Election of bishop of the Syro Malankara eparchy of Saint Ephrem of Khadki, India

The Holy Father has granted his assent to the election by the Synod of Bishops of the Syro-Malankara Major Archepiscopal Church of the Reverend Fr. Mathai Kadavil, O.I.C., until now superior general of the Order of the Imitation of Christ Institute of Pontifical Right, as bishop of the Syro Malankara eparchy of Saint Ephrem of Khadki, India.

Curriculum vitae

Mor Mathai Kadavil was born on 21 December 1963 in Kannathunadu. He entered the Institute of the Order of the Imitation of Christ of the Syro-Malankara Church, and gave his first vows on 15 May 1981. He studied philosophy and theology at Jnana Deepa Vidyapeeth in Pune before receiving priestly ordination on 9 October 1989.

As a priest, he held the office of vice-rector of postulants for one year. From 1990 to 1995, he exercised his ministry in the Syro-Malankara archeparchy of Tiruvalla as parish priest, as well as diocesan director of youth pastoral care, Malankara Catholic Youth Ministry. At the same time, he was in charge of Bethany Publications, the publishing house of his religious institute, and managed the Bethany Book Centre. From 1993 to 1995 he coordinated Malankara Catholic Youth Ministry also at the level of the entire Syro-Malankara Church.

He then continued his studies at the Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium, where he was awarded a doctorate in theology in 2002. Upon returning to his home country, he worked again in the pre-novitiate for a year. From 2003 to 2006 he was provincial counsellor with special responsibility for the Bombay-Pune Missions. From 2006 to 2009 he was parish priest of two parishes, before becoming provincial superior from 2009 to 2015. From 2011 to 2017 he was secretary of the Theological Commission of the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council. In the Synodal Commissions of the Syro-Malankara Church he was secretary of the Synodal Commission for Malankara Theology from 2018. From 2017 to 2020 he held the offices of resident professor and formator at the Malankara Major Seminary, Trivandrum. In 2021 he was elected superior general of the Order of the Imitation of Christ.

He is the author of four books and around 130 articles in English and Malayalam. He also knows Sanskrit, Syriac, German and French.