses to emerging issues in solidarity; income development and finance; and communications.

Mission in Unity and Contextual Theology (MU) and Ecumenical Leadership Formation and Spirituality (EF)

Under the MU programme area, the CCA accompanies Asian churches to strengthen their mission and witness in multi-religious contexts, revitalise and nurture church unity and the Asian ecumenical movement, and develop contextual theological foundations.

Programmes: Asian Movement for Christian Unity (AMCU); Congress of Asian Theologians (CATS); Asian women doing theology in the context of wider ecumenism; contextualisation of theology in Asia and ecumenical theological education.

The EF programme area focuses on nurturing and developing ecumenical leaders in Asia. The programme aims to enhance spiritual formation and theological understanding, enabling people to actively engage in ecumenical dialogue and collaboration.

Programmes: Ecumenical Enablers’ Training in Asia (EETA); Asian Ecumenical Institute (AEI); Youth and Women Leadership Development; Ecumenical Spirituality and Nurturing of Contextual Liturgical Traditions; Asia Sunday

Building Peace and Moving Beyond Conflicts (BP) and Prophetic Diakonia and Advocacy (PD)

The BP programme area is dedicated to promoting peace, justice, and reconciliation in Asia’s diverse contexts. Through training, advocacy, and dialogue, the programme addresses the root causes of conflicts, empowers communities, and fosters sustainable peacebuilding initiatives.

Programmes: Pastoral Solidarity Visits; Churches in Action for Moving Beyond Conflict and Resolution; Young Ambassadors of Peace in Asia (YAPA); Ecumenical Women’s Action Against Violence (EWAAV); Eco-Justice for Sustainable Peace in the Oikos.

The PD programme area focuses on promoting justice, human rights, and social transformation in Asia. Through advocacy, capacity-building, and raising awareness, the programme addresses systemic injustice, empowers marginalised communities, and advocates for prophetic actions and meaningful change.

Programmes: Human Rights advocacy; Migration, Statelessness, and Trafficking in Persons; Asian Ecumenical Disability Advocacy Network; Asian Advocacy Network on the Dignity and Rights of Children (AANDRoC); Ecumenical Solidarity Accompaniment and Diakonia in Asia (ESADA); Health and Healing; Good Governance; Action Together to Combat HIV and AIDS in Asia (ATCHAA).

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27 October 2021

His Holiness Moran Mar Baselios Marthoma Mathews III was enthroned as the Supreme Head of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church in India, Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan.

The General Secretary of the Christian Conference of Asia, (CCA) Dr Mathews George Chunakara, extended congratulations and prayerful wishes on behalf of the CCA.

Succeeding His Holiness Moran Mar Baselios Marthoma Paulose II, who had passed away earlier this year in July, Baselios Marthoma Mathews III was unanimously elected as the new Head of the Church by the church’s supreme decision-making body, known as the Malankara Syrian Christian Association, during its 57th meeting on 14 October 2021.

The enthronement was held on 15 October 2021 at the holy shrine of St. Gregorios of Parumala in Kerala, India.

The congratulatory message from the CCA General Secretary reads: “We remember with gratitude the many decades of your pastoral ministry and leadership as well as your significant contributions in the area of philanthropic endeavours for the uplift of the poor and the needy and thank God almighty for touching so many lives through your dedicated service.”

The CCA General Secretary’s message to the newly enthroned ecclesiastical leader of an ancient Asian church further conveyed, “We rejoice for, and continue to commit in prayers, the ministry and witness of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church. It is also gratifying to recollect the contributions of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church in the ecumenical journey of the CCA ever since its founding in 1957.”

Dr Mathews George Chunakara expressed the hope that under the esteemed leadership of the new Catholicos, the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church’s ecumenical relations with the Asian ecumenical movement will continue to be strengthened.

The new Catholicos, who served as a professor at the Orthodox Theological Seminary for several years, has authored several books. His Holiness was consecrated as a bishop in 1993.

Having served as the Secretary of the Holy Episcopal Synod, His Holiness also became the Assistant to the Catholicos and Malankara Metropolitan of the Church, and the Vice-President of the Orthodox Theological Seminary in Kottayam.

A philanthropist, scholar, and theological educator, he has been working relentlessly for the upliftment of the poor and the marginalised. He has initiated many charitable institutions over the years to help the unemployed and economically backward classes.

The full text of the CCA General Secretary’s congratulatory message can be found below: