Interview row: Syro Malabar Church backs Mar Andrews Thazhath

Kochi: The Syro Malabar Church issued a statement on Thursday supporting Mar Andrews Thazhath, the head of Thrissur Archdiocese and former president of Catholic Bishops' Conference of India, in the aftermath of criticism regarding his comments made in an interview given to Church-run daily Deepika.The Church said that, in this interview, when asked whether some organizations were attempting to foster communalism among Christians, Thazhath discussed the challenges faced by Christians in Kerala and other Indian states, as well as the attacks carried out by extremist groups. He also pointed out external forces that create divisions within the Church by interfering in trivial matters. Thazhath shared information he received about interventions by certain banned extremist organizations aimed at causing divisions within the Church. Following the publication of Thazhath's interview, some responses from certain quarters attempted to divert the issues raised by Thazhath from their original context. At no point in the interview did Thazhath criticize or blame other religions, religious leaders, or beliefs, nor did he say anything that would harm religious harmony. Laity activists in Ernakulam Angamaly had demanded that the prelate give evidence to back his claim. They said that the inference that Popular Front tried to create a split in Syro-Malabar Church was not trivial and needed to be backed with evidence and more details.