Guiding Principles for Living Mar Thoma Margam in the Syro-Malabar Migrant Communities

Abstract

Mar Thoma Margam as the sum total of the tradition, theology, spirituality, and way of life of St Thomas Christians is their unique patrimony for centuries. It comprises elements of the unique Christ-experience of the Apostle, St Thomas, the linguistic and liturgical and disciplinary tradition of the East-Syrian Church, and the cultures of India. This special or unique Christian patrimony had been kept intact and flourished until the coming of the Western missionaries who misinterpreted and reformed it according to their ecclesiastical and theological views. The decrees of the Synod of Diamper, new adaptations, customs, rituals, and practices in line with the Western Church made Mar Thoma Margam, a blending of many essential and variable elements and traditions. Since the Syro-Malabar Church is grown beyond the borders of India, the migrant communities, having little contact with Indian customs, practices, and cultures are struggling to keep their ethnic and ecclesial identity together with their integration into the western and urban cultures. There is an urgent need for certain guiding principles that can distinguish the essential and adaptable elements of their ecclesiastical identity.